Reviews

植物妻子 by 한강, Han Kang

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bookbuddy2003's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

iammair's review against another edition

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4.0

This manages to be so immersive in so few pages. While the husband sets up the scene for what's happening, as soon as the woman starts talking, something just... sprouts inside you. This is not a pun or a joke - I could feel it all at once: the despair mixed with a bittersweet feeling of relief and uncertainty. Her connection with nature and everything around her. The giving of oneself to something bigger and unknown.

skylerfox's review against another edition

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challenging reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

jacynthe's review against another edition

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4.0

Hang Kang has certainly a way to describe the elements of nature. Her botanical descriptions are beautiful, depictions of the light (light that was almost a character of the Vegetarian) too. Some descriptions of smell really touched me, so vivid, you can see how it can have an effect on the characters (the wife toward her mother, especially). The wife is unhappy, she feels trapped wherever she is and represent so many people in this world feeling trapped, lonely, constantly longing and prisoner of the society and the mold they fitted in. There are many common themes with the Vegetarian and the author plays beautifully with them. You can feel the love of the translator for the author's work.

ssallison2000's review against another edition

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reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

This short story is a really good precursor to Han Kang's The Vegetarian for anyone considering reading both. There is something haunting about the transformation of the main character. To be fair, this is a short story though, so I would say the plot is fast paced with little fleshing out of the protagonists (which isn't a bad thing, necessarily). If you want a quick read to get through your reading challenge goals before the end of the year this is a good story for you. It took me about 1.5 hours to read all the way through.

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