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A review by metalmakubex
Love in the Big City by Sang Young Park
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Love in the Big City has one of the most unique writing styles I’ve ever read, and I think it will be a complete hit or a miserable miss depending on who is reading it. For me, it was 100% a hit.
Despite the romantic name, this book just felt completely and miserably human in a way that’s hard to describe. I think that because Park was very clearly drawing from his own real life experiences, it had such a brutally honest energy. Young is a FLAWED character, and he knows it. He is constantly berating himself and everyone around him, while at the same time recognizing that it was wrong to do so. The book felt like one long, pessimistic, self-destructive cycle with no clear ending, happy or otherwise. His thought processes are pretentious, but in a way that I could relate to, even if I didn’t agree with him or his choices. He is so messed up, that I think even some people who think they like flawed characters might hate him. But I believe that was the point. You aren’t supposed to like him, you are supposed to see the dark and dirty parts of yourself in him.
I also loved the inside look into the gay scene in Korea, as that’s not a perspective you hear from often. As someone who is gay, and also interested in Korean culture (I hope to visit one day), I appreciate the peek into a life that is considered “hidden.”
As much as I love this book, it is hard to recommend to anyone. If you want to be beat over the head with a story that is honest and mean, this is the one for you.
Despite the romantic name, this book just felt completely and miserably human in a way that’s hard to describe. I think that because Park was very clearly drawing from his own real life experiences, it had such a brutally honest energy. Young is a FLAWED character, and he knows it. He is constantly berating himself and everyone around him, while at the same time recognizing that it was wrong to do so. The book felt like one long, pessimistic, self-destructive cycle with no clear ending, happy or otherwise. His thought processes are pretentious, but in a way that I could relate to, even if I didn’t agree with him or his choices. He is so messed up, that I think even some people who think they like flawed characters might hate him. But I believe that was the point. You aren’t supposed to like him, you are supposed to see the dark and dirty parts of yourself in him.
I also loved the inside look into the gay scene in Korea, as that’s not a perspective you hear from often. As someone who is gay, and also interested in Korean culture (I hope to visit one day), I appreciate the peek into a life that is considered “hidden.”
As much as I love this book, it is hard to recommend to anyone. If you want to be beat over the head with a story that is honest and mean, this is the one for you.