Welcome to Litsy!

Love this book - it‘s about an socially awkward teenager (a monster) meeting another socially unaccepted teenager (monster), it‘s about navigating thru family tragedy, it‘s about growing learning how to love and what friendship means. 🧡

3.8/5 ?

Currently in a reading slump, so I‘m grateful to this book for pulling me out of it. I loved the first half, but the ending felt too neatly wrapped up.

"This story is, in short, about a monster meeting another monster. One of the monsters is me."

Loved everything about this book—it‘s one I‘ll be recommending to friends & anyone who will listen to me talk about it. Yunjae was born with alexithymia which makes it difficult to understand/express emotions but he is fortunate to have a family who cares/understands/helps him make his way in life. When tragedy strikes, Yunjae must figure things out on his own & when he meets a troubled student, he learns a lot about himself, friendship, & more.❤️

I felt connected to the smell of old books....I would flip open the books and smell them whenever I could, while Granny nagged me, asking what the point of smelling musty books was
Books took me to places I could never go otherwise. They shared the confessions of people I'd never met and lives I'd never witnessed. The emotions I could never feel, and the events I hadn't experienced could all be found in those volumes.

Mom said she would buy a small espresso machine. Books and the aroma of coffee. They were the perfect combination, at least in Mom's opinion.

"Coffee machine, my ass," Granny snorted. She had a flair for getting on Mom's nerves with only a few words. Mom was furious that her elegant taste was being mocked. Granny didn't bat an eyelid as she said in a low voice, "Just get some smut in here."

Finished reading on 20 April 2023.

Beautifully written , an interesting concept. It depicts the life without emotions, and what happens if emotions go wrong. Short book but dense to read.4🌟#bookspinbingo

5🌟/5🌟

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It was an interesting read, but I found myself wanting more after every chapter. I felt like I only got a small glimpse of every character, and it was sometimes hard to really connect and engage with the story. I was pleasantly surprised by the ending, which made it worth sticking through the end.

Started this one a couple of days ago. Currently on Chapter 22…Interesting read so far ☕️📖

A bit melancholy, but looking forward to see what happens next.

Love, according to Mom‘s actions, was nothing more than nagging about every little thing, with teary eyes, about how one should ‘act such and such in this and that situation‘.

If that was love, I‘d rather neither give nor receive any. But of course, I didn‘t say that out loud. That was all thanks to one of Mom‘s codes of conduct- Too much honesty hurts others- which I had memorized over and over so that it was stuck in my brain.

I loved the way the book started by giving the gist of the whole story in a line like an elevator pitch. The way the character developed was slow yet steady. I really liked the way the story narrated with every other character‘s development along with the main character

"Even though my brain was a mess, what kept my soul whole was the warmth of the hands holding mine on both sides."

-- 4⭐️

I've heard of this book a few times but never got around to picking it up, then I did for #koreadathon and just, it was so beautiful and tragic and inspiring and just, so many emotions 🥹❤️‍🩹 It's really the story of one boy but the way it's told, it feels like it's the story of two and how they inspire and learn from each other (bc really, no one else truly tries to understand them), amazing story

ps it's already 3/12 here so #marvellousmarch

I probably had too high expectations of this one, about a boy who doesn‘t quite feel emotions. He has a disorder called alexithymia because of underdeveloped amygdalae.
But while I enjoyed the first part of the book, the ending seemed too…easy. Also, the main character just never quite drew me into his story.

Overall, an interesting read but I just wanted more.

Both @Reggie and @Lindy loved this book and inspired me to read it. I‘m always intrigued by stories from the point of view of the neuro diverse and this was a delight. (Although a dark delight at times!) Yunjae doesn‘t feel emotions in the same way as others. His mother works hard to help him read people‘s expressions & practice appropriate responses. But when his life is thrown upside down by tragedy he needs to figure these out by himself. ⬇️

Reading Korean settings recently has inspired me to start a batch of kimchi.

A contemporary novel from Korea, in the distinctive voice of a teen whose brain is unusual: he has difficulty feeling emotions and identifying them in others. On top of that, Yunjae is dealt a personal tragedy. He then meets a violent boy who has lived through his own share of hardship, and perhaps they can help each other. Also, this novel explores fascinating what-ifs regarding parent-child relationships. #Translation by Sandy Joosun Lee.

The worlds of movies, soap operas or cartoons were already so meticulous that there were no blanks left for me to fill in. […] But books were different. They had lots of blanks. Blanks between words and even between lines. I could squeeze myself in there and sit, or walk, or scribble down my thoughts.

Translated from Korean, this is a YA about a boy named Yunjae. Yunjae has no ability to process emotions due to the almond shaped part of brain known as the amygdalae. We follow him after a horrific event which leads to him meeting Gon, a misunderstood bully. This was great. One of those books where the MC is seeing everything through an emotionless lens while you the reader feels everything. A lovely, yet dark, book about friendship and family.

"This story is, in short, about a monster meeting another monster. One of the monsters is me."
Born with Alexithymia, Yunjae is unable to understand and express emotions. Here we get a peek into his life trying to understand the proper ways to interact with the world around him, lead by his devoted mother & grandmother. Once he meets the other monster, things move along a bit too quickly but it is still an engaging story. Now on Prime Reading.

Calling it quits a tad early on a summer Friday to do some reading. This is another Prime Reading selection, this time supporting #witmonth #womenintranslation out of South Korea.

Finished my third book for the #MakeYourMythTaker readathon. Almond follows the story of Yunjae, a boy born with a brain condition called alexithymia, and how he copes with the world and his relationships. It was fascinating and bittersweet. 4⭐️

This book is why I love international books. They‘re always so different from what is traditionally published here in America and I find that so refreshing.

Overall, I found this novel to be beautiful and thought provoking! If you‘re looking to try something new and a bit different, pick up this book!

Full review: https://oddandbookish.wordpress.com/2020/05/19/review-almond/