Story of a Comfort Girl Roger Rudick

Story of a Comfort Girl Roger Rudick (Author)

Book Description
Publication Date: April 16, 2012
In 1991, a Council for Korean Comfort Women’s issues was formed to record the testimony of survivors of the Japanese Labor Service Corps, a branch of the Japanese military charged with setting up brothels to serve its troops during WWII. To populate these “comfort stations,” as they were euphemistically called, the Japanese army drafted or tricked around two-hundred thousand girls, most from rural Korea, into coming to work in military “factories.” Instead, they were forced into sexual slavery.

After the war, the surviving comfort women, gripped with a crushing sense of shame, rarely if ever spoke about their ordeals. As a result, their suffering has barely been acknowledged in the history books and the government of Japan continues to deny responsibility. Realizing that the survivors were dying off, the Council was formed to record their accounts before it was too late; before Japanese revisionists erased these unfortunate events from the history books forever.

"Story of a Comfort Girl" is the moving first-person account of one such survivor.

4.0 out of 5 stars A sad, beautiful, tragic account, November 25, 2012
By Lauren Marrero (US) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Story of a Comfort Girl (Kindle Edition)
I wish I could give this novel 5 stars, but there were too many grammatical errors. I hope the author revises this and releases an updated version soon. This novel is too good for those kinds of mistakes.

This novel literally kept me awake for hours. I could not put it down. Roger Rudick expertly blends history and fiction to create a novel that will have you pondering human nature and man's strange ability to inflict the most horrendous cruelty on man.

The lieutenant's kindness and strength provide an excellent contrast to the horrors of war and provide a welcome break from a very heavy subject. I am romantic enough to wish a happy ending for In Sil and the lieutenant, but this was not a love story, rather it is a tale of overcoming obstacles both temporal and corporal in order to survive. It is about the human spirit and learning to live each day, finding kindness and strength wherever it may be.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Well written, October 18, 2012
By Kathryn O'Halloran "Kathryn O'Halloran, Autho... (Reservoir, Vic Australia) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Story of a Comfort Girl (Kindle Edition)
I left this book unread on my kindle for quite a while after buying because I knew it would be a hard story to read but, once I started, I felt the author had done an amazing job. He conveys the horrific experiences these women faced without going into gratuitous detail that would have made their story into a freak show. Instead he handles it with a great deal of sensitivity because the facts alone are horrific enough.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, informative, August 8, 2012
By kjg "kjg" (ms) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Story of a Comfort Girl (Kindle Edition)
This is a fictional account of a comfort woman - developed from interviews of actual comfort women. It is brief, informative, and heartbreaking. It deserves to be read.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Wow, June 16, 2012
By Robert Navarro - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Story of a Comfort Girl (Kindle Edition)
Roger Rudick's book "Story of a Comfort Girl" is a chilling tale of a young Korean girl ripped out of her country and taken to to a Japanese military camp. There she is forced into a life of "comforting" the soldiers. The storytelling is superb and based on actual testimony of actual comfort girls. Rudick magnificently combines historical and technically details with human testimony that touches your soul. A must read for people of Japanese and Korean ancestry.........for everyone.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Heart wrenching story of one woman's brutal suffering., May 2, 2012
By Jay (Florida) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Story of a Comfort Girl (Kindle Edition)
Roger Rudick's "Story of A Comfort Girl" personalizes the forced prostitution and rape of tens of thousands of women in the World War II era Far East at the hands of the Japanese military.

Rudick takes the reader on a journey of reminiscence from the modern era, back decades through rural East Asia, viewing horrific suffering, pain, and death. The journey is viewed through the naive eyes of a young teen forced into a life of "servicing" soldiers yet adds a retrospective look on the events from one who survived, while 3/4ths did not.

In the modern world it is easy to forget or ignore such injustices in human history. However, after reading this account and understanding the incredible brutalities suffered by these "Comfort Women," one hopefully comes away with a new understanding and sympathy not just for this tragedy, but for the estimated 1+ million women today in the human trafficking trade around the world.

After reading "Story of a Comfort Girl" one has a new and altered look at the Japanese military of WWII and the suffering of women worldwide.

Highly Recommended.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Oh my - memorable, April 27, 2012
By Victoria (MA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Story of a Comfort Girl (Kindle Edition)
This is a tough book to read, but I just couldn't put it down. From the author's note at the end, it appears that the book is fiction (in that the woman telling the story wasn't an actual person), but that it is representative of the many interviews and conversations with actual former "comfort girls" (what a horrible reference!).

I've not doubt that the horror described actually happened. It is nearly unimaginable and totally inexcusable. I hesitate to call the offenders "animals" - because they are lower than that.

This book describes a horror that should not be erased from history. The author does an excellent job of making us care about the characters and our hearts bleed with them. The helplessness and strength are vivid.

Although I hated the message of the book, it's real, and I loved the book. It will stay with me and I've learned from it.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Honoring Their Memory, April 25, 2012
By Scott A. Carter - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Story of a Comfort Girl (Kindle Edition)
For the current generation World War II is old news, lists of dates and battles learned in school, old black & white movies. It's an event that was over a long time ago. But current historians have been discovering new facts and untold stories, made them come alive, and changed our perception of history. The immensely popular "Band Of Brothers" is just one example, where viewers come to feel that the men involved were friends and family.

So it is with "Comfort Girl..." The story of the Japanese Imperial Army kidnapping young Korean and Chinese women for use as sex slaves during the war is obscure and largely unknown. Based on fact, Roger Rudick's novel brings this story to life. It gives a great sense of who these women were, what they endured, and how these events happened. Above all, it honors the lives of these previously forgotten "comfort girls" by keeping their stories alive. I highly recommend it.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Far Beyond Excellent..., April 24, 2012
By Scriptor "jigsaw1999" (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Story of a Comfort Girl (Kindle Edition)
Roger is an extremely talented writer. His story is both heartfelt and emotional, a wonderful journey to the center of a tortured soul. I highly advise picking this up, reading it, and advising others to do the same.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful and Heart-wrenching, April 24, 2012
By Rob - See all my reviews
This review is from: Story of a Comfort Girl (Kindle Edition)
Kidnapped as young girls, Korean women were forced into sexual slavery, but this dark piece of history seems to have been lost. The book follows a few of these women throughout World War II and shares their stories of their courage in the face terrible anguish and violence. Given today's growing social awareness of and movement to combat human trafficking, this deeply moving book seems particularly relevant now.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant!, April 22, 2012
By Ann - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Story of a Comfort Girl (Kindle Edition)
Brilliantly written by the author! I finished the book in 1 day and still wanting to read some more. Everyone should own a good book and this book is the one!


5.0 out of 5 stars Interesting and heartfelt, April 21, 2012
By Erica (Orlando, FL United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Story of a Comfort Girl (Kindle Edition)
I enjoyed the detailed and straightforward yet beautiful writing. The heroine's story is heartbreaking especially in light of the Japanese government's refusal to take ownership for its actions.
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3 of 6 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Great work, April 19, 2012
By coolhand - See all my reviews
This review is from: Story of a Comfort Girl (Kindle Edition)
Rudick's ability to write from the point of view of someone from a different time and place is uncanny. Highly recommended.
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1 of 4 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars It was a poignant and well told story!, April 19, 2012
By Eric S. - See all my reviews
This review is from: Story of a Comfort Girl (Kindle Edition)
We had the pleasure to attend a play of this great written work. We are happy to see it published for everyone to engage in the storyline.
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