Rating: 5
Recommended for: everyone
Genre: memoir, nonfiction
"Food was how my mother expressed her love. No matter how critical or cruel she could seem-- constantly pushing me to meet her intractable expectations-- I could always feel her affection radiating from the lunches she packed and the meals she prepared for me just the way I liked them. I can hardly speak Korean, but in H Mart it feels like I'm fluent."
I think Crying in H Mart might just be my book of the year. Michelle Zauner hit all the marks of my childhood-- my relationship with my mother, my grandmother, my ambitions as a daughter of Asian immigrants, and more.
The book is raw but entwined with casual flair. It felt like I was hearing stories from a friend than reading literature, and I was easily immersed in her story, her regrets, and her failures. I felt every emotion and empathized every happy and sad turn. I was laughing at how similar our childhoods, specifically our family was.
"Stop crying! Save your tears for when your mother dies."
"My mother was always trying to shape me into the most perfect version of myself. When I was an infant, she pinched my nose because she was worried it was too flat.”
It's the little things in culmination that make me pause and think of all the little actions and sacrifices my own mother has made in her desire to see me happy and successful. Nothing can ever equate to her presence in my life, and Zauner puts the same sentiment to words perfectly. It's not until you're older than you begin to understand these sacrifices and decisions mothers make during your childhood, and the regret Zauner conveys once she finally does understand begets pause to each and every reader:
"I would radiate joy and positivity and it would cure her. I would wear whatever she wanted, complete every chore without protest. I would learn to cook for her-- all the things she loved to eat, and I would singlehandedly keep her from withering away. I would repay her for all the debts I'd accrued. I would be everything she ever needed. I would make her sorry for ever not wanting me to be there. I would be the perfect daughter."
I was somewhat surprised how little H Mart played a role in the book beyond just allusion, but I was content with how the story progressed. Overall, I would recommend this book to every child of Asian immigrants and beyond. Zauner's storytelling is lighthearted yet heartwrenching, and this book stands testament to that.
