By coincidence, I picked up two books with almost identical themes and narrative. One is nonfiction, the other fiction. If I hadn’t known in advance, I couldn’t have told you which was which. Both are written in first person and both audiobooks are narrated by the author herself.
Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner
Michelle Zauner is the lead singer and song writer in the band Japanese Breakfast, which was recently nominated for two Grammys. One might be sceptical, when a celebrity in her 20s publishes her memoir. However, there isn’t a hint of glamour in Crying in H Mart, although we do hear about the early beginnings of Japanese Breakfast.
Mostly, the memoir focuses on the complex relationship between Michelle and her mother and how the family tries to cope with her mother dying of cancer. It’s honest and brutal and I wouldn’t recommend reading it, if you are not feeling on top yourself.
Food is a central theme throughout the book. When Michelle grew up, she envied the other kids, who had “mommy-moms”. These moms fussed about their kids and gave them comfort and praise. Michelle’s mother screamed at her, when she got hurt and criticised her every move, trying to make her better. But she showed how much she cared through food. After her passing away, Michelle tried to keep the memory of her mother and her half Korean identity alive by cooking Korean dishes. This memoir will probably make you sad, but I bet it will also make you hungry.
Title: The Crying in H Mart [2021] Author: Michelle Zauner Format: Audiobook, narrated by Michelle Zauner Genre: Memoir
Ghost Forest by Pik-Shuen Fung
Michelle Zauner grew up in the US, but she often travelled to Seul to visit her mother’s Korean family. The protagonist in Ghost Forest has her roots in Hong Kong, but she immigrates to Canada with her mother and sister, while her father stays in Hong Kong to work. Like Michelle Zauner, the protagonist travels between two countries and struggles to unify her two cultures and identities.
Similar to Crying in H Mart, the narrative is centred around the death of a parent, in this case the father. We hear about the illness leading up to his death and the grief afterwards. In both books there is the struggle of dealing with the criticism and lack of acceptance from the dying parent.
With its short vignettes and simple, beautiful prose, Ghost Forest was a joy to read. On balance, I preferred it to Crying in H Mart. However, it was very short and may not be particularly memorable. Time will show.
Title: Ghost Forest [2021] Author: Pik-Shuen Fung Format: Audiobook, narrated by Pik-Shuen Fung Genre: Contemporary Fiction
I loved Crying in H Mart! Thanks for the recommendation of a similar read, I will check out Ghost Forest.
Ghost Forest is definitely worth a read, but I would suggest not reading it too close to Crying in H Mart, since you might get a sense of deja vu.
Fantastic book review.
Thanks! 😀
Hi. Michelle Zauner has gotten a good amount of press in the Philadelphia region. That’s because she lives in or near Philly (I’m in the Philly burbs). Her band is popular around here. They sell out shows easily. It’s really something that she also is a very good writer.
Yes, she seems to have many talents. To be honest, I hadn’t heard of her band before reading the book, but after googling, I realised that it is quite successful. Have you heard any of their music?
Only a bit. What I heard didn’t knock me out.
Ah well, I might check them out on Youtube…
Wonderful reviews, Stargazer💜
Thanks Jonetta! 😊
My nickname is Martie. However, people who know me well call me Mart. At first glance, I thought the book was about me. LOL
😆 Haha, it must be interesting to share (nick)name with a big supermarket chain!
Not sure if my comment went through.
Just needed to approve it…
Interesting, but I don’t think I want to read either one.
Fair enough, this kind of narrative is not for everyone.
I was on the fence about Crying in H Mart until I read that her mother showed her love through food. Such a universal thing to do.
Yes, that was a redeeming feature of her mother. I hope not all Korean mothers are quite so harsh, but I believe her behaviour was at least partly rooted in her culture and upbringing.
Ooh, both of these are on my TBR so I’m glad to hear you rate them highly!
Just don’t read them close to each other, since there are quite a few similarities. But both are very readable.
Great reviews of books I may look out for – later.
Thanks Margaret. They were both enjoyable, but Ghost Forest is a lot shorter and perhaps the writing is better as well.
I loved Crying in H Mart. Really like the sound of Ghost Forest by your review. I’ve just checked to see if my Overdrive has it available and it does so I’ll put it on my wish list! 🙂
I think you will enjoy Ghost Forest. Just wait a bit before you read it, since the themes are so similar to Crying in H Mart.
Thanks for the tip! Excited to read it 🙂
👍
Kismet. I just finished Crying in H Mart too and reviewed it on 4/12. We think alike, ha. It’s a pretty sad one, & has much Korean food in it! But I havent heard of Ghost Forest … so I’ll have to see if my library has it. hmmm cheers!
What a coincidence, I will be over to check out your review in a minute!
Awesome reviews! So interesting that they had so much in common. Having food as a central theme is pretty cool though. So much can be done with that idea! 🙂
Thanks Lashaan! 😊 I love books which include food even if they make me hungry.
Been wanting to read Crying in H Mart. Maybe in the near future. Glad you enjoyed both, especially Ghost Forest! Great mini reviews, stargazer!
Crying in H Mart is definitely worth a read. It took me by surprise though, how many similarities there were to Ghost Forest. Thanks!