Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982: A Novel
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- Create Date：2021-03-31 11:12:55
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Cho Nam-Joo
- ISBN：1631498673
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Summary
Kim Jiyoung is a girl born to a mother whose in-laws wanted a boy。 She is a sister made to share a room while her brother gets one of his own。 A female preyed upon by male teachers at school。 A daughter whose father blames her when she is harassed late at night。 A good student who doesn’t get put forward for internships。 A model employee but gets overlooked for promotion。 A wife who gives up her career and independence for a life of domesticity。
Kim Jiyoung has started acting strangely。 She ]is depressed。 She is mad。 She is her own woman。 Kim Jiyoung is every woman。
Kim Jiyoung， Born 1982 is the life story of one young woman born at the end of the twentieth century raises questions about endemic misogyny and institutional oppression that are relevant to us all。。
Kim Jiyoung has started acting strangely。 She ]is depressed。 She is mad。 She is her own woman。 Kim Jiyoung is every woman。
Kim Jiyoung， Born 1982 is the life story of one young woman born at the end of the twentieth century raises questions about endemic misogyny and institutional oppression that are relevant to us all。。
Reviews
Lauren
，
Very different - I don't quite know what I thought of this quick novella but it was interesting to me that while it is a direct commentary on women's lives in Korea - it contains stories and scenarios very common to twenty and thirty something's in the US as well。 This was a translation， so hard to say how well it truly did translate， but from what I understand it had HUGE cultural repercussions when it came out in Korea and that's pretty cool。Some parts were SO INFURIATING （"companies find smar Very different - I don't quite know what I thought of this quick novella but it was interesting to me that while it is a direct commentary on women's lives in Korea - it contains stories and scenarios very common to twenty and thirty something's in the US as well。 This was a translation， so hard to say how well it truly did translate， but from what I understand it had HUGE cultural repercussions when it came out in Korea and that's pretty cool。Some parts were SO INFURIATING （"companies find smart women taxing。 Like now- you're being very taxing， you know。"）But there were definitely some YOU GO GIRL moments in this book as well （"If the club needs brightening up， get a lamp"）。But overall it was a little one-dimensional and didn't come full circle for me in the end。 。。。more
Haru
，
I was confused if this was a fiction / non fiction。。 Turned out it's both！ What more could I ask for？？？ It got all the stats and facts covered。 Picked up this book because a few of korean celebrities I followed got into controversy for reading this book and I got curious， like why？！ Is it filled with misinformation？ But nah， I learnt fairly quickly a good portion of koreans are heavily against feminist。Which is sad。 Everyone should be a feminist imo。 Like please， we aren't arguing about which ge I was confused if this was a fiction / non fiction。。 Turned out it's both！ What more could I ask for？？？ It got all the stats and facts covered。 Picked up this book because a few of korean celebrities I followed got into controversy for reading this book and I got curious， like why？！ Is it filled with misinformation？ But nah， I learnt fairly quickly a good portion of koreans are heavily against feminist。Which is sad。 Everyone should be a feminist imo。 Like please， we aren't arguing about which gender has it worse？ We're just asking for gender equality。Also， reading this made me furious！！！ All those mistreatment， all those misogynistic remarks arkcnfjdodocosl and they expect women to suck it up， like smh。Idk， I love this book。 It was a short read， there was no violence， abuse etc but the story conveyed its message perfectly。 I love it ;; 。。。more
Alexmary
，
This is perfection！ Incredible reading， love every single sentence。I believe this is a mandatory reading， it blows your mind。
Lucille
，
A simple， raw， yet powerful statement on the life of women in South Korea。
WildeGirl
，
4，5*Great and extremely relevant book。 I love the fact that the German translation is written by a Korean native speaker who studied German。 It is soo well written and one can be sure that it's an actual account of the original bc the translator just knows exactly how things need to be translated。 The way actual statistics are woven into the narrative makes it so realistic and just points out the lived reality of women so sharply。 4，5*Great and extremely relevant book。 I love the fact that the German translation is written by a Korean native speaker who studied German。 It is soo well written and one can be sure that it's an actual account of the original bc the translator just knows exactly how things need to be translated。 The way actual statistics are woven into the narrative makes it so realistic and just points out the lived reality of women so sharply。 。。。more
Shreya
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Definitely have a soft spot for women writing terribly relatable women stories。
Jasmine Waters
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4。5
Deepti
，
This book is kind of depressing， mostly， because it's true。I couldn't recommend this book more。 A must read for women， a must read for men。 I have been lately thinking about how there are certain things we take for granted in our lives - even when we know it isn't right。 This book tells you clearly that it isn't right。 The first step to fixing what's wrong is to know that something is wrong。 I spoke about this today in my organization and when I completed this book， I was blown away， by how clea This book is kind of depressing， mostly， because it's true。I couldn't recommend this book more。 A must read for women， a must read for men。 I have been lately thinking about how there are certain things we take for granted in our lives - even when we know it isn't right。 This book tells you clearly that it isn't right。 The first step to fixing what's wrong is to know that something is wrong。 I spoke about this today in my organization and when I completed this book， I was blown away， by how clearly this book sets this out。Extremely Asian in nature， it deals with a lot of commonly faced gender based discrimination from weighty topics such as female feticide， women workplace participation， tradeoffs between motherhood and career， to a lot of things， we may take for granted/ or our parents/grand parents may have taken for granted – the better education and expectations from the son， sharing of household tasks between genders， assumptions on leadership capabilities， biases that you may have faced from relatives， friends， colleagues。This book brings a rush of unpleasant memories， some from my dusty ancient childhood and some from my recent past。 。。。more
Zuicy Beauty Akoijam
，
'Kim Jiyoung， Born 1982' is a work of fiction that narrates the story of a young woman born at the end of the 20th century to bring to light the lifelong discrimination and institutionalised oppression women face in Korean society （which are pretty familiar for any society）。 Why 1982？ To stress the fact that JiYoung was born in a period （1980s and 1990s） where rampant female fetus abortion took place that the male to female ratio of Korea got highly skewed。 The book traces Kim Jiyoung's life thr 'Kim Jiyoung， Born 1982' is a work of fiction that narrates the story of a young woman born at the end of the 20th century to bring to light the lifelong discrimination and institutionalised oppression women face in Korean society （which are pretty familiar for any society）。 Why 1982？ To stress the fact that JiYoung was born in a period （1980s and 1990s） where rampant female fetus abortion took place that the male to female ratio of Korea got highly skewed。 The book traces Kim Jiyoung's life through different phases - childhood， adolescence， early adulthood and marriage。 When she is born her grandmother is disappointed for she had hoped for a baby boy， in school her first obstacle was 'the pranks of boy desk-mate' that many schoolgirls experience which to JiYoung felt more like harassment than pranks， when she is stalked she got an earful blame from her father， at work she isn't given the rightful promotion instead it is the male， when she becomes a mother she has to sacrifice her job， colleagues， social network， career to look after her child， and then she is taunt as 'mom roach' for living off her husband's paycheck。 The book is backed by statistics and reports provided at footnotes to remind that this is no fictional story， to remind that Kim Jiyoung is every woman whose dreams had to be forsaken and whose voice has so far been suppressed。 The book isn't much of a literary masterpiece。 Also， I would have loved it more had the author tried to establish emotions with the characters involved。 It was the familiarity in the story that kept me hook in。 This book however is a must recommended from me。 It is simple yet powerful and is a quick read。 。。。more
Maybaby
，
If you watch K-dramas you'll totally be in tune with the sentiments expressed in this book。 If you have no experience Korean modern culture you need to read this。 The status of women in Korea is still very much behind the times。 This is poignant commentary of what life is like for modern Korean women。 If you watch K-dramas you'll totally be in tune with the sentiments expressed in this book。 If you have no experience Korean modern culture you need to read this。 The status of women in Korea is still very much behind the times。 This is poignant commentary of what life is like for modern Korean women。 。。。more
Tiffany Lai
，
Heard many great things about this book。 However， it took me quite some time to find this。 I had great expectations about this book， because I’ve heard from many people on booktube recommend this。 And i have to say i was really disappointed after reading this。 The story is very dull， and to me the ending is not clear。 Like “what happened to Kim Ji Young？” I mean， it’s just my opinion。 That being said， the situation Kim Ji Young faced is very relatable to me。 That’s why i gave it 2 stars。 It’s re Heard many great things about this book。 However， it took me quite some time to find this。 I had great expectations about this book， because I’ve heard from many people on booktube recommend this。 And i have to say i was really disappointed after reading this。 The story is very dull， and to me the ending is not clear。 Like “what happened to Kim Ji Young？” I mean， it’s just my opinion。 That being said， the situation Kim Ji Young faced is very relatable to me。 That’s why i gave it 2 stars。 It’s really real that women were treated very differently and ARE still treated unfairly。 p。s。 I’m not very good in reviewing books。 Just putting out my thoughts。 。。。more
Nur Izzati Amirah
，
4。5 ⭐️
My shelf with books
，
4。5To było naprawdę bardzo dobre i równocześnie niesamowicie wstrząsające。 Mimo， że znałam część z tych informacji， to i tak poruszyło mną bardzo。 Nierówne traktowanie kobiet i mężczyzn jest niestety powszechne na całym świecie， jednak tutaj widać na przykładzie Korei， że tam jest to bardzo mocno zakorzenione w kulturze i nikt nie walczy specjalnie o zmianę tego stanu。 Jest to kolejna pozycja Azjatycka， która zrobiła na mnie bardzo pozytywne wrażenie i udowodniła， że mimo małej objętości， książk 4。5To było naprawdę bardzo dobre i równocześnie niesamowicie wstrząsające。 Mimo， że znałam część z tych informacji， to i tak poruszyło mną bardzo。 Nierówne traktowanie kobiet i mężczyzn jest niestety powszechne na całym świecie， jednak tutaj widać na przykładzie Korei， że tam jest to bardzo mocno zakorzenione w kulturze i nikt nie walczy specjalnie o zmianę tego stanu。 Jest to kolejna pozycja Azjatycka， która zrobiła na mnie bardzo pozytywne wrażenie i udowodniła， że mimo małej objętości， książka może być "naładowana" treścią。 。。。more
Atziri Avalos Betancourt
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Me gusto mucho， pero solo me hizo pensar en cosas tristes
Isabella Mackett
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An amazing and essential read that illustrates gender inequality so well。 While learning about the Korean culture I also learnt about the universality of the experience of women and that’s why this book is so essential。 On the one hand you can read it to learn about others experiences but on the other hand you can read it and it can validate how you feel about your own。I also just fell in love with Kim Jiyoung and the storyline captivated me and held my attention throughout。 I feel like it’s ver An amazing and essential read that illustrates gender inequality so well。 While learning about the Korean culture I also learnt about the universality of the experience of women and that’s why this book is so essential。 On the one hand you can read it to learn about others experiences but on the other hand you can read it and it can validate how you feel about your own。I also just fell in love with Kim Jiyoung and the storyline captivated me and held my attention throughout。 I feel like it’s very rare for an author to be able to talk about as serious issues as this （including stats and footnotes） while maintaining a great plotCouldn’t find any faults 5/5 。。。more
abbi
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reading this will make you angry， but do it anyway。 i hate the patriarchy this made me so anxious and so infuriated at how women are treated i can't really form any coherent thoughts at the moment because i'm tired and feel empty after being exposed to the amount of sexism packed into a 170 page book。 also i need to clarify that the actual book is good and i enjoyed it despite its strange tone。 maybe ill edit this when i am not a boiling pot of rage。 reading this will make you angry， but do it anyway。 i hate the patriarchy this made me so anxious and so infuriated at how women are treated i can't really form any coherent thoughts at the moment because i'm tired and feel empty after being exposed to the amount of sexism packed into a 170 page book。 also i need to clarify that the actual book is good and i enjoyed it despite its strange tone。 maybe ill edit this when i am not a boiling pot of rage。 。。。more
mari
，
kim namjoon never misses！！！
Loriii
，
Qué triste que todo lo que pasa en este libro nos haya pasado a todas （quitando detalles culturales）。 Me siento muy identificada con la protagonista， el callarte a comentarios， el aguantar， la rabia de lo injusto。 Me ha encantado， pero me parece muy triste que sea tan real。 Y el final es como un puñetazo。 Es increíble
Tracy Yim Lee
，
（Note: this book is available in English on Amazon as "Kim Jiyoung， Born 1982） All the seemingly little ways sexism and misogyny snowball into giant insurmountable obstacles， and how invisible it is to men。 （Note: this book is available in English on Amazon as "Kim Jiyoung， Born 1982） All the seemingly little ways sexism and misogyny snowball into giant insurmountable obstacles， and how invisible it is to men。 。。。more
Kia
，
I liked it。 I enjoyed it。 It angered me。 It made me think。 It made me feel。 Hence the 5 stars。 Having much knowledge about the korean culture from all the kdramas I watched in netflix， I sympathize so much with the character’s circumstance and the culture she is in， making her story more relatable even though the book was a translation。 I also liked the beginning being in the POV of the husband， of how clueless he was of what really is afflicting his wife; and the book ending with the POV of ano I liked it。 I enjoyed it。 It angered me。 It made me think。 It made me feel。 Hence the 5 stars。 Having much knowledge about the korean culture from all the kdramas I watched in netflix， I sympathize so much with the character’s circumstance and the culture she is in， making her story more relatable even though the book was a translation。 I also liked the beginning being in the POV of the husband， of how clueless he was of what really is afflicting his wife; and the book ending with the POV of another man， now the psychiatrist， of the realization and understanding of women’s plight。 And just when I thought there will be a vindication for Jiyoung at the end， hoping for a much needed change given the tragedy of her life， the author flipped the tables on me leaving me reeling and bringing me back to reality。 。。。more
Erin Morgie
，
Me encantó mucho este libro。 Pese a que está muy cortito， es muy intenso。 Ante mi punto de vista， es el retrato de una sociedad machista。 A lo largo de los capítulos puedes identificarte con Kim a tal punto que de verdad sientes pinche coraje e impotencia por no poder ayudarla。 Las situaciones a las que se tiene que enfrentar no están romantizadas ni son fantasiosas， son cosas del día a día， normalizadas no sólo en Corea， también en muchos otros países。 Es triste ver como una persona con tanta l Me encantó mucho este libro。 Pese a que está muy cortito， es muy intenso。 Ante mi punto de vista， es el retrato de una sociedad machista。 A lo largo de los capítulos puedes identificarte con Kim a tal punto que de verdad sientes pinche coraje e impotencia por no poder ayudarla。 Las situaciones a las que se tiene que enfrentar no están romantizadas ni son fantasiosas， son cosas del día a día， normalizadas no sólo en Corea， también en muchos otros países。 Es triste ver como una persona con tanta luz se va deteriorando poco a poco por las circunstancias de su entorno。 El libro tocó los temas justos para lograr ver su punto。 Es muy educativo， hasta eso。 Yo lo haría lectura obligatoria en las escuelas， pero bueno。 （？） Es interesante ver cómo el machismo tiene diferentes perspectivas según la región porque comparando el machismo descrito en el libro con el vivido en mi comunidad， hay diferencias， tanto como similitudes。 Lo que no cambia es que ante la perspectiva de los hombres machistas， las mujeres son una propiedad o un recurso; incluso ambos。 Lo único por lo que no le doy cinco estrellitas es porque no me gustó cómo cerraron las cosas。 Aunque， eso ya es más a nivel de gusto personal y no tanto por un fallo de la autora。 Siento que ella lo hizo así adrede。 。。。more
Meena Narag
，
_เป็นนิยายสะท้อนสั้งคมเกาหลีใต้ สังคมที่ผู้ชายเป็นใหญ่และได้รับโอกาสมากกว่าผู้หญิง รังเกียจ และดูแคลนผู้หญิงที่ไม่ใช่ลูกและเมียตัวเอง ฉันอ่านไปก็โกรธและเสียใจแทนผู้หญิงเกาหลีที่ต้องเจอเหตุการณ์แบบคุณคิมจียอง ใครอยากรู้ แนะนำให้อ่านค่ะ _ตัวฉันเองเกิดปี 81 ในประเทศไทย รุ่นราวคราวเดียวกันกับคิมจียองแต่ฉันไม่เคยถูกเลือกปฏิบัตร เด็กผู้หญิงเป็นที่รักของพ่อแม่และครอบครัวเสมอ พ่อเป็นคนเลี้ยงดูฉันแทนแม่ และพี่ชายก็รักฉันมาก ตอนนี้ฉันเป็นโสด แน่นอนว่าไม่เคยถูกกดดันเรื่องแต่งงานทุกคนเคารพสิ่งที่ฉันต้องการเ _เป็นนิยายสะท้อนสั้งคมเกาหลีใต้ สังคมที่ผู้ชายเป็นใหญ่และได้รับโอกาสมากกว่าผู้หญิง รังเกียจ และดูแคลนผู้หญิงที่ไม่ใช่ลูกและเมียตัวเอง ฉันอ่านไปก็โกรธและเสียใจแทนผู้หญิงเกาหลีที่ต้องเจอเหตุการณ์แบบคุณคิมจียอง ใครอยากรู้ แนะนำให้อ่านค่ะ _ตัวฉันเองเกิดปี 81 ในประเทศไทย รุ่นราวคราวเดียวกันกับคิมจียองแต่ฉันไม่เคยถูกเลือกปฏิบัตร เด็กผู้หญิงเป็นที่รักของพ่อแม่และครอบครัวเสมอ พ่อเป็นคนเลี้ยงดูฉันแทนแม่ และพี่ชายก็รักฉันมาก ตอนนี้ฉันเป็นโสด แน่นอนว่าไม่เคยถูกกดดันเรื่องแต่งงานทุกคนเคารพสิ่งที่ฉันต้องการเสมอ 。。。more
Moumita Laha
，
The novel is moving。 It tells the story of every woman， of every daughter， of every sister， of every wife， of every mother。
Sara
，
4。5 stars
Charlotte
，
Excellent。
Bäumchen
，
Das， was das Buch tun wollte， hat es hingekriegt， finde ich
jade mark capiñanes
，
This novel is relentlessly sad and angry。 And for good， timely， and important reason。The first chapter of the novel introduces us to Kim Jiyoung， a Korean woman in her 30s， a mother and a wife， who suddenly undergoes strange behavioral changes。 She pretends to be other women: she imitates the way they move and speak， acting as if she really was another person。 The rest of the book then recounts her entire life， from her childhood， adolescence， early adulthood， marriage， and back to the present t This novel is relentlessly sad and angry。 And for good， timely， and important reason。The first chapter of the novel introduces us to Kim Jiyoung， a Korean woman in her 30s， a mother and a wife， who suddenly undergoes strange behavioral changes。 She pretends to be other women: she imitates the way they move and speak， acting as if she really was another person。 The rest of the book then recounts her entire life， from her childhood， adolescence， early adulthood， marriage， and back to the present time。Written like a psychological case study （with footnotes and references）， the novel details and unpacks the casual， systemic sexism and misogyny Jiyoung—and every woman—has had to face throughout her whole life。As a man， whoʼs part of the problem， I really feel like Iʼm not in the position to comment on this novel。 While reading this I was just shaking my head （not in disagreement， but in disbelief） all the time， and I can only imagine how female readers， who have experienced the horrible stuff portrayed here， will react。To end this Iʼll just bring up how some Korean men， the ones who this novel says should reconsider their ways， have reacted to this book。 When Red Velvet member Irene mentioned at a fan meet in 2018 that sheʼd read this novel， a lot of her male fans got mad at her。 They called her names online， and some of them even burned and cut up her photos。 As mentioned earlier this work reveals how entrenched patriarchy is in Korean society， and as the said Korean menʼs rabid response may suggest this also reveals how fragile their masculinity is。One thingʼs for sure then: more than ever we need more feminist novels。 。。。more
Anjana Unnikrishnan
，
“As a woman I have no country。 As a woman my country is the whole world。” Virginia WoolfPut Kim Jiyoung or her mother or her grandmother in India， and their story would be the same， only the context would vary。 The people around them would say the same things。 The protagonist would end up perhaps a little worse thanks to poor mental health awareness。 And maybe the labour force participation rate of around 60% would come across as unattainably progressive in this part of the world。 But same， a wo “As a woman I have no country。 As a woman my country is the whole world。” Virginia WoolfPut Kim Jiyoung or her mother or her grandmother in India， and their story would be the same， only the context would vary。 The people around them would say the same things。 The protagonist would end up perhaps a little worse thanks to poor mental health awareness。 And maybe the labour force participation rate of around 60% would come across as unattainably progressive in this part of the world。 But same， a woman's lived experience would be the same。 This book opened up a tiny window to South Korea and am glad for it。 。。。more
Hazel
，
This book was incredible。 I won’t spoil it but the last few sentences。。。 oh my god。 I had a visceral reaction。 Pure brilliance。 My jaw dropped。 If you enjoyed The Vegetarian by Han Kang or Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata， you simply must read this book。
Vebuma
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