The Irish Mail on Sunday

Pachinko

Min Jin Lee Apollo €17.99

- Max Davidson

The setting may be light years from Brexit or Donald Trump’s America, but this beautifull­y crafted family saga – by the bestsellin­g author of Free Food For Millionair­es – feels nonetheles­s like a fable for our times. It opens at the start of the 20th century, with a Korean girl called Sunja falling pregnant and being offered the chance to make a new life in Japan by a young Christian minister. But the immigrant experience is fraught with hardship and, as Sunja and her descendant­s find, poisoned by prejudices that take years to dissipate – if they ever do. It is a strong story, delivered with exemplary simplicity.

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