Instead, she accepts an offer of marriage from a gentle, sickly minister passing through on his way to Japan. He promises her the world, but when she discovers she is pregnant–and that her lover is married–she refuses to be bought. In the early 1900s, teenaged Sunja, the adored daughter of a crippled fisherman, falls for a wealthy stranger at the seashore near her home in Korea. And yet we played on, because we had hope that we might be the lucky ones.” “There could only be a few winners, and a lot of losers. This means that if you choose to purchase, I’ll make a small commission.) Pachinko Synopsis

Keep scrolling because we also suggest three books like Pachinko for further reading. This guide includes 10 book club questions, a synopsis of the book and selected reviews– some loved it…others not so much. This book offers so much for discussion as it follows the characters through political upheaval and their hugely consequential personal decisions, and our Pachinko discussion guide will help you get the conversation started around this deep and expansive story. The story follows a young Sunja from her origins in Korea with her humble and hardworking parents, to her future in Japan, and the very different lives of her children and grandchildren.

Our Pachinko book club questions will help spur on your discussion around these subjects and the novel’s fascinating characters. Spanning generations and countries, Pachinko follows a family through wars, personal tragedies, coming together, falling apart, and figuring out the importance of identity and origins.

Pachinko reviews book