Reviews with content warning for Pregnancy - Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982

Reviews tagging 'Pregnancy'

Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-joo

162 reviews

madeleineelr's review against another edition

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emotional informative reflective medium-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

5.0

”The world wants our uterus to be drug-free. Like sacred grounds in a virgin forest.”

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saintmaud's review against another edition

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sad fast-paced

hm mixed feelings about this one. while i understand the impact it's had the book didn't actually work as novel. the statistics thrown in randomly, the genuinely interesting premise that was never built on, the overall translation all failed to make this work. whether all of this was lazy writing or authorial intent (working off the psychiatrist's pov) is not a question I'm ultimately bothered about.

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leabhar_love's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad medium-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? No

5.0

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georgiam06's review against another edition

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dark emotional inspiring reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

so worth the read, for any woman.

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nightfell's review against another edition

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informative reflective sad medium-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? No

4.0

Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 was a reflective literary fiction piece on a woman growing up in South Korea and the challenges she faced as a woman in a highly discriminatory society. I know the majority of women (if not all women) will relate to some aspect of this book, especially if you are a mother. I really liked how simple and matter-of-fact it was written, as it enforced the fact of the story that these experiences that women go through are inevitable, and for women in Korea it was told like a kind of sick rite of passage ( I don't know if anyone will understand what I mean by this, just that every women in Korea goes through the what Jiyoung did in her life). That's not to say that the book was simple, it conveyed a wide range of emotions all while maintaining the restrained demeanor of Jiyoung to mirror the expectations of women during this time.

I also liked all the statistics that were included throughout the story, as it added an element of realism to this fictional story based on real life experiences.

Overall, this book was really impactful, I'm glad it has had such a big impact in South Korea, and everyone should read this book.

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minzzi's review against another edition

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emotional informative reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

Oh Girl! This book is small, but punches you right in the guts.
A excruciatinly realistic view of how it is to be a woman in a patriarchal society. And, even thought the story was set in South Korea, with is the other side is the world for me, so much of what happened to Jiyoung also happened to me. It's scary.
As someone who doesn't have/doesn't plan on having children, this book really made me think about the consequences of motherhood and appreciate the woman in my life who are mothers. Just to think about the sacrifices that my grandmothers and my mother had to make in this sexist world makes angry. Also loved the twist in the end. It's sad and infuriating, but realistic and it pulls the hole story together.
Kim Jiyoung is the perfect example of how most woman in their tirthies know how unfair and disgusting society is towards than, but fill pressured by generational trauma to just suck it up so they don't get left behind. Because they know that it doesn't matter what they do or what kinda of woman they choose to be, they are always going to be judged and scrutinized by everyone around than, including other woman. I just wished that the story also focused on other types of woman (queer, single mothers, self-proclaimed feminists, disabled, etc), since Jiyoung clearly represents a specific group of woman. But that is just my personal preference.

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yourpervertedneighbor's review against another edition

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dark informative sad tense medium-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? It's complicated

3.0

3 / 5

"Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982" is a book that left me with mixed feelings. As a woman, it was definitely anxiety-inducing to read about the pressures of culture and society the main character faced. However, while the book is meant to read like a case study (which I found to be an innovative approach to storytelling) I felt that it was a bit "unfinished" in parts.

The book is about the life of Kim Jiyoung, a woman living in South Korea, and her experiences of sexism and discrimination. The story is told through a series of vignettes, which show the various stages of her life and the ways in which she was treated differently because of her gender.

While I appreciated the book's attempt to shed light on the issue of gender inequality, I felt that some parts of the book were lacking in detail and depth. There were times when I wanted more information about certain events or characters, but the book moved on too quickly.

Overall, "Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982" was an interesting read, but it fell short in some areas. I would rate it a 3 out of 5 stars. While the book does have its flaws, it raises important issues that are worth discussing. It's not an easy read, but it's one that I think is important for everyone, especially women, to read and reflect on.

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