Crying In H Mart by Michelle Zauner

From the indie rockstar Japanese Breakfast, an unflinching, powerful, deeply moving memoir about growing up mixed-race, Korean food, losing her Korean mother, and forging her own identity.

In this exquisite story of family, food, grief, and endurance, Michelle Zauner proves herself far more than a dazzling singer, songwriter, and guitarist. With humour and heart, she tells of growing up the only Asian-American kid at her school in Eugene, Oregon; of struggling with her mother's particular, high expectations of her; of a painful adolescence; of treasured months spent in her grandmother's tiny apartment in Seoul, where she and her mother would bond, late at night, over heaping plates of food.

As she grew up, moving to the east coast for college, finding work in the restaurant industry, performing gigs with her fledgling band - and meeting the man who would become her husband - her Koreanness began to feel ever more distant, even as she found the life she wanted to live.

It was her mother's diagnosis of terminal pancreatic cancer, when Michelle was twenty-five, that forced a reckoning with her identity and brought her to reclaim the gifts of taste, language, and history her mother had given her.

Thank you to Gaby over at Picador books for my gifted copy!

I read this with my book buddy Kath, we took our time and talked about each part, and I loved it. 

I wasn’t sure what I was expecting from this book, but I was really surprised at how much I liked it. First off, the main story is Michelle’s mother finding out she has terminal cancer, and then the three of them (Michelle, her mother and her father) trying to come to terms with what’s happening. It’s a sad story, and I cried, but there was so much love too. The stories of the bonding over the years were so heartwarming.

Another major part of the story is food. Now I love food, but wow does Michelle’s family like their food! Oh the descriptions had my mouth watering at times. But there is a deep connection with the family through food, and Michelle told it so beautifully. There’s a scene where Michelle is at a food hall and is watching and describing the other people around her, it’s so mesmerising.

I loved the trips they took, and at times felt like I needed to reach in and help them in sticky situations. I felt you forget sometimes this isn’t fiction, and you’re brought back down to earth with heartbreaking scenes. 

Please read this book, it’s beautiful. Thanks Kath for reading and chatting along with me.

Now, off to find more Korean recipes!

BLOG TOUR The Island Home by Libby Page

 

Lorna's world is small but safe.

She loves her daughter, and the two of them is all that matters. But after nearly twenty years, she and Ella are suddenly leaving London for the Isle of Kip, the tiny remote Scottish island where Lorna grew up.

Alice's world is tiny but full.

She loves the community on Kip, her yoga classes drawing women across the tiny island together. Now Lorna's arrival might help their family finally mend itself - even if forgiveness means returning to the past...

So with two decades, hundreds of miles and a lifetime's worth of secrets between Lorna and the island, can coming home mean starting again?

I was delighted when I was asked to be on the blog tour for this one, I’ve not read any of Libby’s work before but this one has been on my radar for a while. Thank you to Orion Books for my beautiful gifted copy.

So this book was just so good. I devoured it over a few days, reading pretty much the second half in one go. The book is old from two peoples perspectives: Lorna and Alice. Lorna and her daughter Ella live in London, they don’t have many friends, and no family so to speak. Lornas family all live on the Isle of Kip, and they haven’t spoken in around 20 years since she left. But a bereavement takes her and Ella to Kip for a trip and a funeral. Things are tense as she meets her brother again for the first time in years, meets his wife Alice and their daughter Molly for the first time ever. 

The island sounded amazing. It makes me want to pack up and move to a little island myself! The way Libby describes it made it so easy to picture in our mind while reading. The interchanging weather, they sound of the sea, the smell of the salty air. It just sounded beautiful. And the community there, they’re all so friendly, they all know each other and help out with whatever needs to be done! It just sounds ideal doesn’t it.

I loved both of the main characters, Lorna and Alice are so different, but fit together so well. Alice seems very sweet and eager to help out anyone, Lorna sounded quite level headed and knew when to make herself heard. I liked Jack,  Lornas brother and Alices husband. The relationship between the siblings was strained, and I wasn’t sure what was going to happen with them, but there were little things throughout that showed the ways they did love each other, memories from being younger.

The book does go into detail of why Lorna left and never kept in touch with anyone, and I wasn’t what I was expecting at all. I will say no more as to not spoil it!

I loved this book, I do hope Libby writes. Sequel as I’d love to know what happens next and how the lives of both families move on.