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3.83 AVERAGE
3.83 AVERAGE
dark
fast-paced
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-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
"Je vivrais ta vie mieux que toi, si j'avais ..."
Elles doivent être belles, elles doivent subir des chirurgies plastiques, elles doivent être de bonnes épouses,elles doivent aussi bien s'occuper de leurs enfants, que de leur mari, que de leur beaux-parents, elles doivent devenir des belles-mères terrifiantes, elles doivent se laisser faire par les hommes, elles n'ont pas leur mot à dire, elles ne peuvent pas être amies, elles doivent être rivale, ...
Elles sont des femmes.
Mais que faire de leur désir ? Que faire de leurs rêves ? Comment réussir à faire la différence entre une vie supportable et une vie insupportable ? Comment font-elles pour survivre à cette société qui ne leur permet rien ?
4 portraits de femmes, 4 caractères différents, 4 vies qui se croisent et qui tentent de changer leur destin...
Elles doivent être belles, elles doivent subir des chirurgies plastiques, elles doivent être de bonnes épouses,elles doivent aussi bien s'occuper de leurs enfants, que de leur mari, que de leur beaux-parents, elles doivent devenir des belles-mères terrifiantes, elles doivent se laisser faire par les hommes, elles n'ont pas leur mot à dire, elles ne peuvent pas être amies, elles doivent être rivale, ...
Elles sont des femmes.
Mais que faire de leur désir ? Que faire de leurs rêves ? Comment réussir à faire la différence entre une vie supportable et une vie insupportable ? Comment font-elles pour survivre à cette société qui ne leur permet rien ?
4 portraits de femmes, 4 caractères différents, 4 vies qui se croisent et qui tentent de changer leur destin...
REVIEW FOR FUTURE ME WHEN I FORGET THAT I EVEN READ THIS BOOK:
It’s not often you wish a book had been longer, but this one could and should have been. The stories of each woman were engrossing and rich in an otherness you hadn’t heard before, and you wanted more. The concept of “I would live your life so much better than you, if I had your face” was played out through different lenses - South Korea’s relationship with plastic surgery is such a contrast to what you know of it from western culture, and the women’s relationship to it was fascinating to discover. Kyuri’s and Miho’s chapters were the stand outs for you, Ara’s were peculiar, and while Wonna’s story was also interesting it felt a little bit jammed in and kind of stilted the flow of the rest of the book. Your favourite was probably Sujin, whose story was so riveting and well fleshed out, despite her not actually having a POV. 10/10 narration from the author and other actors too. A worthwhile listen!
Kyuri’s quote: “Us girls, we have been trained for years: “Say that you were the one who wanted to sleep with the customer. You just wanted some money. Got it?” So the girl gets jailed and fined for prostitution, and vilified in society as someone who does this for easy money. The girls who die in the process—the ones who are beaten to death or the ones who kill themselves—they don’t even make the news.”
Miho’s quote: “Sometimes, when he is holding me and I feel like I am liquid in his arms, I wonder if anything else in my life will seem real after this. It is as if I traveled beyond the earth and reached out and touched a burning star, and it is both unendurable and terrifying.”
Ara’s quote: “You have to grow up with parents whose lives become better as time goes by, so you learn that you must invest effort for life to improve. But if you grow up around people whose situations become worse as time goes on, then you think that you have to just live for today. And when I ask young people, ‘What about the future? What will you do when tomorrow comes and you have spent everything already?’ they say they will just die.”
Wonna’s quote: “Most people have no capacity for comprehending true darkness, and then they try to fix it anyway.”
It’s not often you wish a book had been longer, but this one could and should have been. The stories of each woman were engrossing and rich in an otherness you hadn’t heard before, and you wanted more. The concept of “I would live your life so much better than you, if I had your face” was played out through different lenses - South Korea’s relationship with plastic surgery is such a contrast to what you know of it from western culture, and the women’s relationship to it was fascinating to discover. Kyuri’s and Miho’s chapters were the stand outs for you, Ara’s were peculiar, and while Wonna’s story was also interesting it felt a little bit jammed in and kind of stilted the flow of the rest of the book. Your favourite was probably Sujin, whose story was so riveting and well fleshed out, despite her not actually having a POV. 10/10 narration from the author and other actors too. A worthwhile listen!
Kyuri’s quote: “Us girls, we have been trained for years: “Say that you were the one who wanted to sleep with the customer. You just wanted some money. Got it?” So the girl gets jailed and fined for prostitution, and vilified in society as someone who does this for easy money. The girls who die in the process—the ones who are beaten to death or the ones who kill themselves—they don’t even make the news.”
Miho’s quote: “Sometimes, when he is holding me and I feel like I am liquid in his arms, I wonder if anything else in my life will seem real after this. It is as if I traveled beyond the earth and reached out and touched a burning star, and it is both unendurable and terrifying.”
Ara’s quote: “You have to grow up with parents whose lives become better as time goes by, so you learn that you must invest effort for life to improve. But if you grow up around people whose situations become worse as time goes on, then you think that you have to just live for today. And when I ask young people, ‘What about the future? What will you do when tomorrow comes and you have spent everything already?’ they say they will just die.”
Wonna’s quote: “Most people have no capacity for comprehending true darkness, and then they try to fix it anyway.”
This book is not what I was expecting at all. I picked it up for the Popsugar Reading Challenge (prompt #5: a book about K-Pop). This wasn't actually about K-Pop so much, although there is a character who's obsessed with a K-Pop star and there's a bit of commentary on the K-Pop industry, so it satisfied the prompt enough for me. I think the places where this book truly shines is in the exploration of impossible beauty standards, the beauty and cosmetic surgery industries, and in Korea's highly competitive job market, all of which force women and men into scary positions to survive. The writing is beautifully taut and the characters are dynamic, despite trying desperately to conform to societal standards of sameness.
3.5
i honestly liked it very much but i also felt like it spent too much talking about other stuff when i wanted so bad to know what happens after all that
i honestly liked it very much but i also felt like it spent too much talking about other stuff when i wanted so bad to know what happens after all that
One of the best books I have read recently. Mixes the topics of gender roles, beauty standards, and what it means to be an "independent" woman in Korean society with just pure female rage. Great 2023 feral girl summer read.
medium-paced
informative
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes