Scan barcode
A review by rhysciar
The Memoirs of Lady Hyegyŏng: The Autobiographical Writings of a Crown Princess of Eighteenth-Century Korea by Lady Hyegyeong
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
This book is astonishing. The sheer fact that this really did happen is just unbelievable. What happened to Prince Sado is unthinkable. I wonder what went through his mind when his father ordered him to climb into that rice chest.
Anyway, about the book: it is long, slow at times. Lady Hyegyong wrote 4 pieces, each one in a different year, and each one focusing on a different aspect of her life. The first one as rather dull for me, but the second and third was full of palace intrigue, and how the nobles (and not so nobles) were trying to kill each other. It was truly fascinating to read it, even if sometimes I lost who was who - but that is due to me being slow to learn asian names. The amount of tricks, plans and scheming in that palace seems so drastic and huge, that every europen court could just be ashamed of themselves I think. I was wondering all through the pages that if this would be a fiction story, and written by a western author, it should be a bestseller. Game of Thrones had nothing compared what went on in King Yongjo's court.
And if the second and third memoir made me dumbstruck, the fourth one is just... undescribable. It's like the ending of a Sherlock Holmes story when everything clicks into its place. This is the one where Lady Hyegyong writes about his late husband, how he behaved, and what happened up to his death. I was flabbergasted about the way she lamented about Prince Sado and his behaviour; making him unaccountable for the killings and rapes, explaining all this was because of his illnes. I know 18th century medicine was not on spot, but saying that all this happened because the king didn't like his son very much... oh my, poor Lady Hyegyong, I wish she could have lived in our era, everything would have happened differently.
So to sum it all up, I liked this book. Reading about a whole different culture is always exciting, but this story was especially interesting. Gruesome and/or unbelievable at times, but fascinating none the less.
Anyway, about the book: it is long, slow at times. Lady Hyegyong wrote 4 pieces, each one in a different year, and each one focusing on a different aspect of her life. The first one as rather dull for me, but the second and third was full of palace intrigue, and how the nobles (and not so nobles) were trying to kill each other. It was truly fascinating to read it, even if sometimes I lost who was who - but that is due to me being slow to learn asian names. The amount of tricks, plans and scheming in that palace seems so drastic and huge, that every europen court could just be ashamed of themselves I think. I was wondering all through the pages that if this would be a fiction story, and written by a western author, it should be a bestseller. Game of Thrones had nothing compared what went on in King Yongjo's court.
And if the second and third memoir made me dumbstruck, the fourth one is just... undescribable. It's like the ending of a Sherlock Holmes story when everything clicks into its place. This is the one where Lady Hyegyong writes about his late husband, how he behaved, and what happened up to his death. I was flabbergasted about the way she lamented about Prince Sado and his behaviour; making him unaccountable for the killings and rapes, explaining all this was because of his illnes. I know 18th century medicine was not on spot, but saying that all this happened because the king didn't like his son very much... oh my, poor Lady Hyegyong, I wish she could have lived in our era, everything would have happened differently.
So to sum it all up, I liked this book. Reading about a whole different culture is always exciting, but this story was especially interesting. Gruesome and/or unbelievable at times, but fascinating none the less.