12 Books to Read if you Loved Pachinko

This book is set in the Korean island of Jeju where women divers are the breadwinners of their families. Unlike Pachinko where we get the points of view of multiple generations, the story in this book is told from the perspective of one woman, but the narrative spans several decades. It covers the Japanese occupation of Korea, the Second World War, the Korean war, and its aftermath. In addition to being similar in terms of themes and scope, this book makes a great companion read to Pachinko, since it covers many of the same historical events the Pachinko refers to, but from a different lens.

Prolific and beloved Chilean author Isabel Allende’s book follows Victor Dalamau, a Spanish doctor who fights against fascist forces in the Spanish Civil War and finds refuge in Chile along with his sister in law Roser. In Chile, Victor bears witness to, and gets involved in, momentous events in Chile’s history. Historical figures like Pablo Neruda and Salvador Allende make appearances. This book is similar to Pachinko in its epic scope, its depiction of the struggles of being exiled from the country of ones birth and having to start over in a foreign land, and in its tender portrayal of the affection between a couple that learns to love each other after being brought together under difficult circumstances.

This book is set in Singapore during and after World War II, and, like Pachinko, has a woman’s experience during a period of upheaval at its center. The protagonist is Wang-Di who, like Pachinko’s Sunja, has to work hard to earn a living and support her family. Powerful family secrets form ominous backdrops to the narrative as in Min Jin Lee’s masterpiece.

Yaa Gyasi’s acclaimed debut novel begins with two sisters in 18th century Ghana: one who is married to a white man, and another who is sold into slavery and shipped off to America. The story follows the descendants of these two women into the 2000s, and we encounter a larger cast of characters than in Pachinko. The stories of these characters provide a glimpse into the evolution of the histories of Ghana and America, much like Pachinko does for the time and place it is set in — albeit on a larger, less detailed scale.

Disoriental is narrated by Kimia Sadr, youngest child of Sara and Darius Sadr, Iranian political activists doomed to oppose every oppressive regime that takes over their country. She moves back and forth in time to record the stories of her ancestors, her large and eccentric extended family, her childhood in Iran, and her family’s ultimate escape to France. The history of Iran is intricately woven into these personal stories. Though a slightly more challenging read due to the nonlinear storytelling, this book is as compelling, tender, and informative as Pachinko.

This book follows generations of a Palestinian family from a village in Palestine, to a refugee camp in Israel and all the way to America. Through the divergent stories of grandparents, parents, and siblings, Mornings in Jenin paints a compelling, heartbreaking account of a country and its people ravaged by war. Tender and powerful, this book packs an emotional punch like Pachinko — and is a very important fictional account of the human costs of one of the most tragic conflicts of our times.

Another epic historical fiction novel that spans several decades, Beasts of a Little Land provides a perspective on the some of the historical backdrop of Pachinko from within South Korea. The story follows Jade, a performer who had been sold into courtesan school in her childhood, and JungHo, an orphan boy who gets involved in the struggle for independence, through the various landmarks in Korea’s history. Like The Island of Sea Women, this book is a great companion read for Pachinko.

This book follows twin sisters Desiree and Stella from the American south as they choose widely different paths in life — when one sister decides to pass for white, she cuts off all ties with her past and her sister. Told in beautiful, poignant prose, the story, like Pachinko, spans a long period of time, and explores what it means to belong in a society that discriminates on the basis of skin color or family origin.

These Ghosts are Family follows generations of a Jamaican family from colonial Jamaica to present day Harlem. The story explores themes of racism, displacement, and identity, and the ways in which the repercussions of an individual’s choice can reverberate through a family.

This book is ambitious in its scope — over 800 pages long, it covers a century and is set in various countries in Europe and western Asia. It follows a Georgian family and their oscillating circumstances across several generations. It gives each character a distinct voice and yet captures the essence of the time and place they live in, documenting the history of a country not frequently encountered in literature written in, or translated into, English.

One of my favorite aspects of Pachinko is the strong bond of friendship between Sunja and her sister-in-law Kyunghee, a bond that is instrumental in ensuring the survival of the family through many hardships. Thousand Splendid Suns has at its core a similarly loving relationship between its two main characters Mariam and Laila, whose sacrifices for each other sustain them through the abuse unleashed upon them as their country, Afghanistan, descends into chaos and violence.

The last book in this list is not fiction, but nonfiction that is as engrossing as historical fiction. It is an account of the experiences of the author, her mother, and her grandmother through the rise of communism in China and the cultural revolution. Like Pachinko, this book foregrounds women’s stories to dive into an important segment of Asian history.