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garynoplastie's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Grief and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Terminal illness, Violence, Cancer, Misogyny, and War
Minor: Animal death, Classism, Death, Infertility, Medical content, Miscarriage, Vomit, and Alcohol
Boat accident, war related traumazarlynsnook's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Minor: Cancer, Toxic relationship, Death, Toxic friendship, Child death, and War
my_plant_library's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, and Grief
Moderate: Cancer and Chronic illness
Minor: Antisemitism and Misogyny
bookaholiz's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Overall, I am genuinely impressed that the quality of each story is more or less on the same par, which doesn't always happen as short stories collections more often than not have hit and miss. Surprisingly though, the titular story did not stand out with me as much as the others. My favourite is probably Xin chà o xin chà o, though I'm biased on that front. Hanji and Youngju infuriates me but also is the one that cut the deepest. I would say that some of the themes (even within one story) are better presented than others: some very cleverly follow a "show don't tell" strategy and you have to read between the lines, while some are a bit on the nose which can be rather jarring.
All in all, I would definitely consider this a solid debut for the author.
Moderate: Death and Mental illness
thewordsdevourer's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
shoko's smile both squeezes and fills my heart w/ its perceptive meditation on life and - perhaps most astonishingly - its mastery in capturing and somehow succinctly articulating all the subtle ways ppl drift from one another, the oft confounding how's and why's relationships - even and esp dear ones - tense, transform, and taper off over time. it's both life's tragedy and happiness that ppl can find so much solace and love in one another, yet nothing can ensure that any of it will endure.
i also admire how choi brings up and explores so many underrepresented and maybe-taboo topics in her stories - esp considering her home country's social and political climates - some of which include korea's own little-known war atrocities abroad; disability; state violence and unjudicial repression; feminism and local rigid age-based social hierarchy; and ofc, the sewol tragedy. and they're all examined thru various types of relationships as well, be it friends, families, lovers, neighbors, those from other cultures, etc.
the book's overall calm, sparse feeling + writing, and melancholic yet a lil hopeful rumination on life strike a chord with(in) me, even reminding me of my lifetime fav kitchen, and this has for sure become another fav, albeit a bittersweet, heartrending one.
Graphic: Mental illness
Moderate: Cancer, Terminal illness, Sexism, and War
Minor: Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Torture, Police brutality, Murder, Death, Child death, Violence, Racism, Xenophobia, and Grief
lucykateburns's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Abandonment, Chronic illness, Death, Gaslighting, Death of parent, Mental illness, Terminal illness, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Ableism, War, and Xenophobia
santreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Absolutely stunning writing. The character sketches, the underlying grief and sadness of each character and the situation, the incorporation of a social/political issue of Korea in the stories - just WOW.
These stories weren't anything great, anything that felt like huge monumental stories - I feel like you'll read this book after seeing this review and expect to be wowed and maybe you will and maybe you won't, but it made me feel things. It made me feel the character's pain and love and loss and made me want to write. And for that I'm grateful.
Moderate: Death
Minor: Cancer, Child death, and War
sydneybedell's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Death
Minor: Misogyny, Sexism, and Cancer
whatannikareads's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
My only qualm is not fully understanding the reasoning behind the way some stories ended or panned out, especially Michaela was hard for me to piece together. But I literally devoured every piece of this book, including the translator’s note—which includes very important info about the Sewol Ferry Disaster—and the author’s note, which felt like it was addressed to my younger self.
I don’t gravitate to short story collections at all but this one proved me wrong! I’m so glad I took a chance on this one.
Minor: Cancer, Death, and Misogyny