A review by wanderingdeviant
The Vegetarian by Han Kang

dark sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

i found this inexplicably haunting and gutting. it was a beautiful commentary on so many different aspects of life, like the patriarchy and generational trauma and the ways in which people internalise things. i like the contrast between yeong-hye and in-hye as  how they go about everything is so strikingly different but almost eerily similar in a way- as if they could change places seamlessly. this book was definitely disturbing and unsettling to read at times but i honestly never stopped thinking about it.
“she’d been unable to forgive her for soaring alone over a boundary she herself could never bring herself to cross, unable to forgive that magnificent irresponsibility that had enabled yeong-hye to shuck off social constraints and leave her behind, still a prisoner. and before yeong-hye had broken those bars, she'd never even known they were there.”
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