One of the books that I read for the first semester was called "The Red Queen" by Margaret Drabble. The genre of the book is historical and can be confusing while reading because there are many transitions and references from the Joseon Dynasty in Korea to the modern times. The book is 325 pages long and includes a detailed prologue, afterword,acknowledgment, a note on sources, and bibliography. Since a large part of the book is based on The Crown Princess Hyegyong telling her life as if her spirit still existed in a memoir that is has the spirit also has a sense of the current times. The memoir of the Crown Princess was sent to another character, Barbara Halliwell, that has a connection to the Princess and her life which is the second part of the book. Similar to ourselves sometimes feeling a connection to a scenario or character in a character. It starts off mainly as a autobiography from the faintest memory of Hyegyong from her father arranging her marriage to Crown Prince Sado when she was nine year olds. She describes her life in the royal court and becoming caught up trying to survive in a palace with mad men ( her husband Sado and her father-in-law King Yongjo). This book was hard to follow most of the time because the timelines are very different but the "spirit' is in both. If the book was just solely based as an autobiography or biography of Princess Hyegyong then it would make more sense and can keep a person more hooked on the plot. The part I liked reading about is how Hyegyong's life was a drama show although she suffered many experience, in my opinion she still was strong and level headed through it all. The book is certainly interesting as a drama and learning about the life of a historical figure but as a fictional book with weird twist in the end, it was not as entertaining.
- Nayeli Gracian
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