5/5 ⭐
It's hard to put into words what I was left feeling after finishing Almond. This was one that I had on my TBR list for a long time before I was given the chance to read it and once I started, I couldn't put it down.
As a psychology student, I was vaguely familiar with the condition Yunjae had. It was something we had talked briefly about in my neuropsychology class when we were studying parts of the brain. But that was brief and only talked about it in a clinical sense. Reading Yunjae's thoughts and how he looked at things and how he 'felt' about things was fascinating.
At times I laughed at his bluntness and how uninterested he seemed. Other times I cried for how sad he must have been without knowing how to feel. To grieve. I think it does raise the question is it ever a good thing to not feel emotions. To keep a clear head and not be reactive. And after reading this, I think the answer is no.
To not feel is to not live. To not experience. And if anything Yunjae showed us that even with his difficulties he still tried and worked to feel and understand. To live. And even when he didn't want to he kept trying. Asking questions.
The tension steadily built throughout the entire book leading up to a climax I had not seen coming. But boy was it a good one.
Overall, this story was intensely compelling and consuming. An introspective tale that will hold you tightly until the very last page.
This work was a translation from the original Korean.
11/20/21
*This review was previously published on my Google Site.
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