Francis and Ginger Park: Writing on Korean Heritage and Storytelling Across Generations

In this episode of SLANT, host Dana Tai Soon Burgess welcomes acclaimed authors Frances and Ginger Park, two Korean American sisters whose works span novels, memoirs, and children’s literature. Frances, author of the recently released novel Blue Rice, and Ginger, known for award-winning books like The Hundred Choices Department Store, reflect on how their Korean heritage, family history, and childhood memories inspire their stories. The sisters discuss growing up in post-war America, their parents’ immigration, and the profound impact of Korea’s history on their writing. They also share insights into their collaborative process and running their long-standing Washington D.C. chocolate shop, Chocolate Chocolate. Join the conversation as they explore how personal and cultural memory shape their powerful storytelling.

Frances Park is the Korean American author of fourteen highly-praised books – novels, memoirs, and co-authored children’s books – published in seven languages. Her just-released novel Blue Rice (Vine Leaves Press/2024) which opens in post-war South Korea and ends in 1960s white America, is dedicated “To all the lives lost and souls shattered during The Korean War, and to my late mother who lived and breathed it as she carried on in America, humming Korean songs.”

Recent works include her re-issued novel The Summer My Sister Was Cleopatra Moon (Heliotrope Books/2023), and her memoir That Lonely Spell (Heliotrope Books/2022), both reflecting an identity born of two worlds. Her short stories and personal essays have appeared in O, The Oprah Magazine, The Massachusetts Review, The Columbia Journal, The London Magazine, Folio, The Bellevue Literary Review, The Chicago Quarterly, and dozens more. She earned a Notable in The Best American Essays 2017.

Penguin Random House SEA will be publishing her novel Ahn Love in 2026. 

Co-authored with sister Ginger, her award-winning children’s books include their latest, Grandpa’s Scroll (Albert Whitman/2024). Forthcoming is Suka’s Farm (Albert Whitman/ 2025), a story portraying an unlikely friendship between a starving Korean boy and a Japanese farmer during the Occupation, and Binna’s Birthday (Albert Whitman/2026). Accolades include the International Reading Association medal, the Joan G. Sugarman Award, The Paterson Prize for Books for Young People, Books for a Global Society, and Parents’ Choice, to name a few. 

Frances has been interviewed on National Public Radio, Voice of America, Radio Free Asia, CNN, The Diane Rehm Show, and Good Morning America. She has spoken at the Kennedy Center, the Smithsonian, the Korean Embassy, American University, George Mason University, Virginia Tech, The Asian American Writers Workshop, and many schools in the DC area. Visit her at www.parksisters.com.

Ginger Park is an award-winning author of many books for kids and adults that reflect her Korean heritage. Her books have been published in five languages.

Awards for Children’s Books include: The International Reading Association’s Children’s Book Award, IRA-CBC Teachers’ Choice Award, Notable Books for a Global Society Award, Capitol Choices Book Award, Bank Street College Book Award, A Junior Library Guild Selection, Paterson Prize Book for Young Readers, Rutgers University “Top Five” Book Award, Joan G. Sugarman Award, among others.

To celebrate AAPI Heritage Month, the Administrative Offices of the U.S. Courts & federal judiciary selected Ginger Park as their 2024 feature author to discuss her historical novel THE HUNDRED CHOICES DEPARTMENT STORE. Her presentation took place on May 21, 2024.

Accolades for THE HUNDRED CHOICES DEPARTMENT STORE: BEST OF KOREA BEST BOOKS OF 2022: https://bestofkorea.com/round-up-of-korean-american-books-2022/

BOOK RIOT 20 MUST-READ NOVELS SET IN KOREA: https://bookriot.com/historical-fiction-books-set-in-korea/

NATIONAL WOMEN’S HISTORY ALLIANCE: Book of the Week Ginger is delighted to announce that the novel was recently published in South Korea by Hello Robin Books.

When Ginger isn’t writing, you can find her at her sweet shop, Chocolate Chocolate, in

downtown Washington, DC, ‘breaking chocolate’ with her beloved customers.

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