Violets
by Kyung-Sook Shin
A delicate, devastating novel about isolation, unspoken trauma, and the sadness we try to hide, even from flowers.
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Looking for a spoiler-free review of Violets?
Here’s what it’s about, how it left its mark on me, and why this quiet novel might sit with you long after you finish it.
What It’s About
Violets follows the life of San, a quiet, solitary woman who grows up in the countryside of Korea and later moves to Seoul. Haunted by a traumatic moment in her youth, San works at a flower shop, surrounded by beauty yet consumed by loneliness. The novel is a study in emotional stillness, slow, observant, and full of quiet grief.
Kyung-Sook Shin threads isolation, memory, and desire through a fragile but devastating narrative. It's a book about what’s left unspoken and what festers in silence.
My Take
This is one of those books that doesn't just describe loneliness, it embodies it. The pacing is slow but intentional, like watching petals wilt in real time. Shin's language (and Anton Hur's translation) is clean and sharp, with moments that pierce.
The recurring line, "I don't want my sadness to be known by the flowers," is one of the most haunting things I’ve read. It captures San's internalized pain, her desire to stay unnoticed, and the violence that often finds those who try to live quietly.
There’s also a brilliant interplay between violets, violence, and violator, a trio that forms the book’s emotional backbone without ever needing to be overexplained. This novel doesn’t just tell a story, it builds a mood. One that lingers.
Would I Recommend It?
Yes, but with care.
Violets is emotionally intense and unflinching in places, including scenes of sexual violence. If you’re drawn to quiet literary fiction that explores trauma, alienation, and the fragility of self, this book delivers in full.
But it’s not an easy or comforting read, it’s one that stays with you, unsettles you, and asks you to sit with discomfort.
Related Reads
If you liked Violets, you might also appreciate:
Untold Night and Day by Bae Suah
Concerning My Daughter by Kim Hye-jin
Heaven by Mieko Kawakami
Where to Find It
Also available via WorldCat if you want to check your local library
Trigger Warnings
This novel contains themes of sexual violence, trauma, and emotional isolation.
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