A review by tsunni
The Vegetarian by Han Kang

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

3.0

This is one of those un-rateable literary books that probably take a ton of contextual knowledge and thematic analysis to properly understand the author’s intent. Lacking either of those these are my brief thoughts governed by my own life experience growing up incompatible with traditional Asian culture:

  • The broad strokes of the complex collective self sustaining cycle of mutual trauma, emotional numbness, hammering down of self expression, and veiled abuse of traditional Asian families are very familiar if you’ve gone through it. It’s practically the entire book
  • I’ve heard things are really bad with the patriarchal culture in South Korea. If this was meant to reflect any reality at all about it, it’s horrifying. These poor women
  • Holy hell don’t read this if you’re dealing with any complex trauma 
  • If the idea was to provoke such a roller coaster of emotions, Han Kang did her job, 5/5. As an experience reading it 1/5. Nobel well deserved