“There is no such person who can't be saved. There are only people who give up on trying to save others.”
Author: Won-Pyung Sohn
Page Count: 259 pages
Genres: Fiction, Contemporary, YA, Coming of Age, Mental Health
Content Warning: This book contains graphic descriptions of Violence, Profanity, Gore, Bullying, and Animal Abuse
Recommended Age: 15+
Disclaimer:
“Alexithymia, or the inability to identify and express one's feelings, is a mental disorder first described in medical journals in the 1970s. Its known causes are lack of emotional development during a person's early childhood, post-traumatic stress disorder, and the smaller inborn amygdalae, in which case, fear is the emotion these parts of the brain are least able to identify and express. Recently, however, new studies have suggested that the ability of the amygdalae to process fear and anxiety can be increased through training. This novel describes alexithymia based on these studies, and with the author's imagination.”
*Spoiler Alert: Gray text reveals minor spoilers, while the black text stays spoiler-free.* Dive in wisely~
What makes us human? Is it our understanding of why we feel and the way we act? Humans are remarkable beings, and perhaps one of our most remarkable qualities is our understanding of how to present ourselves to society. As we grow older, we don't even realise how much we've mastered the art of manipulating our feelings, for better or for worse.
Synopsis:
Yunjae, our protagonist, is out celebrating his 16th birthday with his mom and grandmother—his only family—when, out of nowhere, a deranged guy goes on a killing spree, killing five people, including Yunjae's grandmother and critically injuring Yunjae's mother.
Yunjae finds himself suddenly all alone in this intimidatingly big universe and is prompted to manage his affairs by himself. He was born with a brain condition called Alexithymia, which makes it considerably more challenging for him to stay afloat than others of his age. Life gets increasingly unpredictable for him since he doesn't know when to act, how to respond, or what to feel. Without anybody to fall back on, he must learn how to mature and navigate his life mostly on his own.
*minor spoilers*
As his life progresses, Yunjae comes across a handful of people whose experiences teach him the complexity and relevance of emotions and feelings. He gets a second-hand understanding of what it feels like to lose a loved one and regret not spending time with them while they were still alive. The introduction of Gon, a troubled and at-risk kid, into Yunjae's life, is unmatched. Gon, who is the same age as Yunjae, goes to great lengths to make Yunjae “start feeling something”.
Despite the absurdity and cruelty of Gon’s methods, Yunjae believes Gon is still worthy of friendship and acceptance. Together, they chart the course of their lives, picking each other's brains and seeking each other’s advice. Yunjae gains an insight into what it's like to have a friend and the level of devotion it takes to be a good friend to your only friend.
Review: *spoiler-free*
Won Pyung Sohn has done a remarkable job of presenting the story of Yunjae and the people who entered his life. She has also brought up the much-debated topic of the “bystander effect” and its consequences. We come to understand what true friendship, compassion, love, tolerance, and self-confidence really mean. With its fast-paced narration, Almond is a quick read and there’s never a dull moment. The book's essence is far deeper and more enlightening than I had anticipated. Almond is undoubtedly a must-read!
Quotes That Struck A Chord With Me
“What does love mean?”. “To discover beauty.”
“Once you repeat the same word over and over, there comes a time when its meaning fades.”
“You're basically a blank canvas. Better to fill it up with good things rather than bad things.”
“Parents start out with grand expectations for their kids. But when things don't go as expected, they just want their kids to be ordinary, thinking it's simple. But son, being ordinary is the hardest thing to achieve.”
“From what I understood, love was an extreme idea. A word that seemed to force something undefinable into the prison of letters. But the word was used so easily, so often. People spoke of love so casually, just to mean the slightest pleasure or thanks.”
“To borrow Granny’s description, a bookstore is a place densely populated with tens of thousands of authors, dead or living, residing side by side. But books are quiet. They remain dead silent until somebody flips open a page. Only then do they spill out their stories, calmly and thoroughly, just enough at a time for me to handle.”
“Maybe understanding a language is like understanding the expressions and emotions of other people.”
“Lastly, and I know it sounds like an excuse, but neither you nor I nor anyone can ever really know whether a story is happy or tragic.”
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