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ketouprescilla's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
chloelad's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- 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
3.75
The kind of book with not much of a plot, but rather a character study with beautiful writing. It took me a pretty long time to get through, I think I wasn’t fully in the right headspace for that kind of book and, for that reason, I think I didn’t appreciate it as much as I could have.
wasabiapple's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
lucyatoz's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I Went To See My Father by Kyung-Sook Shin, translated from Korean to English by Anton Hur, tells the story of Hon, a writer living in Seoul, South Korea, who returns after a long time away to her family home in the Korean countryside when her mother is in hospital being treated for cancer and her elderly father is alone.
Across 5 long chapters, we learn about the family through a series of reflections by Hon and her 4 brothers and one other sister, their experiences of life growing up in rural Korea, with many of them eventually leaving drawn by the pull of the bright city lights and having varying degrees of success in their careers.
Father's life was different, living through the Korea War, going to Seoul for work once only to return home within a few months, exchanging letters with his eldest son, which he kept safe in a wooden box, who works in Libya during the early 1990's, which always start with "Read this, Seungyeop", and finally becoming the shell of who he once was following a number of strokes.
The novel is more of a series of anecdotes and memories than a cohesive storyline and this left it feeling a little stilted and unstructured.
I borrowed a copy of this book from Taunton Library and listened to it on CloudLibrary. I read this for prompt 38, published by Hachette, for the 52 Book Club Reading Challenge 2024.
Across 5 long chapters, we learn about the family through a series of reflections by Hon and her 4 brothers and one other sister, their experiences of life growing up in rural Korea, with many of them eventually leaving drawn by the pull of the bright city lights and having varying degrees of success in their careers.
Father's life was different, living through the Korea War, going to Seoul for work once only to return home within a few months, exchanging letters with his eldest son, which he kept safe in a wooden box, who works in Libya during the early 1990's, which always start with "Read this, Seungyeop", and finally becoming the shell of who he once was following a number of strokes.
The novel is more of a series of anecdotes and memories than a cohesive storyline and this left it feeling a little stilted and unstructured.
I borrowed a copy of this book from Taunton Library and listened to it on CloudLibrary. I read this for prompt 38, published by Hachette, for the 52 Book Club Reading Challenge 2024.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Dementia, Chronic illness, and Mental illness
Moderate: Vomit, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Death
hanzy's review against another edition
3.0
3.5
This wasn't as emotionally impacting as 'Please Look After Mum' but really liked it all the same and could resonate with a lot of the little details
This wasn't as emotionally impacting as 'Please Look After Mum' but really liked it all the same and could resonate with a lot of the little details
ddmgembala's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
spierra's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
2.5
This book was really slow and hard to get through at some points. Usually, I enjoy books that focus on the character and nothing really happens plot-wise. But this was different, it felt very plain. Also, I'm not sure, but I do think the translation was a part of that. There were parts that I was interested in, but I think the way it was written/translated kind of made it blah. Not terrible, but not my cup of tea.
ashlea_t19's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
madkc4ever's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
4.0
This book is one you have to dive into knowing that it is not exciting or fast-paced. It is a daughter getting the full picture of her father through the lens of everyone who knew him and it is a beautiful journey but a slow one. Just like life, however, sometimes you find the most beauty in the mundane. Patience is needed to thoroughly enjoy this book but it had me in tears at the end. I think the descriptions of the house got to be a bit tedious but overall a beauty story that reminds you to stop and listen every once in awhile.