For the first time, I don’t flinch at the slogan on the cover, because Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 is a book that truly has shaken up public debate in South Korea and other Asian countries. Although it is a novel, for me it is much closer to fictionalized reportage, because Cho Nam-Joo weaves numbers and statistics into the story about Jiyoung, and illuminates her stories in the context of her family history.
But for me – especially in the context of #metoo – this is the story of each of us. No matter what country we were born in and where we live.
As a child, Jiyoung sees nothing strange that her grandmother treats her brother differently from her and her sister. Or that she has to share a room with her sister, even though their brother is younger. She is not surprised that her subsequent job applications are rejected. When she asks her father to pick her up at the bus stop because someone is following her, he blames her for what she is wearing. Even though she gets angry at times, she begins to accept that the world is just like that. Until one day she gets fed up and starts acting weird …
An ideal book for those who want to find out about the situation of women in Korea in an accessible way. And understand a little bit about yourself.
