My Review
Anything involving eyes makes me queasy.
It’s why I’ve never worn contact lenses – only glasses – since I was seven years old. It’s why I’ve never attempted any kind of vision correcting surgery. And it’s why I almost feel like I’m going to pass out every single time I have to go to an eye exam.
I don’t like anything to do with eyes. They freak me out. They’re slimy and wet and overall just…ugh. No.
So I was not sure how I was going to handle this book – I for sure thought I was in for a disgusting, horror filled ride that I would never be able to get through.
And man, I was so excited.
“Yeah, sorry, I ate a homeless guy’s eyeball last night, and I’m really struggling with it, so. . . .”
Ji-won lives at home with her mother and her sister, and all three of them are reeling from their father’s departure to be with another woman, leaving Ji-won and the rest of the family alone. Ji-won’s mother is sure he will come back – and even starts eating the eyes of fish, which she says will bring love into her life.
Days pass into weeks, and he doesn’t come back.
Ji-won and her sister are beginning to get on with their lives, and their mother eventually does, too – she gets a new boyfriend. Neither of the girls like him, but their mother is completely taken with him, and before anyone realizes what’s going on, he’s already moving in with them.
But the girls? They hate him, and they can see him for what he truly is.
“As later experiences would confirm, to deal with a man like that, a man like George, you have to pull the rug out from under him. Not all at once, of course; a small tug here, another one there. You don’t back down when he tries to wield his power. Instead, you trip him up by slipping him little lies. Correct him whenever you can. Confuse him. Make him feel foolish. Men like him hate being wrong, hate being embarrassed, hate not being in control. Men like him don’t know what to do when that happens, and they resort to childish displays of anger, temper tantrums, sulking. In spite of this, he won’t be able to do a single thing about it because in the end he’s the one who is weak. The only power he has is the power you are willing to give him, and you’ve given him nothing. Not a scrap.”
Soon, Ji-won begins dreaming of eyes, and when her mother offers her a fish eye at dinner one night, Ji-won scoops it up and eats it. While she thinks it is disgusting at first, she soon develops an obsession with the eyes, and she is trying to get them in any way possible.
As she is dealing with a hunger for eyes, tasty and delicious to Ji-won, she and her sister learn more and more about her mother’s boyfriend, and all the reasons why he should not be trusted.
The Eyes Are the Best Part is a story about a young girl’s descent into madness, and how she copes with the world around her as she loses her grip on reality.
I absolutely loved this book.
Even though it had a ton of eye-grossness in it that seriously isn’t for the faint of heart (please make sure you aren’t having a snack while reading this book if you are squeamish at all!), it is such a fantastic, captivating read. I was swept up in this book from the very first chapter.
Ji-won’s character goes through so much in terms of emotions and she deals with a lot of difficult situations. Her character not only shows growth throughout the novel, but it also shows how grief – not only her own but for the rest of her family, as well – can really have an effect on oneself.
This was such an amazing read – one of the best that I’ve picked up so far this year, and definitely the kind of horror that sucks you in and sticks with you long after you’ve turned the last page and closed the book.
