Guest recommendation with Nia from Not Controversial

Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 — Cho Nam-Joo, (Jamie Chang, trans.)

Welcome to another guest recommendation on Reading Under the Radar! Occasionally, I’ll be asking a fellow book friend about one of their favorite under-the-radar reads.

This week, welcome Nia from Not Controversial! Check out Not Controversial for in-depth essays on things that we all shy away from talking about but that should be talked about more openly. I really loved this one about the downfalls to chasing productivity and always trying to be “doing something.”

Can we stop chasing productivity?

Nia’s Recommendation

Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-Joo, translated by Jamie Chang

What It’s About

Women have been told to relax and not overthink for ages now — all a roundabout way of saying, “Your desires have no place here, it’s a man’s world and so it will stay.” Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 goes deep into that very patriarchal sentiment.

We follow the protagonist, Jiyoung, who’s a thirty-something new mom. Someone who’s had to give up her career — among many, many other things to cater to the world and its deference towards men. From her childhood, where she’s second-best to her brother, to dealing with the millions of tiny daily inconveniences of being a woman and then to finding her space in the world before giving it up to raise her child — the blurb puts it perfectly: Kim Jiyoung is an everywoman. While reading, I was uncomfortably aware of what it’s like to be a woman in a man’s world — a world that thinks of women as an afterthought and, even then, for the benefit of the “greater good.”

Jiyoung’s story starts when she starts behaving strangely — she begins imitating and impersonating several women she knew (dead and alive). Her husband seeks out a psychiatrist and sends her to get treated. And that's where we find out more about her life and what's causing the strange behaviour.

Why You’ll Like It

It's realistic while still being simple to understand. Women will see themselves in this book — she really is an everywoman. No matter your age, your background, or where you come from — you’ll relate to (and then rage about) nearly everything that's happening in the book. Folks who aren't women will see a pretty clear picture (and hopefully recognize the horrors)  of living as a woman. It’s ugly, it’s real, and it’s chilling.

Thank you!

Thank you, Nia, for recommending on Reading Under the Radar! I love when friends recommend a book to me that I’d heard nothing about, and that is the case here! Nia’s review had me putting this book on hold at my library immediately so I could read it for myself. (Other books I have on hold to pick up at the library, if you’re curious, are Biloxi by Mary Miller and Search by Michelle Huneven.)

More Books

Can’t get enough, or looking for a different recommendation? Browse the archives, or check out some popular past recommendations: 

• Read a rom-com about a Vegas wedding chapel and a family rivalry

• Read about a woman who lives in total darkness

• Read a hopeful and resilient poetry collection

I also love hearing from readers! Let me know what kinds of books you’re looking for that you’d like to see featured, or send in your most recent five-star read (or two) and get a recommendation just for you. You might be featured in an upcoming newsletter! Reply to this email to get in touch!

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