Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ALC of the book!

"Every one of us needs our own little beach. A place where we can let go and cry. Here, in Yeonnam-Dong, is one such spot. Washing away our tears and sadness with its white, frothy waves."

Such a lovely collection of interconnected stories about the patrons of the Yeonnam-Dong Smiley Laundromat! It felt almost like parables at times with its emphasis on humility, compassion, and the importance of community and human connection. I enjoyed all the stories and especially found the fourth story and

the assembly of the laundromat avengers to take down their local scam artist

to be quite entertaining. Although not entirely the same, I can definitely see a similar storytelling vibe to Korean dramas so if you're a K-drama fan you may enjoy this.

That being said, the fifth story felt disconnected from the rest and I found it a bit of an odd choice to end on that story.

I also found myself incredibly irritated with Daeju. While I understand the stress he's under, I had such a hard time sympathizing with him berating his father because he expects his dad to foot the bill for international horse riding lessons. I may just be sensitive to this particular topic because of my own experiences but the audacity of Daeju and the daughter-in-law to expect this poor old man to abandon his home and rent it out so they can profit had me fuming! I understand that his growth from this was at least part of the point of the story but there was not enough growth to redeem him in my eyes.

I did listen to this on audiobook and while for the most part I could accept the narrator's creative decisions and choices for voicing characters, interesting as they may have been, there was one particular character that almost made me DNF the book. If you're particularly sensitive to noise, especially gross noises, be warned.

The scammer in the third story and the fourth story was horrible to listen to. I understand that the text described his voice in a very specific way but I hated hearing this man hacking up phlegm in my ear every time he spoke. It was disgusting.