Lost Names: Scenes from a Korean Boyhood

Laura Williams
St. Monica School
Sunbury, Pa
Lost Names is an outstanding book about growing up during occupied Korea from 1932-1945. Although geared to middle school readers, I used this book as a read-aloud to my second grade students. Some portions, such as the ones with extreme cruelty on the part of the Japanese, had to be edited as I read. However, the bulk of the book was readily understood by my students. They listened with extreme attention and were always eager for the next section. The story dovetailed nicely with our Olweus Bully Free program. Through the narrative, they were able to empathize with the main character when he was bullied by the Japanese. They were astounded that adults would treat children so brutally. They were also mesmerized my the accounts of food and the lack of food. For them, food is readily available and provided generously. The whole concept of living in a country at war is foreign to them, therefore an opportunity for insights into the experiences of children in warring countries. The story would be too grim for young students except for the positive and hopeful ending. My students loved that the author wrote it about himself and that he lived a comfortable life in America afterward. I intend to use this book every year with my class. It has been a wonderful addition to my read aloud library.

Review by NCTA teacher Brianne Brown (Pittsburgh)
10th Grade American History II (Reconstruction - Present Day)
Plum Senior High School
Lost Names: Scenes from a Korean Boyhood, written by Richard Kim, is a story about a Korean boy growing up during the Japanese occupation of Korea (1932 – 1945). Kim describes his book as fiction because much of it was written from his memory and the memory of others, which may, or may not, be entirely accurate. Kim’s story is told through seven heart-wrenching chapters. By the end of the novel, the reader empathizes with Kim, his family, and their story.
Kim’s story begins when he is just one year old. The first chapter, “Crossing,” describes his family’s flee from Korea to Manchuria in search of a better life. This chapter sets the tone for the rest of the novel. It is clear to the reader that Kim’s mother is very supportive of his father, and that his father will do whatever it takes to ensure that his family is safe. Family is a constant theme in this novel, as it becomes apparent that Kim’s parents, grandparents, and siblings are the most important aspects of each other’s lives.
Throughout the story, Kim’s family returns to Korea (in the aptly titled chapter “Homecoming”). Upon returning home, Kim attends a Japanese school. Kim struggles to honor his family and achieve success in his school, as these ideas are conflicting. Kim frequently finds himself getting into trouble (and severely beaten) for disobeying his Japanese instructors. Honor becomes another strong theme in the novel.
The story reaches its peak in the chapter with the same title as the book, “Lost Names.” In this chapter, Kim and his family are forced to change their Korean/family names to Japanese names. Kim, his father, and his grandfather visit the cemetery of their ancestors. Kim watches as his father and grandfather weep for their names and their identity. Kim doesn’t understand this. Identify becomes the third theme of the novel. The Japanese stripped the Korean’s of their way of life, but they still had their identity – until that was forcibly changed. Ancestry and identity are very important aspects of life in Korea, and to have that ripped from you is beyond devastating.
The chapter titled, “An Empire of Rubber Balls,” encapsulates the confusion and frustration felt by the Koreans as the Japanese forced their way into their society. Kim and his classmates are ordered to collect as many rubber balls (previously given to the children from the Japanese) as they can from every household. The rubber balls were needed for the Japanese war effort. While Kim is collecting the balls, his grandmother suggests that he deflate the balls so he is able to fit more into his bag. This technique makes much sense, as the objective is to collect as many balls as possible and as quickly as possible. Kim is punished for deflating the rubber balls because that was not part of his instructions from the Japanese. The final theme of the novel is fear and confusion.
In the final chapter, “In the Making of History-Together,” the Japanese surrender to the allied forces. Kim tells of his family’s involvement in the surrender of the Japanese in their town and the elation felt afterward.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this novel. It was a very easy read, and I found it incredibly interesting. I found it entertaining and historically accurate (this combination is not easy to achieve). Lost Names would be appropriate for students in the 7-12 grade range, depending on how the novel is taught and in what class. I teach tenth grade American History. I would use this novel as a supplement during my unit on World War II. The students already have so much knowledge of the war in Europe (i.e. the Holocaust, D-Day, etc.), they rarely get a glimpse of what the war was like in Asia and how the Japanese were truly an imperialistic power. This novel would be an excellent tool to enhance the understanding of the war and how it affected other cultures. I think students in grades 7-12 would identify with Kim and his struggles.
Lost Names is a truly beautiful story of hardship, fear, and angst during one of the worst times in world history. I highly recommend it!

6th Grade English Teacher
Shady Side Academy
I loved this book, and although I do teach some pretty high level six-graders, I think that it would be better in a seventh or eighth grade classroom if you were going to use it in middle school. It would also work very well in high school.
It is the memoir of Richard Kim growing up during the Japanese occupation of Korea through the Japanese surrender, 1932-1945. Kim calls the novel fiction because he is not sure of all the details and many of his memories are based on emotions rather than facts, so he has had to fill in the details. The story is gripping, and I think that students will be pulled in especially because many of his experiences take place in school. He describes how difficult it is not to speak Korean to his classmates and how stupid he thinks it is to bow to the Emperor. He also explains many interactions with friends and classmates. We also feel his fear of the Japanese masters.
As an English teacher, there are many ways you could use this in class. You could use it to study memoir. You could have the entire class read this book or have several memoirs going, even several memoirs of WWII, which I think would be very interesting because then you could study perspective. Whenever we read a novel in first person in class, we look at perspective and certainly when one reads a memoir, this must be considered, so reading several memoirs of WWII or diaries, could help the students gain a better perspective on the war and how it affected such a great number of people. This could also help them understand that the novel is not anti-Japanese. It is simply told from a Korean perspective, and Koreans suffered greatly under Japanese control. Kim does include some positive Japanese character. You could have the small groups meet, but then meet as an entire class, to gain a better understanding on the war. I think it is also interesting to look at how different people and personalities reacted to the war. Richard Kim became very angry by all that saw happening to Korea and all that he and his family suffered. Especially when you read the last chapter, you see his frustration and anger released. On the other hand, if you read The Diary of Ann Frank, she remained hopeful. Students could also look at family life during the war through different stories or just Lost Names. War brings families closer, but puts tremendous strain on them. This is certainly demonstrated in Lost Names.
The novel is very well written and a true pleasure to read. My students read so many Holocaust novels and know quite a bit about that aspect of the war, so I think this novel would be a great addition to a social studies or English class.

Shannon Crombie
12th Grade Social Studies: Contemporary American Democracy
Canon-McMillan High School
Lost Names by Richard E. Kim tells the story of seven distinct events during the childhood of the narrator, and the events take place in Korea during the Japanese occupation from 1932-1945. The novel provides first person accounts with detailed descriptions from a child’s perspective of living through foreign occupation and the tension, confusion, discrimination and consequences created by it. The novel also provides insight regarding Korean, and to some extent, Japanese culture. The major themes addressed in Lost Names include family, identity and honor toward one’s ancestry, all of which are critical in Korean society.
From the initial chapter, the reader understands the anxiety created by the Japanese occupation as the narrator and his parents attempt to flee Korea to Manchuria. The detainment and abuse of his father by the Japanese Thought Police and Military Policemen lead the family to a daunting hike across the river to their new life and contemplation of the family’s predicament. Another chapter, Homecoming, explains the family’s return to Korea and the hardship faced by the narrator while attending the Japanese school for Korean children. On his first day, a Japanese teacher accuses the narrator of lying and severely beats him, until a Korean teacher intervenes. In spite of being “home” their situation is grim.
The chapter for which the novel is named provides the most poignant illustration of the significance of identity and the suffering caused when it is lost. During the occupation, the Japanese require Koreans to take new, Japanese family names. The child narrator seems oblivious to its consequences, even after a trip to the cemetery with his father and grandfather, where the eldest cries out “We are a disgrace to our family. We bring disgrace and humiliation to your name. How can you forgive us?”
The narrator’s stories of life in occupied Korea eventually lead to the novel’s dramatic conclusion, the Japanese surrender and its aftermath. While listening to the radio address, the narrator interprets for his grandfather the speech given by the Japanese Emperor announcing the surrender of Japan. Upon word of this, Korean families gain their dignity and salvage their identities. As the narrator describes the tears of joy by Koreans and dishonor of the Japanese, the reader experiences the raw emotions evoked by such overwhelming events. While the occupation leads to feelings of resentment and anger in many Koreans, the last chapter also reveals the compassion and humanity of the narrator’s family, in spite of their suffering at the hands of the Japanese.
The narrative considers several complex issues which can allow for in depth analysis, making the novel useful in higher level courses. At the same time, the simple prose makes the story accessible to students with a variety of reading abilities, including students who struggle with reading comprehension. Given its readability, students grades nine through twelve could all enjoy the novel. Seventh and eighth grade students may also enjoy the story.
Its themes and historic setting make Lost Names applicable to Social Studies and English curriculum, and it provides a great opportunity for cross-curricular and team teaching. The book is a quick read and well worth the time, but given curriculum requirements, it can be difficult to teach an entire novel. Fortunately, the chapters of this narrative could also be read as individual short stories, without losing any of their power or significance.

Kelly Tobias
Book Review: Lost Names
I am an English teacher at Chartiers Valley High School. This past year I taught World Literature 12 Advanced and English 9. Next year I will be teaching AP English 12 and English 9. I read the book Lost Names as part of my NCTA Seminar. This novel is most appropriate for ninth or tenth grade students, but I think you could also use it in a higher level course by changing the way in which it is taught.
Lost Names is written as a first person narrative account of a boy growing up in an occupied Korea. This style of narration combines the innocence and confusion a child would feel going through these tumultuous times with the insight and wisdom of an adult looking back on these events (think Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird). The events in the novel are based on memories of the writer, Richard Kim, but he chose to write this story as a work of fiction since he can not be positive about the accuracy of his memories (particularly dealing with dialogue) and the sequence in which these events occurred. He has chosen seven different vignettes to include in this novel, including the narrator’s first day in a Japanese school and a typical Sunday living in occupied Korea. The most compelling chapter, and the one which the novel was named for, was the chapter in which the people of the narrator’s village were forced to surrender their Korean names in favor of new Japanese names. The pain and shame felt by the characters was both heartbreaking and believable. The Japanese occupation of Korea is a time in history that most Americans know little about, and this book is a great way to introduce this subject matter. Overall, the novel Kim created is a quick read, with a compelling story and realistic characters.
When working with ninth or tenth grade students, this novel is a great way to teach characteristics of first person narration and to study characterization and the biases that occur with this type of narrative structure. It could also be used in a social studies class as a companion piece to a unit on World War II. With older students, this novel would be an accessible piece to use to introduce the concept of historical criticism. It is also a great piece to discuss when studying postmodernism, as Kim blurs the boundaries of fiction and memoir with this piece. Kim’s own disclaimer that “all the characters and events described in this book are real, but everything else is fiction” is a great place to start a dialogue about how this could be considered a postmodern piece. I also think it is this unique characteristic of the novel that gives it its power.

Review by NCTA teacher Reed Miller
High School History (Modern Asia and World Civ)
Sewickley Academy (Pittsburgh)
Lost Names by Richard Kim is a wonderful, readable, and useable account of growing up in colonized Korea from 1932 through the end of World War II that would be perfect for a high school class room (but would probably work for an upper level middle school class as well). The book as a whole tells a continuous story, but it is broken down into different chapters, each of which tells its own story. Because of this format, a teacher could just as easily use one chapter in isolation as the book as a whole.
The content touches on many different aspects of history and culture. It could obviously be used to teach about Japanese imperialism and World War II, but it allows the reader to see these events from a perspective not often considered by Westerners: that of Asians living within the colonial network. The Korean populace had to endure ever-increasing Japanese oppression. The psychological domination, from demanding that Japan be referred to as the “mainland” to the “taking” of Korean names allows an insight into the mental brutality of the Japanese during this era. This book could be extremely effective as a tool to teach the beginnings of World War II in Asia, a subject often glossed over in comparison to the events in Europe at the time.
At the same time, the book gives personal insight into East Asian, and especially Korean culture. The deep cultural importance of Confucianism is portrayed repeatedly, between the main character and his parents, grandparents, teachers, and friends. While the philosophies of Confucianism are never discussed, the story continually illustrates the day to day manifestations of this world view. Along with Confucianism, traditional religious beliefs and practices such as ancestor worship/reverence are examined. The title of the book revolves around this issue, with the Korean people being forced to take Japanese surnames and thus disgracing their ancestors.
An accessible and enjoyable read, Lost Names would allow a teacher to intertwine a number of different cultural, religious, and historical concepts into one unit. It is certainly a book that I would recommend for a variety of different social studies courses.

Review by NCTA teacher Daniele Mecchia – Social Studies Teacher
Grade 9 – US History II (1845-1880)
Grade 10 – Government and Economics
Thomas Jefferson High School
Book Review: Lost Names: Scenes from a Korean Boyhood
Although Lost Names: Scenes from a Korean Boyhood is described as a novel, there is much debate as to whether it should be classified as fiction or nonfiction. Its author Richard Kim clarifies this notion by saying that while “all the characters and events described in the book are real…everything else is fiction.” In this fictional autobiography Kim recounts the experiences of his youth and adolescence in Japanese occupied Korea during the Second World War (1931-1945). While the novel obviously addresses the historical setting and conflict of the time, it also brings to light issues of political change and persecution, as well as cultural elements and the struggle to find one’s identity. Lost Names would be an asset to any secondary school’s curriculum as its interdisciplinary nature lends itself to use in a variety of classroom settings.
The novel is organized into seven chapters, each giving readers a glimpse into scenes from Kim’s boyhood and his family’s experiences during the Japanese occupation of Korea and World War II. It follows the family from the beginning of their struggle as they try to escape Japanese persecution to the surrender of the Japanese empire and Korea’s liberation. Each chapter chronicles the historical events of the time as well as presents universal themes that can apply to various cultures and ages, such as political change, nationalism, and one’s sense of identity. The name of the novel symbolizes Kim’s lost sense of identity as he and his family are forced to renounce their Korean names and adopt new Japanese ones. After adopting new names, the characters (including Kim and his father) make their way to the village cemetery where they offer their apologies to their ancestors for allowing the Japanese to permeate Korean culture and ways of life. Both events take place in the fourth chapter and are by far the most powerful scenes depicted in the novel.
As far as utilizing Lost Names in the classroom, it is best suited for a high school setting, but could be used across a variety of disciplines including Social Studies and English. Students in grades nine through twelve would definitely be capable of relating to the book because the central character is close to them in terms of level of development and maturity. However, in order to gain the most from Kim’s story, students should definitely be exposed to the historical time period of the book as well as the cultural backgrounds of both Japan and Korea. Additionally, depending on the particular curriculum and objectives of using Lost Names in the classroom, it can be read as an entire novel or excerpts can be used to highlight certain issues/themes.
The novel readily adapts to a variety of assignments ranging from dissecting the history of the time, to students placing themselves in Kim’s shoes, or having students debate what truly dictates a person’s identity. It would be the perfect complement to a class that covers the World War II time period because it illustrates a unique and often overlooked impact of Japanese colonization. Students in a World Cultures or Global Studies course would also benefit from reading Lost Names because it provides a springboard for discussion and contemplation on how one’s culture characterizes an individual while also looking at issues like political persecution, freedom, and nationalism. The novel is well written, easy to read and digest, but above all provides interesting insight into a tumultuous time period in history, not only for those fighting the war, but for all those impacted by it, even a child. The readability and flexibility of Lost Names make it a tremendous resource for teachers and students alike.

Review by NCTA teacher Justin Kaszonyi
Thomas Jefferson High School
Grade 9 – US History II (1845-1880)
Grade 11 – US History III (1880 – 1945)
Grade 12 – Global Studies II (European History 1400-1815)
Lost Names Book Review
Lost Names: Scenes from a Korean Boyhood is the fictional autobiography of a Korean man named Richard Kim. Kim tells his own personal story of growing up in as boy in Japanese occupied Korea from 1931 until 1945. Kim divides his work into seven chapters, each encompassing a different time in his life while showing the ever changing hardships that he and his family were forced to endure at the hands of the Japanese. It is a masterful work that gives the reader a first-hand perspective on the trials and tribulations in a turbulent time in Asian history.
I feel that this novel would be appropriate for high school students, grades nine to twelve. While older students may have an easier time understanding the global scope of World War II, I think that younger high school students (grades nine and ten) would have an easier time relating to the personal experiences that Kim describes in vivid detail. I feel that both age groups would directly benefit from reading the Kim’s tales of bravery and personal growth in the face of danger and violence in classroom and surrounding community.
What I would most like to know about this material is exactly what genre does Richard Kim’s work fall into. In the Author’s Note, Kim explains that he wrote Lost Names as a work of fiction, but all characters and events are real. The first thing students will ask is “if these things really happened to real people?” How do I answer that question? Being that the people mentioned really existed and they experienced these occurrences, I suppose I would tell them that it is a true story. I would appreciate it if the author was more specific in his explanation before using this work in class.
Richard Kim begins Lost Names with a harrowing tale of his parents attempting to cross over the border into Manchuria in the dead of winter. Kim is a child in the tale, and his family is trying to move out of Korea to escape Japanese persecution during the early stages of World War II. The reader finds out the Kim’s father had been involved in some form of nationalistic activities that landed him in jail for some time. Kim’s father is taken into custody at the border by the Japanese military police while Kim’s strong willed mother stays with him outside of the train station for several hours in the cold. Just when the reader thinks that his father will not return, he comes back after being beaten during his cross examination. Afterwards, Kim’s parents undertake a treacherous voyage across the frozen river before making it safely onto the relative safety of Manchurian soil.
Kim’s second chapter entitled Homecoming tells the story of Kim’s return to his grandparents homestead in a small town south of Pyongyang several years later. It is Kim’s first day at a new school, and he vibrantly describes the difficulty he has trying to fit in with his classmates at a Japanese run school. Kim is beaten by a Japanese teacher for singing “Oh Danny Boy” as his introduction in class. After returning home, Kim realizes that he has won the respect and admiration of his fellow classmates when they come to visit him. In receiving the beating, Kim has missed out on an opportunity to go swimming with his new friends, which proves fatal to one friend in particular.
The third chapter entitled “One upon a Time, On a Sunday” progresses the reader to the following summer. Kim’s father and a few friends meet up to talk in a bookstore, where Kim was going to pick out a book. One of Kim’s teachers, a Korean is present in the scene when Kim’s father and group of adults shame him for serving the Japanese purpose in school. This chapter serves to show the reader of the undying nationalistic fervor of Kim’s father, and the general resentment shown to Koreans who aided and abided the enemy during the time of occupation.
The fourth chapter “Lost Names” is the most poignant and dramatic of the entire novel. Kim is a few years older, and the Japanese have issued an edict declaring that all Koreans must adopt Japanese names. Kim walks with his father and friends to the police station to submit their name choice. The men act as if they are going to a funeral, and the reader realizes that the village men are suffering as if they lost many loved ones. In giving up their names, the men feel as if they have let down not only their living families, but their deceased ancestors as well. The most powerful scene of the entire novel takes place at the village graveyard, where Kim’s father and grandfather apologize to their ancestors for letting them down not only in changing their names, but allowing the Japanese to destroy their culture and way of life.
In “An Empire of Rubber Balls” the reader is taken several years further into Kim’s life. The Japanese are no longer winning the war, and the people of rural Korea feel the brunt of military rationing. As class leader of the fifth grade, Kim is ordered to collect all of the rubber balls in the village issued to the Koreans as part of the Japanese celebration of taking Singapore and Malay. Kim is beaten by a Japanese athletic teacher for having deflated the balls he collected. Despite his visibly swollen face, Kim musters the strength to participate in the previously scheduled school pay celebrating the Crown Prince’s birthday. The reader sees how Kim has come into his own as a young adult, when he purposefully forgets his lines to sabotage the play. Kim is following in the footsteps of his father as he begins to show his own Korean patriotic feelings.
The sixth installment “Is Someone Dying” places a thirteen year old Kim at a school labor camp away from his family. Suffering from malnourishment Kim and his classmates are building a runway for kamikaze planes with their bare hands. The reader learns that Kim’s father has been arrested and placed in an internment camp as Japanese control of Korea continues to deteriorate.
The final chapter “In the Making of History-Together” shows Kim’s father as a town leader, trying to secure control of the town away from the Japanese Police force that still occupies the station. The Japanese have surrendered and the Koreans are taking out thirty-one years of frustration on the Japanese colonists and businesses in the area. Kim decides to shelter the Shinto priest and his wife from a lynch party before directly participating with his father in the surrender of the Japanese Police headquarters, ensuring liberation. Kim is now a young man who directly participates in and experiences the patriotic zeal of his people in finally ridding themselves of the hated Japanese overlords.
In conclusion, I feel that Lost Names: Tales of a Korean Boyhood is a valuable piece of literature that should be utilized in American education. Richard Kim gives students a brilliantly written firsthand account of what it was like to grow up in Japanese occupied Korea during World War II. It is currently being used by an NCTA alum in our English department. I feel that it could be very rewarding for students to read in my Social Studies classroom as well, particularly in my US History III (1880-1945) class. Ideally I would use it to supplement my unit on World War II. Either by students reading experts of the text or the entire novel, I would like to have students write a paper placing themselves in Kim’s shoes, trying to predict how they would act in his situation. As Americans, we do not know what it was like to live in a land occupied by an enemy army. How can you truly value your freedom if you have never had it taken away? As Richard Kim shows, war not only affects those actively fighting it, it impacts every aspect of life for those caught in the middle of it.

Review by NCTA teacher Allison Newmyer (Pittsburgh)
10th Grade American Literature
Oakland Catholic High School
Review of Lost Names: Scenes from a Korean Boyhood
Lost Names is the fictional autobiography of Richard Kim, a Korean who lived through the Japanese occupation of his country during World War II. It is deemed a fictional autobiography because according to Kim while all of the characters and events that are described in the book are real, everything else is fiction. Because of the age of novel’s protagonist, I feel that the novel would be best used in a ninth or tenth grade classroom. However, it would lend itself nicely to a cross-curricular unit between history and English classes due to the way the novel pairs finding one’s identity during a time of political and social turmoil.
Lost Names is organized into seven chapters, and each chapter takes the reader along on the journey through Kim’s childhood while he lives in occupied, war torn Korea. The story revolves around the idea that Kim and his family lost their identities due to the Japanese occupying forces that mandate that all Koreans abandon their Korean names for a better Japanese name. The rest of the story then describes how Kim and his family battle to maintain their Korean cultural identity and way of life while being forced to adhere to the ways of the occupying Japanese forces. The reader is able to witness Kim’s family, school and social life through his eyes as he and his family are forced to adhere to the rules set forth by the occupying Japanese forces. Many of the events and situations described in the novel are emotionally charged and would serve as the jumping off point for journaling and other “what if you were in his shoes” writing assignments. I feel that students would be moved to write about the times that Kim is punished in school, or when he is considered to finally be a man in the eyes of his father and grandfather because the emotions that Kim experiences in these two examples are ones that are still felt by adolescents in this day and age. There are many themes that could be explored through study of this novel, namely discovering one’s identity; the bonds of family; and the importance of cultural identity.
The novel would work best if it is paired with a history unit on World War Two that specifically focuses on what was going on at the time in Korea and Japan. It would also be beneficial for students to spend some time reviewing the cultural background of Korea and Japan because a thorough understanding of the two nation’s cultural similarities and differences is critical if students are to get the most out of the text. Lost Names is an easy read and could be broken up into excerpts used to highlight or illustrated certain ideas or concepts if there is not time to read the entire novel.

This book delves into a very little-portrayed aspect to the Second World War in Korea under Japanese rule. The narrative follows the experience of a boy, from infancy, as he grows to the age of 12 and fights against the assimilating forces of a Japanese education...and does so under the shadow of his own father's reputation as a respected underground freedom fighter. Each chapter of the book functions as a separate flashback of an event from the boy's experience. A good read for selected samples of life under foreign Imperial rule (7-12) and a quick, non-challenging book for lower-level English students. I enjoyed the book, but my experience was ruined by the author's note at the end essentially stating that the presumably nonfiction piece was largely an artifice. I felt misled and disillusioned with the journey I believed to have witnessed to be an actual historical account.