List: My Reading Diary | Curated by Michael “MK” Kim

Aug 5, 2022
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My Reading Diary
Michael “MK” Kim
Book Review: The Topeka School by Ben LernerThis is my first book review of 2020 (of at least 52 book reviews, should I stay faithful to my optimistic goals), so I expect to struggle…
Jan 3, 2020
Jan 3, 2020
Michael “MK” Kim
Book Review: My Year of Meats by Ruth L. OzekiMy Year of Meats tells the story of a young, half-Japanese half-white documentary filmmaker named Jane Takagi-Little who agrees to produce…
Feb 9, 2020
Feb 9, 2020
Michael “MK” Kim
Book Review: The Parable of the Sower by Octavia ButlerOctavia Butler’s Parable of the Sower was published in 1993 and tells the story of Lauren Olamina, a minister’s daughter growing up in a…
Feb 9, 2020
Feb 9, 2020
Michael “MK” Kim
Book Review: The Name of the Wind by Patrick RothfussHe was sitting in the sun up against the concrete wall of a grocery store, his long legs stretching towards the sidewalk; a strange place…
Feb 13, 2020
Feb 13, 2020
Michael “MK” Kim
Book Review: Talking to Strangers by Malcolm GladwellFor my first nonfiction book of 2020, I read Malcolm Gladwell’s Talking to Strangers with my coworker, Tanner. Gladwell opens and closes…
Feb 15, 2020
Feb 15, 2020
Michael “MK” Kim
Book Review: The Overstory by Richard PowersSometimes, I shy away from books that are “hard” — dense, researched to the point of sounding nonfiction, complex plotlines, and many…
Feb 15, 2020
Feb 15, 2020
Michael “MK” Kim
Book Review: Never Let Me Go by Kazuo IshiguroAfter reading The Buried Giant and The Remains of the Day, I had a hard time believing that this book would be “a page-turner.” I do…
Mar 12, 2020
Mar 12, 2020
Michael “MK” Kim
Book Review: Native Speaker by Chang-Rae LeeA few weekends ago, my mom and I flew to Boston to care for and say goodbye to my ailing kun-go-mo (my dad’s big sister). My mom and I, in…
Mar 14, 2020
Mar 14, 2020
Michael “MK” Kim
Book Review: The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh NguyenWhen we selected this novel for our book club, I was excited to be reading a work by an Asian-American male author (something I’ve been…
Mar 14, 2020
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Mar 14, 2020
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Michael “MK” Kim
Book Review: Slouching Towards Bethlehem by Joan DidionThis collection of short essays by Joan Didion was the perfect read on a quiet weekend afternoon in a living room soaked by the California…
Mar 24, 2020
Mar 24, 2020
Michael “MK” Kim
Book Review: Sula by Toni MorrisonThis short novel by Toni Morrison was a gripping reminder of her powerful, iconic voice. She writes of a small, poor black neighborhood in…
Mar 24, 2020
Mar 24, 2020
Michael “MK” Kim
Book Review: On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean VuongI continued my reading of novels written by Asian-American authors by reading this short, sensual, and heartbreaking novel by Ocean Vuong…
May 1, 2020
May 1, 2020
Michael “MK” Kim
Book Review: Naked by David SedarisThis is the first work by David Sedaris that I read the physical book for, having listened to a couple of his other works. Though I was…
May 1, 2020
May 1, 2020
Michael “MK” Kim
Book Review: Brave New World by Aldous HuxleyThere are many books on my books-taught-in-high-schools-that-I-still-haven’t-read list, and this was at the very top. After reading George…
May 1, 2020
May 1, 2020
Michael “MK” Kim
Book Review: The Master and Margarita by Mikhail BulgakovThis iconic work of Russian literature (and according to some folks on the internet, magical realism) was honestly bonkers. The story is…
May 1, 2020
May 1, 2020
Michael “MK” Kim
Book Review: The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey EugenidesThe Virgin Suicides tells the story of the five Lisbon sisters, growing up in a small town mid the suburbs of Michigan in the 70s…
Jun 3, 2020
Jun 3, 2020
Michael “MK” Kim
Book Review: King Rat by James ClavellI chose to read this book because a friend of mine, Austin, told me that it was his favorite book. It made me wonder about the favorite…
Jun 3, 2020
Jun 3, 2020
Michael “MK” Kim
Book Review: Neverwhere by Neil GaimanBefore we begin, if you’ve never seen this video of Neil Gaiman explaining where he gets his writing ideas from, I highly recommend it…
Jun 3, 2020
Jun 3, 2020
Michael “MK” Kim
Book Review: The Fire Next Time by James BaldwinDuring my first quarter of college, I took a course called Journeys that explored the overlap of literature and spirituality — in it, we…
Jul 24, 2020
Jul 24, 2020
Michael “MK” Kim
Book Review: Salt by Nayyirah Waheed“I don’t get poetry. It doesn’t really speak to me.”
Jul 24, 2020
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Jul 24, 2020
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