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mztaraln76's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
emilyinherhead's review against another edition
challenging
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
This story starts with a photographer named Jin Han going with her husband to a party, where she meets and develops a friendship with a ballerina named Lidija Jung. This slowly morphs into something more when Jin’s husband won’t fulfill some of her desires and she is forced to seek satisfaction elsewhere.
Sounds pretty juicy, no? But in reality, this is solidly a Literary Novel. The writing is excellent, Kwon’s vocabulary is advanced and eclectic, and the focus on Art and Big Questions reigns supreme. It’s both explicit and not, simultaneously. The mood is a bit removed, a bit dreamlike, the narrative weaving between the present, the past, and mythology from Jin’s family history. I sometimes found myself unsure of my physical or temporal location within the story. I’m not sure I would describe the experience of reading The Exhibit as “enjoyable,” as I like my characters to feel a little more immediate and less distant, but I did leave with a lot to chew on and think about. Jeff and Rebecca discussed it on a recent book club episode of the Book Riot podcast, too, which added to my appreciation of the novel’s artistry.
Sounds pretty juicy, no? But in reality, this is solidly a Literary Novel. The writing is excellent, Kwon’s vocabulary is advanced and eclectic, and the focus on Art and Big Questions reigns supreme. It’s both explicit and not, simultaneously. The mood is a bit removed, a bit dreamlike, the narrative weaving between the present, the past, and mythology from Jin’s family history. I sometimes found myself unsure of my physical or temporal location within the story. I’m not sure I would describe the experience of reading The Exhibit as “enjoyable,” as I like my characters to feel a little more immediate and less distant, but I did leave with a lot to chew on and think about. Jeff and Rebecca discussed it on a recent book club episode of the Book Riot podcast, too, which added to my appreciation of the novel’s artistry.
dmh44's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
amyjoy's review against another edition
4.0
I think I need to do a slower re-read of this. I am sure I missed a lot of nuance in the audio. The writing and the storytelling was beautiful. I just ... something about it left me a little cold, which could just be that I don't particularly enjoy Literary Fiction! Or stories in which the characters just make each other miserable! Whatever it is, it's almost certainly a Me Problem.
zelieanner's review against another edition
4.0
This was heavy to read, not emotionally but in a thought provoking way. Add to my list of queer/horror books that deserve analysis that my brain isn’t capable enough of pondering. Refreshing to see a POC perspective
bayleaff's review against another edition
dnf at ~70% i simply could not manage to care enough to pick this back up
sophronisba's review against another edition
challenging
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The prose is really strong, more like poetry in some places. But taken as a whole this book is a lot, and neither of the main characters really worked for me.
bloomingeyes's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5