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 Inspiration, Perseverance & Strength - Svetlana Kim & White Pearl Jul 02, 2009
Svetlana Kim's improbable journey from the bread lines of Russia to a successful business woman, entrepreneur and author defies gravity. Her off the charts courage & creativeness in her journey to self education & success is remarkable. She is the poster child of the empowerment & capacity of women. This book will enrich your life and inspire the reader to always strive to find your best personal self. I have the privilege of calling Lana my friend and one the most extraordinary Women of the World.
Bold, Spirited and Personal Jun 03, 2009
White Pearl and I is so inspiring and motivating! It is the very personal and revealing tale of a modern woman and her story of immigrating and making the United States her home. Svetlana Kim consistently shows amazing courage and belief that her needs will be met along the way. I was so inspired by her courage and ability to keep trusting and moving forward in the midst of incredible obstacles. Every step of the way her trust was rewarded by the right people showing up at the right time to provide a home, work and encouragement. Drawing on wisdom and support from her Grandmother, White Pearl, Svetlana faced her challenges with courage and grace. Be prepared to be inspired by this woman's fortitude, drive and passion for life!
"White Pearl & I" is a real gem May 28, 2009
Svetlana's story is inspiring. I was captivated from the moment I opened up the book. Svetlana's story makes you realize that amazing things can happen from ordinary events and the possibilities in life are endless.
A Beautiful Story that Touches Your Heart May 17, 2009
I wish to encourage anyone who has ever had a dream, or who struggles now believing that they can't achieve something, to read Svetlana's inspiring story White Pearl and I. Svetlana teaches us that every day is a gift to be experienced, truly experienced. We can achieve anything that our heart and mind desires if we have faith in ourselves. Svetlana did not allow herself to become stuck in the " how ", but rather allowed the strength of her beliefs and desires to guide her and because of that she not only persevered she has triumphed.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
 "Remember, doing nothing is also a risk" Apr 17, 2009
Now I understand why Kim contacted me about her book after reading my review of The Selected Works of T. S. Spivet, a new novel about an irrepressible young person and his improbable journey. While T. J. Spivet left his family and Montana ranch by train to head to Washington, DC to begin a Smithsonian Fellowship, Svetlana Kim left her family in Russia by black-market plane ticket to head to the United States to pursue a dream. Of course, the big difference is that T. J. Spivet's story is fictional, but Svetlana Kim's story is very real.
"White Pearl and I" is a memoir of that journey and its outcome--through circumstance, improbable kindness on the part of so many strangers, and incredible hard work on her part, Kim has become an American citizen and lived the American dream as a successful salesperson and financial adviser. Alongside the story of this journey forward, she intercuts her family history, particularly focusing on her much-beloved grandmother "White Pearl".
Notice that Kim's story begins in Russia, even though she is ethnically Korean. It turns out, in a side gallery of history that is still waiting for full illumination, that there is a fairly large group of Korean-Russians who were deported by Stalin to Asian Russia in 1937 due to his concerns about their loyalties in the face of the coming world war. While Kim provides just enough background to tantalize, she is telling a personal story, not the history of this event, so this is an opportunity for further research and writing on the part of an enterprising historian.
In a couple of my recent reviews I have noted the difficulty that amateur writers have in writing good fiction (for example, see In Tongues of the Dead and The Bambino Secret), and I have suggested that these writers stick to what they know and are very good at. Kim's book is a great example of this "write what you know" principle. She's clearly not a professional writer, and she's writing in her third language (native Russian, German learned in school, English learned at the San Francisco zoo--literally!) but her personality, enthusiasm, and excitement about the story of her life and family shine through.
And what a story it is. Given just a chance moment to make the decision to change the rest of her life (talk about a living exasmple of a "potential seeker"!--see The Impulse Factor: Why Some of Us Play It Safe and Others Risk It All), she buys a black-market plane ticket to New York on the strength of a drive and a dream to succeed, and a months-old invitation to visit a friend in America. In New York City, with one dollar, no one expecting her, and not yet understanding English, she encounters (mostly) helpful strangers who enable her to survive on the streets and eventually achieve her dream, always driven by two principals from her beloved White Pearl:
--"Remember, doing nothing is also a risk."
--"You'll figure it out once you get there."
Svetlana Kim is living proof of the truth of these statements.
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