The Forest of Stolen Girls by June Hur
June Hur’s The
Forest of Stolen Girls is an incredibly interesting book. I wasn’t
anticipating how compelling the mystery surrounding the missing girls in this
novel would be. Furthermore, as a historical novel from the 1400s in Korea, I
was expecting something more antiquated and slower, but I was really impressed
with the pacing and challenges to growing up as an adolescent that Hwani faces.
Hwani, as a girl growing up in mideval Korea, has little say or rights.
Especially as more and more girls disappear in the forest, the concerns for her
wellbeing also grow. However, once her father, a famous detective, investigates
these disappearances and disappears as well, Hwani is forced to take action. I
really like the kind of direction and lessons she learned from her detective
father, and saw this book as also a coming of age story where an adolescent
faces challenges that adults around her prevented her from addressing. Yet, she
uses the lessons she’s gleaned from these exclusions to her advantage. The pace
moves briskly, and with a mystery like this, it left me wanting to learn more
and more about what happened. Furthermore, the characters, despite living in a
world nearly 600 years ago, seemed relatable and realistic. I highly recommend
this book and am hoping that June Hur creates more mysteries for Hwani to
solve.
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