A review by travelseatsreads
Miss Kim Knows and Other Stories by Cho Nam-joo

slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? N/A
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? N/A
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.0

Miss Kim Knows and Other Stories is a collection of 8 short stories which focus on the life of 8 different Korean women, aged 10 to 80. The wide spanning collection looks at everything from upskirting, domestic abuse and gaslighting to care work and the role of ageing women in society.

After previously reading Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982, which I enjoyed and Saha, which I really couldn’t connect with, I decided to give MKKAOS a try and thankfully found that it fell back to the familiar gentle yet meaningful style of Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982. As with any collection of short stories, some are more enjoyable than others but what connects them all is Cho Nam-Joo’s gorgeous tender yet poignant writing style.

I chose to listen to the collection on audio and to be honest I implore you not to. Unfortunately the stories, while based in Korea, are narrated by harsh, overly forced British accents which I found really impacted the delivery of the stories. Not just is it someone narrating with a British accent, it is someone putting on the most random and strong voices which completely stand out of place and are quite distracting.

An overall enjoyable collection which is easy to dip in and out of. For fans of Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982.

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