This book was written by Lillias Horton Underwood, the wife of Horace Grant Underwood, the founder of Yeonhui College (present-day Yonsei University). Underwood writes about her extensive experiences in Joseon, including her first impressions of Joseon society, stories of her interactions with the royal court, her travels to the northern provinces, and the difficulties of early Christian churches in Korea. Having also served as the royal doctor for Queen Myeongseong, Underwood vividly relays her direct account of many crucial events in Korean history around the turn of the century, including the Gapsin Coup, the First Sino-Japanese War, the assassination of the queen, and the king’s taking refuge at the Russian legation.