Reading Like BTS' Namjoon | RM's Book Recommendation List

   Hi everyone, it's Cari. Today we're going to be going t was requested way before I even had a booktube  because my reading habitshave been compared to RM or Namjoon of BTS' reading habits. So I thought I would finally do it! Thank you for everyone who recommended itand sent me his various reading lists. I'm going to be using this one which I willtranslate below. So I had actually read a vast majority ofthese books but I decided to pick a few that I have read, books that I need to reread,and books that I haven't read to talk about in today's video. Hopefully give you a few that you would wantto pick out or just talk about in case you haven't had anybody to chat with. That being said, let's just jump on in. RM's reading recommendations. [yes, I write in my books] [No matter howfar you run. Distance might not solve anything.] I look like a mess, I feel like a mess. Hi guys, let me get cozy here so we can talkabout sad stuff. So, I just got back from crying in publicmultiple times (reading the last book I mention in this video lol) the girls sitting nextto me at the cafe were concerned. I'm going to talk about the books that I'veread recently. What are we going to talk about first? Let's start with an easy one, Kafka on theShore by Haruki Murakami. So, if you know me, you know that Haruki Murakamiis one of my favorite authors. I got a tattoo inspired by one of his charactersback in 2013. If you want to know more about that, I'llput it up there, but yeah I've, Murakami and I go way back. To be quite honest actually, Kafka on theShore is not my favorite. So I'm going to be real here, I didn't rereadthis in one day if you look at the time stamps, I have already read this so I felt as if Ididn't need to reread it for this video but I do want to talk about it because I get alot of requests about Murakami videos. It's so difficult to describe the plot ofa Murakami book because they sort of don't really have a plot and that's a little bitpart of the point. He kind of delves into absurdism, magicalrealism, stuff like that. So there isn't always necessarily a solidbeginning, middle, and end. But there's just something about the way thathe writes, he creates this atmosphere that a lot of people, myself included, find themselvesenjoying. I actually, rather than Kafka on the Shore,I actually find that I am able to digest his work better in the form of short stories. He has a lot of short story collections. This is just the only one that I have rightnow, it's the Blind Willow Sleeping Woman one, not necessarily my favorite. So many lines are underlined. I have actually every Murakami book ever butthey're all in my house, they're all in America. If you are interested in delving into it,I definitely would recommend starting with The Elephant Vanishes is actually the firstwork of Murakami I ever read and then once I started reading Wind Up Bird Chronicle Ithought I was losing my mind because the first chapter of Wind Up Bird Chronicle is actuallya short story in The Elephant Vanishes so. I would definitely recommend if you want toget started, start with his short stories. Ironically I also really like 1Q84 which isa ridiculously long book so I'm kind of on both ends of the spectrum. For his two most famous ones which I wouldsay would be Kafka and Norwegian Wood, neither of those are my favorite actually. I would just say, if you didn't like one Murakami,try dipping your toe into another one. But yeah, that's all I've got to say. So, happy reading! Hi guys! Another day, another book. This time I am reading Human Acts by Han Kang. I got it out of the library. I started reading it last night, it's actuallya lot shorter than I thought it was going to be. I have to go across the city for a littlejob thingy and I think I might be able to finish this on the subway to and from, fingerscrossed. I have read the Vegetarian by Han Kang andI considered it one of my favorite books of 2018, whatever year I read it in, so I'm veryexcited to read this one. So let's hop on a train and read! [this was a hard one to read in public because it was so emotionally heavy] This is where we reallyget into my feels. We're going to talk about Human Acts by HanKang. So as I said already, here I'll expose myself. I had read the Vegetarian a few years agoand I really enjoyed it. It actually reminded me a bit of Murakami'swriting in that it's a little, I don't want to say experimental, both writers look atthings in ways that normal people don't so their writing is very...makes you see POVsthat you wouldn't have ever thought of. So this particular book Human Acts takes placein the 1980s. It spans a lot of time but it focuses on the1980s where there was an uprising in a city called Gwangju here in Korea and the dictatorat the time decided to send soldiers down to quell the violence and killed hundreds,thousands of people. The numbers are still unclear because thegovernment worked so hard for decades to hide the correct information. There's still this ongoing debate of whetherit even happened, whether it was North Korea that did it, which is just ridiculous. For example. if you've ever heard anybody talk about peoplefrom Jeollado being emotional and stupid like kind of like the American redneck or hillbillystereotype. That was actually a stereotype created bythe government to encourage this idea that people from Gwangju are just crazy and thatthey're so emotional, they're always rioting, they're so violent. Kind of to discredit the people living thereand unfortunately it's a stereotype that survives to this day. Anyway, the book kind of follows differentpeople. I actually going into it didn't know thatit was going to have different POVs so when the first POV switched, I literally gasped. The eyes through which you see the story beingtold and the timeline in which you see it, it's just really really hard to read and...Idon't want to cry, I'm not going to cry. And it also a lot of times in film or in otherliterature when they talk about the Gwangju Uprising, you really see the violence, youactually see the tanks coming in and these big sweeping heroic actions and stuff likethat which it did happen, but this story took a turn and kind of showed this quieter sideof it and the aftermath. It was so much deeper and I don't know itwas, I knew it was going to be a powerful and emotionally heavy book and that's whyI've kind of put off reading it for so long but it exceeded my expectations. Literally, it just took these turns, and I'mnot saying that there are plot twists, I'm just saying that she went to places that Iwouldn't have thought she would have taken the story and it was just so heartbreaking,it's a really really difficult book to read. So yeah I highly recommend it and if you'reinterested in learning a little bit more about that history, I also made a video about filmsthat are about real events that happened in Korea so you can check that out and I talkabout it a little bit more. But it's something that is still a hot topicto this day, very important to learn about. Han Kang, Human Acts. If you didn't like the Vegetarian, I thinkit's very different from the Vegetarian so if you've read any of her previous work andyou didn't connect with it, I would stay still try Human Acts. It also took me two times. I tried reading it about a year ago and itjust didn't click I didn't get it, but it took me one day to read it now. So if you maybe tried it once and it didn'tclick with you, try it again! Han Kang, Human Acts. Hi guys, it is a hot and humid day in Seouland we are heading to one of my favorite cafes to read and work in, brought my laptop. *distracted by dog* Oh my god, cutest dog. Anyway, we are going to start reading KimJiyoung, Born in 1982 which I'm very excited about. It was a very hot topic here in Korea becauseit was seen as a feminist novel and a lot of men didn't like that so I'm really excitedto read it and get a coffee, get some air conditioning, let's go. [the feeling of opening a new book] [had a meeting on the other side of the city so I read on the bus] Okay so this was actuallythe first book that I read out of the reading recommendations list and I haven't seen themovie first and foremost but I have heard a ton about this as I said, this was kindof a scandalous book, a hot topic in Korea because it was seen as a feminist novel andit kind of opened a lot of conversation which I thought was really cool so I decided toread it. I have heard whisperings of issues with theEnglish translation but I actually couldn't find any solid articles about why people werecomplaining about the English translation. I did not read this in Korean, I read thisin English. I don't know about that but if you want totalk about it in the comments, let me know what was up, what was the difference. But basically Kim Jiyoung, Born in 1982 isabout just this woman, Kim Jiyoung, she was born in 1982, and it just goes through herlife and what is kind of extraordinary about this book is that it's so ordinary. Her life from beginning to where this bookends is so normal for Korea, for Korean women. And so the book was almost for me, I hateto say this but like the book almost wasn't interesting to read because it was so normal. And I'm not saying that I've ever lived throughany of this, I think that much of this book was really really unique to the Korean womanexperience, but there are just so many things in here, if you're a woman living anywhere,you've been through so many of these just weird instances that women have to go through. So I think this was an important book, likeI said, it wasn't the most interesting for me to read but I think its really importantculturally just because there are so many women who because their lives are so ordinary,they don't talk about it. [this books sort of gave the average womanpermission to talk about their struggles even if their struggles weren't 'extraordinary']Seeing their ordinary lives put into literature and have it be an international best seller,I can see why women here especially became so attached to it. It's a non-exaggerated look at what the typicalwoman born in 1980 will go through. The last sentence in this book is just gutwrenching and so frustrating. As much as it wasn't like the most amazingbook to read, I do think that it is immensely important just as a cultural asset. For people to be able to look at this andknow exactly how women lived (and still live) and all the things that they had to go through. So yeah I definitely would recommend readingit. To me it wasn't like a life changing bookor anything but again I do think it's important to have it, to have this record, to be ableto see it on paper, see an ordinary extraordinary life on paper. [perfect reading weather] Okay this was areread. I always call it demain ('tomorrow' in french)So this is a book by Herman Hesse, how do I explain this? So it basically follows the main characterwho lives kind of a perfect sheltered life and it goes through from his childhood toadulthood, showing how that facade of this perfect home life kind of shatters and hestarts to question things, he starts to revolt, he starts to, he feels guilt and anger andconfusion when it comes to, it almost feels like his parents have lied to him by creatingthis perfect life for him. It's a really perfect example of a comingof age story I guess. Realizing that the world is a complex andscary place. It's written in quite an easy way and itsa very quick read. So I would say definitely if you haven't readthis before and you are interested in kind of a more philosophical look at how we seethe world, how our realities are formed. And I was talking to Kurt and I actually,I don't know if I've just lived a sheltered life, I actually hadn't heard of Herman Hesseuntil I got my hands on this book, and he is actually quite famous in Korea. It's not like everybody has read this book,this wasn't mandatory reading in high school but he is a very well known author here soit's quite easy to find a copy if you're in Korea. But yeah definitely, it's a quick read butit brings up a lot of interesting questions as do all of these books. So yes, Demian by Herman Hesse. [If the unexamined life was not worth living,was the unlived life worth examining?] [crying in public, as usual] And so I justgot back from crying in a cafe because I wasn't actually going to read this essay becausefor some reason I thought that the essay was a lot longer, or the book was a lot longer. I just finished reading When Breath BecomesAir by Paul Kalanithi, ugh guys. It's only like 100 pages, so it was actuallya lot shorter that I thought it was. This was another book that I picked up, triedreading it, did not click with me, and I kind of was like 'I'm not going to read this book'but here I am. This book is non fiction, it is a memoir,about Dr. Paul Kalanithi who is a neurosurgeon. He's really interested in literature and philosophyand science and how they kind of meet. What is the meaning of life and he just hasso many questions about what makes us tick what makes us us? Is it our brains, is it the things we createetc? It's not a spoiler to say that the actuallygets cancer at a very young age. And so he is kind of using this book to reflecton his experience and his relationship with death through his whole life and its...likeI said it's short but it's really, it gives you so much to think about. And I think if anybody is afraid of death,it can be quite helpful. I don't know why my throat is closing up,I'm not going to cry in this video. I think it talked about life and death andillness and medicine and what is life? What life is worth living, what life is worthsaving? It just posed a lot of interesting questionsit shed a lot of interesting light on things that I've been lucky enough not to have tothink about. So yeah, I think, I mean this, it was a reallyquick read for me, like I said it was like a hundred something pages but it...I mean,hits you. I think the major theme that we're seeingin this list of recommendations, at least the ones that I've chosen, all a lot of questionsabout not just the meaning of life but what are we? What's the meaning of us? I think it's a little bit different. If I get brain surgery and I lose this littlepiece and now I can no longer speak to you, I can't express myself with language, am Istill me? All of these books have a very philosophicalfoundation, a lot of philosophical questions being raised about life and the soul. I'm done, this was my last book, I can't takeany more. I'm going to wrap this up with some recommendationsof my own. Okay, I'm here with my recommendations forRM because we know Namjoon watches my channel. Kidding by the way, just a joke! But if you like the books that he recommends,if you like what I've been talking about, I have a few recommendations of my own thatare a little bit related I think they're of the same vein. Let's just dive in. I always try to be quick when I talk aboutbooks but we know that doesn't ever really happen. First up, How Music Works by David Byrne. So I was raised on the Talking Heads, thanksmom, and the crazy thing about David is that not only is he a great musician that createdso much amazing music, he is still so involved in the music scene. Like even though he's a huge name, he willjust go to these tiny clubs in New York and just listen to whoever is there hoping tofind the next new sound. He just really, this man lives and breathesmusic. He literally just talks about how sound evenstarted, how he performs. It just has so many wonderful references,it talks about the music industry. Like literally how does music work, why doesit make us feel the way that it feels, etc. So if you just want to pick this up for funsies,I think it's also an audiobook. Love it. Next up is my only work of fiction and I feellike you guys, if you like Murakami, you might have already read this one. It is 'Never Let Me Go' by Kazuo Ishiguroand how do I describe this book? It has very similar themes to the books thatwe already talked about. What is the meaning of life, what makes usus? What is a soul? Without spoiling it, it is essentially abouta group of kids who are at a school and they are constantly being pushed to create artand kind of like explore their heart? This sounds so bad lol. There is a key detail which I can't explainthat makes this so crucial and interesting. It's a little bit science fiction, it's alittle bit futuristic but its set in this like British boarding school so it feels verymuch like an old kind of fairy tale book that you might have read as a kid. It just poses a lot of really interestingquestions about what makes a human human what makes a soul a soul? I wish I could explain this in more detailbut I don't want to ruin it for any of you guys. There is also a wonderful film. It's fabulous. Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. Talked about both of these before, you'regoing to hear about them all the time. This is two different collections by The Moth. If you don't know what the Moth is, it isan organization that all over the world they have these meet ups and they have a themeand then all these people come and speak on this theme and the only rule is that you haveto tell something true. So it ends up being people of all walks oflife who have been through so many different things, they all just end up sharing thesestories and they can range from being a page to being ten pages. They're very short but they, I don't know,open your eyes. I think the last time I mentioned it, I mentionedit for the purpose of regaining faith in humanity at a time like this, and I really believeso. It just kind of reminds you that we're allliving complex, wonderful, scary, horrific, beautiful lives and yeah they are The MothAll These Wonders and Occasional Magic. And I believe there is also a podcast whichI will look it up and I will link down below. I've never listened to the podcast, I've onlyread the books. This is not the last time you'll be seeingthese, I'm sure on this channel but there they are. And last but not least, I've talked aboutthis book a lot, it is the Hidden Life of Trees - what they feel, how they communicate,discovers from a secret world. So this was actually written by a man whoworked in the forestry industry. So he would be like cutting down trees andhe started to observe the ways that trees behaved, so then he started to actually studyit. We often think of trees like most of us knowthey're the lungs of the world, they I don't know, produce oxygen. But they are so much more complex. They can communicate through their root system,they can communicate through chemicals in the air. (I sound like a conspiracy theorist) If youare interested in nature and psychology, I don't know I think humans have this problemwhere we think that we're kind of the ultimate species that like we are the best at communicatingand feeling and helping each other and having a community but even a little tree, even alittle mushroom can do such complex and wonderful things and so this was just really eye openingand fun to read as someone who already loves trees. It doesn't necessarily pose philosophicalquestions towards you but if you read it, you can't help but ask them yourself so Ithink that this is a wonderful book that would right up yours or Namjoon's alley. And so that is my list, thank you again toeverybody who recommended that I do this. Like I said, I've definitely read a lot ofthe books on that list but it was nice to reread a few, pick up some new ones, cry alot, have a lot of philosophical discussions with myself, so yeah I will link the listsdown below, there are a couple different ones. And I will also translate the main one. Anyway, I hope that you guys got somethingout of this and I will see you guys next time! Alright? Have a wonderful day! Bye!