In her latest bestseller,
Lisa See brings to life the fascinating but little-known story of the legendary women divers of the Korean island of Jeju.
When the historical novel was published, many readers focused on the endurance and physical daring of the women in an unforgiving environment where a momentary mistake can lead to death.
But See says “The Island of Sea Women” has taken on a different meaning in a year of pandemic and political upheaval. The focus now is on the psychological resilience, courage and persistence the women needed to survive in a tumultuous era that included the 1930s Japanese occupation, World War II and violent repression by South Korea’s government.
Good morning, and welcome to the L.A. Times Book Club newsletter.
With all that’s happened in 2020, I’m so grateful for this one-of-a-kind community book club that’s brought us together in such unexpected ways.
This year, on the page and in our live and virtual gatherings, we dived into a pandemic classic as the real-world pandemic hit, rode with the Compton Cowboys as protests filled our streets, swam from Southern California to Iceland and the South China Sea, cooked at home with two California chefs, celebrated a visionary L.A. sci-fi legend, and listened to the inspiring, heartbreaking verse of eight Black poets reeling from injustice and uncertainty.
Dec. 10, 2020 6:14 pm ET
Cara Black has earned a loyal following with her series starring Parisian investigator Aimée Leduc. This year, Ms. Black showed a new facet of her talent with the historical thriller
“Three Hours in Paris” (Soho Crime 348 pages, $27.95). It’s the ticking-clock saga of Kate Rees, a sharpshooting American war widow trained by the British and smuggled into Paris in 1940 to assassinate the leader of Nazi Germany. The reader assumes Kate will miss her shot at Adolf Hitler this is not alternative history but what surprises is what comes next. Kate makes contact with Resistance operatives in a race to elude a German policeman tasked by the Führer himself with her swift capture.