Many thanks to NetGalley and Ecco for gifting me a digital ARC of this touching memoir by Nicole Chung - 5 stars!
Nicole is Korean and was adopted as a newborn to white parents. They eventually settled in Oregon, where she was always the only Korean person in school. Her parents sometimes struggled with jobs and money was never plentiful or medical insurance available. She was anxious to leave and went east to college on a scholarship. She got married young and began to raise a family. She realized that her middle class existence was different than what she lived in growing up. When her parents had health problems, money and insurance were always an issue. Then both parents die within a relatively short time period and Nicole is left to deal with loss, guilt and regret.
This was a beautifully written story, and one that is so relatable. Losing a parent is so difficult no matter what, but Nicole had to face the somewhat sudden loss of her father and then her mother died during Covid. She was present for neither death. This is also the story of our medical system - when people work so hard but don't have access to health insurance. As a caregiver for my elderly mother, the cost of services we may need in the future, such as home health care or a memory facility, is out of reach. As we age, we find ourselves weighing decisions between what's best for our parents or our own families - nothing is easy. Wonderful book!
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