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madinotmaddie's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
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? It's complicated
5.0
eva_jean's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
philosopiscis's review against another edition
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
youngthespian42's review against another edition
2.0
More of a 2.5 stars but alas no 10 point system.
I read this book on the recommendation of a family member. After slogging through the prose I picked up the audiobook because I was struggling with the story. This novel is a generational story and spans the history of most of the 20th century for the Korean peninsula. While the story is rich and the characters are well crafted I really struggled to feel attached to the history. It at times felt too deep and not deep enough. Personally, I would have preferred a trilogy with each book the lengths of the section of this novel going way more in-depth. It was great to read some nonwestern perspective history of Korea, but I struggled to finish this book.
I read this book on the recommendation of a family member. After slogging through the prose I picked up the audiobook because I was struggling with the story. This novel is a generational story and spans the history of most of the 20th century for the Korean peninsula. While the story is rich and the characters are well crafted I really struggled to feel attached to the history. It at times felt too deep and not deep enough. Personally, I would have preferred a trilogy with each book the lengths of the section of this novel going way more in-depth. It was great to read some nonwestern perspective history of Korea, but I struggled to finish this book.
catherinemorganowen's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
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
amyingomar's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
llamamilk7's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
biancala's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
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
4.0
biancala'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
4.0
goblinhearted's review against another edition
4.0
This is a re-read for me! I read this for the first time a handful of years ago and I really enjoyed it - enough to pick it up again. I have a weakness for long family sagas that span decades. The author did a really good job of encapsulating the political atmosphere that existed between Korea and Japan throughout the early and mid 1900s and how this might have impacted a family living during this time. (I'm also a fan of novels about suffering and hardships, so this one was right up my alley.)
It's a long one, too, and doesn't linger on a specific character for too long. Instead it jumps between characters, sometimes not giving you a satisfying conclusion for a particular event. However in this way, it felt very realistic. Life is not full of many satisfying conclusions.
I did not expect it to take me nearly a month to finish though! It is not the type of novel that you devour in one (or even a few) sittings. It's heavy and moves slow but it was always nice to return to whether I read through one chapter or a dozen in a sitting.
It's a long one, too, and doesn't linger on a specific character for too long. Instead it jumps between characters, sometimes not giving you a satisfying conclusion for a particular event. However in this way, it felt very realistic. Life is not full of many satisfying conclusions.
I did not expect it to take me nearly a month to finish though! It is not the type of novel that you devour in one (or even a few) sittings. It's heavy and moves slow but it was always nice to return to whether I read through one chapter or a dozen in a sitting.