# Unpacking Han Kang's "Vegetarian": A Recommended, Emotionally Intense Read ## Quick Navigation - [Find Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/partners.md): Discover language exchange partners worldwide - [Language Exchange](https://www.hellotalk.com/partners/exchange.md): Practice with native speakers worldwide - [Moments](https://www.hellotalk.com/moments.md): Share your language learning journey - [Topics](https://www.hellotalk.com/topics.md): Explore trending topics and discussions - [Chat & Messaging](https://www.hellotalk.com/features/chat.md): Text, voice, and video conversations - [Voice Rooms](https://www.hellotalk.com/features/voiceroom.md): Join live audio conversations - [Live Streaming](https://www.hellotalk.com/features/live-streaming.md): Interactive classes and language sessions - [Certified Teachers](https://www.hellotalk.com/features/certified-teachers.md): Learn from professional language instructors - [Immersive Learning](https://www.hellotalk.com/features/immersive-learning.md): Learn everywhere with instant translations - [Translation Tools](https://www.hellotalk.com/features/translation.md): Instant translation between any languages - [AI-Powered Apps](https://www.hellotalk.com/aiapps.md): Access specialized learning tools - [Language AI Apps](https://www.hellotalk.com/aiapps.md): Discover our AI-powered language learning applications - [All Features](https://www.hellotalk.com/features.md): Explore all learning features and tools - [Download](https://www.hellotalk.com/download.md): Get HelloTalk on iOS and Android ## Author - **Name**: seoul searching - **Username**: @seoul_searching ## Content Two days ago I devoured the book "Vegetarian" by Han Kang in one sitting, in about 5 hours. While I have heard about this book a while back, I wouldn't have pick it up if not the @hey_lillac recommendation - thank you so much Lidia! As a person who doesn't eat meat nor drinks alc*hol and coffee I often joke, that I wouldn't s*rvive in Korea. But as Lidia mysteriously remarked "the book don't really portray the 'real' vegetarianism". Indeed, I did not expect so emotionally charged story. About halfway through, I asked myself, how would I explain this story to someone, without spoilers. I noted: "It's a story about h*nger. Many types of h*nger and the vi*lence that comes with an attempt to sustain ourselves". But after I finished reading, I cannot help but feel how reductive my description of the premise feels. The story's aesthetic beauty with psychological and physical distr*ss is gripping in a same manner as Haruki Murakami works. The story explores a complex theme about the p*wer of ch*ice, c*ntrol, conf*rmity and what happens when we go against it. About the etiquette of almost suffoc*ting importance. Would I recommend this thought pr*voking, p*larising novel? I don't think that I myself properly digested it yet. It certainly invites us to re-examine ourselves. But it can be too br*tal in doing so at times. Thus, if you are not in a good m*ntal space currently, it might be better for you to read it at a later date. This book reassured me, that there is an entire world of literature outside the West that is not adapted to our markets, in debt to our trends or in pursuit of the p*litics. Ultimately, I will let this story marinate in my mind and come back to it with a better understanding at the later time. I feel like I own it to the two main female characters. After all, their biggest tr*gedy was that no one tried to understand them. ## Images 1. [View Image 1](https://ht-global.oss-accelerate.aliyuncs.com/ht-global/mmnt/1/240606/1/132083927/0/0/d6ab49a16fbbc1404311fb770aca55b7.jpg) 2. 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