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3.77 AVERAGE
3.77 AVERAGE
dark
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
medium-paced
I watched the K-drama adaptation and liked it more than the book. 3 stars to the book, 4 stars to the adaptation.
I read this while I was in Seoul.
A book where a city plays such a big role is immeasurably better when you have been to the places and neighborhoods mentioned.
I would describe the stories as very human and bittersweet.
Reading place recommendation: up at Namsan Tower
A book where a city plays such a big role is immeasurably better when you have been to the places and neighborhoods mentioned.
I would describe the stories as very human and bittersweet.
Reading place recommendation: up at Namsan Tower
4.5
This book hit a spot for the big-city-young-person-trying-to-figure-out-life which if done well can be so profound (which this was) and so it was entertaining, meaningful, and allowed me to live a life in Seoul through words.
It was also a deeply loving, kaleidoscopic, and pertinent exploration of queer Korean life in the big city and has left me with a lot of thoughts for book club (great pick @The Book Mark MCR) on queer identity in relation to the individual and wider world. Lyrical passages in this literally opened up the universe. The form was clever, Young was such a compelling narrator & the writing was structured so well for me in terms of how memory infiltrates your life at certain points, maximises & minimises. And I thought the thread of permanence/impermanence was really driven by the narrative structure.
Anton Hur has done a great job at translating & I loved his lil note at the end eeeeee
This book hit a spot for the big-city-young-person-trying-to-figure-out-life which if done well can be so profound (which this was) and so it was entertaining, meaningful, and allowed me to live a life in Seoul through words.
It was also a deeply loving, kaleidoscopic, and pertinent exploration of queer Korean life in the big city and has left me with a lot of thoughts for book club (great pick @The Book Mark MCR) on queer identity in relation to the individual and wider world. Lyrical passages in this literally opened up the universe. The form was clever, Young was such a compelling narrator & the writing was structured so well for me in terms of how memory infiltrates your life at certain points, maximises & minimises. And I thought the thread of permanence/impermanence was really driven by the narrative structure.
Anton Hur has done a great job at translating & I loved his lil note at the end eeeeee
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
"I was obsessed with getting him to like me, and I stood ready to change my entire value system for him."
"You were the only person who did those things for me, so honestly, Gyu-ho, I actually really care that we’re not together anymore, a lot.."
i want go young and gyu ho to get back together :( such a vivid potrayal about the struggles of a queer person whos living in a heteronormative society, a must read!
I was already thirty, a legal adult for ten years, and was old enough to know that my mother did not exist solely to hinder my existence but was a person in her own right who had fought hard making her way through life. She just happened to be unlucky. In other words, the fact that our relationship had been so terrible was as natural as cancer or fungus or the rotation of our planet or sunspots.
But is love truly beautiful? To me, love is a thing you can’t stop when you’re caught up in it, a brief moment you can escape from only after it turns into the most hideous thing imaginable when you distance yourself from it.
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I had a lot of fun with this one! Felt all kinds of emotions. I loved how real it felt, and I really vibed with the writing style. Sometimes felt a little frustrated with the narrator, but honestly that’s just because I would approach things differently and I think even that frustration added to the reading experience, it’s not super serious. Overall, really enjoyed it :)
emotional
inspiring
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
“wickedly funny” is an accurate description of this book, it’s also really sad and beautiful and hopeful and raw.
reading the experiences of the main character made me feel unbroken, i also develop love and intimacy for others quickly and passionately… i liked how he randomly named things and people as well (i do that too), kylie… i’ll use that from now on and whenever someone asks it’ll be a chance to tell them about him and this book.
reading the experiences of the main character made me feel unbroken, i also develop love and intimacy for others quickly and passionately… i liked how he randomly named things and people as well (i do that too), kylie… i’ll use that from now on and whenever someone asks it’ll be a chance to tell them about him and this book.