Αν είχα το πρόσωπό σου
Frances Cha, 2020
★ 3.73 from 60.5k ratings on Goodreads
In Seoul's underground room salons, three young women navigate the cost of beauty surgery, money and loyalty, narrated by a narrator who has lost her voice. A quiet, uneasy read with a plain first-person voice, shifting among friends, where longing and tenderness sit close to class and beauty pressure.
Feels like unease, longing and tenderness. About identity, friendship and society.
Who it’s for
You may like it if you are drawn to Seoul-set stories about beauty pressure, money and women’s friendships, told through several close perspectives. Some readers found the many viewpoints stayed shallow and the ending under-resolved, so expect a book that leaves threads loose rather than neatly tied.
Why read it
It gives an eye-opening, emotionally affecting portrait of Seoul’s room salons and the pressures around beauty, money and loyalty, with women’s friendships at its center.
A page from the book
The story a friend tells you about yourself, and the one you know is truer.
Η Σούτζιν με αποκαλεί χαϊδευτικά ινόκουντζου, ή «μικρή γοργόνα». Λέει ότι διάλεξε αυτό το όνομα επειδή η μικρή γοργόνα έχασε τη φωνή της, αλλά την ξαναβρήκε αργότερα και έζησε ευτυχισμένη. Δεν της λέω ότι αυτή είναι η αμερικανική εκδοχή του παραμυθιού. Στην αυθεντική ιστορία αυτοκτονεί. What readers say
Readers found the Seoul-set portrait eye-opening and emotionally affecting, especially its focus on beauty pressure, sexism, class, and women’s bonds. Some were engrossed; others felt the many perspectives stayed shallow and the ending under-resolved.
Frances Cha.Frances Cha grew up in Hong Kong and Seoul, and worked as a journalist in Seoul before writing this, her first novel.
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Questions readers ask
- Is Αν είχα το πρόσωπό σου for me?
- You may like it if you are drawn to Seoul-set stories about beauty pressure, money and women’s friendships, told through several close perspectives. Some readers found the many viewpoints stayed shallow and the ending under-resolved, so expect a book that leaves threads loose rather than neatly tied.
- What is Αν είχα το πρόσωπό σου like?
- A quiet, uneasy read with a plain first-person voice, shifting among friends, where longing and tenderness sit close to class and beauty pressure. Feels like unease, longing and tenderness. About identity, friendship and society.
- What should I read after Αν είχα το πρόσωπό σου?
- If you liked Αν είχα το πρόσωπό σου, try Yesteryear (Caro Claire Burke), Fight Club (Chuck Palahniuk) and Conversations with Friends (Sally Rooney).
A taste of the feed
The voice policing a woman's anger often wears her own face.
A voice in my head, echoing softly: America hates angry women. The Lord hates angry women. You hate angry women. Do not be an angry woman.
Yesteryear · Caro Claire Burke
The night has no floor. There is only the sound of your own thoughts.
I come dragging in with every muscle bruised inside and out, but my heart’s still racing and my thoughts are a tornado in my head. This is insomnia. All night, your thoughts are on the air. All night long, you’re thinking: Am I asleep? Have I slept?
Fight Club · Chuck Palahniuk
The person whose description of you becomes the way you see yourself.
After school we used to lie in her room listening to music and talking about why we liked each other. These were long and intense conversations, and felt so momentous to me that I secretly transcribed parts of them from memory in the evenings. When Bobbi talked about me it felt like seeing myself in a mirror for the first time. I also looked in actual mirrors more often. I started taking a close interest in my face and body, which I’d never done before. I asked Bobbi questions like: do I have long legs? Or short?
Conversations with Friends · Sally Rooney
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