Reviews with content warning for Terminal illness - Concerning My Daughter

Reviews tagging 'Terminal illness'

Concerning My Daughter by Kim Hye-Jin

11 reviews

breadbummer's review

challenging emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Being queer, this book makes me wonder how my parents really view my queerness considering how they still talk to members of my family about my girlfriend being my friend; are they trying to protect me, or are they worried about how it will reflect on them? It was a very painful read in this way, but I did enjoy seeing the mother's way of caring for the elderly patients and was heartened (in a way?) by her

ultimately losing her job because she refused to take part in elder abuse

. This also hit me pretty hard, as it reminded me think about how the people at my grandma's nursing home could have possibly treated her the way they did.

On another note, I don't really know how I feel about the ending...it seemed like it was at the right point to stop but, at the same time, felt very abrupt and indefinite.

The book, itself, I think is a great example for how to take on the perspective of a multifaceted character, but the story itself was rather bleak and just alright, I guess.

Content Warnings

drinkthefloor's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

i am emotionally floored. this hyper realistic novel, told through stream of consciousness presents issues of intergenerational conflict, aging, and what makes a family in a stark narrative which delivers the strongest emotional whiplash. probably the most meaningful book i’ve read in a while.

Content Warnings

milesjmoran's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

m4rtt4's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

My grandma should read this.

This book really evoked emotions in me, so much so that I had to rate it 'challenging' because the main character's stubborn homophobia really irked me at times. The story is sad, yet very realistic, and it feels so surreal that this kind of (institutional) discrimination is rather mild when compared globally, as homosexuality is already legal in South Korea.

I think the narrative of a homophobic mother was a great idea, as it forces the reader to step in her shoes — not that it made me understand her, but I couldn't dismiss her feelings either as she wasn't just a one-dimensional hater. It also showed how some people deem themselves as good people: despite the mother actively helping the sick and elderly, she couldn't give her own daughter the same treatment just because she was a lesbian.

I still wanted her to have more character development than just going from disgust to tolerance — she still couldn't quite accept the situation in the end, but it does go well with the sad reality, though...

Content Warnings

angryglitterwitch's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This absolutely ripped my heart out in just 150 pages - first book that's made me cry in 2023 👌

Content Warnings

just_a_reader17's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Content Warnings

katiiekhaos's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I’m conflicted with this book. I think it was really well written and I can tell the author put a lot of thought and effort into telling this story, and it does have a really important message. However I think the ending came too suddenly, it’s just felt like a magic switch and I didn’t feel any emotional response when I know I should have. I personally think the mother needed some more character development before she got to that ending.

Content Warnings