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4.36 AVERAGE
4.36 AVERAGE
Thicc, chonky book... I'm surprised I read through it with relative speed and ease. Very enlightening story of Korean history told through four generations—you can see the reverberations of each character's actions decades down the line. I learned so much new history that textbooks had never taught me before, which I think was one of the strongest parts of the book. I'm quite impressed with the depth put into this sprawling novel. Some parts sprawled a little TOO far for my tastes, introducing characters towards the end whose stories felt rushed and somewhat irrelevant, but it didn't detract too much from my engrossment in the book. Overall, a fascinating historical read.
emotional
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
It's so hard to say what it was that I liked so much. It's hard for me to even recognize what the book did to keep me engaged throughout all of it. But I truly was engaged the whole time. It's sooo well crafted in that way. It's so character focused, the plot is so minimal, mainly just survival in bad circumstances, but it was done so well. I truly have nothing bad to say about it. It was just really good and really well done, and fuck me if those last three pages didn't make me cry oh my god.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
The story starts out great and you get into the story. The characters are written well in the beginning with good buildup and character development. It is a story that is about more than one generation. Eventually, the story just doesn't attract you the way it did in the beginning. You're sort of left questioning where is the ending or what will the ending be because you're just done.
emotional
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:
No
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-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:
Complicated
beautifully (in a way matter-of-factly, but never coldly) written, i grew very attached to the characters and was eager to learn more about the interwoven storylines & struggles of lee's (fictitious) korean-japanese family and their friends/lovers/acquaintances in the colonial era and later on. what i especially liked about the book was lee's feminist, non-judgmental perspective, so i'll be sure to pick up more of her publications as well. <3
A thoughtful Korean tale where we follow the changes in the family tree of a Korean family for over four generations.
This was a lovely and very informative read. I was so fascinated by a few things in this book that they held my attention throughout:
-the main and side characters were richly drawn, and I easily connected with them.
-how a young woman's choice can have many consequences for multiple generations.
-the number of tragedies this book has.
This is a long book, but it was so beautifully written that I felt rewarded for finishing it.
This was a lovely and very informative read. I was so fascinated by a few things in this book that they held my attention throughout:
-the main and side characters were richly drawn, and I easily connected with them.
-how a young woman's choice can have many consequences for multiple generations.
-the number of tragedies this book has.
This is a long book, but it was so beautifully written that I felt rewarded for finishing it.