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Quick answer: If you read The Vegetarian, read Han Kang's Human Acts and The White Book, then Convenience Store Woman, Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 and Breasts and Eggs. All are short, quietly shocking novels about women, bodies and the pressures that shape them.
Han Kang's The Vegetarian, first published in Korean in 2007, tells the story of Yeong-hye, a woman who stops eating meat after a disturbing dream, and the shocking reactions of her family. It won the 2016 International Booker Prize in Deborah Smith's translation. The books below offer similar spare, strange and moving fiction, mostly from East Asia.
Table of Contents
Quick Picks at a Glance
| Book | Author | Ages | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Human Acts | Han Kang | Adult | more Han Kang |
| The White Book | Han Kang | Adult | meditation on white |
| Convenience Store Woman | Sayaka Murata | Adult | work and alienation |
| Earthlings | Sayaka Murata | Adult | extreme alienation |
| Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 | Cho Nam-joo | Adult | everyday sexism |
| Breasts and Eggs | Mieko Kawakami | Adult | women and choices |
| Please Look After Mom | Shin Kyung-sook | Adult | family and loss |
| The Hole | Hiroko Oyamada | Adult | strange and quiet |
| The Memory Police | Yoko Ogawa | Adult | vanishing things |
| My Year of Rest and Relaxation | Ottessa Moshfegh | Adult | numbed existence |
| Eileen | Ottessa Moshfegh | Adult | bleak narrator |
| The Metamorphosis | Franz Kafka | Adult | absurd classic |
| Pachinko | Min Jin Lee | Adult | epic family saga |
| Cursed Bunny | Bora Chung | Adult | surreal short stories |
| The Plotters | Un-su Kim | Adult | assassin noir |
1. Human Acts by Han Kang
A novel about a student uprising and its aftermath in South Korea. Haunting and lyrical.
Best for: more Han Kang.
2. The White Book by Han Kang
A short book of reflections on grief and the colour white. Quiet and beautiful.
Best for: meditation on white.
3. Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata
A woman who works in a convenience store resists social pressure. Short and strange.
Best for: work and alienation.
4. Earthlings by Sayaka Murata
A woman who believes she is an alien rejects human norms. Dark, strange and disturbing.
Best for: extreme alienation.
5. Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-joo
A woman's life is told through the pressures she faces in South Korea. Direct and powerful.
Best for: everyday sexism.
6. Breasts and Eggs by Mieko Kawakami
A Japanese novel about bodies, motherhood and what women are expected to be. Frank and compelling.
Best for: women and choices.
7. Please Look After Mom by Shin Kyung-sook
A family searches for their missing mother. Moving and widely read.
Best for: family and loss.
8. The Hole by Hiroko Oyamada
A woman follows a creature into a hole. Short and unnerving.
Best for: strange and quiet.
9. The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa
Objects disappear from an island and are forgotten. Haunting and calm.
Best for: vanishing things.
10. My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh
A young woman tries to sleep through a year in New York. Dark and funny.
Best for: numbed existence.
11. Eileen by Ottessa Moshfegh
A lonely young woman is drawn into something dark. Grim and gripping.
Best for: bleak narrator.
12. The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka
A man wakes up as an insect. Short and brilliant.
Best for: absurd classic.
13. Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
A Korean family lives in Japan across four generations. Sweeping and deeply felt.
Best for: epic family saga.
14. Cursed Bunny by Bora Chung
Dark and strange tales from Korea. Funny, weird and chilling.
Best for: surreal short stories.
15. The Plotters by Un-su Kim
A young assassin in Seoul is drawn into a plot. Dark, funny and fast.
Best for: assassin noir.
How to Choose
For more Han Kang start with Human Acts or The White Book. For Japanese voices choose Convenience Store Woman, Earthlings or Breasts and Eggs. For Korean fiction pick Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982, Please Look After Mom or Cursed Bunny. For disquieting classics read The Metamorphosis. The Vegetarian contains disturbing scenes of violence and sexual coercion, so check content notes before reading. Han Kang won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2024, which has brought new attention to her work. Many readers start with The Vegetarian and then move to Human Acts and The White Book. The Vegetarian is short, but each of its three sections shifts the point of view, so it is best read in one or two sittings. If you want to read more translated fiction, Japan and Korea have a rich range. If you want something shorter, The White Book is a quiet meditation. Audiobooks are available. Short novels like this are easy to reread, and many readers find new details the second time.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is The Vegetarian about?
A woman's decision to stop eating meat shakes her family and community.
Who wrote it?
Han Kang, translated by Deborah Smith.
When was it published?
2007 in Korean, 2015 in English.
Did it win a prize?
Yes, the 2016 International Booker Prize.
Is it disturbing?
Yes, with violence and sexual content.
Is it a short book?
Yes, about 180 pages.
Is it about vegetarianism?
It is more about control, bodies and freedom than diet.
What should I read next?
Try Human Acts or Convenience Store Woman.
Who translated The Vegetarian?
Deborah Smith translated it into English.
Is the translation controversial?
Some critics debated the translation's style, but it won the International Booker Prize.
Is The Vegetarian a feminist novel?
Many readers see it as a study of control over women's bodies, though Han Kang resists simple labels.