A LIVING REMEDY

BY: Nicole Chung

 Chung was born in Seattle in 1981 to Korean parents who placed her for adoption after she was on life support for months. She was raised in Oregon by white Catholic adoptive parents. Chung began writing essays in her mid-20s after taking a nonfiction class. Chung served as The Toast's managing editor from 2014 until the site's closure in 2016, at which point she became the editor-in-chief of Catapult magazine. She continues to write essays on gender, race, and media issues, such as the impact of seeing Asian American figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi on television and her encounters with casual bigotry at dinner parties.

Rates:

Good reads:4.11/5

Purchase from:

*Barnes&Noble

*Books-A-Million

*Bookshop

*IndieBound

*Target

*Wallmart

Genres:

Biography, Memoir, family, Relationship

 

Intro

Nicole Chung, a contributor to TIME, wrote about her upbringing as a Korean American adopted child in a community with a large white population in her first biography. Her subsequent book, A Living Remedy, continues her investigation into identity while concentrating on her sadness following the deaths of both of her parents. 2018 saw the death of Chung's father due to diabetes and kidney problems. Her mother is later given a cancer diagnosis and passes away during the COVID-19 pandemic, which occurs less than a year later. In A Living Remedy, Chung grapples with these devastating losses and analyzes the social injustices that exist in American society by relating the difficulties her parents had in getting medical care. The end product is a touching depiction of a girl trying to make sense of life while figuring out her position in a damaged world. The result is a poignant depiction of a kid coming to terms with her place in a damaged world—and trying to make sense of life without her parents.

Review

In 'A Living Remedy,' a daughter confronts the shortcomings of our health-care system.

Npr “Maureen Corrigan”

From the bestselling author of ALL YOU CAN EVER KNOW.

“Good reads”

This open-hearted, truthful narrative will be a boon to others as Chung finds a way to grieve without self-punishment.

“Kirkus”

A writer thinks on the unfairness of health treatment in the midst of her bereavement.

“The Washington post”

It was an excellent combination of family affection and medical care considerations.

                                 “Amazon”

Editors' Pick from the New York Times

Time, Harper's Bazaar, Esquire, USA Today, Booklist, and Powell's April Indie Next Pick all named it a Best Book of the Year.

An Adult Crossover Selection from the Junior Library Guild

USA Today Book Club Selection

Editors' Choice on Amazon