"The Heart of a Homeless American Dream"
Banish the myth or legend about the Korean immigrant
family who arrives in America to "make good," to succeed
in achieving the American Dream! Instead welcome to the
world of one particular Korean-American girl, Joon-Mee, a
12 year-old girl whose mother descends into the world of
madness after Joon's father disappears. Almost every reader has seen and heard about the world of
homeless adults. Now Joon-Mee describes for us her
audacious life in a world of homeless young adults or
teens who sometimes sleep in the threatening world of
public shelters, who virtually overnight become adult
survivors of just about every ruse to manipulate and
destroy their young minds and spirits. You'll meet the character Knowledge, who always has a
bigger and better plan to make enough money to sleep off
the streets and to buy drugs; including the theft of a
huge Christmas tree; Wink a boy prostitute, characters
from an escort service where Joon is introduced to the
world of prostitution, and more. When Joon decides to go straight, she meets up with an
uncompromising employment counselor and a well-intentioned
neighbor who offers consolation about a future whose
dreams and goals seem impossible. Miles from Nowhere doesn't build up to a grand crescendo
but instead steadily infuses the drama with hints of deep,
fragile insecurity lurking behind surface toughness
visible to observers of this very cold, hard world. A
young child, really, has no other options - the proverbial
but too true reality of Joon's world. But the Joon Mee
begins to undergo an unexplained metamorphosis, and the
reader can actually feel her tension and anguish as she
attempts to leave an imprisoned, lethal world. Nami Mun's language flows from lyrical prose-like
descriptions to authentic dialogue that alerts the reader
to realize this young author knows this tragic world. It's
that realization confirmed over and over again that makes
this a riveting, stunning read that evokes emotional
reaction and numerous questions about choice, despair,
survival and hope! A wise, literate, fresh story from an author to closely
follow in the days to come!
Reviewed by Viviane Crystal
Courtesy Crystal Reviews
Posted November 12, 2008
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