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seedwa's review against another edition
I really wanted to enjoy this and gave it a chance as best I could but i had to just admit that the poor writing was sinking the experience for me.
wrenjuniper's review
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
5.0
Do you want be sad? Really sad? Do you want to cry for 200 pages? Do you want to be hungry? Do you want to crave foods youve never even heard of? Then this book is for you! It’ll leave you with cravings so intense you’ll spend a ridiculous amount of money at H Mart and a very strong urge to call your mother and tell her that you love her so much.
mullingford's review
reflective
sad
slow-paced
3.5
Bits of the book were well written and emotional, but it wasn’t really for me. I’m not that interested in food generally speaking. Reading about food does nothing for me and the sadness in the book wasn’t counterbalanced enough. It was quite a bleak read.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cancer
honnari_hannya's review
2.0
TW: Medical trauma, child abuse (emotional, mental, physical), racism (fetishism of Asian women)
I find myself struggling with writing a review of such a well-loved and well-received memoir, to the point where I initially gave it a higher rating than I think it deserved. I know a lot of people don't rate memoirs because they do not think it is theirs to "judge" a person's life, but ultimately felt like 2.5 stars is the right choice for the way this story was told—it is not necessarily a reflection of my feelings of the people therein.
This memoir covers a period of time related to the diagnosis and treatment of Michelle Zauner's mother. As most memoirs do, this one begins with Zauner's "origin story," this one dealing with the fraught relationship that exists between her and her rather stoic mother. Zauner is honest about the tension she felt as a mixed-raced child and her desire to be less Korean, more white—something that causes her incredible frustration in hindsight as she deals with the untimely loss of her strongest link with her Korean heritage. That link is reinforced primarily through the food her mother made her—a love language that, like her mother's native tongue, she only vaguely understands and is not fluent in.
What struck me about this was the seeming earnestness of Zauner's memoir. In many ways, memoirs are about excavation. While I felt like Zauner was telling the truth of her own conflicted feelings about race, about food, about all those things that someone can zoom out to take a "cultural" perspective on, I don't know that Zauner was being especially honest about the more personal parts of this memoir. Which makes me question why she wrote it in the first place. She never particularly calls into question the sheer amount of mental, emotional, and physical abuse she seemed to endure—and which we, as readers, only caught glimpses of through her rose-colored memories—during her childhood with any seriousness. A lot of the trauma she suffered is softened around the edges by grief over the loss of her mother (understandable) but also the excuse of cultural differences (less understandable, and inexcusable imo).
Yes, the food and the cancer treatment were a huge part of this memoir. But I think they are ultimately tangential to the issues of emotional dependency that remain unnamed, unexplored, and ultimately unexorcised in this memoir—making it a well-written but ultimately "fluffy" piece of work.
I find myself struggling with writing a review of such a well-loved and well-received memoir, to the point where I initially gave it a higher rating than I think it deserved. I know a lot of people don't rate memoirs because they do not think it is theirs to "judge" a person's life, but ultimately felt like 2.5 stars is the right choice for the way this story was told—it is not necessarily a reflection of my feelings of the people therein.
This memoir covers a period of time related to the diagnosis and treatment of Michelle Zauner's mother. As most memoirs do, this one begins with Zauner's "origin story," this one dealing with the fraught relationship that exists between her and her rather stoic mother. Zauner is honest about the tension she felt as a mixed-raced child and her desire to be less Korean, more white—something that causes her incredible frustration in hindsight as she deals with the untimely loss of her strongest link with her Korean heritage. That link is reinforced primarily through the food her mother made her—a love language that, like her mother's native tongue, she only vaguely understands and is not fluent in.
What struck me about this was the seeming earnestness of Zauner's memoir. In many ways, memoirs are about excavation. While I felt like Zauner was telling the truth of her own conflicted feelings about race, about food, about all those things that someone can zoom out to take a "cultural" perspective on, I don't know that Zauner was being especially honest about the more personal parts of this memoir. Which makes me question why she wrote it in the first place. She never particularly calls into question the sheer amount of mental, emotional, and physical abuse she seemed to endure—and which we, as readers, only caught glimpses of through her rose-colored memories—during her childhood with any seriousness. A lot of the trauma she suffered is softened around the edges by grief over the loss of her mother (understandable) but also the excuse of cultural differences (less understandable, and inexcusable imo).
Yes, the food and the cancer treatment were a huge part of this memoir. But I think they are ultimately tangential to the issues of emotional dependency that remain unnamed, unexplored, and ultimately unexorcised in this memoir—making it a well-written but ultimately "fluffy" piece of work.
leeshahhh's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer and Death of parent
zoefruitcake's review
5.0
What a moving book. As a daughter who lost her mother to cancer I could understand her pain completely. The descriptions of food made my mouth water
kteliza28's review
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
Absolutely flawless, heartbreaking, beautiful story of love and loss while navigating life. This memoir was so amazing, at the opening line in the audiobook, Michelle’s endearing and earnest voice swept me in and I knew quickly I would love the story. As a self proclaimed “foodie” who also despises the title but still feels its fit, I devoured every morsel of Korean food description. It had my mouth watering. I love Michelle’s connection to her mother and culture through food and how abundantly it was sprinkled throughout this book. I fell in love with Michelle as a person, her struggle, her rebellion. I feel like we would be incredible friends. I cannot say enough good things about this book except that you must read it. Or better yet, listen.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Cancer, and Death of parent
Moderate: Grief