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rebeccazh's reviews
2893 reviews
First 50% was 👌 chef's kiss, as usual. Second half was not so good mainly because of the way both characters were constantly inner monologuing about how the other person isn't there, won't witness them, blah blah blah. It was repetitive. I feel like Jimenez can't write convincing story conflict. They all feel so contrived.
Interestingly, this book feels a bit like women's fiction and not romance because Samantha's life is not easy and it was honestly pretty stressful reading about her mother's dementia, the family troubles, etc. I felt Jimenez wrote herself into a corner because the resolution felt like deus ex machinas. Still, I really like Jimenez's stories. There's just something so life-affirming about them.
Interestingly, this book feels a bit like women's fiction and not romance because Samantha's life is not easy and it was honestly pretty stressful reading about her mother's dementia, the family troubles, etc. I felt Jimenez wrote herself into a corner because the resolution felt like deus ex machinas. Still, I really like Jimenez's stories. There's just something so life-affirming about them.
4.5 stars. Colum McCann's backcover blurb sums this book up perfectly: "By tracing the lives of a handful of unforgettable characters, he has created a deeply honest and intimate portrait of a society still hauted by its own violent past". I tried Empire of Pain but couldn't totally finish it but this book was compelling. Took me a while to get my bearings, but the detailed tracery of the lives of people like Dolours Price, Brendan Hughes, Gerry Adams etc, Keefe shows a much larger picture of The Troubles, a topic I'd previously only read about in textbooks. The starting point is Jean McConville, and the book doesn't focus too much on the aftermath, but the occasional descriptions of the bereft children at different points of their life were heartbreaking. A difficult but compelling read with so much to think about.
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
I liked this better than her other one, Part of Your World, and the first half of this was so good.
Second half was, like others have said, rife with frustrating miscommunication. The book would have shaved off about 200 pages if Briana and Jacob had just sat down and talked properly instead of lashing out, stonewalling, assuming, mind reading. It is realistic to real life I guess?
Also Briana's sudden breakdown/outburst due to a prior miscarriage felt like it just came out of nowhere. There were no clues and no buildup. And then they got together again so quickly. Briana seems like she needs some intensive therapy but just reading Jacob's journal 'cured' her. The third act break-up and get together felt very forced.
I like Abby Jiminez's style and will try her other books but so far both her books have such a strong opening and just start to fizzle out by the 50% mark.
Second half was, like others have said, rife with frustrating miscommunication. The book would have shaved off about 200 pages if Briana and Jacob had just sat down and talked properly instead of lashing out, stonewalling, assuming, mind reading. It is realistic to real life I guess?
Also Briana's sudden breakdown/outburst due to a prior miscarriage felt like it just came out of nowhere. There were no clues and no buildup. And then they got together again so quickly. Briana seems like she needs some intensive therapy but just reading Jacob's journal 'cured' her. The third act break-up and get together felt very forced.
I like Abby Jiminez's style and will try her other books but so far both her books have such a strong opening and just start to fizzle out by the 50% mark.
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
sad
Comprehensive, stringing together the horrifying news coming out of Korea in recent years - Nth room & copycat sexual slavery rings, rampant spycams installed in hotels, toilets, public spaces, the country's 0.78 fertility rate, books like Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982, the intense diet/make-up/plastic surgery culture and booming industries, high profile men's abuse of women such as Kim Soo Hyun from Queen of Tears driving a girl to suicide, and so many others. There are movies/dramas like Parasite, Mother, SKY Castle, etc., that make me think that there is something rotten hidden, and this book explicitly pulls back the veil to reveal the ugly underbelly of misogyny in the country.
The author attributes the large imbalance in power between the genders to the country's war-torn history (intergenerational trauma perhaps?), with the military having a heavy influence on governance and culture and therefore normalizing toxic masculinity. In How Economics Explains the World, Andrew Leigh cites studies that have shown that cultures that rely heavily on methods privileging men (the hoe in agricultural societies) tend to produce societies with higher gender inequalities, and I can't help wondering if this is also the case with SK.
The chapters are chronological, tracing key events in the country's history of feminism, and it was cathartic to see these women finally win. Many of the insights and facts stunned me: most high-schoolers put on make-up to go to school, girls/women are strict followers of famous female celebrities' diets/lifestyles to achieve their extremely thin physique, Korea consistently ranking one of the lowest among the OECD countries for anything gender related, the DARVO tactics of abusers where they counter-sue or revenge-sue their victims etc...
One of the stories that really stayed with me was Witch. By playing on the theme of witches as bad women, witchhunts etc., she and her supporters get together during Halloween to burn straw effigies of their abusers. This is such a creative, clever, and powerful way to process emotions.
Especially loved that the author focused a chapter on queer people. It isn't possible to talk about feminism without talking about LGBTQ people and I'm reminded of the Squid Game's director's remarks that it was impossible to cast an actual trans person for Hyun-ju because there aren't any actors/actresses who are out.
The book ends on a somewhat low note; worldwide, there has been a wave of backlash recently after the years of advances in inclusiveness and progress, and Korea is no different. Feminists and allies in the countries are also shaken because of high profile male allies turning out to be abusers, reminding me of 'allies' like Neil Gaiman. The fight is not over.
The author attributes the large imbalance in power between the genders to the country's war-torn history (intergenerational trauma perhaps?), with the military having a heavy influence on governance and culture and therefore normalizing toxic masculinity. In How Economics Explains the World, Andrew Leigh cites studies that have shown that cultures that rely heavily on methods privileging men (the hoe in agricultural societies) tend to produce societies with higher gender inequalities, and I can't help wondering if this is also the case with SK.
The chapters are chronological, tracing key events in the country's history of feminism, and it was cathartic to see these women finally win. Many of the insights and facts stunned me: most high-schoolers put on make-up to go to school, girls/women are strict followers of famous female celebrities' diets/lifestyles to achieve their extremely thin physique, Korea consistently ranking one of the lowest among the OECD countries for anything gender related, the DARVO tactics of abusers where they counter-sue or revenge-sue their victims etc...
One of the stories that really stayed with me was Witch. By playing on the theme of witches as bad women, witchhunts etc., she and her supporters get together during Halloween to burn straw effigies of their abusers. This is such a creative, clever, and powerful way to process emotions.
Especially loved that the author focused a chapter on queer people. It isn't possible to talk about feminism without talking about LGBTQ people and I'm reminded of the Squid Game's director's remarks that it was impossible to cast an actual trans person for Hyun-ju because there aren't any actors/actresses who are out.
The book ends on a somewhat low note; worldwide, there has been a wave of backlash recently after the years of advances in inclusiveness and progress, and Korea is no different. Feminists and allies in the countries are also shaken because of high profile male allies turning out to be abusers, reminding me of 'allies' like Neil Gaiman. The fight is not over.
adventurous
emotional
this series is just... awesome *clenches fist*. that ending!! i am dying to read book 4
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
informative
medium-paced
Borrowed on a whim at a recent trip to the library. Fascinating topic that I've never thought about. Chemistry and biology were some of my worst science subjects though, so I started getting a bit lost halfway through 🤣