A review by sammiseah
The Vegetarian by Han Kang

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

4.0

Twisted but thrilling and impossible to put down. I’m still struggling to find the words to describe the book.

So - the book won the Booker International Prize 2016, and Han Kang won the Nobel Prize for Literature last year, so naturally I was curious! And then the descriptions of the book: A woman becomes vegetarian and it sets off a grotesque chain of events. …okayyy… weird but I decided to give it a shot.

And what a journey it was. The book is incredibly well-written (and probably very well translated?). I feel like it gave me some insight into Korean culture, but I do wish that I understood Korean culture a bit better before reading this. It’s not really about vegetarianism or meat-eating, but more about power, self-perception and societal constructs. I do have to admit that I was a little baffled by the ending, and based on a quick google search… I’m not the only one 😆 I guess it was intentionally left up to the reader’s interpretation, which is fitting but I found it a bit unsettling (oops).

But I’ll definitely be on the lookout for other books from Han Kang as the unique writing style and inimitable perspective are simply unparalleled. 
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