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치치새가 사는 숲
『치치새가 사는 숲』은 한 사람의 과거와 현재가 내는 두 개의 목소리가 겹치고 맞물리며 펼쳐지는 소설이다. 20년 전 ‘치치림’이라는 이름을 새로 얻은 열네 살의 ‘나’와 그때를 돌아보는 현재 ‘나’의 목소리다. 월드컵의 열기가 채 가시지 않은 2003년, 평준화 정책하에 배정받은 최악의 중학교와 그보다 더 최악인 집을 오가며 인정받기 위해 악착같이 애쓰던 화자 앞에 한 남자가 운명처럼 나타난다. 그와의 관계를 ‘사랑’이라 주장하는 과거의 ‘나’와 이를 말없이 지켜보며 심한 가려움증에 고통받는 현재의 ‘나’가 대비되며 분열된다.
『치치새가 사는 숲』은 스스로를 구원하려 자기 파괴적인 허구의 세계로 치닫는 치치림을 통해 상상 가능한 가장 위험한 윤리적 극단의 지점에 우리를 데려다 놓는다. 그동안 우리 사회가 정해 둔 ‘학생다움’, ‘피해자다움’ 등 모든 기준과 경계를 넘어 그 근원을 마주하도록 이끈다. 자신과 자신을 둘러싼 세상을 진실로부터 멀어진 ‘비밀의 숲’으로 만들게 하는 힘의 정체가 ‘무엇’인지.
『치치새가 사는 숲』은 스스로를 구원하려 자기 파괴적인 허구의 세계로 치닫는 치치림을 통해 상상 가능한 가장 위험한 윤리적 극단의 지점에 우리를 데려다 놓는다. 그동안 우리 사회가 정해 둔 ‘학생다움’, ‘피해자다움’ 등 모든 기준과 경계를 넘어 그 근원을 마주하도록 이끈다. 자신과 자신을 둘러싼 세상을 진실로부터 멀어진 ‘비밀의 숲’으로 만들게 하는 힘의 정체가 ‘무엇’인지.
184 pages, Hardcover
First published October 20, 2023
6 people are currently reading
250 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
December 30, 2025
Narrated by Jesse Baek
Presented by Octopus Audio
A strange book, that's mostly kind of dull until you get into the secrets.
It follows a lonely teenager as she seeks attention in many destructive ways, but without the context it's quite hard to like the protagonist. I guess that's probably the point.
This is a rather short story, about innocence and its destruction. It's not really long enough to be clever and memorable, but it raises some interesting ideas about the fragility and impressionability of youth.
The narrator does a decent job, but the voice didn't feel quite right to me. It was easy enough to listen to, but there were strange inflections here and there, with a few awkward pauses and emphases. I'd happily give this narrator another chance, though.
It was an average sort of story for me, but a full length novel of a similar idea would be rather interesting from this perspective.
With thanks to NetGalley for an audio ARC
Presented by Octopus Audio
A strange book, that's mostly kind of dull until you get into the secrets.
It follows a lonely teenager as she seeks attention in many destructive ways, but without the context it's quite hard to like the protagonist. I guess that's probably the point.
This is a rather short story, about innocence and its destruction. It's not really long enough to be clever and memorable, but it raises some interesting ideas about the fragility and impressionability of youth.
The narrator does a decent job, but the voice didn't feel quite right to me. It was easy enough to listen to, but there were strange inflections here and there, with a few awkward pauses and emphases. I'd happily give this narrator another chance, though.
It was an average sort of story for me, but a full length novel of a similar idea would be rather interesting from this perspective.
With thanks to NetGalley for an audio ARC
November 28, 2025
Was I scratching my arm in the Chairman? I don't remember. I do remember other things.
I loved terrible memories. I was obsessed with misfortune. I collected awful memories inside the keepsake box in my heart. I was in love with bad habits.
그 체어맨 안에서 내가 몸을 긁었던가, 그건 기억나지 않는다. 기억해야 할 일들은 따로 있었다.
나는 불행한 기억을 사랑했다. 불행에 집착했다. 마음속 보석함에 불행한 기억을 모았다. 내 사랑은 악취미였다.
The Crustacean (2025) is Chi-Young Kim's translation of 치치새가 사는 숲 (2023) by 장진영, the Korean title translates as 'The woods where the chichi birds live', which comes from the novel's opening lines.
내 이름은 치치림. 치치새가 사는 숲이라는 뜻이다. 치치새는 아주 진귀한 새로, 세상에 존재하는지 아직 밝혀진 바가 없다. 그 새는 마음씨가 고운 사람에게만 보인다. 행운을 가져다준다.
My name is Chichirim. Which means the woods where the chichibird lives. A chichibird is an incredibly rare, priceless creature; nobody is certain it really exists. Only someone with a pure heart can see this bird. A chichibird is a harbinger of good luck.
This in turn a reference to the Japanese and Korean rendition of the Blue Bird from Maeterlinck's 1908 play The Blue Bird e.g. as per the 1980s anime series メーテルリンクの青い鳥 チルチルミチルの冒険旅行.
The novel is narrated by a woman in her 30s, her self-nickmanme Chichirim (치치림) and currently working as a freelance illustrator on a version of Maeterlinck's work, but looking back twenty years, and to the month she turned 13, and first acquired that nickname in an incident that clearly still has repercussions for her life.
The novel's English title in turn refers to another key present-day plot element - the narrator's chronic condition with an itchy skin, one that dermatologist's have struggled to diagnose - and which leads her to tell her, somewhat unsymathetic, older sister that, if reincarnated, she'd like to come back as a crab: A crab's skin is made of bone and the flesh is inside the bone. But we're the opposite. We have bone inside flesh.
The past section is set in 2003, post the World Cup, and there is a telling vignette when the narrator recalls how she resisted the world cup fever sweeping the country - only getting her Be The Reds t-shirt (I still have mine!) in time for the semi-final defeat by Germany.
The narrator herself is slow to reveal the story's central message, indeed around 15% into the novel addressing the reader directly:
Right about now, you may be asking, 'So what are you trying to say here, what's this story about?'
The way my sister would, my sister who I want to kill. You might snap, 'Get to the point'.
Sorry, my story is getting long. Don't be mad. Not yet.
What I am trying to tell you is this: I wasn't pretty.
Although the novel's blurb and promotion (here and see the Amazon page) make this rather more explicit - and indeed, the explicit nature of the central scene was, for me, rather disturbing, but perhaps necessary to bring home to the reader the reality of what happened versus the character's hitherto rather chaste teenage fumblings.
And this is an effective and powerful tale of how parental neglect; childhood abuse from a relative; adolescence; junior high school bullying; and societal peer pressure can create vulnerability of which a predator can take terrible advantage - and of how family members can turn such situations to their financial benefit.
And there's an effective closing scene, immediately after the conclusion of the trial at the end of the past section of the story, where eating lunch with her family in a chain resident, Kimbap Paradise, in front of the Court, and unable to choose what to eat, her impatient mother points to a dish on the wall - 꽁치 김치 조림 - braised mackarel and kimchi, the last syllable of each word spelling, again, 치치림 - Chichirim.
My nose stung and tears clung to my lashes. But I didn't cry. I was happy. My name is Chichirim. KkongCHI kimCHI joRIM - Chichirim.
That day, I was still the plaintiff and, in the future that I could remember, the defendant hadn't yet been acquited.
A novel which when I read it felt deceptively simple, but grew on reflection. 3.5 stars rounded to 4 for Chi-Young Kim's deft translation glosses.
I loved terrible memories. I was obsessed with misfortune. I collected awful memories inside the keepsake box in my heart. I was in love with bad habits.
그 체어맨 안에서 내가 몸을 긁었던가, 그건 기억나지 않는다. 기억해야 할 일들은 따로 있었다.
나는 불행한 기억을 사랑했다. 불행에 집착했다. 마음속 보석함에 불행한 기억을 모았다. 내 사랑은 악취미였다.
The Crustacean (2025) is Chi-Young Kim's translation of 치치새가 사는 숲 (2023) by 장진영, the Korean title translates as 'The woods where the chichi birds live', which comes from the novel's opening lines.
내 이름은 치치림. 치치새가 사는 숲이라는 뜻이다. 치치새는 아주 진귀한 새로, 세상에 존재하는지 아직 밝혀진 바가 없다. 그 새는 마음씨가 고운 사람에게만 보인다. 행운을 가져다준다.
My name is Chichirim. Which means the woods where the chichibird lives. A chichibird is an incredibly rare, priceless creature; nobody is certain it really exists. Only someone with a pure heart can see this bird. A chichibird is a harbinger of good luck.
This in turn a reference to the Japanese and Korean rendition of the Blue Bird from Maeterlinck's 1908 play The Blue Bird e.g. as per the 1980s anime series メーテルリンクの青い鳥 チルチルミチルの冒険旅行.
The novel is narrated by a woman in her 30s, her self-nickmanme Chichirim (치치림) and currently working as a freelance illustrator on a version of Maeterlinck's work, but looking back twenty years, and to the month she turned 13, and first acquired that nickname in an incident that clearly still has repercussions for her life.
The novel's English title in turn refers to another key present-day plot element - the narrator's chronic condition with an itchy skin, one that dermatologist's have struggled to diagnose - and which leads her to tell her, somewhat unsymathetic, older sister that, if reincarnated, she'd like to come back as a crab: A crab's skin is made of bone and the flesh is inside the bone. But we're the opposite. We have bone inside flesh.
The past section is set in 2003, post the World Cup, and there is a telling vignette when the narrator recalls how she resisted the world cup fever sweeping the country - only getting her Be The Reds t-shirt (I still have mine!) in time for the semi-final defeat by Germany.
The narrator herself is slow to reveal the story's central message, indeed around 15% into the novel addressing the reader directly:
Right about now, you may be asking, 'So what are you trying to say here, what's this story about?'
The way my sister would, my sister who I want to kill. You might snap, 'Get to the point'.
Sorry, my story is getting long. Don't be mad. Not yet.
What I am trying to tell you is this: I wasn't pretty.
Although the novel's blurb and promotion (here and see the Amazon page) make this rather more explicit - and indeed, the explicit nature of the central scene was, for me, rather disturbing, but perhaps necessary to bring home to the reader the reality of what happened versus the character's hitherto rather chaste teenage fumblings.
And this is an effective and powerful tale of how parental neglect; childhood abuse from a relative; adolescence; junior high school bullying; and societal peer pressure can create vulnerability of which a predator can take terrible advantage - and of how family members can turn such situations to their financial benefit.
And there's an effective closing scene, immediately after the conclusion of the trial at the end of the past section of the story, where eating lunch with her family in a chain resident, Kimbap Paradise, in front of the Court, and unable to choose what to eat, her impatient mother points to a dish on the wall - 꽁치 김치 조림 - braised mackarel and kimchi, the last syllable of each word spelling, again, 치치림 - Chichirim.
My nose stung and tears clung to my lashes. But I didn't cry. I was happy. My name is Chichirim. KkongCHI kimCHI joRIM - Chichirim.
That day, I was still the plaintiff and, in the future that I could remember, the defendant hadn't yet been acquited.
A novel which when I read it felt deceptively simple, but grew on reflection. 3.5 stars rounded to 4 for Chi-Young Kim's deft translation glosses.
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December 11, 2025This was too much for me. The writing is great the content is horrific and I didn’t like the narration, I wish I’d dnf I need to vomit!
Needs sooo many content warnings I was completely unprepared for how graphic this title be!
Thank you to Octopus Audio and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this ALC 🎧
Needs sooo many content warnings I was completely unprepared for how graphic this title be!
Thank you to Octopus Audio and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this ALC 🎧
January 4, 2026
Another Lolita style novel, translated from South Korean about a 13 year old girl that is unappreciated | loved by her family and meets a man one day that tells her she is pretty.
There is a solid story here, but it does have quite an explicit description in the middle of the book, which is very uncomfortable given the topic, and ultimately I don’t think the ending justifies the story, but my feelings may change over the next few days.
It was well written, there was a balance of her telling her story and her actions in real life not lining up with her self perception, this made her feel very real as a confused young girl that didn’t know who she was
There is a solid story here, but it does have quite an explicit description in the middle of the book, which is very uncomfortable given the topic, and ultimately I don’t think the ending justifies the story, but my feelings may change over the next few days.
It was well written, there was a balance of her telling her story and her actions in real life not lining up with her self perception, this made her feel very real as a confused young girl that didn’t know who she was
November 19, 2025
This was good, but in a way I will never read again.
December 4, 2025
Messy, painful and tender, 'The Crustacean' is narrated by Chichirim, a woman grappling with both a serious skin condition and the confusing, haunting memories of her thirteen year old self. Neglected and ignored by her parents, the girl Chichirim becomes obsessed with beauty and love, and by extension her cruel and popular best friend Dalmi, blurring the lines between envy and burgeoning desire. When she meets a predatory older man, the edges of reality and morality become even more indistinguishable as she hurtles towards a sickening, traumatic conclusion, all the while pondering its impact as a woman in her 30s in the present.
I can't fully explain the effect this brief yet insanely layered novel had on me. From the skin issues to the confusing same sex crushes to the unhappy home life to the sheer desperation and ache for love and attention... it was a devastating portrait of the nuances of memory and how we can lie to ourselves and yet be the only true honest void too. Once finished, I had to put it down and make myself a cup of tea.
I can't fully explain the effect this brief yet insanely layered novel had on me. From the skin issues to the confusing same sex crushes to the unhappy home life to the sheer desperation and ache for love and attention... it was a devastating portrait of the nuances of memory and how we can lie to ourselves and yet be the only true honest void too. Once finished, I had to put it down and make myself a cup of tea.
December 18, 2025
This is a very disturbing book. Do please check trigger warnings before reading it. I read an eARC of this book on NetGalley so thank you to the author and the publisher.
This book made me deeply uncomfortable. We have a neglected teenage girl who is groomed and abused by an older man in a position of authority. The book is all told from her perspective. It’s utterly heartbreaking to see how she justifies to herself what happens to her as love, due to the neglect she experienced, even with the chilling nature of the behaviour. She’s largely ignored, and when people do pay attention to her, it’s because they want to use her. She’s desperate to be thought of as pretty because she thinks it will make her life much better and give her freedom. She holds pretty girls in such high esteem that it leads her to do things that are ill-advised because they tell her to.
I can see this book being up for awards due to the blunt voice of the narrator, the psychology of this character burst wide open for us to see, the inner monologue showing exactly what she’s thinking and why, and the skilful undercurrent for the reader to understand why it’s so wrong even where the character can’t see it.
This was really well written but it is a hard and emotional read. I felt so sorry for the main character. She was really let down by a lot of the surrounding characters and it put her in a vulnerable position. This is referenced as a Lolita retelling in some descriptions I’ve seen.
This book made me deeply uncomfortable. We have a neglected teenage girl who is groomed and abused by an older man in a position of authority. The book is all told from her perspective. It’s utterly heartbreaking to see how she justifies to herself what happens to her as love, due to the neglect she experienced, even with the chilling nature of the behaviour. She’s largely ignored, and when people do pay attention to her, it’s because they want to use her. She’s desperate to be thought of as pretty because she thinks it will make her life much better and give her freedom. She holds pretty girls in such high esteem that it leads her to do things that are ill-advised because they tell her to.
I can see this book being up for awards due to the blunt voice of the narrator, the psychology of this character burst wide open for us to see, the inner monologue showing exactly what she’s thinking and why, and the skilful undercurrent for the reader to understand why it’s so wrong even where the character can’t see it.
This was really well written but it is a hard and emotional read. I felt so sorry for the main character. She was really let down by a lot of the surrounding characters and it put her in a vulnerable position. This is referenced as a Lolita retelling in some descriptions I’ve seen.
December 15, 2025
Thank you to Octopus Audio and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
3.5 stars.
A 12 year old girl experiences and processes trauma in a challenging novella, translated from the original Korean.
I found this book both beautifully written, as our protagonist tries to process what has happened to her, and also to have a lot of potentially triggering content, which makes it quite hard to rate.
I thought it effectively captured the main character's perspective of the grooming she experiences, but it was a hard read.
A book I would recommend, with caution.
3.5 stars.
A 12 year old girl experiences and processes trauma in a challenging novella, translated from the original Korean.
I found this book both beautifully written, as our protagonist tries to process what has happened to her, and also to have a lot of potentially triggering content, which makes it quite hard to rate.
I thought it effectively captured the main character's perspective of the grooming she experiences, but it was a hard read.
A book I would recommend, with caution.
April 4, 2025
Jestem rozdarta, bo temat istotny, a punkt widzenia bohaterki mega unikatowy (mniej niewinny, niż można by się spodziewać po trzynastolatce - ale taka chyba już jest ta dzisiejsza młodzież 😂), ale protagonistka mnie mega irytowała swoim zachowaniem.
No i nie wiem, czy ta scena s3ksu była potrzebna aż w takim szczególe 😅
No i nie wiem, czy ta scena s3ksu była potrzebna aż w takim szczególe 😅
December 27, 2025
Thank you for NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC/ALC!
I read this book by alternately listening to the audiobook and reading the e-copy, depending on what device I was on. Most of it was read by listening to the audiobook, but as both the writing style/translation and the narration were amazing, the format had no bearing on my review, and I would recommend both, depending on personal preference.
This book has been compared to Lolita, My Dark Vanessa and similar books, and I can see where the comparison is coming from. Still, I don't want to just lump this book together with those works, as it also features, for example, social exclusion and family dynamics in a way that (as far as I remember from when I read Lolita and My Dark Vanessa) was not present in those other works. I actually wondered why people compare these books until about the 50% mark, as the first half of the novel focuses on Chichirim's dynamics with her surroundings, making it clear why she was so vulnerable to the Assistant Director's grooming. He already features earlier, but the focus really is more on everyone else, and with how her family and schoolmates treat Chichirim, the first comments by the Assistant Director feel almost harmless, as he is just... kind towards her. This quote, I think, shows pretty well why Chichirim was so vulnerable to him: "For the first time in my life, I had been told that I was pretty. [...] Me, who had only heard the halfhearted compliment _you're so patient_.", after the Assistant Director calls her pretty randomly while she is in his car. She then thinks about how pretty girls are treated well even without putting incredible amounts of efforts into it. Of course this girl would believe that the Assistant Director wants well for her, even when he prohibits her from speaking during sex, from saying anything other than "I'm sorry", even when he treats her everything but well, and even when he shouldn't even be talking to her in the first place. He is the first person that makes her feel like she might not be worthless, and that is why she insists on their love until the very end, why she refuses to acknowledge at all that she might have been groomed or raped. It is why I don't think a "revenge narrative" is the correct description for this - she does not want revenge on the Assistant Director. Until the very end, she tries to defend him, she believes that she is to blame.
It's an impactful novel, maybe even BECAUSE until the very end, Chichirim continues to believe in their love. Until the very end, she views the Assistant Director as the only one who cared enough about her to buy her beef, or to call her pretty. Until the very end, her family fails to be there for her (they cannot even confirm her actual birthday in court!). Until the very end, she is alone, ostracised, and has to cling on to this fantasy of love, because without it, she has nothing.
I read this book by alternately listening to the audiobook and reading the e-copy, depending on what device I was on. Most of it was read by listening to the audiobook, but as both the writing style/translation and the narration were amazing, the format had no bearing on my review, and I would recommend both, depending on personal preference.
This book has been compared to Lolita, My Dark Vanessa and similar books, and I can see where the comparison is coming from. Still, I don't want to just lump this book together with those works, as it also features, for example, social exclusion and family dynamics in a way that (as far as I remember from when I read Lolita and My Dark Vanessa) was not present in those other works. I actually wondered why people compare these books until about the 50% mark, as the first half of the novel focuses on Chichirim's dynamics with her surroundings, making it clear why she was so vulnerable to the Assistant Director's grooming. He already features earlier, but the focus really is more on everyone else, and with how her family and schoolmates treat Chichirim, the first comments by the Assistant Director feel almost harmless, as he is just... kind towards her. This quote, I think, shows pretty well why Chichirim was so vulnerable to him: "For the first time in my life, I had been told that I was pretty. [...] Me, who had only heard the halfhearted compliment _you're so patient_.", after the Assistant Director calls her pretty randomly while she is in his car. She then thinks about how pretty girls are treated well even without putting incredible amounts of efforts into it. Of course this girl would believe that the Assistant Director wants well for her, even when he prohibits her from speaking during sex, from saying anything other than "I'm sorry", even when he treats her everything but well, and even when he shouldn't even be talking to her in the first place. He is the first person that makes her feel like she might not be worthless, and that is why she insists on their love until the very end, why she refuses to acknowledge at all that she might have been groomed or raped. It is why I don't think a "revenge narrative" is the correct description for this - she does not want revenge on the Assistant Director. Until the very end, she tries to defend him, she believes that she is to blame.
It's an impactful novel, maybe even BECAUSE until the very end, Chichirim continues to believe in their love. Until the very end, she views the Assistant Director as the only one who cared enough about her to buy her beef, or to call her pretty. Until the very end, her family fails to be there for her (they cannot even confirm her actual birthday in court!). Until the very end, she is alone, ostracised, and has to cling on to this fantasy of love, because without it, she has nothing.
January 5, 2026
As usual, I went into this read without really knowing too much about the book, but I was intrigued by the front cover image and the unusual title.
This is a relatively short read at just over 150 pages but even so, it took me a little while to really get into this and understand just what an impact it was going to make.
Chichirim is a young girl in need of attention. Her parents don't seem to care about her or her sister and it doesn't even matter that she plays up at school and gets into trouble.
It seems, for a while, that Chichirim will do anything to have people notice her, even when those things cause her pain or put her in danger.
Things quickly turn quite dark when we see an older man pick her up from school and abuse her but at 13, this poor girl doesn't know the difference between attention that's good and that which is bad and we see the way this manifests before somebody actually steps in to save her.
I have to admit that even up to the end, I don't think that this poor girl really understood the implications of what really happened to her and still had no parental support - and I was left wondering how things turned out in the end as this wasn't fully clear.
I think we often misunderstand young teens and their bad for freedom.
At this age, it's clear that they really are still children, even if they put on this act and tough outer shell that they think protects them - but as parents, or adults - we need to remember that they need our protection and guidance still.
This was a little confusing to start - but really was a moving story that left me contemplating just how we as a society view this age group - and what changes we all need to make.
This is a relatively short read at just over 150 pages but even so, it took me a little while to really get into this and understand just what an impact it was going to make.
Chichirim is a young girl in need of attention. Her parents don't seem to care about her or her sister and it doesn't even matter that she plays up at school and gets into trouble.
It seems, for a while, that Chichirim will do anything to have people notice her, even when those things cause her pain or put her in danger.
Things quickly turn quite dark when we see an older man pick her up from school and abuse her but at 13, this poor girl doesn't know the difference between attention that's good and that which is bad and we see the way this manifests before somebody actually steps in to save her.
I have to admit that even up to the end, I don't think that this poor girl really understood the implications of what really happened to her and still had no parental support - and I was left wondering how things turned out in the end as this wasn't fully clear.
I think we often misunderstand young teens and their bad for freedom.
At this age, it's clear that they really are still children, even if they put on this act and tough outer shell that they think protects them - but as parents, or adults - we need to remember that they need our protection and guidance still.
This was a little confusing to start - but really was a moving story that left me contemplating just how we as a society view this age group - and what changes we all need to make.
January 9, 2026
Amazing Korean translated fiction ♥️
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
Please view TW before reading!
What do you get when you have a sardonic older sister and parents too preoccupied with work and each other? A very eventful adolescence trying to process it all!
If you are a fan of Sayaka Murata’s work, I think you will love this too!
We flip back and forth from a present day teenager living in South Korea (and her older self) who gives us a matter of fact view about growing up in a mediocre high school and her obsession with friends and boys. There is also humour but sadly her life does take a bleak turn. The blurb mentions her inappropriate relationship with an older man (but it’s approximately from 60% onwards). It really puts into perspective how horrifying it is, especially the way it is juxtaposed alongside her short, more immature sounding sentences and what she says and does to cope with it.
A heartbreaking read about an isolated girl looking for love. Please take care if you do read it ♥️
Quotes I was obsessed with…
- ‘I was a temporary best friend. A best friend until only until she got a new best friend.’
- ‘Being ethical formed the foundation of my pitiful self respect. It was the only way to feel superior to anyone else.’
- ‘I was obsessed with misfortune. I collected awful memories in the keepsake box inside my heart.’
- ‘Recently each day has felt vaguely familiar, as though I am living the past at the same time as the present’
Thank you to Netgalley, Octopus Publishing, Jang Jinyeong for the wonderful ARC! The Crustacean is out now!!
#thecrustacean #netgalley #translatedfiction #koreanfiction #TheForestWheretheChichiBirdLives
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
Please view TW before reading!
What do you get when you have a sardonic older sister and parents too preoccupied with work and each other? A very eventful adolescence trying to process it all!
If you are a fan of Sayaka Murata’s work, I think you will love this too!
We flip back and forth from a present day teenager living in South Korea (and her older self) who gives us a matter of fact view about growing up in a mediocre high school and her obsession with friends and boys. There is also humour but sadly her life does take a bleak turn. The blurb mentions her inappropriate relationship with an older man (but it’s approximately from 60% onwards). It really puts into perspective how horrifying it is, especially the way it is juxtaposed alongside her short, more immature sounding sentences and what she says and does to cope with it.
A heartbreaking read about an isolated girl looking for love. Please take care if you do read it ♥️
Quotes I was obsessed with…
- ‘I was a temporary best friend. A best friend until only until she got a new best friend.’
- ‘Being ethical formed the foundation of my pitiful self respect. It was the only way to feel superior to anyone else.’
- ‘I was obsessed with misfortune. I collected awful memories in the keepsake box inside my heart.’
- ‘Recently each day has felt vaguely familiar, as though I am living the past at the same time as the present’
Thank you to Netgalley, Octopus Publishing, Jang Jinyeong for the wonderful ARC! The Crustacean is out now!!
#thecrustacean #netgalley #translatedfiction #koreanfiction #TheForestWheretheChichiBirdLives
December 16, 2025
Thank you, Brazen, Octopus Audio, and NetGalley for the ALC of The Crustacean. I'd seen it mentioned in a new release post here on goodreads and added it to my look out for list on Libby. I was thrilled to see it on NetGalley! This was my first book narrated by Jesse Baek, and I would add her to my auto-listen list of narrators. I'll be looking out for her on future audiobooks. 5 stars.
I enjoyed the narration and had I been reading this book I'm not sure I'd have read it as quickly. I knew going in the content was going to be lolita-esque. I honestly thought it would be more graphic given other's reviews. It reminded me a lot of Almond which I enjoyed. I felt The Crustacean was a little repetitive and didn't warm to Chichirim as much as other characters in translated texts. 2/3 stars.
The Crustacean is out now!
I enjoyed the narration and had I been reading this book I'm not sure I'd have read it as quickly. I knew going in the content was going to be lolita-esque. I honestly thought it would be more graphic given other's reviews. It reminded me a lot of Almond which I enjoyed. I felt The Crustacean was a little repetitive and didn't warm to Chichirim as much as other characters in translated texts. 2/3 stars.
The Crustacean is out now!
September 19, 2025
A teenager wise beyond her years (thanks to neglect) enters into a series of physical relationships, recounted from the reflective distance of two decades. With dark, boisterous humor, the narrator revisits the heinous and absurd things enacted upon her. Cause and effect, premonition, bestowal, and circularity are layered to looping, interconnected effect, elevating sharp prose into a microcosm of stifling adolescence, malaise, longing, and withdrawal.
Though the narrator insists she was in control, the novella keenly reveals how a lack of love can condition someone to see abuse as a form of attention. It’s this tender paradox that Jinyeong navigates with dignity and preserving lyricism. Hilarious and harrowing, this is a story to read laughing, and with one eye open.
I’m stunned this isn’t more widely known—especially with an Alissa Nutting author review attached. It’s exactly the kind of whip-smart, emotionally complex novella that deserves a cult following.
Though the narrator insists she was in control, the novella keenly reveals how a lack of love can condition someone to see abuse as a form of attention. It’s this tender paradox that Jinyeong navigates with dignity and preserving lyricism. Hilarious and harrowing, this is a story to read laughing, and with one eye open.
I’m stunned this isn’t more widely known—especially with an Alissa Nutting author review attached. It’s exactly the kind of whip-smart, emotionally complex novella that deserves a cult following.
September 28, 2025
Novel ini menceritakan kehidupan Chichirim, seorang gadis yang sering diabaikan dan dipandang sebelah mata, yang ingin sekali diperhatikan di tengah dunia yang kejam dan tak adil. Keinginannya untuk dicintai dan dihargai membawanya ke pengalaman yang traumatis, di mana kepercayaan dan cinta malah jadi alat manipulasi. Seiring waktu, Chichirim menyadari bahwa orang-orang yang dia percayai memiliki agenda mereka sendiri. Konsekuensi dari pengkhianatan itu baru benar-benar ia pahami setelah dua dekade kemudian. Jang Jin-yeong menenun kisah ini dengan ketegangan emosional yang tajam, menghadirkan campuran tragedi, humor gelap, dan perenungan yang mendalam. Sebuah novel yang “berat,” memikat, dan menyayat hati tentang memori, eksploitasi, dan dampak psikologis dari luka masa kecil. https://blog.periplus.com/2025/09/15/...
December 20, 2025
This book follows a young teen Chichirim, she comes from a family that neglects her and after getting admitted to an undesirable high school feels like her life is over. Craving validation, she does small acts of rebellion and has a relationship with Dalmi (a conventionally attractive girl). She meets an older man that abuses her but showers her with the compliments and attention she craves. This was a very hard read but also important too. I enjoyed the insight into South Korean law and the details/ conditions that are required to get a conviction . Overall, a quick but difficult read.
Disclaimer: I received this book from NetGalley and Octopus Publishing , Octopus Audio | Brazen in exchange for a free and honest review.
Disclaimer: I received this book from NetGalley and Octopus Publishing , Octopus Audio | Brazen in exchange for a free and honest review.
August 11, 2025
i think the author does a fantastic job of using a narrative that travels back and forth in time to weave in the effects of abuse on the main character's life. the childlike and naive narrative voice makes it so much more shocking when the plot unravels and the truth of the abuse is revealed in explicit detail, because the readers can only understand as much of what's happening as the main character herself does. it's a short but hard-hitting novel.
(i felt like i should leave a proper review instead of saying "me likey😄" because i did get a proof of this from work and got to read it before it's published this september)
(i felt like i should leave a proper review instead of saying "me likey😄" because i did get a proof of this from work and got to read it before it's published this september)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 17, 2026
This book has echoes of Almond by Won-pyung Sohn, Hotel Iris by Yoko Ogawa, and My Absolute Darling by Gabriel Tallent--all titles that I enjoyed immensely. It tells the tale of a dark stage in a young teenage girl's life, revealing thoughts that are sometimes confused and disturbed. You can't predict where the story will lead; it feels organic and original, and I came away with the satisfactory feeling of having been immersed in some truly deep character representation. It's a book for adults.
The translator should also be given credit for the English language version reading ever so naturally.
The translator should also be given credit for the English language version reading ever so naturally.
December 26, 2025
It was deeply unsettling and painfully intimate. It captures how neglect, silence, and loneliness can hollow a child out, making them frighteningly vulnerable to manipulation and abuse. What stayed with me most was the emotional confusion...the way love, shame, desire, and fear blur together when a child is never truly seen or protected.
The book feels raw and messy in the most honest way. It explores memory, the lies we tell ourselves to survive, and how trauma settles into the body and mind long after childhood ends. There’s a quiet tenderness beneath all the pain, but it never softens the truth of what’s being shown. Short yet incredibly heavy, this novella lingered with me long after I finished it.
Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and Octopus Audio for the ALC in exchange for an honest review.
The book feels raw and messy in the most honest way. It explores memory, the lies we tell ourselves to survive, and how trauma settles into the body and mind long after childhood ends. There’s a quiet tenderness beneath all the pain, but it never softens the truth of what’s being shown. Short yet incredibly heavy, this novella lingered with me long after I finished it.
Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and Octopus Audio for the ALC in exchange for an honest review.
January 17, 2026
I stormed through this in a day. I couldn't put it down. We all know what it's like to be a teenager and think we know everything and that the whole world is over and that our first love is the only thing that matters. The Crustacean captures all of these feelings like a candle scent that makes you a little queasy. It's uncomfortable. It's dark. It's harrowingly real. It sat with me for days after I finished it. It deals with some very heavy topics so discretion is recommended if you decide to read this book, but for me, it was an all-timer.
November 9, 2025
This was so unbelievably complex, harrowing and full of so much for a novella. I’m very surprised this doesn’t already have a cult following. Some of the most horrific topics written in one of the most nuanced narrative voices that fully embodies the trauma and misshapen perspectives of someone who has been through too much too young. Just like how I feel about A Little Life, it was an amazing read that I couldn’t possibly read again.
November 18, 2025
This unlocked so many memories of my own time as a 12/13 year old. A very intense, claustrophobic read that felt specifically tailored to the sort of tone I like reading. I feel both fuller and emptier having read it.
December 16, 2025
this felt like someone's real life experience.... and the author note makes my speculation even stronger. what happens in here is heart breaking and when she realizes why she is named what she is named.... it was like sprinkling salt on one's burns/wounds....
full rtc
full rtc
January 2, 2026
I don't feel like this story provides any new commentary on the subject matter that other novels haven't already covered more carefully.
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