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A review by ulanur
Human Acts by Han Kang
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Written in Han Kang's unique voice, Human Acts is about the pro-democracy 1980 Gwangju Uprising. It lead to the deaths of over two thousand people, a brutal military crackdown by the martial government: students were gunned down and tortured, families separated and an entire city terrorised by their own government. Han Kang is originally from Gwangju and was a child when they moved away just before the uprising, so a deep empathy for the city and events permeated every page.
Told in distinct chapters from different character perspectives, we follow a boy looking for his murdered friend's body, his friend's disembodied soul as he tries to come to terms with being killed by a soldier, an editor at a publishing house trying to deal with censorship, a mother living in grief for decades, among a few others. Every chapter brought new horrors to life, as they try to deal with this senseless massacre.
This book is so short, only 224 pages — but I cried, I wanted to scream, I felt trapped and angry. It was masterfully written, every page hitting you with the force of it's storytelling. It's a reflective book about the human experiences of suffering, collective trauma and the memory of a nation.
I loved this book completely. If you've read The Vegetarian by Han Kang and didn't like it – don't worry, this is nothing like it except for the clear, unburdened writing style.
MASSIVE content warning for explicit graphic violence + descriptions of torture + mass death.
Told in distinct chapters from different character perspectives, we follow a boy looking for his murdered friend's body, his friend's disembodied soul as he tries to come to terms with being killed by a soldier, an editor at a publishing house trying to deal with censorship, a mother living in grief for decades, among a few others. Every chapter brought new horrors to life, as they try to deal with this senseless massacre.
This book is so short, only 224 pages — but I cried, I wanted to scream, I felt trapped and angry. It was masterfully written, every page hitting you with the force of it's storytelling. It's a reflective book about the human experiences of suffering, collective trauma and the memory of a nation.
I loved this book completely. If you've read The Vegetarian by Han Kang and didn't like it – don't worry, this is nothing like it except for the clear, unburdened writing style.
MASSIVE content warning for explicit graphic violence + descriptions of torture + mass death.