Do you really know your Mom?

How well do you really know your Mom?  That is the question posed to the family in this international best seller by a  Korean  author.  PLEASE LOOK AFTER MOM (Knopf, 978-0-307-59391-7) by  Kyung-sook Shin  is a deeply touching story of a Korean family who begin a search for their somewhat elderly mother who has become lost in the milling crowds of the afternoon rush hour at Seoul Station.  Their mother, who has terrible headaches and becomes disoriented  and confused at times, has become separated from her husband in the crush  and is lost.  The entire family begins to search for her.  Each adult child invokes the memories that he or she had of their mother and how they believed her to be. Each has a totally different recollection of their mother and what she meant and was about.  As  they search for her and uncover her past they have to rethink how they saw her and what she was.  Each child comes to the conclusion that they only considered her as their mother and the role they thought she should have,  They never considered how she really felt or if she was truly happy.  They never considered her innermost thoughts and dreams.  Only as they hunted for her did they learn about her life that was quite different than they had imagined.  Each adult child tells their perspective of their mother when they were at home and now after they left for the city.  Even the family has totally different views of her.  A poignant picture of a women who loves her children fiercely and works constantly to give them what she has not had emerges.  Even though they recall her more as a housewife and constant presence.  They come to understand that she also had a life. One that was secret and  We learn from her husband's viewpoint of a marriage that may not have been what it seemed, but what he appreciated much too late.  We even get to hear the side of the mother as she is recalling at the end, or so It seems, the family life, her children and her hopes and dreams.  Thisbook is assuredly universal in its appeal.  the love of a family for their mother shines through even when they seem totally unaware she exists.  This story could take place in any country.  The story of a family who love each other but are too busy to connect and who take things for granted is timeless.  And the family dynamics could occur anywhere in the world.  Sisters and brothers who are too busy with their lives and families to keep in touch as well as a husband who has strayed even though he loves his wife are not confined to Korea.  An elderly parent becoming confused is happening all too often.  This is a beautiful book to read.  And it may well bring tears to your eyes.  I challenge you to read this without being moved.  I also challenge you to read it and not reconsider how you see your own mother.  Do you really know her dreams?  Do you know what she had wanted for herself?  This story is food for thought.  A book club could have a field day with it,  particularly an intergenerational one.  This is definitely a keeper