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The Last Story of Mina Lee

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The Last Story of Mina Lee

By: Nancy Jooyoun Kim
Narrated by: Greta Jung
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About this listen

A Reese's Book Club Pick

Instant New York Times best seller

Reminiscent of Celeste Ng's meditations on identity, this searing mother-daughter story explores the diverse and unsettling realities of being an immigrant in America.

Margot Lee's mother is ignoring her calls. Margot cannot understand why, until she makes a surprise trip home to Koreatown, LA. What she finds there makes her realise how little she knows about her mother, Mina. 

Thirty years earlier, Mina Lee steps off a plane to take a chance on a new life in America. Stacking shelves at a Korean grocery store, the last thing she expects is to fall in love. But that moment will have shattering consequences for Mina, and everything she left behind in Seoul. 

Through the intimate lens of a mother and daughter who have struggled all their lives to understand each other, Margot and Mina's story unravels the unspoken secrets that can drive two people apart - or perhaps bind them closer together. 

©2020 Nancy Jooyoun Kim (P)2020 Harper Audio Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Motherhood Parenting & Families Relationships United States Women's Fiction World Literature

Critic reviews

"I loved this book so much." (Reese Witherspoon)

"Suspenseful and deeply felt...raises questions about the reality of the American dream and illuminates stories that often go untold, in life as well as fiction." (Chloe Benjamin, best-selling author of The Immortalists)

"Carefully illuminates the two sides of the silence between a Korean immigrant mother and her Korean American daughter, a silence only too familiar to many of us - and emerges with a stunningly powerful and original novel." (Alexander Chee, best-selling author of How to Write an Autobiographical Novel)
All stars
Most relevant
Really enjoyed this story but it’s hard to review it without getting distracted by the performance on the reader. Monotonous and expressionless, could have ruined a good book.

Poor performance

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I loved this book! One of the best I've read/listened to. Heartbreaking yet also uplifting, and relatable. A must read.

Fantastic, heartbreaking, uplifting story

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Great story, made me want to visit Korea or at least eat some Korean food. I found the narration to be a little difficult at times. A little stilted, electronic even, but I feel bad saying that.

Fascinating story

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As if the book itself wasn’t boring enough, the narration will definitely put you to sleep.

Terrible

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