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chireadsandchill's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Body shaming, Bullying, Suicide, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, and Mental illness
ashleybeereads's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Fatphobia, and Alcohol
Moderate: Domestic abuse and Bullying
Minor: Suicide
yuzu_149's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
I think this book falls under the category of "I like it" because I resonate with the author's struggles, but I also get why some people may not enjoy it, because it's just such a raw, candid sharing of her personal experiences. The book is a collection of transcribed recordings between the author and her therapist, with an epilogue at the back where the author and the therapist shares their final thoughts.
The writing is not always polished, and the thoughts expressed sometimes sound convoluted and contradictory. But then isn't that what makes us all human? When we get anxious, stressed or just don't feel well, that's how our thoughts are - when I journal, I also feel like I'm trying to find clarity through a huge fog of jumbled up feelings and emotions.
It felt comforting to read her struggles because I also struggled with similar things. And I found myself highlighting a lot throughout the book - it can be a relief to read and find the words that describe what I've felt a lot of the times. The state where you feel anxious, down and stressed out on a lot of days - and yet, it isn't exactly serious enough to take drastic action.
A paragraph from the epilogue fo the book (written by the author's therapist) sums it all up very well, "This is a record of a very ordinary, incomplete person who meets another very ordinary, incomplete person, the latter of whom happens to be a therapist. The therapist makes some mistakes and has a bit of room for improvement, but life has always been like that, which means everyone’s life – our readers included – has the potential to become better. To our readers, who are perhaps down and out from having experienced much devastation or are living day-to-day in barely contained anxiety: I hope you will listen to a certain overlooked and different voice within you. Because the human heart, even when it wants to die, quite often wants at the same time to eat some tteokbokki, too."
The writing is not always polished, and the thoughts expressed sometimes sound convoluted and contradictory. But then isn't that what makes us all human? When we get anxious, stressed or just don't feel well, that's how our thoughts are - when I journal, I also feel like I'm trying to find clarity through a huge fog of jumbled up feelings and emotions.
It felt comforting to read her struggles because I also struggled with similar things. And I found myself highlighting a lot throughout the book - it can be a relief to read and find the words that describe what I've felt a lot of the times. The state where you feel anxious, down and stressed out on a lot of days - and yet, it isn't exactly serious enough to take drastic action.
A paragraph from the epilogue fo the book (written by the author's therapist) sums it all up very well, "This is a record of a very ordinary, incomplete person who meets another very ordinary, incomplete person, the latter of whom happens to be a therapist. The therapist makes some mistakes and has a bit of room for improvement, but life has always been like that, which means everyone’s life – our readers included – has the potential to become better. To our readers, who are perhaps down and out from having experienced much devastation or are living day-to-day in barely contained anxiety: I hope you will listen to a certain overlooked and different voice within you. Because the human heart, even when it wants to die, quite often wants at the same time to eat some tteokbokki, too."
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body shaming, Fatphobia, Bullying, and Eating disorder
icarusandthesun's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
4.25
since this is a memoir/self-help book, how much i enjoyed it was directly proportional to how much i related to the author and her struggles.
so note that my rating conveys just that - how much i identified with the author - and not necessarily how good the book was from a literary or objective point of view.
for me, this was a very insightful read.
while i couldn't relate to every single thing the author struggles with (obviously), i did find quite a few of my own problems and struggles represented.
the therapist's answers and reflections weren't life-changing in and of themselves, but the combination between them and the author's ("the patient's") conclusions made for very thought-provoking chapters and situations.
inspiring if you dare to apply all of this to your life and actually try to 'self-help'.
i do need to mention though that some aspects of the book were a little repetitive, which makes sense, obviously, because one can only have so many struggles to mention and those don't go away once you check them off of your imaginery checklist, but just wanna mention it for the sake of your reading experience.
however, since the book is only around 200 pages long, i think you should be more than fine.
so note that my rating conveys just that - how much i identified with the author - and not necessarily how good the book was from a literary or objective point of view.
for me, this was a very insightful read.
while i couldn't relate to every single thing the author struggles with (obviously), i did find quite a few of my own problems and struggles represented.
the therapist's answers and reflections weren't life-changing in and of themselves, but the combination between them and the author's ("the patient's") conclusions made for very thought-provoking chapters and situations.
inspiring if you dare to apply all of this to your life and actually try to 'self-help'.
i do need to mention though that some aspects of the book were a little repetitive, which makes sense, obviously, because one can only have so many struggles to mention and those don't go away once you check them off of your imaginery checklist, but just wanna mention it for the sake of your reading experience.
however, since the book is only around 200 pages long, i think you should be more than fine.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness
Moderate: Bullying, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Suicidal thoughts, and Alcoholism
issyd23's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
2.0
I thought this would be funny but it was just sad 2⚰️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Bullying, Toxic friendship, Dysphoria, Abandonment, Classism, Fatphobia, and Mental illness
maggies's review against another edition
emotional
informative
reflective
fast-paced
3.0
This is fascinating - a glimpse into the author’s therapy journey, with transcripts of sessions with her therapist. I could see a lot of my own experiences in these conversations, and I feel it’s an accurate representation of what therapy is like.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness
Minor: Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, and Bullying
discarded_dust_jacket's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
1.0
First of all, I want to point out that I’m aware I’m reading this as an outsider to South Korean culture. I’m reading a translation that has likely lost important nuance. I’m reading this book out of its context; I’m not its intended audience.
So I don’t hold it against Baek Sehee that this book missed the mark for me. It was wildly popular in Korea, so it has accomplished its goal, it has nothing to prove to me whatsoever.
However, since I did read it, here are my thoughts: it did a remarkable job of really highlighting the differences in how mental health is treated in Korea versus America. I audibly gasped at some of the things being said by the psychiatrist, like “Don’t think about the future too much. Your anxiety can become a burden to others” (page 57). That sort of professional advice would not be tolerated here.
I really didn’t find the format of this book very useful. It had potential, but more than anything I felt as though the therapy transcripts sort of became repetitive and didn’t quite go anywhere. Perhaps that’s the point—to show that progress is slow and doesn’t always announce itself in flashing neon letters, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t happening.
I understand that Sehee’s aim was to, in her words, “hold my hand up high and shout, I’m right here, hoping that someone would see me waving, recognize themselves in me and approach me, so we could find comfort in each other’s existence,” and to that end, I think the book is successful. Perhaps in a culture where mental health is just not talked about, transcribing and publishing one’s therapy sessions is itself a bold act, and reading them is validating for those who feel alone in their struggles.
Like I said, it just wasn’t for me. And that’s okay.
So I don’t hold it against Baek Sehee that this book missed the mark for me. It was wildly popular in Korea, so it has accomplished its goal, it has nothing to prove to me whatsoever.
However, since I did read it, here are my thoughts: it did a remarkable job of really highlighting the differences in how mental health is treated in Korea versus America. I audibly gasped at some of the things being said by the psychiatrist, like “Don’t think about the future too much. Your anxiety can become a burden to others” (page 57). That sort of professional advice would not be tolerated here.
I really didn’t find the format of this book very useful. It had potential, but more than anything I felt as though the therapy transcripts sort of became repetitive and didn’t quite go anywhere. Perhaps that’s the point—to show that progress is slow and doesn’t always announce itself in flashing neon letters, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t happening.
I understand that Sehee’s aim was to, in her words, “hold my hand up high and shout, I’m right here, hoping that someone would see me waving, recognize themselves in me and approach me, so we could find comfort in each other’s existence,” and to that end, I think the book is successful. Perhaps in a culture where mental health is just not talked about, transcribing and publishing one’s therapy sessions is itself a bold act, and reading them is validating for those who feel alone in their struggles.
Like I said, it just wasn’t for me. And that’s okay.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Alcohol, Fatphobia, Bullying, and Domestic abuse
parasolcrafter's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
4.0
this book wasnt what i thought it was going to be when i went into it (story-telling wise!) but it was a really interesting & raw look into one persons life and her struggles and how she tries to overcome it with therapy and medication and how it isnt a quick, immediate fix like some people think it is
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Alcohol, Body shaming, Bullying, and Fatphobia
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Domestic abuse, and Child abuse
Minor: Homophobia
myeonmae's review against another edition
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fatphobia, Body shaming, and Mental illness
Moderate: Toxic friendship, Alcoholism, and Domestic abuse
Minor: Homophobia, Bullying, and Racism
naomi_k's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body shaming, Dysphoria, Mental illness, Alcoholism, Eating disorder, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Toxic friendship, Suicidal thoughts, Panic attacks/disorders, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Classism, Bullying, and Sexism