“HOME IS THE PLACE WHERE, WHEN YOU HAVE TO GO THERE, THEY HAVE TO TAKE YOU IN.”- ROBERT FROST
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'The girl with seven names' is a moving tale, an autobiography of Hyeonseo Lee. The author undertakes a strenuous journey from North Korea.
A part of the book felt like George Orwell’s 1984: BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU. The only difference being 1984 was fictional and this story was real, depicting the tyranny of the Kim dynasty.
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The first part of the story is about her parents, her childhood and how everybody lives in North Korea with perpetual fear. Children at school are made to pray to the dictator. People are watched from time to time.
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The difficulties, struggles, the hardships faced by the author are unimaginable. Her travels from one country to another, her insecurities, her helplessness, hunger, difficulty finding shelter, and ultimately her survival instinct are all commendable. Our name is our identity, and here the author changes it seven times.
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Home is where we belong, we feel safe and comfortable. She gets uprooted time and again from China, then Laos. But after all her struggles, she settles in South Korea, but can she feel at home?
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Being free is a blessing that we take for granted, stories like these are eye-openers!
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