Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982

For such a short book, Kim Ji-Young Born 1982 has a huge impact and an important story to tell. Bringing to light a difficult and often brushed aside topic of misogyny in Korean society that unfortunately is still rampant today, Cho Nam-Joo uses her protagonists' crisis to bring to the forefront what many women in South Korea are feeling. In ways it felt down right disturbing and is meant to make you feel uncomfortable at the blatant sexism and to impact the reader enough to check your own thoughts on the imbalance. A highly contested novel in South Korea, I see why it made waves there, but I also see how important it is to have been written and published. Maybe because I saw myself in Kim Ji-Young being of a similar age and with similar societal expectations on where I should be in my life, I found her story quite profound, although I've never felt the misogyny to near the extent she does, nor am I Korean and had to face the degree of ingrained cultural pressures she does. I don't think this is a toxic feminist book, but a very imperative and necessary lense to look at the root of an issue that needs to be voiced, discussed and a way to change how people perceive women in a long standing culture that often prizes men. I can see why it was important to women in Korea, and I'm glad it was translated for those of us interested in South Korea and Korean culture in general to gain a bit of understanding into this controversial subject.