The White Book
Beautiful
Complex
Emotional

The White Book

Han Kang — 2019
Shortlisted for the 2018 Man Booker International Prize From Booker Prize-winner and literary phenomenon Han Kang, a lyrical and disquieting exploration of personal grief, written through the prism of the color white While on a writer's residency, a nameless narrator wanders the twin white worlds of the blank page and snowy Warsaw. THE WHITE BOOK becomes a meditation on the color white, as well as a fictional journey inspired by an older sister who died in her mother's arms, a few hours old. The narrator grapples with the tragedy that has haunted her family, an event she colors in stark white--breast milk, swaddling bands, the baby's rice cake-colored skin--and, from here, visits all that glows in her memory: from a white dog to sugar cubes. As the writer reckons with the enormity of her sister's death, Han Kang's trademark frank and chilling prose is softened by retrospection, introspection, and a deep sense of resilience and love. THE WHITE BOOK--ultimately a letter from Kang to her sister--offers powerful philosophy and personal psychology on the tenacity and fragility of the human spirit, and our attempts to graft new life from the ashes of destruction.
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Aug 10, 2024
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2 stars
Jan 13, 2024
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moz@mozayr
4 stars
Jan 7, 2024
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dearestmoon @moonae
5 stars
Apr 13, 2023
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Valentina@v9
4.5 stars
Mar 25, 2023
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Gia Palamos@giapalamos
5 stars
Mar 25, 2023
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Beau@hyggeligbo
5 stars
Feb 21, 2023
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Sabrina D. @readingsofaslinky
5 stars
Jan 4, 2023
Deep
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雪 xue@snow
5 stars
Jul 25, 2022
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Alithea@alithea
3 stars
Jun 5, 2022
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Anya Azrael@anyaazrael
4 stars
Feb 7, 2022
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C@csia
3.5 stars
Oct 10, 2021
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Luke Jones@lukejones
2 stars
Sep 17, 2021
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Linn @moonriver
3 stars
Sep 3, 2021
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Victoria Simansjah@vicky
3 stars
Aug 4, 2021
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Matthew Xu@mfx
4 stars
Jul 27, 2021
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alex@alexblues
4 stars
Nov 6, 2024
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Trisa P@trisaprmt
4 stars
Oct 16, 2024
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Marie@mariekiks
3 stars
Jul 19, 2024
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jungmi@coldjorts
4 stars
Apr 22, 2024

Highlights

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Kat@lavendear
Page 34
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Page 48
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Page 21