Marigold Mind Laundry

A Novel

By: Jungeun Yun, Shanna Tan - translator

Narrated by: Sofia Jin

Welcome to the Marigold Mind Laundry, where we wash away the stains from your heart.

In this enchanting tale—a blockbuster bestseller in Korea—the enigmatic owner of a magical laundromat that erases people’s painful memories must learn to find her own peace before she can truly help others.

Born with mysterious powers she does not know how to control, young Jieun accidentally causes her family to vanish. She vows to live a million lives in search of them.

Finally, one night, she brings the Marigold Mind Laundry into existence. Its service: to remove the deepest pain from our hearts. Jieun listens while customers share their unhappy memories. As they speak, she transfers their sadness onto T-shirts as stains. After a spin in the washing machine, the stains become flower petals that soar into the air, and Jieun’s customers find solace.

Five wounded souls come to Jieun for help: a frustrated young filmmaker, a spiraling social media influencer, a mother betrayed by her husband, a woman jilted by her lover, and a talented photographer who hides in the safety of a mundane job. As Jieun listens to each of their stories, she learns that the will to heal is not a rare gift, but a power we all possess—if only we are open to it.

Joyous and inspiring, The Marigold Mind Laundry offers wonderment and comfort as it teaches us to tap into the magic that lives within us all.

©2024 Jungyeun Yun and Shanna Tan (P)2024 Random House Audio

Wholesome and intriguing

I loved that this felt wholesome and uplifting, but it wasn't talking down to me like I was a child. Characters had real struggles, and they didn't all learn to grapple with them in expected ways. The magic was whimsical and enchanting, but it didn't solve every problem. The characters had to work with the reader to reconceptualize their lives, priorities, hopes, fears... It kept me wondering how everything would resolve until the end. Very worth the read.

Just a warm comfortable healing time of an audiobook.

I’ve been listening to this on my morning commutes and the performance by Sofia Jin brings character and heart to a story that might be overly familiar with those who have gone through the mental healthcare pipeline. Depending on your life experiences the story can feel shallow on the mental health subject matter so I wouldn’t recommend it for older adults. I would however highly recommend it for young adult and older teen audiences as it discusses emotions, trauma, and many aspects of mental health and emotional healing in an easy to digest modern fantasy package. Sofia Jin’s performance is consistent throughout with each character having solid but not distracting levels of variation to accurately and emphatically feel their emotions in each moment but not overly done to detract from the usual audiobook experience. The characters feel alive and the intonations, tonality, and little nuances bring the emotions a level of believability that is rarely felt in other audiobook performances. I highly recommend this audiobook.