Soyangri Book Kitchen - Fiction Review

Goodreads: Soyangri Book Kitchen by Kim Jee Hye

Rating: Really Liked It! (4.5 Stars)
Source:   Library

Description:  With good books, good food and companionship, the Book Kitchen fills people's tired souls. Yoojin, who grew up in Seoul, opened the Book Kitchen by chance in Soyangri, a village two hours from Seoul by car. The Book Kitchen functions as a bookshop and cafe. The second function of the Book Kitchen is a Book Stay, where one can stay overnight in one of the building’s four complexes.

Over the course of one year, multiple characters each find comfort and hope at Yoojin’s Book Kitchen. From a music idol facing an identity crisis, to a promising lawyer beset by an unsettling medical diagnosis, to a young, failed music director who has had to rein in his dreams, they happen upon Soyangri at pivotal moments in their lives.

Genre:  Fiction

Why I Picked This Book:  This just caught my eye on the library shelf so I decided to give it a try.

My Impression:  This was an absolutely lovely read.  The structure is very similar to What You're Looking For is in the Library with very loosely connected short stories all centering around the Soyangri Book Kitchen.  The stories are quiet with characters who need something in their life to change but the corner they turn is not always dramatic.  It is always meaningful, however.  The setting is beautiful and so calming.

The book is a bit surface level.  While the characters are frequently dealing with tough issues we don't know much more about them then their conflict.  Sometimes it was a little hard to keep track of who is who though I'm not sure if that's because of the translation or just the nature of the shorter stories.  That said reading this book really forced me to take a breath which I desperately needed.  It also made me think about my reading.  I'm very goal oriented and love a good check list and that's usually how I treat my reading.  In my head I have daily chapter goals and yearly objectives and all kinds of things and most of the time that suits me.  This isn't the kind of book you can do this with.  It's quiet and undramatic with a focus on books as healing.  Flying through it greatly diminishes it and kind of misses the point of it.  The book references alone were fantastic with several of my favorites mentioned and the attitude towards books in general was just delightful.

I'm planning on buying a copy of this book so that I can reread it and really savor it.  It's a good reminder that not every book is about rushing to the finish.  

Would I Read More of this Series/Author? Absolutely!  If I see a book by this author at the bookstore I will be buying it.

Would I Recommend this Book?  Yes, though I would keep in mind this is a slow read.