juca's review
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
winyeemichelle's review against another edition
4.0
It’s rare that a short story collection truly captivates me, as I’m someone that adores a chunky, unravelling-yarn sort of book. But Choi Eunyoung accomplishes something special with Shoko’s Smile, seven short stories all rooted around human experiences and connection, particularly those of women. Each of the stories feels completely unique and novel-like, something that I think it truly rare with collections. They’re intimately personal and beautifully showcase the relationships formed when women are seen in a way that they haven’t before, or they strike an understanding with another.
ruthie_the_librarian's review
3.0
As is often the case with short story collections, I felt some of these were better than others. But the ones I liked, were really great. I haven't read any Korean literature in translation before - I had wondered if it would be similar to Japanese writing, and this did have a quirkiness to it, but of course that may be just this particular book!
Anyway, it's easy to dip in and out of and deals with all sorts of issues - love, family, death, grief.
Thanks to Netgalley for my copy.
Anyway, it's easy to dip in and out of and deals with all sorts of issues - love, family, death, grief.
Thanks to Netgalley for my copy.
readsbyroos's review
4.0
4 stars
This book was an absolute banger for a debut collection of short stories. Although not every short story spoke to me as much as the other, I truly appreciated the themes Choi’s short stories touched upon. In the book there’s a review that says “We often grow close or distant to people without understanding why, but Choi captures what happens in our minds with her distinctly subtle style”. She does this in a different way in each short story and is not once repetitive. I especially enjoyed the stories “Sister, my little Soonae” and “Hanji and Youngju”.
This book was an absolute banger for a debut collection of short stories. Although not every short story spoke to me as much as the other, I truly appreciated the themes Choi’s short stories touched upon. In the book there’s a review that says “We often grow close or distant to people without understanding why, but Choi captures what happens in our minds with her distinctly subtle style”. She does this in a different way in each short story and is not once repetitive. I especially enjoyed the stories “Sister, my little Soonae” and “Hanji and Youngju”.
jenben's review
5.0
i loved every single short story.
this book was absolutely amazing and heartbreaking.
this book was absolutely amazing and heartbreaking.
marae216's review
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
mariekee's review
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75