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rieviolet's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
I really loved the writing style, I think it struck a very good balance between direct/matter-of-fact and poetic. A lot of scenes deeply moved me and I can still picture them so vividly in my mind because the author crafted them with such powerful and evocative words.
One of the things that I appreciated the most was the choice to include different point of views. It was so very interesting to follow the story through different eyes and I think that the author did a really good job at inhabiting the characters.
Each chapter includes and expands on a character that we have already briefly met before in the story; I think it is a very artful narrative choice and it will certainly make for a meaningful re-read, once one is already aware of all the interconnections. I also really loved the final chapter from the author's POV.
As you can see from the long list of trigger warnings, the author does not shy away from the more graphic details of those horrific events. Not once while reading, I thought that it is was overdone just for the sake of it, it is simply an honest depiction of brutal happenings, but please keep that in mind and look after yourself.
Graphic: Alcoholism, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Mental illness, Sexism, Suicide, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Infertility and Terminal illness
eo__'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Infertility, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail
cowboyvelma's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Alcoholism, Child death, Genocide, Gun violence, Infertility, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicide, Violence, Excrement, Police brutality, Mass/school shootings, and War
alessamonroe's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Minor: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Infertility, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Police brutality, Grief, Mass/school shootings, and Murder
valpuri's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, and Grief
Moderate: Alcoholism, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual violence, and Suicide
Minor: Cancer, Infertility, and Terminal illness
dianapharah's review against another edition
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Is it true that human beings are fundamentally cruel? Is the experience of cruelty the only thing we share as a species? Is the dignity that we cling to nothing but self-delusion, masking from ourselves this single truth: that each of us is capable of being reduced to an insect, a ravening beast, a lump of meat? To be degraded, damaged, slaughter--is this the essential fate of humankind, one that history has confirmed inevitable?
Han Kang explores the aftermath of the Gwangju Uprising and Massacre of 1980 by intertwining various individuals' stories with the murder of Dong-ho, a boy who stayed behind with the civilian militia on the night of military reentry into the city. From the spirit of Dong-ho's friend, Jeong-dae, who was gunned down during one of the early marches, to Eun-sook, an editor dealing with censorship, to a prisoner battling the long-lasting scars of dehumanizing torture, to Seon-ju grappling with strength and weakness in the face of trauma, to Dong-ho's grieving mother who never recovers but most definitely does not go quietly into that good night, and to a writer, held captive by the deceased in his desire to tell their stories and restore dignity to their memory.
I cannot comprehend how anyone can read this book and feel unmoved. Each character presents another outcome of such events, exploring survivor's guilt, personal sense of duty, mob mentality, humanity or lack thereof, and dignity over oneself when all else is stripped away. As we read these different stories and learn what each person has experienced, witnessed, and lost, we are able to create a full picture of who Dong-ho was, who he could have been, and what was stolen from him as well. Definitely teared up a couple of times.
A very important read so as to not let the voices of the dead remain suppressed by those who which mean to inflict pain for their own gain. Such an event was not the first of its kind, and it was not the last.
“Gwangju" had become another name for whatever is forcibly isolated, beaten down, and brutalized, foro all that has been mutilated beyond repair. Gwangju has been reborn only to be butchered again in an endless cycle. It was razed to the ground, and raised up anew in bloodied rebirth.
Graphic: Child death, Death, Gun violence, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, and Grief
Minor: Infertility and Suicide