A review by jessicamusch
Human Acts by Han Kang

challenging dark emotional sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

After you died I couldn’t hold a funeral, so these eyes that once beheld you became a shrine.

Completely blown away and heartbroken by this book. 

Reading this in Korea in the wake of the martial law declaration, I can understand why my father in law is so unsettled by the prospect of martial law.

Told in a series of vignettes, Han Kang tells the story of the Gwangju Uprising from the perspective of a range of characters. Perhaps the most haunting of which is the story of a spirit trying to find its body, or an editor still facing censorship many years after.