Book Review | Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982

Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-Joo

Published by Liveright Publishing on April 14, 2020
Genres: Fiction / Literary, FICTION / Psychological, Fiction / Satire, Fiction / Women
Pages: 176
Format: Paperback

One of the most notable novels of the year, hailed by both critics and K-pop stars alike, Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 follows one woman’s psychic deterioration in the face of rampant misogyny. In a tidy apartment on the outskirts of Seoul, millennial “everywoman” Kim Jiyoung spends her days caring for her infant daughter. But strange symptoms appear: Jiyoung begins to impersonate the voices of other women, dead and alive. As she plunges deeper into this psychosis, her concerned husband sends her to a psychiatrist. Jiyoung narrates her story to this doctor—from her birth to parents who expected a son to elementary school teachers who policed girls’ outfits to male coworkers who installed hidden cameras in women’s restrooms. But can her psychiatrist cure her, or even discover what truly ails her? “A social treatise as well as a work of art” (Alexandra Alter, New York Times), Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 heralds the arrival of international powerhouse Cho Nam-Joo.

ISBN: 9781631496714

I first heard of this novel from TikTok (@wtfaleisa) who talked about how this book sparked the 4B Movement in South Korea, which has since updated my algorithm to show me TikToks about the actual history of South and North Korea, and my continual growing hate of the United States.

Moving on, I bought it for the library I currently work at and immediately checked it out once it arrived. It was definitely a quick read, only about 160 pages, but I took two evenings to read it for the heaviness of the book. I’m appalled most days by the sexism and misogyny still present in the United States that this has be outright furious on behalf of South Korean women. Obviously, sexism and misogyny exists in all countries but my education has been woefully lacking in South Korean history and culture.

The format of the book is a frame story were we start with Jiyoung married and the beginnings of her psychological deterioration, before then giving an entire history of Jiyoung’s life from childhood up to marriage and the postpartum depression. The last chapter totally surprised me, and I wasn’t expecting the book to actually be from that person’s point of view. It starts to feel a tiny bit hopeful before it’s all dashed away with the last sentence.

The style of writing was different from most novels I’ve read. Cho Nam-Joo wrote the history, culture, and stats of what was going on during certain aspects of Jiyoung’s life, which is definitely helpful for those who may not know much about these issues. With these footnotes and the detached third-person point-of-view, the novel itself read like a memoir or case study. It’s understandable why so many South Korean women saw themselves in Jiyoung, while fictional it’s still representative of a culture and life.