Saying Goodbye

Saying Goodbye by marie g. lee is one of my favorite books. its about a Ellen Sung who is going off to Havard for College. she is a korean anerican but really know nothing about her heritage. when she gets to college she is suprised by how many asians there are but feels like she doesn't really belong because she can't read or speak korean. she is still interested though. shes not used to being called asian instead of oriental. she grew up in rural minnesota where people didn't really know about right terminology. she meets her room mate leecia who is african american and automaticaly befriends her. she signs up for taekwondo and meets a guy named jae. they hook up and her teachs her korean and he introduces her to the korean american students of harvard. leecia is part of a african american student group and when a rapper with racial slurrs about koreans is coming to harvard things get all messed up between leecia and ellen.

I think Marie G. Lee has lots of skill in writing, that is a fact if you read at least 1 of her books. I never liked writing up until now, and it is because of her, thanks Marie!

This is such an original and accurate portrayal of college life, esp. the PC and ethnic identity issues that people have to work out (and often do badly). I don't know why this is technically a children's book. I'm a college student and I thought it was one of the best things I'd read in a long time. Anyone who wants to know what college is like--or if you're already there--should read this. It is eerily true to life, I think.

This book by Marie G. Lee is the best I have read on my own time. I'm a Korean-American myself and I can see what Ellen feels when she is in Harvard. This book shows what high school, and even college is like. There is racism everywhere. The blacks hate the white, the white hate the hindi's and the white hate the asians. Her boyfriend, Jae, has went though a lot with his parents. I would love to see Marie make a conclusion about Ellen and her college experiance in Harvard.

I am really touched by this masterpiece of Marie, Lee. As far as I know, she is remarkably the only fiction writer in the States to struggle against racial conflicts involved in Koreans with a pen. The theme of her novels is basically finding one's identity. This is revealed in her first novel, 'Finding My Voice,' which also stirred me up body and soul. Her story telling is light and flimsy, I've gotta admit, but beneath it lies a firm belief in identity in ethnic background. In my case, I, as a student abroad, have gone through a great deal of troubles while living in Panama, as much as Ellen has. So I understand very well how she feels. I shared empathy with her. In place of my original Korean name, I was given a new American name for convenience sake, which gave me deep confusion about my self. The author describes well how Ellen encounters and accepts her mother country's culture, one event after another. The last part is quite impressing. Better read with your eyes! Another thing remarkable is the confrontation between Ellen and her roommate and once close friend, Leecia, developed by L.A. riot in 1992. Both are included in minority groups, in anguish about their ethnic identity. It's really a sad part to see them resent each other, though they have many things in common. I wonder what makes a person hate other people from a different background without specific reason. Anyway, this novel is really a good one to read. Recommendable, I shall say.