Jack Jr. opens his eyes to a world that is louder and brighter than he remembers. A man is standing over him, wearing a mask and face shield, and Jack realizes something is stuck in his throat that is preventing him from breathing.
The man in the mask is panicking and yelling for help. As the world pulls into focus, Jack learns that he drove his car into the Hudson River 23 months ago and has been in a coma since. “I Leave It Up to You” by Jinwoo Chong leads the reader viscerally through Jack’s experience from the first chapter.
Before the accident, Jack worked in advertising in Manhattan, was engaged to marry the man of his dreams and hadn’t talked to his family in years. The last thing he remembers was enjoying a romantic weekend in the country with Ren, his fiancée. Upon waking, he calls for Ren, but the only person who responds is the man in the mask — his nurse — whom he dubs Nurse Gaylord. His family is notified and this sets in motion a reunion and a reckoning with his past.
Mending relationships with his family is a big lift. His parents treat him like he never left Fort Lee, New Jersey and he can’t be in the same room with his brother, James, without it ending explosively. With his life before the coma gone, he moves in with his parents and works at his father’s Korean Sushi restaurant, which Jack once planned to take over. He finds rhythm working the omakase bar but struggles to reconcile his life as it is with the life he planned.
Jack’s saving grace is his nephew, Juno, who brings humor and irreverence to their serious Korean family. Unbeknown to Jack, Juno has posted videos of him cooking on TikTok under the name “Fish Daddy,” which takes on a life of its own. The other bright spot in Jack’s life is Nurse Gaylord, aka Cuddy, with whom he connected on a deep level while in the hospital, with the friendship promising to blossom into something more.
Deftly written with punchy prose and wry humor, “I Leave It Up to You” is a story of life’s second chances. It hits all of the emotional notes a reader could ask for and is a beautiful reminder that life can open up in unexpected ways despite catastrophic events. Check out “I Leave It Up to You” and other books by Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Island authors for AA.NH/PI Month in May at a Denver Public Library branch near you.
Correction to last month’s programming
Circle Singing for People 50+ takes place on the fourth Wednesday of the month, 1:30-2:30 p.m., not the third. Hope to see you there on April 23.
May programming updates: No Strings Attached Book Chat will be 1:30-2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 21, and Kids Create will be 4:30-5:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 22, to accommodate a previously-scheduled event.
Wendy Thomas is a librarian at the Smiley Branch Library. When not reading or recommending books, you can find her hiking with her dogs.