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veronica214's review
dark
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
The story follows a teenager who was born with almond-sized amygdala (the part of the brain that processes emotions.) He doesn't feel fear, anger, sadness, or happiness. However, a series of life changing events may be changing that.
I liked the story enough, but wasn't a huge fan of the ending. Almost everything magically worked out ok and resulted in a happy ending. That part just didn't feel super realistic. Also, the translation was a little off at times.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Animal death, and Animal cruelty
Moderate: Blood, Mass/school shootings, and Cursing
ada_elisabeth's review
dark
emotional
reflective
relaxing
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
"...neither you nor I nor anyone can ever really know whether a story is happy or tragic."
I picked this book up in New York while I was there for a school Broadway trip, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Translated from Korean by Sandy Joosun Lee, Almond tells the story of a boy, Yunjae, who can't feel emotions. Originally, I didn't love the writing style and the way the story was told. (I do realize that a lot of my issues were likely caused by the translation, not the original writing.) But by the end of the novel, I had really begun to appreciate the simplistic yet emotional writing choices and syntax. The incredibly simple language allowed for so much emotional depth, even though Yunjae couldn't feel the emotions himself. This book is incredibly quotable and beautiful, especially on a very micro level.
My one real issue upon concluding this book is the incredibly sad lack of Gon x Yunjae. It was going so well... I could feel the tension between them, and the Dora had to show up? Nobody cares about Dora. She's annoying. She's boring. She's keeping Gon x Yunjae from being a thing, and that's basically a crime. I also felt like although Gon and Yunjae were kind of oblivious, it seemed like even they knew they would get together at some point. Like, Gon, Yunjae... come on. This thing you have going on is clearly not purely platonic anymore. Alas.
In any case, I'm giving this a 4.5/5, rounded up, because I hated Dora but I loved everything else. (It would've been a million times better if Gon and Yunjae had become a couple, but oh well.)
I picked this book up in New York while I was there for a school Broadway trip, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Translated from Korean by Sandy Joosun Lee, Almond tells the story of a boy, Yunjae, who can't feel emotions. Originally, I didn't love the writing style and the way the story was told. (I do realize that a lot of my issues were likely caused by the translation, not the original writing.) But by the end of the novel, I had really begun to appreciate the simplistic yet emotional writing choices and syntax. The incredibly simple language allowed for so much emotional depth, even though Yunjae couldn't feel the emotions himself. This book is incredibly quotable and beautiful, especially on a very micro level.
My one real issue upon concluding this book is the incredibly sad lack of Gon x Yunjae. It was going so well... I could feel the tension between them, and the Dora had to show up? Nobody cares about Dora. She's annoying. She's boring. She's keeping Gon x Yunjae from being a thing, and that's basically a crime. I also felt like although Gon and Yunjae were kind of oblivious, it seemed like even they knew they would get together at some point. Like, Gon, Yunjae... come on. This thing you have going on is clearly not purely platonic anymore. Alas.
In any case, I'm giving this a 4.5/5, rounded up, because I hated Dora but I loved everything else. (It would've been a million times better if Gon and Yunjae had become a couple, but oh well.)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Death
Moderate: Animal cruelty
vira92's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, Grief, Animal cruelty, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Torture
dahud's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Violence, and Animal cruelty
Moderate: Physical abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Blood
aespaldon24's review
emotional
hopeful
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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Medical content, Murder, Bullying, Death, Grief, and Violence
Moderate: Animal cruelty
333amreen's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
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
4.5
Such an easy read year covers such complex topics. Only goes on to show how great the writing is! So philosophical and psychological all at once. LOVED HIS CONNECTION WITH GON but the Dora part felt forced and incomplete & that's the ONLY reason I took off the .5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Grief, Medical content, Animal cruelty, Panic attacks/disorders, Terminal illness, Violence, Ableism, Blood, Bullying, Hate crime, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Medical trauma, Animal death, Mental illness, Murder, and Vomit
rosenrot's review
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Blood, and Death
0hxneybee's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I thought this was book was really interesting. Not a usual go to for me but I’m glad I saw it through to the end. The scene with the butterfly made me really uncomfortable so I almost stopped reading it there. The quote at the end of it is very interesting and probably very true.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Animal death and Animal cruelty
phoenixeb's review
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Animal cruelty
sahla's review
dark
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
i really enjoyed this book; the characters are so properly fleshed, and everything is captured so beautifully. the ending, when yunjae meets his mother again, when she realizes that he can feel now, his absolute surprise and astonishment at her being alive, gosh, it warmed my heart. and when gon begs him to return when he's lying on the floor, bloody and hurt, and apologises so much,,, it really moved me to tears.
the writing style reflects each of the characters so well, it's amazing. i can feel how yunjae must feel. the idea of him having the vocabulary for feelings but not actually having the feelings themselves, was conveyed perfectly, and so was the reverse for gon. and god, the relationship between his mother and grandmother is just so mwah.
my only issue (idk if it can actually be called that) was: dude, the homoerotic subtext between gon and yunjae! it was right there. i really liked dora, but there was no straight plotline necessary. but anyways, we move. (i've never felt more validated in my life than when i read the translator's note where she said she thought the same).
the writing style reflects each of the characters so well, it's amazing. i can feel how yunjae must feel. the idea of him having the vocabulary for feelings but not actually having the feelings themselves, was conveyed perfectly, and so was the reverse for gon. and god, the relationship between his mother and grandmother is just so mwah.
my only issue (idk if it can actually be called that) was: dude, the homoerotic subtext between gon and yunjae! it was right there. i really liked dora, but there was no straight plotline necessary. but anyways, we move. (i've never felt more validated in my life than when i read the translator's note where she said she thought the same).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Murder, Bullying, Animal cruelty, and Animal death
Moderate: Abandonment