Shoko's Smile : Book review


Book Review

 

Title: Shoko’s smile

Author: Choi Eunyoung

Genre: Short stories/Translation (Korean)

 

Shoko’s smile is a collection of 7 stories of Korean Women whose lives have been heavily impacted by ghosts of their past and some political events. 

 

In the first story, we have the narrator Soyu who reflects on her friendship with a Japanese exchange student. Then we have a Korean woman who forms a deep connection with a Kenyan man. At some point their relationship goes awry and the narrator is unable to derive the reason for this. We have an ailing grandmother who reminisces about her granddaughter, a woman whose life is destroyed when her husband is thrown into prison for spying and then two families whose relationship gets marred over a heated discussion on the Vietnam war.

 

The writing is beautiful and tender. The emotions are raw, painting a vulnerable picture of characters. Perhaps this realistic portrayal of their lives is what makes them relatable to readers across multicultural backgrounds. The women in these stories are similar and different in their own way. Each one is flawed grappling with their sense of loss. Each story carries its own theme and message. The author covers a wide range of topics like mental health, terminal illness, the Vietnam war, philosophical musings about life and death, LGBTQ, faith and culture. It’s interesting to see some experimentation in form and points of view. The author has induced epistolary style in a couple of her stories. There are little gaps which are left to readers to form their own conclusion. Some of the stories have an eerie touch to it. 

 

My personal favorites were Shoko’s smile, Xin Chao Xin Chao and Hanji and Youngju. Overall this story collection is worth a read for its embellished prose, emotional quotient, understanding life, its challenges and changing dynamics between different people. 

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