A story of International student adjusting to life at US college

Gathering of Pearls is the book I'm recently reading. It is written by Korean-American writer Sook Nyul Choi. It's a story about international student's life in American college. Sookan is a Korean girl, she went to American college alone for study. And in the school, she was popular and get friends with Ella and Marci. This book is like a journal, it includes everything of her college life. This is a special and interesting for me. Because firstly in some ways, we have common experience and also it's a book easy for me to read.

Compare my life with Sookan, there are similarity and difference. When Sookan first came to America, she has language problems, this is also happened on me, on every international student. When she said answered Ella:"Yes, I don't like it." This sounds weirded for American girl Ella because in American way, it should be "No, I don't like it; or Yes, I like it." Just as Sookan said: "I was still thinking in Korean way. Everything seemed so different here-not only the language, but the way of thinking, too.” I can understand why Sookan said this. I also have this kind of experience. As a Chinese student, we have similar way of thinking, we have common point in Asian language. When I'm talking foreign student in English, I feel embarrassed and sorry when I made grammar mistake and confused them. And there's also culture difference. Sookan was taken aback by Marci's candidness because she showed that she didn't have a good relationship with her sister. Sookan thought she should obey her sister, although she didn't want to write letter. This is Korean culture, she can't refuse. If I'm Marci, I won't say how I had a bad relationship to friend who I first time meet with. Sookan chose many challenging course for her self because she didn't want to disappoint her families. This is real opinion. I decide by my self to study abroad, learn more things and improve myself. So I want to show that I can do this, I hope my families can be proud of me.

But in some ways, Sookan's experience is a bit different with mine. The background of Sookan's story is in 1950s. At that time, There were not as many international student as nowadays. Sookan was the only Korean student in school. She felt homesick and worried. And when she first got in the airport and found there was no body pick her up, she was anxious and full with fears. Her elder sister always talks with her like a parent and this makes Sookan have conflict with her sister and herself. But as time goes by, many things have changed. Because of better family and society conditions, nowadays many teenagers can solve problems in a calm way. They won't feel such desperate when they are in trouble. And in school, students can find more friends who are from same country so they won't feel such lonely. And in the family, elder sister or brother won't forced us to do something. Everyone is independent and has own opinion about the future.