This book is so gross.
It’s also creepy, unsettling, and really really smart.
Ji-Won is a college freshman living at home with her younger sister Ji-Hyun and their fragile, anxious Umma(mother), a first-generation Korean immigrant who works in a grocery store. Ji-won’s father has recently left the family for another woman, thinning their meager lifestyle out even more. The stress of school, new friendships, her parent’s divorce and the pressure to become successful enough to put an end to the family struggles have Ji-won living on a razor’s edge of tension…and then along comes George.
George is one of those white guys–the basic boy who lived in an Asian country for a year or two, met all the wrong people, learned all the wrong lessons and came back a thoroughly disgusting man, claiming to be an expert in the culture, the language, and the women. If you’re Asian, Asian-adjacent, or spent time in Asia and ran across large groups of Westerners, you know a George. He’s boorish, insensitive, unloveable, and unselfconsciously racist–but he’s also Umma’s new boyfriend. Predictably, George adds nothing of value to the family, and the sisters hate seeing their Umma labor to please him, filling a stereotypical role for unstereotypical reasons. His only redeeming feature is his bright blue eyes…which Ji-Won dreams of eating.
Yes, eating. Literally. A craving to crunch on blue eyeballs slowly overtakes Ji-Won, warping reality and coloring her interactions with classmates, strangers, and family. I won’t tell you more, both to avoid spoilers and out of a sense of propriety.
Stories exploring the nature of reality seem to be having a moment, and Korea and its diaspora have long had a lock on body horror tales. Both are executed very well here, and intersect in a dozen well-timed ways that amp up the suspense quite a bit. On top of that, this book is smart, nuanced, and really honest about an experience that is often mined for trauma or novelty. It explores familiar tropes about Korean women and criticizes fetish, in ways that both empower and villainize the characters(and nearly everyone sucks in this book, to be clear) but also allow them to breathe and be highly individual. It also keeps you on the edge of your seat, waiting for the inevitable, horrible conclusion.
Above all, it’s really really gross!
Protective eyewear and omg ALL OF THE THERAPY to The Eyes Are the Best Part.
(Fellow readers, this book didn’t quite give me nightmares but it’ll be a while before I eat soft squishy round foods again. If you’re interested in this or other books about East Asian-American experiences, check out this booklist. For a general place to find diverse books for diverse readers, check out the Equal Opportunity Bookshop. Just remember that any purchases you make there result in a small commission being earned for This Blogger’s Book Fund. Now, go and read something good! Peace!)
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