Grass

“I've never known happiness from the moment I came out of my mother's womb” Lee Ok-Sun, now an octogenarian living out her days in the House of Sharing can hardly be blamed for that sentiment. Still active, still advocating for the rights of comfort women, still able to recall the horrors visited upon her. Snatched up on the road to the market at age 15 and shipped off to the Chinese province of Yanji, Lee Ok-Sun became a comfort woman - essentially a sex slave forced to service the Japanese Imperial Army during WWII in a massive, state sanctioned, human trafficking operation.

This is all told as Gendry-Kim coaxes the story from Lee Ok-Sun in the present day, offering at least something to anchor yourself to, knowing that Ok-Sun survived. But Gendry-Kim does not shy away from the horrors of her time in captivity and presents them in a blunt tone accompanied by stark images. Even as Japan surrendered, the plight of these women did not cease and Ok-Sun would have to endure so much more even in freedom.

Today the Japanese government, despite issuing numerous apologies, still avoids any mention of women being taken against their will. Some lawmakers go as far as recounting stories from Japanese soldiers who were adamant the comfort women thanked them for the chance to send money back home. The Japanese government continues to fight strongly against activist efforts to support and recognize these women. Lee Ok-Sun continues to demand that she and her ilk be recognized.

This graphic novel packs a massive punch and tells the story of one comfort women and her lived experience. Incredibly done, beautifully translated by Janet Hong with some astonishing artwork reminiscent of traditional ink brush painting, this is a powerful work that should be read.