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thewordsdevourer's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
im a lil sad bc this wouldve easily been a 4-star read if it wasnt for the last part. the first 3/4 was so good but the climax was too cheesy for me and the ending felt rushed w/ things tied up way too nicely.
nevertheless, almond was def a special book w/ an even more special narrator whose unique emotionally detached voice i loved. yunjae's prolly one of my most fav characters ever; he's that memorable. his unique outlook actually served as a major strength for the book, pointing all the idiosyncracies and ridiculous things 'normal' ppl and society at large do/tolerate. his fam's also a dynamic, heartwarming one, and his unconventional ~home education~ was def interesting.
im also surprised at how much i like gon--which i think is the author's point--and i feel for everything he's been thru; it's kinda ridiculous that no adults thought he might need some psych help considering his history. his and yunjae's relationship is an interesting one too and i loved their bookstore scenes. speaking of characters, however, while dora was a character necessary for yunjae's growth, i feel she couldve been introduced better; as it was it seemed a lil too sudden and random, like she's merely a plot device.
this book was also full of a myriad of emotions, whether it be "bruh" and "that escalated quickly" moments esp in the beginning; hilarious convos and scenarios that enduce more than a few chuckles; heartwarming and rly sad moments as well, for yunjae and gon both. almond was also surprisingly wise and i highly appreciate its themes and msg of reaching out to others, understanding, love, empathy, the passage of time, change, concept of 'ordinary', etc, and its portrayal of the duality of heart vs brain and what they tell us.
however, the last part felt weirdly awkward and a lil too cheesy for me, and the ending couldve been longer, w/ more scenes devoted to yunjae and gon and the resolution of their conflict. rn the pgs only contain things post-action. still, this was one of the better korean books ive read, and a fav for sure.
nevertheless, almond was def a special book w/ an even more special narrator whose unique emotionally detached voice i loved. yunjae's prolly one of my most fav characters ever; he's that memorable. his unique outlook actually served as a major strength for the book, pointing all the idiosyncracies and ridiculous things 'normal' ppl and society at large do/tolerate. his fam's also a dynamic, heartwarming one, and his unconventional ~home education~ was def interesting.
im also surprised at how much i like gon--which i think is the author's point--and i feel for everything he's been thru; it's kinda ridiculous that no adults thought he might need some psych help considering his history. his and yunjae's relationship is an interesting one too and i loved their bookstore scenes. speaking of characters, however, while dora was a character necessary for yunjae's growth, i feel she couldve been introduced better; as it was it seemed a lil too sudden and random, like she's merely a plot device.
this book was also full of a myriad of emotions, whether it be "bruh" and "that escalated quickly" moments esp in the beginning; hilarious convos and scenarios that enduce more than a few chuckles; heartwarming and rly sad moments as well, for yunjae and gon both. almond was also surprisingly wise and i highly appreciate its themes and msg of reaching out to others, understanding, love, empathy, the passage of time, change, concept of 'ordinary', etc, and its portrayal of the duality of heart vs brain and what they tell us.
however, the last part felt weirdly awkward and a lil too cheesy for me, and the ending couldve been longer, w/ more scenes devoted to yunjae and gon and the resolution of their conflict. rn the pgs only contain things post-action. still, this was one of the better korean books ive read, and a fav for sure.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Murder, Violence, and Bullying
Moderate: Sexism, Medical content, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, and Grief
Minor: Cursing
emotionalsupportsandwich's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- 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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Bullying, and Cursing
Moderate: Ableism and Animal cruelty
Minor: Medical content
sashasgarden's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Almond is a beautiful tale with a variety of characters, as well as two opposing mains — one presented as the one who cares too little, while the other one cares too much.
They learn from each other to see the world with different eyes, and as the story progresses it is easy for the reader to get invested in their peculiar relationship.
One thing I didn't like much is the one detail I would criticize in the general use of characters and their development: the love interest, Dora, is merely there to create some drama, and doesn't seem to have lots of personality traits other than 'being nice'.
While I understand her relevance to the story, and her use in helping the main character develop just a bit, I simply don't like characters being used as a tool to progress the plot without them being given any qualities or other aspects to their personality.
Other than that, the characterization of every other person in the story feels realistic and believable, and makes for a truly pleasant read.
The family members play an important role in the characters' lives, and although they don't always directly appear in the plot, their presence is very much felt in the most emotional parts of the book, through the main characters.
Wonderfully written, and will definitely read again soon, once I emotionally recover from this experience.
They learn from each other to see the world with different eyes, and as the story progresses it is easy for the reader to get invested in their peculiar relationship.
One thing I didn't like much is the one detail I would criticize in the general use of characters and their development:
Other than that, the characterization of every other person in the story feels realistic and believable, and makes for a truly pleasant read.
The family members play an important role in the characters' lives, and although they don't always directly appear in the plot, their presence is very much felt in the most emotional parts of the book, through the main characters.
Wonderfully written, and will definitely read again soon, once I emotionally recover from this experience.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Cursing, and Death of parent
Moderate: Gun violence
Minor: Animal cruelty and Animal death
durrareadsstuff's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
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? Yes
5.0
"Does changing mean growing?" “Probably. For better or for worse," he replied.
OKAY WOW THIS BOOK. Don't let the length fool you. Honestly I could write a whole essay on this. So many interesting themes were covered and in such a breath-takingly beautiful way. Safe to say I've highlighted a huge portion of the book.
Yunjae was diagnosed with alexithymia, a very rare condition where someone has problems to feel emotions because their amygdalae, which is shaped like an almond is smaller than usual. The story follows his journey of discovering himself and also as he tries to sort of largen his "almond".
For someone who basically doesn't have feelings, there's more depth to his personality than quite a few other people I can think of (looking at you, Mal 👀) And the CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT OH MY GOD 💥💥💥💯💯 It's just so amazing seeing him grow and all the things he went through in between—my heart 😭💓💓💓😫😭😫😭
And also, Gon and Dora—wow. Especially Gon, I mean, the way that he was pretty much polar opposites with Yunjae and yet we got to see the growth of development happen in both ways. I think I relate much more to Gon. Although, not in a child-delinquent kind of way but more of a feelings-are-so-damn-uncomfortable-must-be-nice-to-not-feel-any kind of way, you know? But reading this made me realise so much about feelings and however icky they are, they're also kind of beautiful and very much necessary.
This book is also about unlikely friendships, and how we perceive people with prejudice without even trying to understand them, to regard them with empathy. Empathy - an incredibly significant element of human relationships. And it explores what exactly does it mean by "ordinary"? I'm just rambling by this point, but definitely, definitely read it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, and Bullying
Moderate: Blood and Cursing
Minor: Grief and Mental illness
patslibrary's review against another edition
informative
mysterious
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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Violence
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, and Animal death
ashleycmms's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Blood, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Abandonment, Death of parent, Grief, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
alice000's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
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? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, Violence, and Domestic abuse
aseel_reads's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I really enjoyed the premise of the book (focusing on the life of someone with alexithymia) and I thought the writing was quite good.
my biggest issue was the plot, it seems to end really out of character and random - I do wonder if that's because oh who is narrating, it made it come off odd.
there was also a lot of violence that I did not expect...
my biggest issue was the plot, it seems to end really out of character and random - I do wonder if that's because oh who is narrating, it made it come off odd.
there was also a lot of violence that I did not expect...
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Abandonment, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Medical content, Murder, and Physical abuse
afnaan's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death of parent, and Death
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Physical abuse, Cursing, and Bullying
onlymigraine's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
leí este libro por namjoon y yoongi y wow. realmente lloré pero a la vez fue muy todo muy lindo, tiene descripciones muy bellas y frases significativas. muy bueno.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Bullying, Cursing, Death of parent, Death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Terminal illness, and Violence