From the Bookshelf of EVERYONE Has Read This but Me - The Catch-Up Book Club…

Crying in H Mart

Michelle Zauner

Start date: April 1, 2023

Finish date: April 30, 2023

Discussion: MODERN / POPULAR READS

Why we're reading this: April 2023 - Modern Selection
[close] April 2023 - Modern Selection

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What Members Thought

Nov 26, 2023 Mike rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: memoir, nonfiction, music

This one originally caught my eye because the author is a musician AND this book was getting reviews. I'm always interested when an artist changes medium and does a good job at both.

This memoir is the story of the author and her mother. A strained relationship that becomes more complicated when the mother is diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

The title refers to small things that wreck us after we lose someone. Such as shopping where you used to go with the person you lost.

Wanted a little break fr ...more

3 likes · Like · see review

Aug 06, 2023 Christina rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2023, 2023-royalty-vs-commoner, finished-aug-23

This is an incredibly moving memoir. Michelle Zauner's life experience is vastly different from my own however I can relate to the complicated relationship she had with her mother as I have a similarly complicated relationship with mine. If you need to have a good cry I urge you to pick this book up. If you have an affinity for Korean food this is also the book for you! I enjoy a lot of Korean food, but I wouldn't say I am a connoisseur by any stretch, but Zauner's food descriptions are so rich ...more

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Apr 06, 2023 Sunflower rated it it was amazing

Shelves: e-books, non-fiction-read-2023

It was the title that grabbed my interest, and I'm glad it did. You could summarise the content of this book in the phrase "love, loss and kimchi" - the name of an article the author wrote, but that would not do it justice.
Written with sass and humour, but deeply personal and raw at times, Zauner describes her relationship with her mother until her untimely death, and her connection with her Korean heritage, mainly using food. Although I had no idea what most of the ingredients or dishes were, ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Jun 11, 2022 Marla rated it liked it

Shelves: asian, adult, overrated, non-fiction, book-club, zz-2022

I expected to be a basket case reading this book. I am an Asian American and my mother passed away from cancer when I was 21. I expected this to tear me apart. I'm not sure if I'm thankful or disappointed that 1/4 of the was into the book, it's been interesting but not emotional. Also, the Korean words were a bit perplexing. Not all Asians are the same and I don't know any Korean language or apparently much food. I expected to recognize more cultural tidbits in the book. But I guess besides the ...more

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Mar 21, 2023 Kim rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: finished-in-2023

This book wasn't for me. It was basically 200 pages of watching the author's relatively young mother die of cancer. I don't need that. It also spent a lot of time talking about cooking and/or eating Korean food, most of which I'd never heard of. The parts that I did find interesting were when she talked about what it's like to be "half Korean, half American" while living in America and while visiting relatives in Korea. Unfortunately, the narrator didn't seem like somebody I would like. So much ...more

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Apr 02, 2023 Ketutar Jensen rated it really liked it

My father died of cancer 2014. This book reminded me of too many things I'd rather had forgotten for always. It was cruel. None of the descriptions prepared me for that. So - I'm going to warn you. Graphic description of the effects of cancer, cancer treatments, last days of a beloved one dying, all the pain that you can witness, but not do a thing to alleviate.

But, it was good. Honest, deep, touching. Real. And gave me yet another insight to the Korean culture. BTW, watch Maangchi on YouTube. ...more

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