My Innocent Uncle by Ch'ae Man-SikMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
This was a very pleasant surprise. These stories seemed quite nuanced in their critique. Yes, obviously the Japanese occupiers were extremely bad, but the government prior to it also took advantage of the people rather than look out for them. And quite possibly the government after as well. Also, the people who went along with the Japanese during occupation didn't necessarily get what they bargained for.
These are three stories: My Innocent Uncle, about a (pretty brainwashed) pro-Japanese laborer complaining about his leftist Uncle who is against Japanese rule. "A Ready-Made Life" is about an "educated" man not being able to build a life during the time of occupation. And "Once upon a Paddy" was probably my favorite, describing how life for the poor was corrupt before Japanese occupation, with nothing much changing after (and the confusion reigning in the interim).
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