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biblioghoul's review against another edition
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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Abandonment, and Self harm
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Injury/Injury detail, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Sexual harassment and Animal cruelty
heartcolored's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I fell in love with the beautiful prose as soon as I read the first chapter. The author describes everything so vividly it felt like I was watching a movie. It's a slow burn but it never felt dragging because the writing is so beautiful. It's the kind of book that will linger in your mind for so long even months after reading it.
I was utterly surprised by the ending and this is the first time I've encountered such a bizarre and unsettling way of dying. I feel like I won't be able to forget the ending even if I want to. Also, the ending further fueled my hatred for men. Seeing the photographer and Choi Hyunli live a normal life as if they didn't ruin San's life (who's now buried in the soil like the plants and flowers that she used to tend at the flower shop) angers me so much especially because it really happens in real life.
There are women out there whose trauma (caused by men) are only buried and repressed. They never see the light of day and that's the painful truth for the victims of assault, misogyny, and abuse. Lastly, I like the metaphor of the violets and the author's afterword made me appreciate the story even more.
I was utterly surprised by the ending and this is the first time I've encountered such a bizarre and unsettling way of dying. I feel like I won't be able to forget the ending even if I want to. Also, the ending further fueled my hatred for men. Seeing the photographer and Choi Hyunli live a normal life as if they didn't ruin San's life (who's now buried in the soil like the plants and flowers that she used to tend at the flower shop) angers me so much especially because it really happens in real life.
There are women out there whose trauma (caused by men) are only buried and repressed. They never see the light of day and that's the painful truth for the victims of assault, misogyny, and abuse. Lastly, I like the metaphor of the violets and the author's afterword made me appreciate the story even more.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Gore, Death, Self harm, Suicide, and Violence
Moderate: Abandonment, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Lesbophobia, and Rape
clara_mai's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
5.0
I was planning to write a review of Violets, but then I watched Books and Bao's on YouTube and it felt like they took everything that was floating around in my head after finishing this novel and put it into words in this excellent, to-the-point interpretation. Their channel is fantastic in general btw, especially if you're interested in translated literature. Highly recommend! Here's the link to their review of Violets: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1kdnurYPE8
What I have to add is that I also really appreciated the afterword that Shin Kyung-sook wrote for this edition. She reflects on the novel, which was originally published in 2001, talks about the writing process and provides a bit of political context. Her comments on the protagonist San reinforced my feelings toward and connection with her as a character. Last but not least, the translation by Anton Hur is just beautiful. While reading I had the feeling that the translator must have really understood the themes and characters in order to convey the story in this way and the author apparently felt the same, because she remarks on Anton Hur's connection to the work in her afterword.
What I have to add is that I also really appreciated the afterword that Shin Kyung-sook wrote for this edition. She reflects on the novel, which was originally published in 2001, talks about the writing process and provides a bit of political context. Her comments on the protagonist San reinforced my feelings toward and connection with her as a character. Last but not least, the translation by Anton Hur is just beautiful. While reading I had the feeling that the translator must have really understood the themes and characters in order to convey the story in this way and the author apparently felt the same, because she remarks on Anton Hur's connection to the work in her afterword.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Self harm, and Misogyny
Moderate: Homophobia, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Blood and Suicidal thoughts
selfbybee's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Cw: abandonment, childhood neglect, domestic violence?, depression, sexual assault & —ape (on page), hallucinations, self harm
“In her heart, whenever she returns home late at night, there’s always the hope that when she looks up from the street, someone will have turned in the lights for her. This has never once come to pass.”
The best way to describe this book is watching your ice cream slowly melt off the cone with absolutely no way to stop it. This incredibly slow burn exploration of grief and childhood trauma around rejection, abandonment, and insecurity.
The short beats of clarity and hope make San’s inevitable spiral into disparity and disillusion that much more heartbreaking.
I cannot fathom reading this in Hangul and can only just barely see I am missing so much of the richness and vivid storytelling in this translation but what a beautiful job nontheless the ending was both grating and also deeply unsettling simple because I wanted her to come out on top at the end. Wow.
“In her heart, whenever she returns home late at night, there’s always the hope that when she looks up from the street, someone will have turned in the lights for her. This has never once come to pass.”
The best way to describe this book is watching your ice cream slowly melt off the cone with absolutely no way to stop it. This incredibly slow burn exploration of grief and childhood trauma around rejection, abandonment, and insecurity.
The short beats of clarity and hope make San’s inevitable spiral into disparity and disillusion that much more heartbreaking.
I cannot fathom reading this in Hangul and can only just barely see I am missing so much of the richness and vivid storytelling in this translation but what a beautiful job nontheless the ending was both grating and also deeply unsettling simple because I wanted her to come out on top at the end. Wow.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Mental illness, Self harm, and Abandonment
fernbomb's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape
inamerata's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
sad
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
3.0
I've wanted to read Kyung-sook Shin's work for a while, and she has a lovely, distinctive voice that I think is well translated here. However, this isn't an easy read, from its ruminations on misogyny, homophobia, depression, and isolation, right up to the end when San is raped and kills herself . This is a book you appreciate more than you enjoy.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape, Self harm, and Sexual assault
Minor: Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Homophobia, and Suicide
nini23's review against another edition
4.0
Violets by Shin Kyung-sook has lingered in my mind days after reading. It's left an imprint like afterimages after a camera's flash. I wish San and Su-ae could have used the flower shop as a sanctuary forever. Violet, violence, violator. Unremarkable flowers, unremarkable women. The afterword by the author is very touching, this novel was written in the early 2000s and yet, seeing how the latest South Korean president has been elected in 2022 on promises of fighting against feminism, not much has changed. The aggression and sexual violence toward women has to stop.
I had previously read Shin's Please Look After Mom in translation. While that was from the missing/lost mother's point of view, Violets interestingly takes the abandoned daughter's perspective. I'll confess to not fully grasping the significance of the childhood incident in the minari fields but it ends where it starts with a fitting symmetry. The loneliness in the middle of busy bustling Seoul experienced by San is piercing in its intensity.
Hats off to Anton Hur for the translation, I've read his thoughtful insights on translating Korean on his blog. Each word was carefully considered and I found myself sometimes pondering what the original Korean word was, like for 'darling.'
I had previously read Shin's Please Look After Mom in translation. While that was from the missing/lost mother's point of view, Violets interestingly takes the abandoned daughter's perspective. I'll confess to not fully grasping the significance of the childhood incident in the minari fields but it ends where it starts with a fitting symmetry. The loneliness in the middle of busy bustling Seoul experienced by San is piercing in its intensity.
Hats off to Anton Hur for the translation, I've read his thoughtful insights on translating Korean on his blog. Each word was carefully considered and I found myself sometimes pondering what the original Korean word was, like for 'darling.'
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abandonment, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
liv_withbooks's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape
jamesflint's review against another edition
2.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape and Self harm
Minor: Suicide
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