The night the baby without a surname was born, the army rolled into his mother’s town

Incheon, South Korea, 1985. The country is revolting against a dictatorship, but in the local boarding-house, the chaos inside is only just beginning. When Hana is pulled from school to work in her family’s minbak, all she wants is to escape her small town. When she finally does, she leaves as an exile, a ruin, or a martyr, depending on who you ask. Her mother Youngia is left behind with the torment of both of their decisions.

London, 2008. Ada knows little about her mother, Hana. When tragedy hits, Hana has no choice but to move her daughter and ailing mother into a single room and turn the rest of their home into a minbak. As the past collides with the present, Ada is determined to unearth her mother’s secrets. But her obsession will lead to a discovery that unravels not just her family’s dark past, but that of an entire country’s.

From Korea’s industrial estates to London’s suburbs, the three women cross continents and generations to find truth, forgiveness and compassion.


‘Had me utterly engrossed. An incredible story of love, conflict and heartbreak.’ Rosie Price

‘Lyrical and devastating Minbak is a flawless meditation on memory, love and misunderstanding.’ Ella King

‘A poignant and precise novel by a writer of great skill’ Nicola Dinan

'Minbak aches with the unspeakable nature of loss. Deeply moving and graceful, it shines light on a secret slice of Korea’s history, gradually unveiling the secrets that bind – and divide – three generations' Silvia Park