[_list: Books from Korea] Vol.2 Winter 2008

Vol.2 Winter 2008 Special Section Established Writers Vol.2 Winter 2008of

Korea Examined through Keywords:

War and Memory Industrialization and Democratization Special Section The Established of Alienation andWriters Introspection Korea Examined through Keywords: In the Spotlight War and Memory The Selected Poems of Ko Un

Industrialization and Democratization Feature Alienation and Introspection

Kim Hoon: A Writer Who Writes with His Body Kang In theWoon-gu: Spotlight“The Photograph Accepts the Subject” The Selected Poems of Ko Un and Reviews Bestsellers, Steady Sellers, Publishing Trends of 2008 Feature Kim The Hoon: Place A Writer Who with Entire Body The Village thatWrites Formed theHis Backdrop of Twelve Novels Kang Woon-gu: Theme Lounge “The Photograph Accepts the Subject” Reading SEOUL Bestsellers, Steady Sellers and Reviews Publishing Trends of 2008 The Place The Village that Formed the Backdrop of Twelve Novels Theme Lounge Reading SEOUL

ISSN 2005-2790

ISSN 2005-2790

The Launching of Korean Books Publishing Project Website!

Since 2005, the Korean Literature Translation Institute has maintained an Overseas Publications Marketing program. As part of our effort to strengthen exports of Korean publishers’ publications and Korean books, our overseas publications marketing program provided many useful services. These services included producing sample translations and synopses, as well as assisting with overseas publisher relations and supporting marketing activities for Korean literature overseas.

The Overseas Publications Marketing program has been relaunched under the new name of Korean Books Publishing Project on Dec 5, 2008. Some of the services offered include an introduction to a wider range of books in English and Chinese.

www.koreanbooks.or.kr

FOREWORD

Writers as Witnesses to Modern Korean History In the first issue of list, we featured young writers who represent the best of contemporary Korean literature. They are not only authors that speak for the here and now in Korean literature but are also a blueprint for the future.

This second issue features the literary careers of established writers who represent what Korean literature is. Under the three central themes of “War and Memory,” “Industrialization and Democratization,” and “Alienation and Introspection,” we have summarized the history of the postwar Korean novel.

The leading writers introduced in the second issue are still literary stars and bestselling authors who participate in the here and now. While confronting the topics of fluctuations in history and individual responsibility, these writers presented their best works at every climactic moment of Korean history, which progressed, as if 300 years of history were compressed into 30 years.

This generation of writers who experienced first-hand the historically unprecedented calamity known as the Korean War, all regard the war as a source of literature. Armed with their experiences of war, the writers boast powerful work in their passionate literary careers. Born out of personal experiences, war novels have continuously been made into movies and television mini-series, bearing witness to modern Korean history.

In a time often summarized as a period of industrialization and democratization, Korea in the 1970s and 1980s was easily the renaissance of modern Korean literature. The number of publications surged, the age of bestsellers was launched, and people turned to literature as a compass for their times.

Reaching full bloom in a period of dictatorship and repression, the renaissance of literature was an opportunity to establish a lasting infrastructure for Korean literature. Compared to the 1950s and 1960s, which were constrained by the immediate scars of the war, the 1970s and 1980s were a time when writers could begin to distance themselves from the Korean-style of modernization and examine themselves. In exchange for the enormous materialistic progress attained in a short period of time, Korean modernization incurred the collective symptoms of alienation and anxiety.

So much history lies behind each line of literature. A newspaper article can report a morning event within just a few hours, but literature painstakingly depicts events that took place even a decade ago. In order for the present incident to become a part of the past and for the past to become literature in the future, a great deal of rumination and a diversity of adventures are necessary.

Thus, the works that did not overlook any moments in history have become steady sellers, part of our beloved literature. list hopes to share with more friends across borders the magnificent mosaic made of the fragments of this valuable history.

By Jeong Yeo-ul (Editorial Board Member)

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 1

Contributors Eom Hye-suk is a researcher in children’s literature and a critic of illustrated books. She also works as a translator. Her major written work is Reading My Delightful Illustrated Books.

Han Mihwa writes on the subject of publishing. Her column, “Book Talk with Han Mihwa,” is published in The Hankyoreh newspaper, and she also appears on the radio show KBS 2FM “Hwang Jung-min’s FM Parade” and SBS-TV’s “Friday Culture Column,” among others. Her written works include Bestsellers of Our Time and This Is How Bestsellers Are Made 1, 2.

Han Sung-dong is a reporter on the book publishing team of the

Culture Desk for The Hankyoreh newspaper. His major written work is Kicking Korea, while works he has translated include Blinded by the Right, Bush on the Couch, and How to Survive the Times.

Huh Byung-doo teaches Korean language at Soong Moon High

School, and is also a poet. He is currently head of a teachers’ group for building a caring world through books, and is enthusiastically involved in a campaign for young people’s libraries and in a copyright donation scheme. His major works include Education in Reading Books for the Spiritual Development of Young People – What Can We Do As Parents and Teachers? and Open Education and School Libraries.

John M. Frankl

earned a BA from UC Berkeley in East Asian languages. He then went on to complete an MA in Korean literature at Yonsei University, following which he entered Harvard University where he completed a PhD in East Asian Languages and Civilizations. He is currently an associate professor of East Asian literature at Yonsei University's Underwood International College where he teaches courses in Korean literature, comparative literature, and literary translation.

Jung Yeo-ul is a literary critic. As of 2008, Jung has been lecturing

at Seoul National University and the Korean National University of Arts, while also appearing as a guest speaker on such radio programs as Sisa Plus. Jung’s written works include Young Lady, Find Hope in the Forest of Pop Culture, and Small Antenna in My Study, and the translation of Korea Between Empires: 1896-1919. She is also editorial board member of list_Books from Korea.

Kim Eun-ha is a literary critic and a lecturer in the Department

of Creative Writing at Chung-Ang University. Her major essays and reviews include 1970s Novels and Masculinity as the Driving Force of Resistance - Focusing on the 1970s Novels of Hwang Sok-yong, Symbiosis of Love and Hate – the Melancholy Mother and Daughter Relationship – Park Wansuh’s The Naked Tree, and Sexual Politics on the Dining Table – Food and Women.

2

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

Kim Ji-eun is a writer of children’s stories and a critic of children’s

literature. She currently lectures in the theory of fiction writing for children in the Department of Creative Writing at Hanshin University. She has written a children’s book, Kong-du Hates “Kimchi” Pickle, and a critical work titled Glasses of a Philosopher, Eyes of a Child.

Kim Jinwoo serves as a reporter at the Culture Desk of The Kyung

hyang Daily News, and has previously worked on Sports, Society, Politics, and Economy, and on the Section Team. He is also an editorial board member of list_Books from Korea.

Kim Young-wook is working as an editor for the monthly pub-

lication, Children and Literature. Kim contributes to a column on illustrated books. Kim also published a guide to illustrated books, Illustrated Books, Meet Music, which combines memory and music in order to encourage adult readers to enjoy illustrated books while reflecting on their own childhoods.

Lee Hak-young is a literary critic and researcher at Seoul National

University Center for Teaching and Learning. He is also currently lecturing at SungKongHoe University. He received the 2008 JoongAng Ilbo Literary Award for New Writers. His major work is Epiphany of Water, a Self-portrait in the Abyss - Critique of Writer Han Kang.

Lee, Kang Young is a research fellow in the Department of Phys-

ics at Korea University. He has published over 50 papers in both Korean and overseas journals. His major works are Singlet Fermionic Dark Matter, JHEP 0805, 100 (2008) and Partially Composite TwoHiggs Doublet Model, JHEP 0605, 010 (2006).

Lee Moonjae is a poet and a guest professor at Kyung Hee Cyber

University. He is currently a member of the editorial committee for the quarterly publication Munhakdongne and for the bimonthly magazine Green Review. His major works include an anthology of poetry, When I Take My Wet Shoes Off and Show Them to the Sun, a collection of essays on poets titled Poetry and Poets I Have Met, and an anthology of prose, Collected Writings of Lee Moonjae.

Park Hae-hyun is vice director of the Chosun Ilbo newspaper’s Culture Desk. He has served on the editorial committee of the quarterly publication Munhakdongne, and has also worked as special correspondent for the Chosun Ilbo in Paris.

Park Suk-kyoung works as a translator and children’s literature critic. Park is a member of the editorial committee for the Changbi Review of Children’s Literature and list_Books from Korea.

Pyo Jeonghun is a book reviewer, columnist, translator, editorial

board member of list_Books from Korea, and a freelance writer. He has translated ten books into Korean and has written: Books Have Their Own Destiny; A Short Introduction to Chinese Philosophy and An Interview with My Teacher: What is Philosophy?

Shin Soojeong is a literary critic. She is currently a professor in the Department of Creative Writing at Myongji University, and is also a member of the editorial committee for the quarterly publication Munhakdongne. Her written works include the critical anthologies Meat Hanging in the Butcher’s Shop and How Do We See the Literature of the 1990s? (co-author).

Dan Leonard was awarded the Commendation Prize in the Korea

Times 2004 Literature Translation Contest for his co-translation of Go Eun Ju’s “Cocktail Sugar.”

H. Jamie Chang studied at Northfield Mount Hermon and Tufts University. She is a freelance translator and writer who currently resides in Seoul.

Jung Ha-yun is a writer and translator whose work has appeared

in The Threepenny Review, The New York Times, Best New American Voices 2001 and other publications. She is adjunct professor at the Ewha Graduate School of Translation and Interpretation.

Shim Jinkyung is a literary critic and is also currently a member

Jung Yewon studied interpretation and translation at GSIT, Han-

Son Yun-gwon

Kang Seung-hee is a freelance translator (Korean/German). Her

of the editorial committee for the quarterly magazine Consonants and Vowels. Her main works are Traversing Women’s Literature and Korean Literature and Sexuality.

is a lecturer in Korean literature at Kangwon National University. He has worked as secretary general for the The Literary Village of Kim You-jeong, and is currently writing his PhD thesis on prostitution as depicted in Korean contemporary novels, as well as a book titled A View of the Times Through Fiction.

Thorsten Ahrend attained his PhD in literature from the University of Rostock in Germany in 1989, and is currently managing editor of Wallstein Publishing. Wallstein has published works by famous German authors such as Peter Handke, Martin Walser, and Christoph Hein.

Yang Yoon-eui is a literary critic and also currently lectures at

Soonchunhyang University. Her major critical works include For Incomplete Return and Naked Salvation and Tragedy of This Age, the Dialectic of Paradox.

Yoon Min-young

is a reporter at the Culture Desk for The Kyunghyang Daily News, where she is currently in charge of children’s books and literature. She also has a deep interest in art and history.

She is co-translator of All Things Archaeological - The Illustrated World Encyclopedia of Archaeology.

Translators Ann Isaac is a British citizen with a BA in Classics and English Literature from Cambridge University in the UK. After moving to Korea in 2001, she studied Korean language at various institutions and currently translates from Korean to English, with a special interest in literary translation.

kuk University of Foreign Studies. Jung has interpreted and translated for Bain & Company, Korea and various other organizations, and is currently working as a freelance interpreter/translator.

translations include works by Hwang Sok-yong, Kim Ji-ha, Song JaeChan, and Lee Gyeong-Hye.

Kim Hee-young is a freelance translator. She is currently working on the translation of a collection of the experiences of comfort womens titled Histories Behind History.

Lee Sang-min is a part-time lecturer at Ewha Womans University’s English Program Office and is also currently studying for a PhD in the English Education Department of Ewha Womans University.

Sora Kim-Russell works as a consulting editor for the Korea Jour-

nal and as a freelance translator. She was the recipient of the 2005 Korea Times Literature Translation Contest’s Grand Prize in Poetry and the 2007 Korean Literature Translation Institute's New Translator Award for her translation of Kim Jung-hyuk’s “Eskimo, This is the End.”

Son Sumin has translated many books from English to Korean

and from Korean to English for Schweitzer Korea. In 2004, she was awarded the Commendation Prize in the Korea Times Literature Translation Contest for her co-translation of Go Eunju’s “Cocktail Sugar.”

Yang Sung-jin is currently a staff reporter at the Culture Desk of

The Korea Herald, covering Korean movies and books. Yang wrote a Korean history book in English titled “Click into the Hermit Kingdom” and a news-based English vocabulary book, News English Power Dictionary.

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 3

Contents Winter 2008 01

Foreword

06

Trade Report

07

Bestsellers

08

Publishing Trends

12

Theme Lounge Reading SEOUL

16

19

22

Special Section Established Writers of Korea Examined through Keywords: War and Memory; The Testimony of History and the Healing of Wounds Industrialization and Democratization; A Tumultuous Era-The Literature of Melancholy and Passion Alienation and Introspection; The Crisis and Loss of Identity

26

The Place The Village that Formed the Backdrop of Twelve Novels

30

In the Spotlight The Selected Poems of Ko Un

35

Feature Kim Hoon: A Writer Who Writes with His Body

38

Excerpt Song of the Sword by Kim Hoon

40

Interview Kang Woon-gu: “The Photograph Accepts the Subject”

44

Excerpt Embracing Evening by Kang Woon-gu

46 58 68

Reviews Fiction Nonfiction Children’s Books

51 57 67 73

Steady Sellers A Dwarf Launches a Little Ball The History of Korean Literature Daughter of the Wind Travels around the World I’m Not Playing with You

74 76

Meet the Publishers Prunsoop Publishing Bori Publishing

78

Index

80

Afterword

PUBLISHER _ Yoon Jikwan EDITORIAL DIRECTOR_ Park Hyeju MANAGING DIRECTOR_ Park Jang-yun EDITORIAL Vol.2 Winter 2008 BOARD Kim Jinwoo Park Suk-kyoung Jung Yeo-ul Pyo Jeonghun

Vol.2 Winter 2008

OVERSEAS PUBLICATION COMMITTEE Paek Eunyoung Joseph Lee Rosa Han EDITOR-IN-CHIEF_ Kim Heaseung MANAGING EDITOR_ Choi Hye-in EDITORS Kim Stoker Krys Lee EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Kang Sunyoung ART DIRECTOR_ Choi Woonglim DESIGNERS Kim Mijin Lee Jaehyun Jang Hyeju PHOTOGRAPHER_ Lee Kwa-yong PRINTED IN Dong-A Printing Ing Process

list_ Books from Korea is a quarterly magazine published by the Korea Literature Translation Institute.

All correspondence should be addressed to the Korea Literature Translation Institute at Mudongmaeul-gil 26, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, Republic of Korea 135-879 Telephone: 82-2-6919-7700 Fax: 82-2-3448-4247 E-mail: list_korea@klti.or.kr www.klti.or.kr www.list.or.kr Copyright © 2008 by the Korea Literature Translation Institute ISSN 2005-2790

Cover Photo: The Citizens’ Cultural Heritage ‘Choi Sunu House’ in Korea

TRADE REPORT

Korean Books Make Headway Abroad The entry of Korean books into foreign markets is increasing in line with the development of the publishing culture. According to statistics from the Korea Literature Translation Institute up until October 2008, Korean books have been translated into 28 different languages altogether, and nearly 2,000 works have made their way abroad. Of course, this is still very few when compared to the export figures of advanced countries. Nonetheless, many Korean literary figures such as Ko Un, Hwang Sok-yong, Park Wansuh, Yi Mun-yol, Kim Ji-ha, and Yi Chong-jun, are attracting steady interest from overseas readers, while publications such as practical guides and children’s books are receiving attention abroad for their originality and inventiveness.

In this regard, it is anticipated that the foreign market entry by the Korean literary world will be even more lively in the days to come.

Korean Books’ Copyright Exportation Looking at the relative rates of book copyright exports (from Jan. to Oct. 31, 2008 from LTI Korea), children’s books and comic books account for the largest proportion at 53 percent (195 items), while practical guides are next at 24.3 percent (89 items).

The children’s books have been highly appraised for both their content and design.

Publishing agencies that deal with China and Southeast Asia reveal that practical books on beauty or personal investment are hugely popular with Chinese readers.

Which writers have published the most works in the foreign market?

The writer who is most represented in terms of number of languages is Yi Mun-yol with over 50 works translated into a total of 16 different languages. Forty-eight works by the poet Ko Un have appeared in 15 languages, while translations of 37 books by Hwang Sok-yong have been published in 11 languages. In addition, new writers are getting ready to follow mainstay authors into the overseas market. Translations are currently underway of works by up-and-coming writers who have recently started to attract attention in the Korean literary world, such as Cheon Woon-young, Kim Ae-ran and Kim Byoula.

1 2 3 4

1. Yi Mun-yol 2. Ko Un 3. Cheon Woon-young 4. Hwang Sok-young

Four countries in one stroke!

The animation Ghostface by Hyung Min-woo Interest in marketing Korean cartoons abroad is growing with the emergence of Korean comic book artist Hyung Min-woo. Hyung’s first book, Priest, is set to be reborn as a Hollywood blockbuster under Sam Raimi, director of the Spiderman films. Moreover, Hyung’s new work, Ghostface, won the first “Open Competition for Production Support of Cartoon for Overseas Export” (organized jointly by the Seoul Animation Center and the Korea Literature Translation Institute), and publication of Ghostface in America, Japan, France, and Germany has already been decided based on the strength of the cartoon proposal alone. Both Korean and overseas publishers have high expectations for this hybrid work, which, from the characters to the plot background, blends characteristics of diverse countries including China, Japan, and America. Ghostface is currently being serialized on the website: www.ghostface.co.kr

By Choi Hye-in

6

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

BESTSELLERS

What We’re Reading These list totals are based on sales records from eight major bookstores and three on-line bookstores from August to October in 2008, provided by the Korean Publishers Association. The books are introduced in order of their date of publication, the most recent books first.

Books by Korean Authors The Painter of Wind 1 & 2 Lee Jung-myung, Millionhouse Publishing, Inc., 2008 266p, ISBN 978-89-91643-26-0 04810

A historical novel, which deals with an 18th century Joseon painter, after the release of the TV mini-series of the same name

Treasure Hunting in Mexico Gomdori Co; Illustrator: Kang Gyunghyo I-seum (mirae-n culture group), 2008, 183p ISBN 978-89-378-4204-7 77900 A Real Estate Slump is on the Way

Cormac McCarthy, Translator: Jung Young-mok Munhakdongne Publishing Corp., 2008, 327p ISBN 978-89-546-0590-8 03840

A story of a father and his young son who survive on earth after a huge catastrophe completely destroys civilization and nature

English Re-Start Basic Christine Gibson, I. A. Richards, Newrun, 2008, 252p ISBN 978-89-01-08335-3 14740

A comic book for children that easily explains Mexican history and culture

A famous English learning book amongst those who felt learning English a burden

Face Reading 2: Flesh is Money

The Trapeze

Hur Youngman, Wisdomhouse Publishing Co., Ltd. 2008, 265p, ISBN 978-89-6086-113-8

Okuda Hideo, Translator: Lee Youngmi EunHaeng Namu Publishing Co., 2008, 309p ISBN 978-89-5660-102-1 03830

An entertaining comic book about Korean traditional physiognomy

A Fulfilling Life Kang Hungu, Sam & Parkers, 2008, 285p ISBN 978-89-92647-33-5 03320

The Painter of Wind 1 & 2

Translated Books The Road

Delightful stories of an odd doctor and a unique nurse curing peculiar patients

The Last Lecture

A self-help book that shows you how to make your dreams come true and your visions a reality

Randy Pausch, Jeffrey Zaslow, Translator: Shim Eunwoo, Sallim Publishing Co., 2008, 286p ISBN 978-89-522-0924-5 03320

The Night is Singing

Touching last lectures by Professor Randy Pausch who was diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer.

Kim Yeon-su, Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd., 2008, 345p ISBN 978-89-320-1900-0

Psychology of Persuasion 2

A full-length novel that depicts young Koreans struggles and loves during the Japanese colonialization

Robert B. Cialdini et al., Book 21 Publishing Group 2008, 385p, ISBN 978-89-509-0522-4 13320

Bad Samaritans: The Myth of Free Trade and the Secret History of Capitalism

The Korean translation of Yes!: 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to Be Persuasive.

Golden Fish

Chang Ha-joon, Boo-kie, 2008, 385p ISBN 978-89-509-0522-4 13320

J. M. G. Le Cl´ezio, Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.

2008, 301p, ISBN 89-8281-089-7 03860

An essay on economics that discloses the traps hidden in the theories of liberalistic economists

The Korean translation of Poisson D'or by Le Cl´ezio, the French author who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2008

A Country Doctor’s Guide to Stock Investment Treasure Hunting in Mexico

Park Kyung Chol, Woongjin Thinkbig Co., Ltd., 2008 495p, ISBN 978-89-01-08846-4

A guidebook on the basic principles of stock investment

I Am Happy Now Sung Suk-je, Changbi Publishers, Inc., 2008, 280p ISBN 978-89-364-6707-7 03810

A collection of novellas offering heartfelt stories by one of the most famous authors in Korea

A Real Estate Slump is on the Way Sun Dae-in et al., HanKyung Newspaper, 2008, 289p ISBN 978-89-475-2647-0

The Night is Singing

Forecasts speculate Korea’s real estate market will experience hard times and asset values will seriously decline

The Trapeze The Last Lecture English Re-Start Basic

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 7

PUBLISHING TRENDS

Publishing Trends of 2008 What books are Korean readers turning to these days?

Like the rest of the world, the Korean publishing market has not been immune to the international financial crisis.

Despite the uncertainty hanging over the market, through such mediums as the Internet, books on topics such as China and social issues have stood out.

Online Fiction Many leading Korean authors are serializing their fiction on the internet, then publishing them later in book form.

Readers have responded well to this trend. Park Bumshin’s Cholatse, Hwang Sok-yong’s Hesperus, and Jung Yi-hyun’s You Don’t Know are such examples.

Park and Hwang posted their fiction on the most popular Korean portal, www.

naver.com, and saw their books go on to become bestsellers. Jung has been serializing her fiction on a bookstore website since last August.

How do the authors feel about posting their fiction online? Park Bumshin says it felt like a concert. He says he felt as though he was performing before an audience. Thanks to the posting and reply features of blogs, he was able to gauge his readers’ reactions instantly. Hwang Sok-yong also recalls the experience as a special opportunity to communicate with his readership.

Hwang showed interest in creating an internet cultural medium himself, and predicted that the medium will allow readers to post reviews of his work instantaneously.

Some have voiced concerns over the trend of serialized internet fiction, asserting that authors may react too sensitively to the readers’ instant responses and compromise their styles in order to appease the internet readers.

However, the majority strongly believes in the benefits of net fiction. While this problem is not specific to Korea alone, the fiction market in Korea has been on a downward slope, and many writers and publishers believe online fiction is a good solution to the problems they face.

By Pyo Jeonghun

8

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

Deep Depression Perhaps the global market crisis is to blame. The Korean publishing industry is seeing a sharp decrease in sales and struggling with escalating costs. It differs from one publisher to another, but many publishers report that their sales have dropped by 50 percent since the second half of this year compared to last year. The cost of paper has risen 20 percent since the beginning of this year, but publishers are reluctant to raise book prices during a recession.

Some publishers are focusing their energy on marketing and marketing events to help increase sales, but this applies only to the few very affluent publishers, and the marketing strategies are not working as well as they used to.

Signs of depression are everywhere. Five hundred to 600 Korean publishers used to attend the Frankfurt Book Fair every year, but the number this year dropped to 300. The decrease in the number of book fair attendees mirrors the decrease of book sales.

Book sales in Korea have been decreasing long before the financial recession this year. According to a survey conducted by the Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Sports, 16.2 percent of Koreans’ cultural activity expenses were

spent on books and magazines last year, whereas this year, the number has decreased to 14.9 percent. While most blame the bad economy, some say that the publishers are to blame. Fierce competition to secure rights to foreign books and large-scale marketing has brought them to a situation in which they have bitten off more than they can chew.

By Pyo Jeonghun

Books on China Booming Books on China were booming in the domestic publishing industry last summer. From travel books to essays, history books, books on politics and the economy, to biographies, a diverse array of both foreign and domestic publications hit the shelves. What sparked off this boom was the Beijing Olympics.

However, it also reflected the mindset of wanting to take a closer look at China, Korea’s leading trade partner and world superpower.

One work that particularly stood out among domestic publications was volume seven of the leading paperback publisher Sallim Knowledge Library,

titled “China Series II,” which examined Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong; leaders in the fields of politics and economics; and the issue of ethnic minorities. There were also academic works that analyzed China’s dazzling economic development in-depth. Baik Seungwook’s China on the Border of Globalization (Changbi Publishers, Inc.) analyzes China’s politics, economy, and society from the viewpoint of world systems theory, and Park Seungrok’s China’s Changes After the Beijing Olympics and the Tasks Facing Korea (Goodinformation Publishing) predicts how China will change after the Olympics.

There were also a number of travel essay collections that explained Chinese society, history, and culture while examining different parts of China. Two of the best examples were Sonn Hochul’s Red Road-Through the 13,800 km Long March, Looking at China (Imagine Books), in which political science professor Son follows the path of the Chinese Communist Party’s Long March, and Lee Wook-yon’s Conversation with China, the written account of the Chinese literature professor’s cultural tour of 13 different places in China that served as the backdrop for 16 modern Chinese films. Books on Beijing also garnered attention. These included Beijing, the Capital of the World (Changbi Publishers, Inc.), in which Chinese literature professor Cho Kwanhee captures Beijing’s past and present, and Walking the Backstreets of Empire (Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.), novelist Kim Insook’s account of the remaining traces of empire found in the city during the year and a half that she spent living in China.

By Kim Jinwoo

A Stream of Books Actively Addresses Social Issues Last summer’s heated controversy and protests surrounding American beef imports also had a direct impact on the publishing industry. Among the books

that covered the problem of the safety of American beef and the issue of mad cow disease, those that fundamentally reflected upon the practice of eating meat entered the spotlight.

The American biochemist Colm Kelleher’s book, Brain Trust: The Hidden Connection Between Mad Cow and Misdiagnosed Alzheimer’s Disease, was published last year, but sales of the book surged along with the movement to ban imported beef. The same was the case for Richard Rhode’s Deadly Feasts: The “Prion” Controversy and the Public’s Health, published in 2006. Likewise, sales of Jeremy Rifkin’s Beyond Beef: The Rise and Fall of the Cattle Culture, published in 2002, rose to over ten times

the previous sales rate.

Publishers also quickly brought out new publications related to the issue, including Slaughterhouse, which addressed problems in the way American meat products are handled, and Toxic (Random House Korea), which was a wide-ranging look at the problem of the production and distribution of American food products. Michael Pollan’s The Omnivore’s Dilemma and Peter Singer’s The Ethics of What We Eat were philosophical reflections that problematized the human practice of meat-eating.

Domestically as well, a stream of books that questioned the meaning of democracy and the “candle light demonstrations,” were published. These included Candle Light Democracy (Happistory) and ROK is a Democratic Repub-

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 9

PUBLISHING TRENDS lic? (MayDay Publishers). In particular, The Agora Almanac (Yeouwadurumi), a collection of writings related to the mad cow controversy that were published on the internet discussion forum “Agora,” became a bestseller. Likewise, bestselling social science books included Homo Koreanicus (Woongjin Jisikhouse), Violence and Vulgarity (Prunsoop Publishing Co., Ltd.), and I’ll Spit on Your Grave (Kaemagowon), written by Jin Joong-gwon, a professor at Chung-ang University who received support from numerous online users for broadcasting the candlelight demonstrations over the internet.

By Kim Jinwoo

Interview Collections Gain Popularity Collections of interviews and conversations published in Korea are noticeably increasing, but this is not a sudden recent change. Two stand-out examples of this trend are A Dialogue: One Intellectual's Life and Thought (Hangilsa Publishing Co., Ltd.), a collection of interviews with scholar and veteran journalist Ree Yuenghui, and Conversation (Humanist), a collection of dialogues with Choe Jae-chun, professor of natural

10

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

science at Ewha Womans University, and Doh Jung-il, professor emeritus of liberal arts at Kyung Hee University.

However, recent dialogues and interview collections seem to be claiming their own genre in the publishing world, while diversifying to include not only prominent scholars, but also writers and entertainers as interviewees. In particular, dialogues and interviews are eliciting a positive response from readers, as they provide a direct, instantly accessible glimpse into the interviewees’ thoughts through their respective voices.

There were many books that easily explain the ideas of prominent scholars.

One particular example is Encountering (Dolbegae Publishers), in which the Korean-Japanese intellectual Suh Kyoungsik and the philosopher of mutual self-reliance, Kim Sangbong, explore social issues in Korea while discussing modern Korean history.

Another recent example that stands out is Three Circles: Mind, Idea and Perception (Hangilsa Publishing Co., Ltd.), a

collection of dialogues that depict the thoughts of Kim Woochang, an exemplary humanities scholar and professor emeritus at Korea University. This was followed by Quest for Transformation (Thinking Tree Publishing Co.), a collection of dialogues by leading Korean intellectuals including Kim Woochang, Doh Jung-il , Choi Jang Jip, and Zhang Hwe-ik. No less impressive was The Beauty of Korean Art and What is Philosophy? (Hyohyung Publishing Co.), the latter being a book in the form of a monk’s answers to a disciple.

Finally, professional interviewer Jie Seung-ho’s interviews with Gong Ji-young, currently the highest selling novelist in Korea, It’s Good, It’s All Good (Alma Publishing Corp.) received rave reviews from readers. Ji also published his interviews with the musician Shin Hae-chul, who is famous for his unrestrained style of speech, in a collection titled, Acid Tongue (Buen Libro).

By Kim Jinwoo

Young Adult Literature on the Rise

Silk Road, Jeon Ari’s Jingnyeo’s Diary (Hyunmun Media), the cool observations of a high school slacker, and Kim Hae-won’s Seventeen-Year-Old Hair (Sakyejul Publishing Ltd.), a story about a boy who stages a one-man protest calling for a repeal of the hair length restriction.

Part of the reason for the vitality of young adult literature is due to the fact that publishers identified this genre as unexplored territory, in keeping with the blue ocean strategy, and actively sought new material. Beginning with the Sakyejul Young Adult Literature Award (Sakyejul Publishing Ltd.) that began in 2003, Changbi Publishers, Inc., The Segye Times, and BIR Publishing Co., Ltd. have also been in the process of arranging young adult literature awards since last year. The winners of each of these awards will be published in turn, from the end of this year to the beginning of next year, but expectations are already very high for young adult literature in 2009.

By Park Suk-kyoung

The word of the year among literary circles and the reading public for 2008 is sure to be young adult literature.

Though the term has been used in the past, the former emphasis on didactic, retrospective, coming-of-age, and translated novels narrowed the field, making it of interest to few other than school teachers and those with an initial interest in the field. However, for the past two years, young adult literature has been grabbing the public’s attention and asserting its presence. Rather than dwelling on the past, today’s young adult literature sticks close to the here and now of teenagers. It takes on the contradictions in life that they face, speaks their lingo, presents characters they sympathize with and admire, and moves at their pace. The light-hearted road novel The Spring Training of My Life by Jung Yoo-jung that created a public stir (BIR Publishing Co., Ltd.), and Kim Ryeoreong’s Wandeuki (Changbi Publishers, Inc.), with its exquisite balance of comedy and seriousness, made the bestseller list of 2008. Other well-received books include Kim Hye-Jung’s Hiking Girls (BIR Publishing Co., Ltd.), about two troubled teens who hike along the

Helping Kids Manage their Feelings

Tips for Talks that Bring Peace (Chondung Books, 2008). The books explain basic emotional states such as anger, fear, anxiety, nervousness, frustration, guilt, and loss, demonstrating ways to free oneself from those states. In addition, they describe ways to understand and resolve the complicated emotions that arise in friendships and relationships with other people, like jealousy and inferiority complexes. Bang Mijin’s School of Happily Expressing My Feelings (Dasan Books Co., Ltd., 2008) is a humorous comic book with two different characters: a timid child and a bad-tempered child. In addition, Chae Inseon’s Dictionary of Beautiful Words (Hanulim Publishing, 2008) has received a great deal of acclaim for its precise and child-friendly explanations of values that can easily become too abstract, such as thankfulness, humility, faith, consideration, conscience, and courage. The expectation that children will naturally mature on their own accord while living in modern cities may well be in the selfish interest of adults.

Isn’t the important thing that parents and children alike acknowledge that no one is emotionally perfect, and that we should heed the advice of those around us?

By Park Suk-kyoung

Lately, psychology books that help readers self-reflect are growing in popularity. This trend has also reached children’s books, raising the popularity of books that help kids to control their feelings. If the direction until now has focused on how parents can handle their children, the switch is towards enabling children to grasp their emotions and control their behavior on their own.

These books, filled with fun comic illustrations rather than dry text, draw the reader’s attention by using familiar examples from children’s daily lives.

The following books help to soothe children’s psychological anguish through comics: Leave Me Alone! How to Control Your Own Emotions; Why Do You Always Pick On Me? Understanding Complicated Feelings; and You Need to Talk:

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 11

THEME LOUNGE

Reading SEOUL Seoul: The More You Know, the More You Will Be Amazed Seoul’s 600-year-old history inspires an endless list of guidebooks including books on Seoul’s history and culture, analyses of Seoul as a space for civil society, introductions to gourmet restaurants, mapping out the scene for the young and hip, cultural heritage sites, museums, and shopping areas.

2

1

1 Seoul is Deep: The Humanistic Investigation

into Space-Time of Seoul Jeon Woo-yong, Dolbegae Publishers, 2008, 391p ISBN 978-89-7199-309-5 03910 2 Seoul Essay Kang Hong-bin; photographer: Joo Myung-duck, Youlhwadang Publishers, 2002, 182p ISBN 89-301-0042-2 03600 3 Step in Donggweol, the House of Chosun Han Young-woo; photographer: Kim Dae-byeok Hyohyung Publishing Co. and Youlhwadang Publishers 2008, 294p, ISBN 89-5872-033-6 03910 4 Vanishing History Gwon Gibong, Alma Publishing Corp., 2008, 311p ISBN 978-89-92525-24-4 03900

12

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

3

4

Seoul is well known as the capital of Korea. Still, we cannot define what Seoul is merely by saying it is the capital of Korea. Seoul is not only a megapolis with over 10 million Koreans and about 200,000 foreigners, but it is also Korea’s economic, industrial, cultural, political, and educational center. Once the capital of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910), Seoul’s long history exemplifies that it has been a central city for over 600 years, contrary to those who believe it was newly built.

After Korea was entirely destroyed by the Korean War, it accomplished amazing economic development known as the “Miracle on the Hangang (river).”

This river that divides Seoul into north and south, is a symbol of the city. In short, the “Miracle on the Han River” is the miracle of Seoul. If the satellite cities around it are included, it is not an exaggeration to say that more than half of Koreans live in Seoul. However, like any other megapolis, there have been problematic side effects that have come with rapid economic development. Such problems include the destruction of nature by industrialization, the deterioration of living conditions, the loss of traditional culture and values, overpopulation, traffic congestion, and class segregation.

It is only natural that many books are published about Korean history, culture, lifestyle, and tourism. Especially recently, numerous books have been released on the history and culture of Seoul. Gwon Gibong’s Vanishing History (Alma Publishing Corp.) provides historical and cultural context for many places in Seoul. The author laments the reality that many meaningful modern architectural buildings and their records are disappearing under the promotion

of economic development and industrial growth. Seoul’s reality, the author claims, is that we have to rely on our memories, not the records – if there are any – to remember things that happened 50 years ago.

The best way to experience the capital city of the Joseon Dynasty is to visit palaces that still exist. Historian Han Young-woo and photographer Kim Dae-byeok published Step in Donggweol, the House of Chosun (Hyohyung Publishing Co. and Youlhwadang Publishers), which focuses on the histories of Changdeokgung (palace) and Changgyeonggung (palace), the two most representative palaces from the Joseon Dynasty. According to this book, Joseon’s palaces feature the following:

“Korea’s palaces are neither luxurious nor magnificent, but it is not because the country was poor. Korea was based on Confucian political philosophy, therefore it did not believe in using its people as free labor. Changdeokgung and Changgyeonggung were built using the most typical Korean garden’s features by utilizing nature and minimizing artificialities to create beautiful living spaces. The palaces are not overwhelming; instead they help the beholders feel as if they could live there.

They are extremely accommodating and comfortable palaces.”

Jeon Woo-yong’s Seoul is Deep: The

Humanistic Investigation into SpaceTime of Seoul (Dolbegae Publishers) takes an interesting in-depth look at

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 13

THEME LOUNGE Seoul’s history and culture. The most fascinating feature of this book is that it reveals the socio-historical meaning behind Seoul’s historic sites. Also, through the author’s critical point of view, we see today’s Seoul as a nexus of modern, commercial culture that has deteriorated to the point of decoration.

For example, he points out that the people in this city used to feel a sense of solidarity, understanding, and integration, but that has disappeared. All that remains is a place of confrontation.

Seoul Essay (Youlhwadang Publishers), a collaboration by architect Kang Hong-bin and photographer Joo Myung-duck, centers around representative streets and areas with important historical meaning. Pointing out that Seoul metropolitan city’s downtown development plan did not take its people into account, Kang emphasizes that city space should be planned based on the will of its people. The master of Seoul is not the development or construction companies, the architects, or the administrative bureaucracy. The master should be the independent people of their city.

Now it’s time to enjoy Seoul. Seoul

Restaurants 2008: Blue Ribbon Survey (Kleinix Inc.) introduces a list of 1,165 restaurants in Seoul that have been selected for their high standards of taste, hygiene, ambience, and service, among others. With more than 200 photos of restaurants and their food, each venue is classified by region and type of cuisine.

Not only does this book cover the basics such as Korean, Chinese, Japanese, Italian, and French cuisine, it also includes fusion restaurants, cafes, and wine bars. What makes this book stand out from the others, however, is the list of restaurants that fits various needs. For example, it suggests excellent places as varied as where to propose, to where to bring business guests, from restaurants open 24 hours to restaurants with special musical performances.

After a good meal, come out to the streets of Seoul towards Cheonggye-cheon (stream). The first thing that catches your eye is Cheonggyecheon, which flows through the middle of downtown Seoul. Park Seong-chan’s What to Do Along the Cheonggye Stream? (Gilbut Publishing) 1

3

1 One Dollar Cultural Excursion to the History of Seoul Yun Dol, Goldenowl, 2006, 253p ISBN 89-6030-131-0 03980 2 Seoul, Have You Been Here?

Park Sang-jun, Hangilsa Publishing Co., Ltd., 2008, 935p ISBN 978-89-356-5895-4 03980 3 Treasure Depot of Seoul Kim Daul and Jeon Hyo-jin, Vi-Book, 2008, 208p ISBN 978-89-93037-05-0 4 Seoul Restaurants 2008: Blue Ribbon Survey Blue Ribbon Survey, Kleinix Inc., 2008, 395p ISBN 89-957250-7-8 04590 5 What to Do Along the Cheonggye Stream?

Park Seong-chan, Gilbut Publishing, 2006, 224p ISBN 89-7560-452-7 03980 5

14

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

is a wonderfully detailed guidebook that covers cultural sites, tourist attractions, restaurants, and entertainment along the stream. If a traveler does not have enough time to look around Seoul, he or she will be able to peek into the lifestyle of a Seoulite just by walking along the stream. This book is very helpful for those travelers who wish to observe everyday life in Seoul.

Yun Dol’s One Dollar Cultural

Excursion to the History of Seoul (Golden Owl) is a nifty guidebook to Seoul’s historical heritage sites and museums. With detailed directions, even those who are not familiar with the city will be able to easily get around.

Yun also gives historical background information and succinct tips on how each site can best be appreciated.

Park Sang-jun’s Seoul, Have You Been Here? -a guide to the hidden charms in Seoul (Hangilsa Publishing Co., Ltd.) is an over 900 page introduction to every corner of Seoul. Park focuses on contemporary Seoul, rather than historical Seoul. For example, he highlights famous clubs or jazz cafes near Hongik University and the Posco Center located on Teheran-ro (street), the new business district of Seoul, as well as unique, small-sized museums.

Follow world-famous fashion model and co-author Kim Daul through the trendy side of Seoul as she introduces you to modern shopping districts, stores, streets full of cultural diversity, restaurants, and cafes with unique interior designs.

By Pyo Jeonghun

2

4

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 15

SPECIAL SECTION Established Writers of Korea Examined Through Keywords:

War and Memory;

The Testimony of History and the Healing of Wounds For Korean Writers, the Korean War was witness and confession. For these writers, the war was both a handicap to their growth as well as what sustained it.

16

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

The Korean War has served as a source of writing for many novelists. Numerous writers including Park Wansuh, Park Kyongni, Choi In-hoon, Jo Jung-rae, Yi Mun-yol, and Kim Won-il, developed their fiction by using the Korean War as a motif. The war has been characterized as a “tragic fratricidal war,” a “war of national liberation,” and as a “proxy war between the U.S. and the Soviet Union,” depending on one’s political stance. For Korean writers, however, the war was not a complete memory that could be represented merely by a certain political position. While the war was long over, for the writers, its memory has been an everlasting experience in the present.

In The Market And Battlefield, Park Kyongni, the author of Land, describes the psychology of someone who has survived the ruins of war as follows: “Until now, no one had publicly criticized the Korean army or the Republic of Korea. The refugees silently witnessed the battles, during which they did not offer any opinions because they were wise.” For those who did not truly support either side, the goal of survival determined their choice for, since the tide of war could turn at any moment, they didn’t know to whom they might end up begging for food. For so many they had no choice but to vacillate between the two sides depending on the tide of the war; war was not an ideological battle but a battle for survival.

In a scene from her novel Near Buddha, Park Wansuh depicts the birth of literature on the battlefield for survival. The

ⓒ Chosun Ilbo

Industrialization and Democratization; Alienation and Introspection

first-person narrator, who has experienced the death of her brother, describes the war as the source of her writing: “The death I have endured still lay in the center of my interior, and interferes with my daily life like an extra weight or a migraine.

The desire to tell this story drove me crazy. How could I make sure that they would listen to my story till the end? How could I entertain them? How could I earn their sympathy? In my free time, I put together every aspect of my story, even adapting it to the surmised tastes of my audience. Before I knew it, I was turning my story into a novel. I writhed in agony as if I were vomiting, feeling relieved as if I’d vomited.” Not even a day has passed since the brother’s death, but the narrator’s family takes his corpse out of the house simply because they are concerned it might rot. The same family wolfs down all the remaining red bean porridge only because they are concerned that it might spoil; the memory of this incident turns into a lingering indigestion that plagues the author, and the pain eventually transforms into a novel that pours out like vomit.

In A House with a Deep Yard, the memory of being forced into becoming the head of a fatherless family in the ruins of war takes shape in the hands of the author Kim Won-il. The mother of the novel’s protagonist, however, makes no effort to console her oldest son who has had to drop out of school to sell newspapers on the streets. The narrator said, “As I walked into the house shivering like a little mouse, my mother saw me but didn’t say anything. Though I have dropped out of school unlike other kids – I mean, my own sister and brother still go to school – how could Mother not try to offer me any solace?

As I muttered these thoughts to myself, my eyes grew moist with grief.” As the son’s toils grow worse, his mother continues to push and discipline him even more harshly into becoming a decent human being. For Kim, the war was a memory of violence that forced a boy into becoming the head of a household before his time. It was a process of enduring “the absence of a father” and an occasion for self-negation, which prompted him

to question whether he was his mother’s biological son.

The perversion of the maternal in the absence of the father is also featured in Yi Mun-yol’s novels. Yi’s family, who suffered for decades after his father crossed over into North Korea, never experienced the ordinary every day. His autobiographical novel The Heroic Age portrays the sharp ideological conflict and tension of battlefields. Although his novel presents fundamental human conflicts behind the choice between “here” and “there,” he was welcome neither “here” nor “there.” Even 50 years after the end of the war, Yi still has not forgotten the pain he suffered because of The Heroic Age. Yi said “Our time was not a time when it was possible to remain neutral. The way to do so was to side with both ideologies; that possibility was decisively convoluted beginning with The Heroic Age. I suffered abuse from both sides. When the novel was first printed, the Defense Security Command censors kept it from being sold for two months. Through the intervention of some acquaintances, the book was eventually released. Four years later, however, it was banned by political activists. From then on, I couldn’t really continue avoiding the situation any more, so I tried to voice both sides but it didn’t go over well.” (Sisa Journal, 20 August 2008).

1 The Heroic Age Yi Mun-yol, Minumsa, 2000, 386p ISBN 89-374-0036-7 03810 2 Taebaek Mountain Range Jo Jung-rae, Hainaim Publishing Co., Ltd. 2008, 342p, ISBN 978-89-7337-794-7 3 Land Pak Kyongni, Nanam Publishing House 2002, 419p, ISBN 89-300-0701-5

1 2 3

4 The Square Choi In-hoon, Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd. 2003, 342p, ISBN 89-320-0848-5 5 A House with a Deep Yard Kim Won-il, Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd. 2007, 292p, ISBN 89-320-1012-9

4 5

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 17

By Jung Yeo-ul

18

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

ⓒ Toji Culture Center

Pak Kyongni

ⓒ Moonji

Kim Won-il

ⓒ Minumsa

Yi Mun-yol

ⓒ Hainaim

It was not until the publication of Jo Jung-rae’s Taebaek Mountain Range that a great number of people’s stories related to the Korean War attained both generality and exactness. “The country created the Communist Party and the landlord created pinkos” – the phrase spoken by Moon, a character in the novel, represented the voice of the masses at the time. Taebaek Mountain Range, a bestseller that has sold over five million copies, is an enormous book with 16,500 pages of manuscript and over 60 characters; its exquisite sense of balance, untainted by antiCommunist ideology, stirred a great deal of talk. Through Taebaek Mountain Range, the Korean War moved beyond being a “historical scar rife with taboos and distortions” and became a “historical responsibility to be borne by community.”

Furthermore, the manifold characters’ diverse life stories, beautiful romances, as well as the charming cadence of the Jeolla-do (province) stirred readers. Above all, Taebaek Mountain Range is engaging and full of suspense, keeping readers on their toes.

One of the novel’s monumental accomplishments is its popular appeal, demonstrating that “war literature too, can be enjoyable.”

Choi In-hoon’s The Square was one of the leading novels to elevate the tragedy of the Korean War to the level of philosophical reflection. As the critic Kim Hyun once observed in his review: “Without love, only rumors and ideologies remain.

Love is the only thing that can allow humans to have authentic experiences.” The Square was also a beautifully tragic love story. The tragedy of ideology, which completely shakes up a young man’s life, is often expressed as a metaphor of love or the body: “Life is the anguish of insatiable desire, like the belly of a woman who has borne many children,” “Doesn’t the truth believed by men take up about the same amount of space as a woman’s body?” and “All idols are born out of human weakness, the inability to believe in things unseen.” The sensual style of these sentences, non-existent in the war literature of the time, drove the readers wild. The death of the character Lee Myeong-jun, who chooses neutrality after having experienced the two ideological extremes, is one of the most beautiful scenes in modern Korean literature.

For these writers, the Korean War was at once a testimony of collective history and a confession of personal memory.

Their youth was the process of enduring the ruins of war. For many of them the Korean War was both an obstacle to human growth and food for growth as a writer. Although they were not able to have memories of an ordinary childhood because of the war, it was the war that allowed for their “ineluctable fate to write.” These authors established themselves with works that dealt with the war, but they also continued to enjoy long, popular literary careers. So many of their works have been adapted into movies and television dramas; the Korean War lies across the center of their experiences. Writing for them was both a struggle against the fatal trauma of the Korean War and a process of overcoming it.

Jo Jung-rae

ⓒ Moonji

SPECIAL SECTION

Choi In-hoon

1926 – 2008

Born in Tongyeong, Gyeongsangnamdo (province). The roman-fleuve, Land, is the most well-known of her large body of work, which also includes The Curse of Kim's Daughters. On May 5, 2008, she died of lung cancer and a stroke. Immediately after her death, she was posthumously awarded the Geumgwan Order of Cultural Merit by the Korean government.

1942 –

Born in Gimhae, Gyeongsangnamdo (province), Kim wrote many novels that deal with the problem of the division of the Korean peninsula. His many works include Winter Valley, The House with a Deep Yard, The Soul of Darkness, and The Festival of Fire.

1948 –

Born in Seoul. Lee wrote his autobiographical novel Our Twisted Hero based on his life of suffering after his father crossed over to North Korea alone. Many of his works, including Our Twisted Hero, Geumsijo, The Winter that Year, and The Poet, have been published abroad in French, Spanish, English, and Japanese.

1943 –

Born in Seungju, Jeollanamdo (province). Jo wrote Taebaek Mountain Range and Arirang based on his childhood experiences in the Korean War. His works had a huge influence on the literary world. Jo was embroiled in a controversy over violating national security for 11 years for writing Taebaek Mountain Range, until it was cleared of charges.

1936 –

Born in Hoeryeong, Hamgyeongbukdo (province). In addition to The Square, which was the first novel to criticize the ideologies of both Koreas, Choi’s works also include The Grey Man, and The Question.

As a dramatist, he also wrote many excellent plays, including Shoo-oo Shoo Once Upon a Time.

SPECIAL SECTION Established Writers of Korea Examined Through Keywords: War and Memory;

Industrialization and Democratization;

A Tumultuous Era – The Literature of Melancholy and Passion The 1970s was the most prolific period for novels in modern Korean history, as evidenced by the increase in the volume of publications, the emergence of problematic bestsellers, the revitalization of the literary media, and the high prestige of literature during the decade. Above all, prominent writers like Park Wansuh, Hwang Sok-yong, Lee Mun-ku, Cho Se-hui, and Choi In-ho either entered the literary scene or published exceptional works. If the novel were a flower, this was a time when it was no longer a bud but reached full bloom. However, the 1970s was, in fact, also a strange, painful, and unfortunate period. Modernization was pursued under a mass mobilization system. While the country was able to step out of the shadow of extreme poverty, it failed to form a rational labor structure or lifestyle suitable for the ensuing economic changes. As a result of the rapid development under Park Chung-hee’s political leadership, state fetishism surged and the everyday world fell into ruin.

Moreover, the Park Chung-hee administration’s project of national modernization was promoted in a totalitarian and paternalistic way after the emergence of the Yushin system (revitalizing reforms), and therefore ushered in a dark age of politics that utterly stifled modern liberation ideals like freedom, democracy, and benevolence. Owing to the anti-communist, authoritarian, growth-driven ideology at the time, combined with the “October Yushin,” the protagonists of the 1970s novels expressed an oppression and powerlessness akin to the sense of being crushed by monsters. However, the 1970s

was also a time cohabitated by sorrow and hope, as well as depression and passion. Squirming behind the feelings of hysterical depression was a desire for freedom as well as a critical spirit resisting oppression and injustice. In the words of Kojin Karatani, “The novel was an expression standing in for political action in a time that rendered the latter impossible.” The novel was not the exclusive domain of literary youth but also a handbook of consciousness and a space of contemporary public dialogue for intellectuals.

Novels from the 1970s provided a sharp illumination of condensed modernization. In particular, Gwanchon Supil and Our Town by the late Lee Mun-ku illustrate the destructive power of modernization through the sorrows of a displaced man. Lee’s works are based on his personal life. Born into an aristocratic family in Chungcheong-do (province), he lost his leftist father during the Korean War. Then after losing both his siblings and his mother, he left his hometown as a war orphan, only to descend into the lowest urban class and return back to the countryside. Thus, through a process of exile and return, the writer experienced the violence of a modernity that eventually destroyed everything. Gwanchon Supil embodies the process by which Lee’s father, an aristocratic Chinese classics scholar of a bygone age, and the good-hearted neighbors of his youth, are damaged and trampled in the rough sea of modern history. The writer Kim Joo-young, a contemporary of Lee, praised Lee’s novel as a masterpiece that every Korean novelist wished to write but few were capable of doing, for the novel

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 19

ⓒ segye Ilbo

Alienation and Introspection

SPECIAL SECTION 1 Our Town Lee Mun-ku, Minumsa, 2005, 435p ISBN 89-374-2006-6 04810 2 The Land of Strangers Hwang Sok-yong, Changbi Publishers, Inc., 2000, 436p ISBN 89-364-1003-2 03810 3 Gwanchon Supil Lee Mun-ku, Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd., 2006, 399p ISBN 89-320-0814-0 4 A Bad Harvest in the City Park Wansuh, Segyesa Publishing Co., Ltd., 2002, 438p ISBN 89-338-0027-1 03810 5 Hometown of the Stars Choi In-ho, Samtoh Co., Ltd, 1973, 310p ISBN 200-17-8300035-3 6 A Dwarf Launches a Little Ball Cho Se-hui, Iseonggwa Him, 2008, 351p ISBN 89-951512-0-X 03810

2

3

1 4

5

depicts the depths of Korean modernization through an astonishingly beautiful and melancholy evocation of language. On the other hand, Our Town exposes the reality of farming villages, which were exploited by cities and oppressed by the tyranny of government authorities. That is to say, the novel articulates a critical voice against government-driven modernization. Lee’s characters, who protest against the unjust world in their own ways, differ from the powerless and naïve farmers and fishermen from the Korean literature of the enlightenment; the local color has nothing to do with reactionary tastes.

Lee portrays the melancholy of the modern man in the third world. His characters have been banished from the kingdom of freedom, but they wander restlessly because they can neither fully acknowledge their loss nor return to the past.

In contrast, Park Wansuh brings to light the dark side of growth by using precise language. Her primary works include the novels A Faltering Afternoon and A Bad Harvest in the City ; and the short stories “The Camera and Walkers,” “Teaching Humiliation,” “Near Buddha,” “The Cries of an Earthworm,” and “Similar-looking Rooms.” Through detailed and keen observations of the every day, these works depict the philistine tendency unique to Korean society – a uniform lifestyle and a hollow spirit – and the colonized aspects of a life that has lost its vitality. In particular, Park focuses on the fact that public support for the national modernization project 20

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

6

overlapped with envy for the sweet home and women of the materially affluent middle class. The middle-class home becomes the principal location of her fiction, and middle-class women emerge as critical narrators. The Korean War generation tried to compensate for their wounds by achieving a prosperous life. As a result, fantasies about the family and maternal ideology were reinforced. Park was a full-time homemaker until she published her first work at age 40. Based on her experiences as a housewife, she deconstructed the convention of positing the middle-class home and woman as a sanctum. The home is portrayed as a place that conceals falsehoods, while female protagonists are anxious like mental patients on the verge of hysterics, hardly warm-hearted or docile.

Hwang Sok-yong should be included on any list of prominent writers from the 1970s. He has been an unparalleled talent who declared his resistance against the abuses of industrialization and the political repression of the dictatorial government. By leading the emergence of the politically awakened ordinary subject, he aims to employ literature as a tool of political resistance. In particular, he depicts the excessively masculine laborer as a positive protagonist for the subject of resistance. Dong-yeop in The Land of Strangers, which depicts striking workers on reclaimed land, is an ideal protagonist of Hwang’s novels. Behind the desire for masculinity lies the frustration of being oppressed by the dictator Park Chunghee, who

different from the midget father who loses his home to an urban development project. Like the diminutive stature of the midget father, subjectivity is utterly smothered. However, as with his pride, his life-risking resistance against decadent values, and his spirit of disobedience and intransigence, literature from the 1970s likewise paints the portrait of a giant in the ordinary citizens, masses, workers, and urban paupers.

ⓒ Moonji

Lee Mun-ku

ⓒ Park Junghoon

Hwang Sok-young

ⓒ Yolimwon

Choi In-ho

ⓒ Iseonggwa Him

By Kim Eun-ha

Cho Se-hui

ⓒ Munhakdongne

advocated a powerful masculine and patriarchal leadership. For Hwang, the government-driven industrialization was a time of the emasculated male who wanders aimlessly after being banished from paradise. The short story “The Road to Sampo” expresses the disillusionment with industrialization and the sense of a hopeless future by portraying the sorrow of drifting as the emotional structure of the time period. The two men who wander the roads are diasporic; they were exiled from their hometown Sampo, a traditional community known for its fertile soil and waters, after it became a tourist site. The loss and industrialization of Sampo becomes synonymous with the damage to masculinity. On the other hand, a series of novels set in Vietnam, like The Bird of Molgaewoel, melodramatically portrays the victim’s consciousness of the troops deployed in Vietnam. Men suffer from physical and psychological symptoms because of their sense of injustice and victim mentality of having been caught up in the foul whirlpool of history. As if to combat the ultra-masculine nation, Hwang’s male characters all desire masculinity, an aspiration symbolic of a resistant subjectivity.

Unlike Hwang, Choi In-ho rejects the ideology of production and progress by depicting young people who covet decadence and idleness. Hometown of the Stars (1973) is a representative bestseller of the industrialization period. The protagonist Mun-oh leads a decadent, meaningless life of alcohol, sleep, and sex. His decadent life is evidence of his discord and tension with the times. The portrait of Seoul is highly suggestive. For instance while the movie theater billboard shows the actor Alain Delon kissing a beautiful woman, Mun-oh wonders why “there is no such scene in the film.” In another example there is a sign in the middle of the intersection that reads, “We build as we fight.” The novel presents a melancholy young man whose individuality and freedom have been mortgaged. After vacillating between his maladjustment to reality and his anxiety about the weeding out process, Mun-oh at last undergoes initiation. The death of his lover Gyeong-ah, who – as a bar hostess – is also the lover of all men, serves as his opportunity to enter society. However, this move is a far step from reaching genuine maturity. In essence, he has given up resisting. Gyeong-ah is a woman who enchanted the youth of the 1970s. A tragic character that is abandoned after being passed from man to man, she is the equivalent of both our lost freedom and innocence damaged by power. Choi’s sensuous prose paints a sorrowful portrait of the youth trampled by the omnipotent father under the banner of national modernization; therefore, he captures the desire for democracy and freedom. The prostitute becomes a metaphor for alienation in Korean literature.

On the one hand, the literature of the 1970s uses the injustices arising from industrialization as a metaphor for a diminished subjectivity. On the other hand, it also exposes the desire for democratization. It resists the reality in which individuals are relegated to mere parts in an industrialized society where freedom is suppressed. As shown in “A Dwarf Launches a Little Ball” by Cho Se-hui, Koreans during industrialization were no

1941 – 2003

Born in Boryeong, Chungcheongnamdo (province), Lee lost his father and brothers in the Korean War. Based on his own experiences with farmers and their villages, he turned their issues into literary works, thereby pioneering a new chapter for the agrarian novel. His many works include Gwangchon Supil, Our Town, and I Have Stood or Worked for too Long.

1943 –

Born in Jangchun, Manchuria, Hwang came to Korea after the end of the Korean War and was raised in Seoul.

After publishing The Land of Strangers, A Chronology of Mr. Han, and The Road to Sampo in succession, he emerged as a leading writer of popular literature in the 1970s. Along with his historical novel Jangkilsan, An Old Garden, The Guest, and The Shadow of Arms have been translated into English, French, German, Spanish, Swedish, and Chinese.

1945 –

Born in Seoul. The most popular novelist on the industrialization of the 1970s, he is recognized for both his popular novels and more serious works. He also turned many of his own novels, including Hometown of the Stars, The March of the Fools, and Whale Hunt, into screenplays, and made a unique contribution to the field.

1942 –

Born in Gapyeong, Gyeonggi-do (province), Cho is the author of "A Dwarf Launches a Little Ball," which is the most famous of his connected stories about a midget. His other works include Time Travel and Roots of Silence. A Dwarf Launches a Little Ball has also been published in English, French, German, Russian, Japanese, and Chinese.

Park Wansuh 1931 –

Born in Gaepoong, Gyeonggi-do (province). In 1970, she entered the literary scene in her forties. Based on her experiences during the Korean War, she has inveterately dealt with the tragedy of national division and portrayed the life of the lower middle class. Her works include Delusion, Mom’s Stake, A Very Old Joke, and Kindhearted Bokhee.

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 21

SPECIAL SECTION Established Writers of Korea Examined Through Keywords: War and Memory; Industrialization and Democratization;

The Crisis and Loss of Identity Korea experienced a period of social change during the process of industrialization.

During this time, the individual was gradually isolated and diminished by society’s organizations, the collective masses, and the mechanisms of industrial development.

Every individual possesses a unique identity and that fact alone makes him an independent being. At the same time, the individual’s tangible lifestyle is deeply tied to the society to which he belongs. Therefore, his individuality is not formed autonomously or independently, but rather worked out in a social group setting. An individual’s identity was somewhat fixed and stable in traditional society because the social structure established the boundaries of thought and action, thereby clearly imposing a social role on the individual. Through this process, the individual is born as a member of a collective body and 22

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

lives as a part of the stable world. However, as a result of changes and expansions in the social structure and the accelerating complexity of the modern age, issues of identity have become increasingly more unstable and fluid. Faced with structural changes in the mechanized and uniform modern industrial society, individuals have no choice but to feel alienated.

In the Korean context, one observes that society in the modern era has undergone a period of structural change through colonization and war, as well as the process of transforming into an industrial state. The individual has become alienated, symbolized, objectified, and deconstructed, owing to the social system, group mentality, and the mechanism of industrialization. Thus, the individual is hurried away from the core of his life, incurring internal dissociation. This is the state of ontological alienation. Such ontological modalities of the individual were formed through symbolic individual characters in Korean literature.

The process of alienation – the diminished and reduced individual – signifies the position of the symbolic individual in modern society who has attained universality in concrete works of fiction. Moreover, it could also be understood as a sign of the degradation of the individual’s value in society. The fictional characters are depicted as victims of the fissure between the individual ideal and the social reality. In such situations, the individual’s experience of absurdity, like the crisis or loss of identity, is an experience of existence itself.

ⓒ Chosun Ilbo ⓒ Taein, Kim

Alienation and Introspection

The alienation of fictional characters in modern Korean novels can be summarized as a process of the loss of identity.

The condition of the once individual character becoming adapted to his surroundings can be described as the condition of losing his identity, which in the end leads to a decisive obstacle in terms of self-actualization. The urban human relationships in Kim Sung-ok’s novels are good examples that illustrate how individuals’ modalities of the self become anonymous. Kim’s superb works of short fiction are fine, astute observations of the huge changes put into full-scale operation by industrialization, urbanization, and modernization. Since signs of change were most conspicuous in the city, it is no wonder that his works are filled with city dwellers. Seoul1964 - Winter presents a microcosm of urban human relationships. Through this work, the author not only clearly and vividly visualizes human relationships amidst the huge changes of urbanization, but also provokes the reader to consider how they differ from the old agrarian community.

Su Jung-in’s portraits of the hollow every day and the bleak psychological descriptions of the fictional characters stuck in it penetrate into the heart of modern society. Through commonplace scenes, his novella “The River” exposes the fragmented daily life from a cynical perspective. One side of this cynicism

turns into a blunt critique of philistinism in works like Najudaek.

Such extreme aspects of alienation display the tendency to isolate an individual’s life into the deep interior. Therein lies the reason that the individual character’s life, at odds with the world, is so often revealed as being closed off from the outside world in Oh Jung-hee’s novels. Another characteristic of Oh’s novels is that the characters in discord cannot reconcile with their painful pasts. The characters, for instance, all bear scars: the youth without a father ( Woman of the Toy Store and Garden of Childhood); the death of the mother, the elopement of the hunchback sister and the death of a boy (Sanjo); the death of her parent during war (The Soul of the Wind); and the death of an only child (Bronze Mirror). In Oh’s fiction, the wounds of characters who suffer because they are trapped in the past signify the individuals who carry Korean society’s historical scars of war and poverty.

The individual in Ch’oe Yun’s novels, who retreats into the interior, also displays the tendency to obsess only about the past. The recurring flashbacks are both evidence of the fear of psychological trauma and self-confirmation of someone who has given up on life. The May 1980 Gwangju uprising is the subject of There, a Petal Falls in Silence. Even though the

1 The Walls of Rumor Yi Chong-jun, Yolimwon, 1988, 392p ISBN 89-7063-159-3 2 Garden of Childhood Oh Jung-hee, Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd. 2002, 295p, ISBN 89-320-0987-2 3 Seoul - 1964 - Winter Kim Sung-ok, Malgeunsori, 2008, 142p ISBN 89-8050-164-1 03810 4 There, a Petal Falls in Silence Ch'oe Yun, Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd. 2006, 311p, ISBN 89-320-0578-8

1

5 The River Su Jung-in, Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd. 2007, 336p, ISBN 89-320-0837-X

2 3

4

5

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 23

By Yang Yoon-eui

24

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

ⓒ Munhakdongne ⓒ Moonji

Su Jung-in

ⓒ Moonji

Wandering Rumors, He is Writing His Autobiography, Domination and Liberation, and Empty Room. These works reflect Yi’s view that language has moved away from the essence of existence and the reality of life, and begun to degrade into a uniform utility and a violent, heteronomous order.

Furthermore, in his work Southern People , Yi seeks an order of liberation, an order of freedom that not only keeps itself from betraying the reality of life but also unites language and life to create a new order of life. Through the world of pansori, Southern People (adapted into the film Seopyeonje by Im Kwon-taek), represents a literary space where, at a point of climax where the national language and image have been sublimated, there is the possibility of transformation into a creative eastern aesthetic of life without separating the world of language, the word, and life or causing tension. As demonstrated

by Yi’s works, the world of an artist represents the maximum value of his effort to overcome the sense of loss and defeat through introspection. For a true artist wholly manifests his life through the horizon of his works.

Kim Sung-ok

Oh Jung-hee

ⓒ Moonji

shock of the historical events is repeated and ruminated on in the consciousness of the fictional character, direct and clear references to the actual event are continuously withheld because the events are approached from the interior perspective of a young girl who has been damaged and shattered while experiencing an extremely inhumane and violent situation. Such selfconfirmation whereby she relieves her agony, incorporates the position of the author, who does not forget the past easily and intends to work out a suitable rationalization.

In short, the modern Korean novel embodies concerns about how to salvage the ontological significance of the individual when a genuine connection to the world becomes impossible. As previously discussed, this issue originates, above all, from an understanding of reality after experiencing the Korean War, the April 19 uprising, and the May 16 coup. By showing the process whereby issues of alienation and interior exploration are expressed through the rough tides of war and ideology, scenes of poverty, hunger and death, Yi Chong-jun’s works turn into a philosophical inquiry about language and the artistic spirit, thereby setting an important precedent for modern Korean novels.

In The Wall of Rumors, Yi not only explores the lost self, but also attempts to investigate the relationship with the external enemy that it confronts: the existential conditions.

Anguishing over the reason that the protagonist of The Discharge has to suffer from madness, having lost language and even desire, the novel focuses on the problem of language. In particular, in light of Yi’s contemporary society in which language had been degraded to a corrupted tool by the ruling ideology under the Yushin regime, his anguish over language goes beyond mere literary allegorical significance. Seeking the lost language is the task undertaken by a series of introductions to sociolinguistics, including the novels, The Wall of Rumors,

Ch'oe Yun

ⓒ Yolimwon

SPECIAL SECTION

Yi Chong-jun

1941 –

Born in Osaka, Japan, Kim grew up in Korea after returning to his homeland in 1945. A leading writer of the 1960s, he is the author of Journey to Mujin and Seoul-1964-Winter.

Around the time of the Gwangju democratization movement in 1980, he discontinued his novel serialized in a newspaper and gave up writing.

1936 –

Born in Suncheon, Jeollanam-do (province). His leading works include The River, Scissors, Moon Palace, and Evacuation. He is recognized for his ”realism of word and sound,” his distinct literary style, and elaborate composition.

1947-

Born in Seoul. Her well-known works include Woman of the Toy Store, Garden of Childhood, and Bird, many of which have been translated into English, French, German, Spanish, Dutch, Chinese, and Japanese.

1953 –

Born in Seoul, Choi is a novelist, a literary critic, and a French literature scholar. Her leading works include There, a Petal Falls in Silence, The Grey Snowman, and The Last of Hanak'o, which have been published in English and Spanish.

1939 – 2008

Born in Jangheung, Jeollanamdo (province), Yi is the author of Seopyeonje, Io Island, The Wounded, and Festival, many of which have been translated into English, German, Italian, Turkish, Chinese, and Japanese. After he died of cancer last summer, he was posthumously awarded the Geumgwan Order of Cultural Merit by the Korean government.

LTI Korea Grants for Prospective Publishers and Translators Overseas Translation and Publication Support Program Korean Literature Translation Institute has been providing active support programs to overseas publishing companies that introduce Korean books all over the world. One of the programs, “Overseas Translation and Publication Support Program,” supports overseas publishers who have signed a contract with a Korean publisher for publishing rights and are in the planning stages. Publishers who have purchased copyrights for Korean books of any genre, including literature, children’s books, culture and art, academic, practical books, and cartoons are eligible to apply regardless of their language.

Funding will be provided taking into consideration the country of the publisher that has purchased the copyright and the genre of the book to be published. However, serials will be given preference.

As of November 2008, funding has been confirmed for the publication of 40 books of 24 types by 17 publishing companies from 9 countries, including the USA, Italy, Poland, Thailand, Vietnam, China, and Taiwan.

Overseas Publication Marketing Support Program “Overseas Publication Marketing Support Program” is another program that has been established for overseas publishers; those who have signed a publishing contract with a Korean publisher and have completed the publication can apply at any time throughout the year. As with “Overseas Translation and Publication Support Program,” all languages are welcome and application categories include various genres such as literature, children’s books, culture and art, academic, practical books, and cartoons. Once selected, the publishing company will receive some financial support to cover the roundtrip airfare and accommodations for the author and some of the expenditures for a local marketing event.

As this is a program aimed at publicizing Korean books to readers abroad, we would like to ask for active interest and participation from more overseas publishers.

The application procedure is the same as the “Overseas Translation and Publication Support Program”: sign up for an account at www.koreanbooks.or.kr, fill out the online application form and submit the five required documents.

Details of the support program can be found at www.koreanbooks.or.kr.

The restored residence of writer Kim You-jeong

THE PLACE

The Village that Formed the Backdrop of Twelve Novels The Literary Village of Kim You-jeong Located in a cozy village surrounded by mountains, the Literary Village contains the life and stories of novelist Kim You-jeong.

It was a place that was once so poor, it was difficult just to get by.

Here, the characters in Kim You-jeong’s story, weary yet full of laughter, come to life.

When lakes, fog, dakgalbi (a spicy chicken dish), mime festivals, the pop song “Soyang River Girl,” and the TV miniseries Winter Sonata are mentioned, the city of Chuncheon is the first place that comes to most Koreans’ minds. Chuncheon is also the birthplace of the writer Kim You-jeong (1908-1937), who died prematurely of tuberculosis, leaving behind such classic folk works as Spring ∙ Spring and Dongbaekggot (Yellow Ginger Blossom)1 . His essay collection, A Mountain Valley in May, published one year before his death, was a dedication to his hometown.

Kim once wrote, “My hometown is in the mountains of Gangwon-do (province). If you go twenty li (eight kilometers) from the town of Chuncheon-eup and follow a winding path through the mountains, you’ll come upon a tiny village. The village is nestled cozily in the middle of steep mountains that surround it on all sides. Buried in the mountains like that, the village looks just like a siru (highsided rice cake steamer), so it’s called Sille. The homes are mostly old straw-thatched houses on the verge of collapse, and even so, there are less than 50 of them. You could say

left: The Academy Geumbyeong-uisuk where Kim You-jeong taught students right: Kim You-jeong

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 27

THE PLACE it’s a very poor hamlet.” (From Chogwang, May 1936) Kim was the youngest son of a wealthy family in Sille, but having grown up in Seoul, he didn’t get a proper look at Sille until his late twenties. After his love affair with the famous singer Park Rokju ended, Kim withdrew from school and returned to his poor hamlet in despair. His older brother had nearly squandered the family fortune with his prodigal ways. Kim established the private educational institute Geumbyeong-uisuk where he taught the children of Sille, a village that had become impoverished under colo-

Kim carefully documented the mountains and fields of Sille, people’s speech and mannerisms, and the events that stirred up the town.

Here we can feel the integrity and purity of Kim’s sprit.

nialism, and explored the village’s treasure trove of stories about farm life. He carefully documented the mountains and fields of Sille, people’s speech and mannerisms, and the events that stirred up the town: the 19-year-old wandering prostitute, who ran away from a fake marriage to an old

bachelor and returned to the village after hiding her ailing husband in a water mill (The Wanderer in the Valleys ); Chunho, who made his wife sell her body in order to finance his gambling (The Summer Shower); the farmhand who worked himself to the bone in the hopes of getting married, then got into a big fight with his father-in-law because of his pent-up rage (Spring ∙ Spring); 17-year-old Jeomsun who tempted the tenant farmer’s son into having sex with her on the mountainside where yellow ginger flowers were blooming ( Dongbaekggot ); Yeongsik who ruined a perfectly good field of beans because he was fooled into thinking there was gold hidden underneath (Picking Gold in a Beanfield); and Mungtae, the biggest bum in the village.

Kim You-jeong, who based his works on these tales whenever he could, returned to Seoul in 1933 and began writing in earnest with the publication of The Wanderer in the Valleys. He also incorporated his stories of scraping by on the outskirts of Seoul, and those of the people around him, onto the page. Of the 30 works that he published until the end of his life, 12 were set in Sille. He devoted himself to preserving a folk style based on the Chuncheon dialect in order to place it on equal footing with the modernity that was the prevailing trend at the time. He told stories of poor farm life, but in the process of writing in order to entertain his readers, Kim You-jeong’s unique literary style was created.

left: Gimyujeong Station named after the writer right: View of The Literary Village of Kim You-jeong Chongro _ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 28 listIntersection

1 3 2

4

5

Of the 30 works that Kim published until the end of his life, 12 were set in Sille.

He devoted himself to preserving a folk style based on the Chuncheon dialect in order to place it on equal footing with the prevailing trends.

1 Complete Works of Kim You-jeong, Vol. 1 & 2 Kim You-jeong, Garam Planning, Co., 2003, 322p ISBN 89-8435-159-8 (set) 2 Dongbaekggot Kim You-jeong, Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd., 2008, 464p ISBN 89-320-1552-X

Kim You-jeong made Sille of Chuncheon into one of the foremost farming villages of the 1930s rather than just a small mountain village in Gangwon-do. In the late 1990s, the city of Chuncheon purchased the site, which had passed into others’ hands, to restore the house where Kim was born and build a memorial to show their appreciation of him.

The name of the hamlet was then changed to the Literary Village of Kim You-jeong, as the entire village served as the backdrop for 12 of his short stories. The memorial was officially opened on August 6, 2002, and has since become the first stop of choice for tens of thousands of readers taking cultural field trips. In 2004, the train station nearest the entrance of Sille was renamed Gimyujeong Station after the writer. It was the first station in Korea to be named after a person. Now anyone taking the train from Seoul and getting off at Gimyujeong Station can see Sille of the new millennium where the descendants of Mungtae, Chunho, Yeongsik, and Jeomsun farm and live their lives, just as in Kim’s stories.

By Son Yun-gwon

3 Dongbaekggot Kim You-jeong, Seoul Wangmunsa, 1952, 409p 4 Ttaraji Kim You-jeong, Mungongsa, 1982, 250p 5 The Summer Shower and Other Stories Kim You-jeong, Samseong Publishing Co., Ltd., 1981, 449p

1

Dongbaekggot was first published as The Camellias, however, the Literary Village of Kim You-jeong has since pointed out that this was a mistranslation.

Camellias refer to the red blossoms of the dongbaekggot plant; however, the flower Kim You-jeong was referring to in his novel was the yellow blossom of the ginger plant, which is also called dongbaekggot in Gangweon-do.

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 29

30

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

The Selected Poems of Ko Un Awakening from Sleep (Beim Erwachen aus dem Schlaf) Ko Un, Wallstein Publishing, Germany, 2007, 107p ISBN 978-3-8353-0144-3

ⓒ Changbi

“The superb poems which appear in this anthology awaken our poetic awareness through their suggestive imagery and wonderful overtones…

Is this the work of a future winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature?

Ko Un has already been nominated for the Nobel Prize three times, and is clearly a poet of that caliber.”

Ko Un

It is a great honor for Wallstein Publishing to have been able to publish Awakening from Sleep, a selection of poems

by Ko Un. Ko Un is probably the most internationally renowned Korean poet, and his works have long been highly praised and translated into a number of other languages.

When Wallstein first decided to publish an anthology of Ko Un’s poems, we were already aware of the great importance of this writer. Ko Un’s work had already been published by the German publishers Suhrkamp in 1988, and also by Pendragon, a company that has been striving to introduce Korean literary works in Germany for a long time. Unfortunately we were only able to experience Ko Un’s other books through English or Swedish translations, since we were unable to read the original Korean.

At that time, Ko Un was not very well known in Germany, nor indeed in other major countries. We hoped that by taking the lead in publishing Awakening from Sleep we could do something to change this situation. Wallstein would like to promote Ko Un’s work more widely and also publish translations of his other works. Continuously publishing various works by the same author is not only the most meaningful project for both writer and publisher, but it also acknowledges the great importance of that writer.

Wallstein has been publishing Korean works of literature in German since 2005. Apart from Ko Un, we have

published translations of the works of four Korean writers (Kim Ji-ha, Hwang Ji-u, Lee Yun-gi, and Yi Mun-yol) so far, all of which have been prominently reviewed in leading literary magazines and the literary columns of newspapers.

The number of copies originally published was not large, but some of these books have run to second editions. The success of these works is largely due to the high assessment of the translations in literary reviews.

A major contributing factor in Wallstein’s decision to publish Korean literature was the enormous effort that relevant Korean organizations had put into finding outstanding translators. Famous German poets participated as co-translators, polishing the draft versions of the Korean translators, to produce poetry that matched traditional German poetic style yet at the same time conveyed the spirit of Korean culture. Uwe Kolbe was a translator for the poems of Hwang Ji-u, and Mathias Göritz for Kim Ji-ha’s poetry.

Kurt Drawert is working on the translation of an anthology of poetry due to be published in 2008. All three are famous writers recognized by the German reading public. In the case of poetry in particular, the quality of the translation is absolutely crucial.

We have been especially fortunate to have Dr. Sylvia Bräsel as translator for the anthology of Ko Un’s poems. Dr. Bräsel, a scholar of German literature, has lived in Korea for

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 31

IN THE SPOTLIGHT many years and has an excellent command of the Korean language. She is also well versed in Korean history, culture, and literature. This meant that we were able to collaborate extremely closely with her when first choosing a Korean work of literature for translation and publication. Naturally, Dr. Bräsel works in tandem with a Korean translator. However, she has a far deeper understanding of the background, the writing forms, and the special characteristics of Korean authors than someone who has only visited the country briefly, and has given us invaluable advice in selecting Korean works.

Ko Un’s selection of poems is one of the most significant works that Wallstein has published. Every poem, every stanza, every word is permeated with a subtle sense of experience and wisdom, together with the exceptional power of linguistic expression. Ko Un combines both the tradition and the open modernity of Korea in his poetic diction, and is being hailed by German readers as a most important and monumental figure. The selection of Ko Un’s poems has received acclaim by the mainstream media, while the most authoritative Swiss newspaper, “Neue Zürcher Zeitung,” appraised it as follows: “The superb poems which appear in this anthology awaken our poetic awareness through their suggestive imagery and wonderful overtones…Is this the work of a future winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature?

Ko Un has already been nominated for the Nobel Prize

three times, and is clearly a poet of that caliber.” Distinguished critic Dorothea von Törne has written, “Even in his political poems, readers can hear the sound of the sea, the murmur of tiny living creatures, and the conversations of the trees. His recent poems have a feeling to them of brightness, lightness, and calm.”

The highlight of Ko Un’s meeting with German readers was the German tour of public readings of his poems, sponsored by the Korea Literature Translation Institute in spring 2007. Readings held in Berlin, Göttingen, Erfurt, and Leipzig, attended by the German reading public and internationally known poets, were a resounding success.

These readings received extensive coverage by various newspapers and broadcasting stations, and politicians and cultural figures also extended formal invitations to receive Ko Un. Two hundred enthusiastic readers joined the Erfurt recitation, some of whom were also familiar with Ko Un’s The Stars of the Fatherland, published by Suhrkamp almost 20 years earlier. When this anthology was republished in 2005, a certain critic was prompted by the allusive title of the anthology to refer to Ko Un as a “Korean Gryphius.”

(Gryphius was one of the most famous German poets of the 17th century).

By Thorsten Ahrend (Managing editor of Wallstein Publishing)

About Wallstein Publishing

Wallstein Publishing was established 20 years ago in the historic university town of Göttingen. The founder, Thedel von Wallmoden, is still president of the company. In the early days, Wallstein published mainly academic books, focusing on history, cultural history, history of science, research on the holocaust, and, in particular, 18th century literary history. It currently publishes the yearbooks of the International Goethe Institute and Schiller Institute. It also handles all publications for the German Academy 32

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

for Language and Literature, the body which grants the most prestigious literary award in Germany, the Büchner Prize. Wallstein is also publishing complete works of authors such as Hugo Ball, Carl Zuckmayer, Golo Mann, and Karl Kraus.

Since 2005, Wallstein has been expanding its publishing program.

With the arrival of Thorsten Ahrend as managing editor, a fiction series was newly established alongside the existing academic series. The new fiction series is previewed in readers’ columns.

The emphasis of the fiction series is on modern German literature. Wallstein produces around 130 titles a year, and these books attract great attention in Germany’s main literary columns, often receiving coverage in major articles.

Wallstein Publishing is only a medium-

sized publishing house, but it is particularly highly rated by connoisseurs, thanks to the high literary quality of its program. This commitment to quality can be appreciated by the fact that in the last two years our authors have been nominated for the German Book Prize, not to mention other literary awards.

Since forming the fiction series, Wallstein has been steadily publishing translations of Korean literary works as well as German literature. Of course, we publish translations of American, British, Italian, and Dutch works too, but neither as many nor as constantly as the Korean. We will continue to develop this field, and are glad that in tackling this task we have partners like the Korea Literature Translation Institute and The Daesan Foundation to help and support us.

A Magazine to Present Korean books In one year, more than fifty thousand new titles have been published in South Korea.

Among them, many books deserve to be read by the worldwide reading public. list magazine was founded in an effort to introduce these books to a larger audience. list can also be viewed online at www.list.or.kr

ⓒ Hakgojae

FEATURE

Kim Hoon

A Writer Who Writes with His Body He is a writer who strikes us as a tough warrior rather than as a frail scholar.

He insists on writing longhand using only pencils, and shuns automobiles in favor of tooling around on a bike.

But most of all, he is the writer of an entirely new kind of historical novels in Korea. Park Hae-hyun, a reporter for the Chosun Ilbo, met with novelist Kim Hoon for this interview.

Kim Hoon writes in longhand, using pencils. He worked as a journalist for over 20 years before he started publishing novels, but strangely enough, he has never touched the keyboard of a typewriter or a computer. In this digital day and age, he insists on writing the analog way. Kim has always said, “When I write with pencils, I feel that my body is propelling the writing forward. I am incapable of writing a single line without this feeling.” To him, a pencil is not merely a tool for writing, but the embodiment of the writer himself. Kim Hoon uses his entire body to show the moment in which the body and the words of the writer become one to reveal that a writer’s style is, literally, none other than the writer himself.

Kim Hoon calls himself a bicycle racer. He does not have a driver’s license. He journeyed to the southern part of the Korean peninsula riding his bike, which he named Pungryun, meaning “wheels of the wind,” and wrote a series of travel essays. He is a writer who rejects computers and writes with a pencil, a writer who shuns automobiles and troubles himself by stepping on the pedals of his bicycle.

People now consider him an evangelist promoting bike riding as part of the green lifestyle that is being emphasized in Korea today.

Kim Hoon, however, brushes this off, saying, “Pencils and bicycles are not exactly my source of pride or my idiosyncrasies.” He goes on to confess, “It’s not that I reject machinery out of free will; it’s simply that machines tend to break down at my touch. In other words, I’m disabled, a handicapped person, who has fallen behind the progress

of the machine-oriented civilization.” But Kim has succeeded in turning his weaknesses into strengths. There has always been a tendency in Korean society to equate writers with frail and bookish, scholars. Kim, with his pencils and bikes, however, has come to be recognized as a writer who writes with his body, a writer who strikes us as a tough warrior rather than as an effeminate scholar. It is no coincidence that his most widely read work is Song of the Sword, his novel about Admiral Yi Sun-sin, who is considered as almost sacred in Korean history.

Song of the Sword not only sold over a million copies in Korea but also garnered its author the prestigious Dongin Literary Award, a rare case of a single book accomplishing both critical and commercial success. Song of the Sword is a historical novel set against the backdrop of 16th century warfare between Korea and Japan. It has been translated into several languages in many different countries, including France where it was published as part of Gallimard’s Du Monde Entier series.

The first-person narrator of Song of the Sword is Admiral Yi himself, who, with a small fleet, defended the kingdom of Joseon against the invading Japanese navy. Yi Sun-sin is revered as a national hero among the Korean people, and countless novels and films have been made about him. His heroic tale may have become too clichéd even for Koreans. What, then, is the reason behind the success of Kim Hoon’s novel in 21st century Korea?

First, in writing Song of the Sword, Kim Hoon took the form of the historical novel, but adopted a style and con-

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 35

ⓒ The Dong-A Ilbo

FEATURE

struction completely different from those of other Korean historical novels that had come before it. Kim categorized the historical novels of preceding generations into two types – romantic historical novels set in the royal court, and populist historical novels that center around common people – and aimed at overcoming both. He rejected both the romantic historical novel that fostered escapism in readers through the romance of historical heroes, and the populist historical novels that shed light on the life of the common people through the perspective of 20th century left-wing ideology. Instead of letting himself, the author, tell the story about people from the past, Kim chose the first-person narrative through which a historical figure reveals his interior feelings and thoughts.

The Admiral Yi Sun-sin in Song of the Sword is not an extraordinary superhuman or a mythical hero, but an individual caught up in existential agony in the midst of war. The strength that keeps him fighting in battle is not rooted in his loyalty to the state or the king, or his love for the people. He fights on with all his might because he has been thrown into this situation called war. His life becomes one with his sword, and his voice becomes the song of the sword. Because he keeps fighting despite a premonition that he will not make it out alive, his spirit cannot free itself from a sense of nihilism. In reality, Yi Sun-sin died in combat during the war’s final battle.

The nihilism in Song of the Sword stirred up a heated controversy among critics. One pointed out that the novel lacked the historicity required for it to be regarded as a historical novel in the true sense of the word, that it was closer 36

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

In this digital era, why does Kim persist in using pencils and riding bicycles?

Is he a handicapped deficient in our a technology-oriented civilization, as he insists? to an essay than a novel, and that it projected the author’s nihilistic views on history and the world. In contrast, another critic took a positive view of Kim’s nihilism, stressing that all writers are bound to assume a nihilistic standpoint in order to distance themselves from the events they depict, and that real choices can be made only in a nihilistic situation. Kim Hoon, he stated, opened a new path for the Korean novel by boldly making use of nihilism.

Such controversy, in fact, was what Kim had intended.

It is true that Kim wanted to write a modern novel that delved deep into the interiors of an individual, freeing himself from the fixed form of the historical novel. He had also on many occasions openly expressed his aesthetics based on tragic nihilism. His insistence on writing with pencils and riding bicycles is a form of nihilistic criticism on the civilization of the 21st century, which emphasizes convenience, speed, and efficiency. Kim’s sense of nihilism, in this aspect, is not a pessimistic attitude but an existential one, revealing a spirit of defiance against today’s reality, and this is what resonates with many readers.

Kim Hoon published two other historical novels since Song of the Sword, one of which is titled Fortress on Mt. Namhan. This book was also a huge success, yet again

accompanied by controversy from critics. In this novel as well, Kim Hoon captures the detailed psychological depths of individual minds with his distinctive, taut, and precise prose.

Fortress on Mt. Namhan is set during the war that was waged between the Korean kingdom of Joseon and Qing China in the 17th century. At the time, Joseon was no match for the Manchu dynasty that had conquered China.

Nevertheless, Qing invaded Joseon because it had continued to pay respects to the fallen Ming dynasty, with which it had previously maintained tributary relations, and chose to ignore the authority of Qing, the new supreme power.

Joseon’s royal family and court officials fled the powerful Qing forces to the Namhansanseong (mountain fortress), where they were held up for 47 days within the fortress’s locked gates, but in the end, the Joseon king surrendered, bowing down before the Qing emperor.

This novel touched on the historical wounds of the Korean people. In a cool, tightly-knit prose style, it depicts how the king and his subjects, soldiers, and the common people persisted, fought, and lost, in complete isolation inside the Namhansanseong, surrounded by the enemy. The two powers that maintain conflict throughout the novel are the advocates of peace and the proponents of war. The former maintained that they should preserve the kingdom through reconciliation with the Qing dynasty, and the latter argued that they should fight the Manchus down to the last man. The novel sides with neither, and instead, vividly recreates the fortress as a symbolic space in history, leaving room for the readers of today to interpret the story from a contemporary point of view. A historian noted that Kim’s novel reflected the spiritual injury suffered by the isolated Korean people following the financial crisis in the late 1990s. Another interpretation saw the relationship between Joseon, Ming China, and the Qing dynasty, the new superpower, as a reflection of Korea’s geopolitical reality in the Northeast Asia of the 21st century.

Upon publication of Fortress on Mt. Namhan, Kim Hoon, wary of politi-

cally-inclined readings of his work, commented, “Human reality cannot be made up solely of self-respect and glory. I believe it is inevitable that shame and submission be a part of life and history as well.” Then he cautiously added, “I am unsure if my contemporaries will sympathize with the idea that even those inevitably disgraced for the sake of survival were just as beautiful as any other. I am neither on the side of the advocates of peace or the advocates of war, but on the side of those in pain. I hope the readers read this novel simply as a novel.”

One thing is clear: Kim Hoon’s historical novels, as they are being read, have the power to amplify controversies as they are reflected in the mirror of reality. On the other hand, many critics agree that his prose brilliantly captures the tragic and sublime beauty of humanity within the realm of mundane realities, elevating the aesthetic style of the novel to the height of poetry.

In addition to Song of the Sword and Fortress on Mt. Namhan, Kim Hoon has written another historical novel, Song of Strings. He has also published Rivers and Mountains Without End, a collection of short stories, and several books of non-fiction. Nowadays, he rides his bicycle around the suburbs of Ilsan in Gyeonggi-do (province), where he is writing a new novel, with a pencil.

By Park Hae-hyun

1

1 Fortress on Mt. Namhan Kim Hoon, Hakgojae, 2007, 383p ISBN 978-89-5625-059-5 03810 2 Song of Strings Kim Hoon, Thinking Tree Publishing Co., 2008, 357p ISBN 978-89-8498-726-5 03810 2

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 37

EXCERPT

TEARS OF THE SWORD

SONG OF THE SWORD Chapter 1

By Kim Hoon Translated by Jung Ha-yun and Ahn Jin-hwan

Song of the Sword is a first-person narrative told in the voice of historical hero Admiral Yi Sun-sin. It is an intimate and existential monologue of a man confronted with the harsh realities of war, loss, and indignity.

The book begins in the year Jeongyu (1597), five years into the war against Toyotomi Hideyoshi’s invasion. The following is the novel’s first chapter, which opens as Yi arrives back on the southern coast, released after torture and interrogation as a result of intrigue against him in the capital.

38

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

Flowers blossomed on each deserted island. The islands billowed like clouds as the evening sun lit the flowering trees. It seemed as if they might slip free of their moorings and drift beyond the darkening horizon. By the time the birds returned from this shore to their roosts on the dimming islands, the sparkling sunset had already hurried off to the horizon and died. At dusk, the remote islands were the first to be drawn into the shallow twilight and at dawn, they were the first to be returned to the world by the rising sun. Out at sea, it was always the most remote islands that died first and came back first.

As the setting sun scraped the shimmering scales of light off the water, the sea blackened and surged with the tide, crashing against the cliffs, the rumble of the surf tossing in the darkness. My sight line extended no further than the blackened bluff. This was the moment when the enemy fleet would swoop in once again on the dark crest of waves from the other side of the murmurous horizon, wings spread wide, bearing a mountain of guns and swords.

I could not fathom the source of the enemy’s rancor and the enemy had no way of knowing the quivering depths of my own rancor. The sea was taut, swollen with a rancor that neither side could hope to penetrate. But that was all I had for the time being—no fleet, only my rancor.

The Royal Prosecutors Office had released me on the first day of the fourth lunar month in the year Jeongyu.

The interrogation consisted of empty questions.

The prosecutors, ultimately, asked nothing. They were chasing a phantom. I pitied their language. They prattled on, meticulously assembling an illusion of loyalty and justice. But the prosecutors knew nothing of the truth of the sea. In the interrogation chair I sat face to face with a ghost. The ghost lashed my body, the pain piercing me to the marrow. I lost consciousness many times, reeling back and forth between the phantom void and the splintering pain that crashed into my body like a cliff. Upon my release, I stayed for a time at a house outside South Gate.

The High State Councilor, the Inspector-General and honorary ministers no longer called on me, for I had been accused of a grave offense. They sent servants in their place, servants sent to simply show their faces as a gesture to console me, as if consolation was possible in this world.

Soon I began my journey south, passing my nights in the homes of the various town clerks who allowed me to soothe my aching, nearly broken back against the warmth of the heated floor in their servants’ quarters. One month later I arrived at Marshal Governor Gwon Ryul’s office in Suncheon to begin my sentence—to serve in the war stripped of rank and gear, wearing the white garb of a commoner.

The east wind, blowing in from Hanseong, Geoje and Goseong, carried the stench of rotting human flesh, along with the scent of flowering trees. The sea air was laden with the acrid odor of rotting bodies and tinged with the fragrance of the damp forests, and the wind that drove the stench away from the shore carried floral scents on its tail. The coastline of Gyeongsang Province was blanketed with corpses, some with the head cut off, others the nose.

Behind enemy lines, beyond the battleground where shells and arrows rained down like hailstones, Joseon naval forces were busy chopping off the heads of their enemies while Japanese soldiers sliced off Joseon noses.

The severed heads and noses were salted then presented to the superior officers, as a means of keeping score.

Since it was no longer possible to discern whether a given head or nose had belonged to an enemy or an ally, out at sea, all forces cut off the heads or noses of the dead.

Local magistrates abandoned their villages long before the fortresses were destroyed. Enemy forces swarmed the inlets and killed the villagers who had taken refuge in the mountains, even women and children. The villagers were killed for no other reason than that they had noses in the middle of their faces.

I knew this because I had seen it. Joseon forces used hooks to fish out the floating corpses of their own soldiers then decapitated them on the decks of their ships. Some kept a scythe on board specifically for removing heads.

The beheaded bodies were tossed back into the water.

Commanders on both sides received promotions based on the number of heads or noses they delivered and were commended in carefully crafted messages from their respective king. The headless bodies washed down from the Gyeongsang coastline as far west as Suncheon and the Gulf of Boseong, and were shoved into the mud flats by the rising tide. The corpses seemed alive, squirming and twitching with the ebb and flow of the tides, but a closer look revealed swarms of maggots. Crabs and clams dug into the gash of each beheaded neck and vultures descended upon them from the cliff tops with great speed.

During that month of travel back south, I was ill from exhaustion, drenched in a cold sweat each night, lodging in the guest rooms of rundown town halls abandoned by local chiefs or in the dirt-floored rooms of the servants who had stayed behind. In each village there were zinnias blooming magnificently between the weed-covered roofs and the few villagers still breathing killed their children and ate their flesh. From time to time I came across ghosts poking their heads out from under aster vines at the clanking of my horse's bell, light flashing from their hollow eyes.

I had taken the horse at Gurye and he died on a hill en route to Suncheon. He was a starved and mangy packhorse from the beginning, but I began to notice a limp in his forelegs at the foot of the hill. The horse staggered as if he were about to collapse, but in the end, he made it to the top before he died. His death was as serene as any natural death. He stretched his four legs, his hooves studded with worn-out horseshoes, and died with his eyes open. The horse stared at me and I gazed into his dead eyes, into the reflection of my disheveled, tangled hair. I abandoned the carcass at the side of the road and proceeded to Suncheon on foot.

As I approached the sea, a viscid wind blew along the shore and the hot rotting smell of salted mackerel hung heavy in the air. The day I reached Suncheon I reported to Governor Gwon Ryul’s office as ordered, then made my way to the eastern shore, toward Yeosu. The sea that I re-confronted that day was utterly ungraspable in its immensity and I no longer had even a single ship under my command. I turned and saw a few dead bodies trapped by reeds in the mud flats. The half-spoiled uniform on one corpse revealed him to be a Joseon naval soldier, still his head had been cut off. That head would have been transmitted through the Governor’s Office all the way to the king’s court where it must have been counted as an accomplishment of the Joseon navy. Looking into the open wound where his head had been, I saw again my reflection in the dead horse’s eyes.

Wherever war may have taken this head seemed to make no difference to the dead in death. If, in the end, this endless war is an empty game, then this world is an empty place. From somewhere deep inside my body, perhaps from the unknowable depths of my bones, I could hear the sword weeping—shup, shup, shup.

Rivulets of cold sweat traveled the length of my back. The dark sea churned with phosphorescent light.

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 39

INTERVIEW

“The Photograph Accepts the Subject” Photographer Kang Woon-gu Poet and journalist Lee Moonjae met with Kang Woon-gu, a member of the first generation of auteur photographers in Korea and a top documentary photographer who pioneered the field of photojournalism and auteuristic images as a Korean visual language.

At the exhibit, Kang Woon-gu noted, “The visitors seem to be enjoying the photos.” He added that he had also enjoyed preparing the show. His fourth solo exhibit, “Embracing Evening,” is open until December 6 at the Hanmi Museum of Photography in Bangi-dong, Songpa-gu, Seoul. As part of the first generation of auteur photographers in Korea, his work over the last 40 years can be described as visual commentary. His work is a scrutiny of Korean modernization, a form of compressed development that has been largely unparalleled in the world. The photos on display at the current exhibit accordingly do not deviate from his visual commentary. Some differences from his previous exhibits, however, include a deeper interest in the land and soil, observation of the shadows of objects, and the photographer’s own silhouette. He stated that the more digital culture becomes entrenched, the more important true auteurs and the documentariness of photographs will become.

Lee Moonjae: The museum had a record number of visitors at the opening of the exhibit on September 27. This was your first solo exhibit in seven years, following “The Images of Three Villeges.” What are your thoughts?

Kang Woon-gu: There were more painters, architects, and writers there than photographers. I like to tell the story of the baker. Bakers bake bread for people to purchase and eat; they don’t bake it for people who make bread. It’s the same with photos. I don’t take photos for other photographers. I like the fact that the people who came to the exhibit looked like they enjoyed themselves. The people who came to the exhibit post their thoughts on their blogs, and the “exhibit”

continues on the internet. It was also fun to see that, compared to previous exhibits, the visitors are younger and more diverse.

LM: You stipulate that your own photos are “for domestic use.” In that case, what do you think about the idea that “the most Korean of things are global?”

KW: I don’t know. I guess I have to say that the most Korean things are also Korean things. It doesn’t seem like people from rich countries, especially outstanding writers from those countries, use the word “global”... of course, there will be some artists who base their standards on other countries, but I don’t want to.

LM: Looking at your photos broadly, they seem to call attention to environmental problems. However, the environment is both a local and a global problem. In that case, aren’t your photos about soil and earth already global?

KW: More than the problem of the environment, it’s the relationship between people and the land, the people who are the first to leave their footprints on their chosen patch of land that I envy.

LM: I understand that you chose “the decisive scene” as your creative theory, in response to Henri Cartier-Bresson’s “The decisive moment.” Then, was the technique for your sequential photographs an expression of this “the decisive scene?”

KW: Since you can’t capture everything in one photo, I di-

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 41

INTERVIEW

A Journey Through Wild Flowers Kang Woon-gu, Kachisa, 2008, 287p ISBN 978-89-7291-445-7 03810 The Photographer Kang Woon-gu and poet Lee Munjae

vide it and capture the image in several frames. Isn’t it more fun to approach the subject one step at a time? It’s the artist’s duty to not only force the content on the viewer but to make it fun for them, too. My sequential photos aren’t just a story but a feeling and an image. Though the story may be understandable for foreigners, they might not be able to understand the images and emotions that are peculiar to this land. But what’s it to me? Only images that speak in Korean, and, moreover, images that speak in dialect, can properly express this land and the people of this land.

LM: Having taken sequential photos, do you ever feel like filming a documentary?

KW: I’d like to. But I’d have to be the star, right? So far, no one has asked me to do that. (Laughs.)

LM: You’ve captured the rapid changes that took place in Korea after the 1970s with your camera. What do you think about the “idea of developmental supremacy” that’s particularly extreme in Korea?

KW: We have to develop and grow. But I question whether everything has to happen that way. Plus, development always seems superficial.

LM: How do you judge the level or direction of Korean photography, compared to that of world photography?

KW: Whenever I describe something that’s happening in Korea, I often think of cooking pots. The standards are always based on other countries, and if they change theirs, we have to follow suit... All artists yearn to globalize or become global artists. The best artists are those who sell the most...

As a result, artists become merchants packaged as art. When people first started using the word “digital,” I thought they 42

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

would take a look back first, but instead everyone took off after it and only looked forward. It made me a little sad to see that.

LM: What do you think about digital technology?

KW: I don’t insist on analog. It’s just that I’ve stuck with what I’ve used before, what’s familiar. Digital technology seems like a miracle. To me, miracles are not universal. The core of digital technology is storage. As technology evolves and reemerges after being in storage for a while, the result will have to be the same as analog before storage. The more digital technology is developed, the more true artists who can be trusted will become important. For that reason, “documentariness” will shine all the more.

LM: What is the most important thing when you click the shutter? I’d like to hear your philosophy of photography.

KW: When I click the shutter, I’m not taking but receiving.

I always try to adapt to the subject. There are various things you can do with a photograph, but the best thing you can do is record. I just present the subjects that I received. I can’t expect everyone to accept my photos.

LM: As seen in your work “Gyeongju Namsan” and “The Photographed Samguk Yusa,” you also have a great deal of interest in traditional Korean culture. What do you consider the best visual representation of Korean culture?

KW: It’s hard to name only one or two things. But to be clear, I’ve never regarded one specific thing as a Korean image. I think it has to emerge out of universal things. For example, something that comes about when people are one with the earth.

By Lee Moonjae

“Poet of the Land” with a Camera

Auteurism emphasizes aesthetic individuality as an artist. However, it is difficult to maintain an artistic spirit in a mass consumer society where everything is converted into money.

For photographer Kang Woon-gu, auteurism means maintaining an ethical stance along with aesthetic principles.

Kang states, “The only one that monitors an artist is the artist himself.” In that sense, Kang is a strong-willed auteur, rare not only in the world of Korean photography, but in the arts in Korea in general. His photography has kept its distance from the temptations of capitalism, groups, or undue interference from ideology or power.

Born in 1941 in Mun-gyeong, Gyeongsangbuk-do (province), Kang took his first photograph in the first year of high school, and later developed an affinity for the Korean countryside, particularly rural communities, while being active in a mountaineering club in college. When he would go hiking during school vacations, he preferred exploring the villages clustered at the base of mountains with his camera in hand rather than exploring mountaintops. He earned the top prize in a nationwide photography contest for university students, and took great comfort in the fact that his photos were selected for several international salons.

In 1966, Kang began working as a photojournalist for the Chosun Ilbo, but he soon became dissatisfied. His self-awareness as an auteur was already strong prior to becoming a photojournalist. Around that time, he strayed away from the idea of photography as a form of technology and discovered his own path as an auteur and the

“big frame” through which he viewed the world as one. He moved to The Dong-A Ilbo newspaper and participated in the struggle to preserve the freedom of the press, which was instigated by The Dong-A Ilbo reporters in 1975, before being dismissed. He then worked as the head of the photography department of Hakwonsa, which was known as a magazine giant, before withdrawing from office life in 1983. Afterward, he worked as a freelancer,while serially publishing “This Village, This House, This Family,” and resided on the photo editing committee of the monthly publication Saemikipunmul (The Deep-Rooted Tree Publishing House).

Kang is known as a photographer who writes well. He’s also very well read. He goes to bookstores three to four times a week to select new books.

He enjoys reading in the humanities, with a focus on literature. He has also published several photography collections that incorporate his own written essays, including Light of Time (Munhakdongne Publishing Corp., 2004) and A Journey through Wild Flowers (Kachisa, 2008). Among his regular readers, there are also many writers who enjoy his clean, precise, and logical style.

Korean modernization, exemplified by the Saemaeul Movement, the new community movement, was carried out on the backs of rural communities, agriculture, and farmers. From 1971 to present, Kang Woon-gu has photographed the daily impoverishment of rural communities. Beginning with his first individual exhibit in 1994, “Luck or Destiny,” “Through the Unsettlingland - Mindscape” in

1997, “The Images of Three Villeges” in 2001, to his current exhibition, “Embracing Evening,” his photography has consistently made a visual commentary. His commentary is a type of document connecting his understanding of history and reality to the land. Korean modernization was a process that drastically damaged the land, and was therefore also a process that devastated people and nature.

While capturing the process of modernization pursued by the military dictatorship, Kang said, “As a photographer living in an era of sudden and ominous change under the so-called developmental dictatorship, there is no right to happiness, only duty.”

Kang is among Korea’s top documentary photographers who pioneered photojournalism and “auteuristic” images as a Korean visual language without the yardstick of foreign photography theories. Veteran photographer Jerry Uelsmann even came from the United States to attend Kang’s exhibit and congratulate him. Uelsmann had held an exhibit in 2006 at the Hanmi Museum of Photography, where he came across Kang’s essay in the catalogue and befriended him. On the day of Uelsmann’s exhibition opening, he gave the following address: “I believe that Kang Woon-gu is a true poet. His works are not only visual but speak from a place deep within. Kang embraces Korea and his own life with his camera from a thoughtful and sensitive angle to create interiorized images.

I speak the truth when I say that Kang Woon-gu is a Korean treasure.”

By Lee Moonjae

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 43

EXCERPT

“The salt worker’s face looks like he’s crying while smiling, or smiling while crying.

He seems to be apologizing even though he didn’t do anything wrong. He seems to blame himself for something he didn’t do. Though the pupils of his eyes are shining, they are wet.

It is the face of a saint.

Though it seems the twists and turns of life are carved in his forehead, his mouth reveals his graciousness. Though his high bridge and large nose seem to show he has self-respect, his eyes and mouth counterbalance such features. The old man, the saint rather, seems to be saying to the photographer looking at him through the viewfinder, and to us looking at this photo, that life is not easy.”

Excerpted from the preface of Embracing Evening by Lee Moonjae

Embracing Evening Kang Woon-gu, Youlhawdang Publishers, 2008, 221p ISBN 978-89-301-0339-8

Embracing Evening is a collection of Kang Woon-gu’s photos published to accompany his recent photo exhibit.

Here are four photographs from this publication.

Namhae 2007, Gyeongsangnam-do

44

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

The Salt Worker, Anmyeondo,Taean, Chungcheongnam-do, 2002

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 45

REVIEWS Fiction

REVIEWS Fiction

An Ode to the Marginalized Youth Hesperus Hwang Sok-yong, Munhakdongne Publishing Corp., 2008, 287p ISBN 978-89-546-0641-7 03810

The story of various characters’ anguished and disappointed adolescence while they try to forge their own way of life draws sympathy with adolescents today.

Hwang Sok-yong’s Hesperus marks an unprecedented approach and a great change in his oeuvre. Hwang is a seasoned writer of 65 who has been writing for 45 years, a venerable length of time.

Hwang, after 45 years of meeting his readers through paper and ink, discovered the Internet, more specifically the blog, as a new means of communicating with his readers. The novel was posted in a series on his blog for six months, during which the site logged 1.8 million visitors. The book has been a steady bestseller since its hardcopy publication in August 2008. The fact that the main readership of Hesperus is not made up of middle-aged readers who grew up learning sociopolitical criticism through Hwang’s “The Land of Strangers,” “A Chronology of Mr. Han,” The Shadow of Arms, and Jangkilsan, but the teens and young adults who had met him through “The Road to Sampo” in their Korean literature textbooks, proves that Hwang’s works are still in style.

It is a well-known fact that Hwang went through an important turning point in his life when he attended the 1st Transnational Festival in Pyeongyang in August 1990. He stayed in Berlin and New York for a few years before returning to Korea in 1993, whereupon he was imprisoned for his attendance at the 1990 festival, sentenced to seven years

in confinement, then was released in 1998. Inspired by his broadened world view since his visit to North Korea, Hwang revealed a new side of himself through An Old Garden (2000), The Guest (2001), Shimcheong (2003), and Princess Bari (2006). Instead of being overwhelmed by the gargantuan discourse of sociopolitical reality, Hwang sought to focus on the inner turmoil and strength of those pursuing small pleasures in everyday life, and also attempted to turn traditional rites and myths into a new form of fictional text, and find a traditional voice on a modern platform.

Hesperus is representative of Hwang’s exploration of new frontiers. Jun, the protagonist of the novel, comes home for a visit before being drafted to Vietnam. The story unfolds as he reminisces on the past. Jun’s friends, Inho, Sangjin, Jeongsu, Seuni, and Mia all refuse to take the elite track guaranteed by their competitive high school, and go out into the world in search of their own paths full of revelations and despair. Thus, the storylines follow the travels and adventures of the young adults who venture outside the boundaries set by their school. On the way, the readers encounter intellectual circles that formed around music cafes and school clubs, and a slice of 1960s Korea

through backpacking stories and construction site pilgrimages. In the process, Jun comes to the crude realization that the stories he had been writing were images of empty shells, and vows to find his personal and literary identity in the rumble and tumble of reality. The title, Hesperus, comes from his newly discovered self. This Hesperus is the same star, but different from the last star hovering at the dawn in that it appears in the western sky after dinner, right around the time when dogs begin to wish they would get leftovers soon. Instead of aspiring to be the last glittering star at dawn, Hwang embraces a new personal literary beginning in the useless, wretched lonely image of a dog gazing hungrily at the evening stars.

Hesperus is a bildungsroman of those who lived and grew up over 40 years ago that is well-loved by the youth of today.

The book speaks to the small, helpless people we see in ourselves sometimes, and the sense of inferiority and marginalization that marks a literary turning point for a venerable author.

By Shim Jinkyung

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 47

REVIEWS Fiction

An Initiation Story for Adults The Flowering Whale Kim Hyoung-kyoung, Changbi Publishers, Inc., 2008, 270p ISBN 978-89-364-3365-9 03810

Kim Hyoung-kyoung has not only succeeded as a mainstream novelist but also pioneered a new genre of psychological healing essays. She took up the role of mentor and sent back sincere and helpful replies to readers who shared their intimate problems with her, many of which were too personal to be shared 48

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

with even family members and close f r i e n d s . T h e r e s u l t s a r e “ Pe o p l e Landscape” and “1,000 Sympathies.”

Kim, who has long been devoted to examining how people get hurt then go through a healing process, has put out an initiation novel that is targeted for adults.

The novel The Flowering Whale goes beyond a simple initiation story about 17-year-old Ni-eun who tries to tackle personal challenges. The message Kim sends out to her readers is that every generation needs its own initiation drama that is never-ending. Various characters-Ni-eun, her parents who died from a car accident, an old lady who runs the Big Whale Shop and takes care of Ni-eun, a mysterious old man known as Changposu, and Namu, Ni-eun’s ‘former’ best friend-following their own traumatic experiences in life, are in the midst of healing. The novel’s key theme is the intensive initiation that hits people, regardless of age and sex.

Ni-eun finds herself stuck with the deepest sadness in the aftermath of the car accident that took away her parents.

The protracted period of shock is chiefly due to the fact that she is unable to vent her sorrow to the full. After all, she is a typical teenager who tends to pretend to always be cool, sophisticated, and happy. She behaved erroneously in order to forget the pain deep inside her body, but her false gestures deepen her already burning wounds. A change comes along when an old lady who runs the Big Whale Shop begins to take care of Ni-eun. The grandmother figure has just begun to learn the Korean alphabet and practices handwriting every day.

Ni-eun also begins to have transformative talks with Changposu, who used to hunt whales but is now alienated from the world after whaling was banned.

The most dramatic change, however, comes from Ni-eun’s surging sense of jealousy toward her friend Namu. In the eyes of Ni-eun, Namu seems to have everything. Fighting to overcome jealousy, Ni-eun slowly realizes what is really lacking in herself. Every single person in the world lives with wounds that are hard to forget. Kim’s diagnosis is that people are suffering illnesses not because of deep scars, but because of their unwillingness to truly tackle the pain and say goodbye to the departed. Kim softly nudges readers to learn the right way to let sadness run its course, instead of hiding it underneath the pretentious façade of happiness.

By Jung Yeo-ul

REVIEWS Fiction

Living on the Edge The Night is Singing Kim Yeon-su, Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd., 2008, 345p ISBN 978-89-320-1900-0

Twenty-first century Korean readers are probably unfamiliar with 1930s Eastern Manchuria. Since Eastern Manchuria has been far from the minds of contemporary Koreans, both in time and distance, not many authors have shown interest in using it as a background for their work. Kim Yeon-su infused life into Eastern Manchuria by using it as a literary stage to narrate, in particular, the tragic lives of young people who were neglected, forgotten, and hidden on the edge. Though the setting is situated under particular historic conditions, it is precisely because of these conditions that we are able to contemplate the universal, fundamental themes of identity and violence.

In the beginning of the 1930s, Japan founded the puppet state of Manchukuo in Eastern Manchuria, and the people of Joseon (Korea) living there were marginalized. The Japanese considered them to be either communist guerrillas or independence activists, while the Chinese thought them to be spies for Japan. Of course, such chaos created conflict among the Joseon people, even within the sense of their individual identities. For the young people of Joseon, the background in which objectivism had collapsed created a dark world where they could not trust even

themselves.

Kim Hae-yeon, the hero of this novel, falls into the world of darkness in an instant. In the beginning, he is a survey engineer working for the Japaneserun railway company. He is dispatched to Manchukuo where he falls in love with Jung-hee, a school music teacher, but his girlfriend kills herself because of her involvement with the Chinese communists. The moment Hae-yeon finds out, he is cast out into the world of night. Wandering through the darkness, he realizes that this is a cruel place where love and friendship are not possible and variant lifestyles, including the life styles of the youth, are not accepted.

Hae-yeon gets first-hand experience of a tragic and absurd-like drama.

Because of uncertainty about their identity, the Joseon communists had to turn the barrels of their guns orginally aimed at their enemies, towards their own comrades.

The author vividly depicts the vague clamor of ceaseless gunfire and the young people who become degraded into trivial beings. These men were marginalized, but they believed in the possibility of change. Their voices became songs of proof of that existence.

By Lee Hak-young

A Dramatic Travelogue Hyecho 1, 2 Kim Tak-hwan, Minumsa, 2008, 383p ISBN 978-89-374-8192-5 04810

advanced Western civilization.

The dichotomy between barbarism and civilization is a byproduct of the emergence of the nation-state. But what about the past when there was no such distinction between the East and West, and barbarism and civilization? About 1,300 years ago, a Silla monk named Hyecho traveled throughout ancient India and left an impressive travelogue t i t l e d Wa n g Oc h e o n c h u k g u k Je o n (Memoir of the Pilgrimage to the Five Kingdoms of India). Hyecho is estimated to have written the landmark book in 727, and French scholar Paul Pelliot found the book in a Dunhuang grotto in China in 1908. It was subsequently published in numerous languages over the years. One handwritten copy is now preserved in the National Museum in Paris, France.

Kim Tak-hwan offers his take on the legendary traveler in his latest novel Hyecho. In the two-volume novel, Hyecho is depicted as a modern-day budget traveler who does not care about all the troubles in a foreign country. He is also cosmopolitan with an open mind that beats today’s self-styled globe-trotting traveler. At the tender age of 20, Hyecho moved to China and made an unfathomable journey in terms of scale, recording what he saw on the road from India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, to Iran and back to China. His travels are filled with numerous adventures and unparalleled passion. Kim Tak-hwan shows that Hyecho, fully rediscovered through meticulous research, is not a simple Buddhist monk but a truly creative nomad who thought beyond the confines of national boundaries.

By Jung Yeo-ul

In the Korean publishing industry, there has never been a shortage of travelogues by foreign writers who visited Korea and expressed their feelings about the country. Western writers from Isabella Bishop to N.H. Allen, viewed Korea as somewhere between barbaric and civilized.

On the other hand, Korean writers tended to view the Western world with a favorable bias. Yu Kil-jun’s Seo Yu Gyeon Mun and Yun Chi-ho’s English travelogue Yun Chi-ho’s Journal are filled with admiration for and jealousy of

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 49

REVIEWS History

A Fantasy Feast Best Korean Fantasy Kim Choul-gon et al., The Origin, 2008, 357p ISBN 978-89-01-08591-3 03810

desperately try to turn back into normal human beings, and vampires who are chased by human vampire hunters trying to steal and sell their blood. In “Voice,” a goblin with a grudge against an arrogant, young student, later steals the voice of the student’s son. Stories like “Wind Dreamer” and “The World is Robbed” testify to the violence of human civilization. “Wind Dreamer” depicts the pressure of a powerful group that tries to monopolize a flying stone, an imaginative material, while “The World is Robbed” depicts the future of humankind based on parallel dimension theories. With this collection, we can see how Korean fantasy literature is being fed by a wild and varied imagination.

By Lee Hak-young

Fantasy novels inhabit mysterious realms where reason and common sense no longer govern and modern science can no longer explain. Therefore, the stories in this collection challenge readers’ common sense with vampires, monsters, dragons, and magicians. However, a fantasy novel is a world that was cultivated by a seed of reality within a culture ripe with imagination. The stories in this collection reveal that Korean fantasy novels have a unique style which is a mix of myths, occult, science fiction, and romance, both from Western traditions and narrations, as well as tales and mysteries from Eastern traditions.

Introspection on human greed and selfishness is a theme that flourishes particularly well in a culture rich with imagination. Borrowing motifs from the Greek myth of Pygmalion, “Ivory Lady” follows Galateia, a beautiful woman created through human cloning. Like the myth, she receives life by human hands, but the researchers ruthlessly kill her when she starts showing signs of maladjustment. “Canary” and “Breeding” are stories about vampires who, respectively,

50

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

Traditional Painters in ‘Faction’ The Painter of Wind 1, 2 Lee Jungmyung, Millionhouse Publishing, Inc. 2008, 266p, ISBN 978-89-91643-26-0 04810

out Asia, is a case in point. Since the sparkling success of “Daejanggeum,” an influx of faction-style television mini-series has flooded the screen. “The Painter of Wind,” which is enjoying record viewer-ship, is one example. The television series, however, is based on a novel of the same title. The novel’s strength lies in the timely attention to the 18th century Joseon culture. Real figures such as Kim Hong-do and Shin Yun-bok – both highly esteemed court painters – also ignite Lee’s literary imagination. Lee’s novel, in addition, revives details of everyday life in Joseon, a bonus for those curious about the socio-cultural landscape of the 18th century.

Unlike other court-oriented historical fiction, The Painter of Wind focuses on seemingly mundane episodes instead of the powerful elite’s ferocious struggling to gain its own advantage. The mystery surrounding Shin Yun-bok is tantalizingly depicted. At the time, it was strictly banned for court painters to depict the female body realistically, but Shin did not care about such thing and instead produced a masterful portrait of a young lady. He went on to portray the upper class with unprecedented realism and satire, laying bare their hypocrisy and sexual desire. As a hook, the book gets off to a start by asking the question: “Was Shin Yun-bok really a man?” This provocative question bolsters the novel’s plot that is at once solid and intriguing.

By Jung Yeo-ul

One of the most popular television genres for Koreans is the historical drama featuring kings. In the 500-year history of the Joseon Dynasty, the court was frequently engulfed in fierce strife and feuding. Power struggles not only involved kings but also their wives and mistresses. In the 21st century, a genre called fusion historical dramas, began to gain popularity in Korea. This form of entertainment incorporates modern elements into historical facts or figures, a dramatic representation of fiction and facts, or better known as “faction.” Even a couple of pages about a historical figure can generate a full season of television shows, as long as the imagination is well supplied.

“Daejanggeum,” a blockbuster historical mini-series that swept through-

STEADY SELLERS

The Story of a Dwarf Family, the Urban Poor A Dwarf Launches a Little Ball Cho Se-hui, Iseonggwa Him, 2008, 351p ISBN 89-951512-0-X 03810

It was in December of 1975 when the short story “Knifeblade,” the first in the collection titled A Dwarf Launches a Little Ball, was published. The mythol-

ogy surrounding this collection of short stories reached its peak the following year, with successive publications of “The Möbius Strip,” “Space Travel,” and “A Dwarf Launches a Little Ball.” The collection consists of 12 short stories, of which the shortest comes to no more than some 40 pages in a 200 manuscript page collection. Even longer versions of the collection come to no more than 250 manuscript pages, and can be considered as the launch into an official career by Cho Se-hui, who had remained silent for over a decade since his debut in 1965. Through his words, the history of Korean literature was finally able to integrate Korea with the shadowy aspects of its society, a result of the developmental dictatorship in the 1970s.

The dwarf in this book is a physically handicapped man, 117 centimeters tall (about 4 feet), and weighing 32

kilograms (about 70 pounds). He is not just handicapped, however. His family, consisting of his wife and three children, represents the working class of Korean society in the 1970s, who at the time, were oppressed and marginalized in the structure of production, consumption, and distribution. In contrast to this group was the giant, a group of financial conglomerates represented by the Eungang Group and the capitalists with whom they work. Other groups do exist, such as the lower middle class and conscientious intellectuals, represented by Sin-ae and Ji-seop. However, the collection more acutely focuses mostly on the conflict between laborers and capitalists, and the haves and the have-nots. They exist in different worlds, living lives that can never be reconciled. They exploit, and are exploited, which is the method of their conflicting existence. Would reconciliation and coexistence of the two groups ever be possible? This is the very theme of A Dwarf Launches a Little Ball. The realization of love, based on freedom and equality, is the link joining the short stories in the collection.

The series of short sentences, referred to as staccato sentences, characteristic of the author, is the greatest contributing factor in transforming this distinct social consciousness into a unique aesthetic. Cho opened up a new history in the form of Korean novels by renouncing the standard of realism, experimenting with sentences, and by being bold enough to draw a fantasy-based reality based on fables into the narration of his novels. He brought about a turning point in the history of Korean novels, which allowed for the yoking of realism and anti-realism, and the unity of social and aesthetic aspects in literature.

As long as the questions proposed by A Dwarf Launches a Little Ball remain current, its meaning will not be diminished.

And therein lies the power that enabled this book, first printed in 1978, like The Square by Choi In-hoon, to go through over 240 printings up to the present.

By Shin Soojeong

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 51

REVIEWS Nonfiction

REVIEWS Nonfiction

You Say Tomato...

EBS Documentary: The East and the West EBS The East and the West production team & Kim Myungjin, Wisdomhouse Publishing Co., Ltd., 2008, 240p ISBN 978-89-5913-322-2 03300

A popular, controversial Korean documentary has been published as a book.

The book examines the differences between Eastern and Western cultures through experiments and surveys conducted on over 200 participants.

This book contains materials from an EBS (a Korean TV station) documentary series of the same title. The producers of the series travelled around various countries including Korea, the United States, Canada, and Japan, interviewing 20 experts, and conducting surveys and tests on over 200 individuals from these countries. A great deal of their material was contributed by the East-West Comparative Culture and Psychology researchers from the University of Michigan, the University of Illinois, and Stanford University. The documentary series gained popularity among viewers, and is now available at local bookstores.

According to this book, even when offering someone more tea, Westerners and Easterners take different approaches. In the East, one asks a verb-centered question, “drink more?” while in the

West, one says, “more tea?” – a nouncentered question. The verb “to drink” describes the relationship between the tea and the person. In the East, people tend to use a great deal of verb-centered expressions because thoughts are built around the relationship between things.

On the other hand, Westerners believe that “person” and “tea” are individual entities, and therefore express the question using the noun.

When shown a picture of a screaming man and asked why the man is screaming, Easterners and Westerners answer differently. First, the Easterner says, “The atmosphere is eerie. It looks like the two people behind him have done something to him.” The Westerner says, “The person is in a state of panic.

He’s feeling fear deep inside him. He seems mentally unstable.” Easterners

tended to relate the state of the person to the surrounding atmosphere and situation whereas the Westerners tended to find explanations in the person’s emotional and psychological state. In other words, Easterners look at the environment and context for clues that lead to a p e r s o n’s e m o t i o n a l s t a t e , w h i l e Westerners search inside the person for answers.

The experiment on Western individualism and Eastern group mentality shows interesting results. Subjects from the East and West were given five pens – one white and four blue – to choose from. Easterners had a tendency to choose blue while Westerners tended to choose white. In the second round of pen experiments, the subjects were once again given five pens – one blue and four white – to choose from. The Easterners generally chose white while the Westerners chose blue. The experiment spoke to the Westerners’ general desire to be distinct from others, and to make a decision that may be considered unusual.

Eastern and Western societies expect opposites from each other. While humility is a virtue in the East, the West admires the confident. The word assertive is meant to be a positive word in the Western context, but it can be perceived as negative in the East. An assertive character in the Western context is someone trustworthy who has great selfconfidence whereas an Easterner may view such a person as rude and self-centered. The book reveals differences between the East and West through such interesting experiments, which will help readers gain a better understanding of “the other.”

By Pyo Jeonghun

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 53

REVIEWS Nonfiction

The View from Above Korea from Above Lee Eo-ryung and John M. Frankl; Photographer: Yann Arthus-Bertrand Saemulgyul, 2008, 336p ISBN 978-89-5559-366-5 03980

54

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

The title speaks for itself. The book Korea from Above consists of aerial pictures of Korea taken by the French aerial photograph specialist Yann ArthusBertrand, to be more precise. The pictures are accompanied by essays. ArthusBertrand has been working since 1995 on a UNESCO supported project to take aerial pictures of the world, and the product, The Earth from Above, was translated into 20 languages and became an international bestseller.

It is not easy to look at Korea from above. It is a well-known fact that Korea is the last remaining divided nation in the world, and there are many no-flight zones. The Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), which serves as the border between North and South Korea, is a no-flight zone for security reasons, and photography is prohibited in the area. Aerial photography of Seoul is also prohibited for reasons of national security. However, the Korean officials were willing to make an exception for Arthus-Bertrand, weighing the great significance of his project. This book is the result of five years of difficult work and preparation.

The DMZ, where decades of military tension have created an astonishing nature reserve; Panmunjeom, photographed for the very first time since the end of the Korean War; Bulguksa, the iconic traditional Korean temple;

Hyundai Shipyard, one of the largest shipbuilding yards in the world; Soongryemun, one of the greatest specimens of Korean traditional architecture, since destroyed by fire; and the south coast, a breathtaking co-habitation between natural and manmade landscapes are some of the sights Arthus-Bertrand captured with his masterful gaze.

The essays that complement the photographs add to their luster. In the following passage, Yi Oe-ryeong, one of the greatest Korean intellectuals, hails Arthus-Bertrand’s work: “The ocean where the poor fishermen cast their nets for a living, the mountain plots where farmers sow their seeds, the geometric lines of man-made structures that harnessed the primal ocean to create fish farms, and even the exposed greenhouses, contain souls in these photographs…The pages smell of humans, not ink. I take in whiffs of seaweed and grass and earth on these pages. I feel the bond between man and nature. I fly over the lands with ArthusBertrand at the distance closest to the sky and the earth.”

By Pyo Jeonghun

REVIEWS Nonfiction

Young Idealists Meet Activists Worldwide Dreaming of a Ground of Life Indigo Youth Book Fair Project Team, Kungree Press 2008, 419p, ISBN 978-89-5820-132-8 03300

Dreaming of a Ground of Life, not “Dreaming Dreams.”

The authors named each of the six chapters (one for each continent) using the six book categories used at the Indigo Bookstore where they work: Literature (A Word that Makes Your Heart Race: Dream - Europe/France), Philosophy (Another World: Book - the United States, North America/Sweden), History/Society (The Gathering of True People: Network - Asia/Nepal), Arts (The Root of All Things: Mankind Colombia, South America), Education (The Lives of Creative Activists: Hope the Republic of South Africa, Africa), and Ecosystem/Environment (Beautiful and Precious: Life - Australia, Oceania).

This book is a rocket of youth aimed at the world. Fill the rocket with adventurous spirit and love for the sake of our bright souls!

By Huh Byungdoo

All readers dream of meeting and conversing with their favorite authors. This book is the record of those dreams that came true. As the subtitle of the book – Young Idealists’ Meeting with Creative Activists Worldwide – indicates, this book is a travelogue of Busan Indigo Bookstore’s teenagers and young adults who spent about a year traveling six continents and meeting the authors they’ve always wanted to meet.

They met authors such as Olivier Fruchaud, Valérie Zenatti, Mathieu Le Roux, Brian Palmer, Santosh Shah, Álvaro Restrepo Hernández, Mark Horner and Peter Singer. These might all be unfamiliar names to many, save the renowned bioethicist Peter Singer.

The authors they met are all similar in that they are dedicated to living with compassion for the sufferings of others and cherish solidarity in the face of injustice. As those who strive to uphold the humane values they believe in, these authors work to make their dreams a re a l i t y. T h e b o o k i s t h u s t i t l e d ,

Comprehensive K-pop Archaeology of Korean Pop 1, 2 Shin Hyeon-jun et al. Hangilart, 2007, 367p ISBN 978-89-88360-97-2 03810

even finding their way into the US market. Up until the 1980s, the Korean pop market had been dominated by American pop music, but there came a major change in the situation from the 1990s. What has happened in its history, for K-pop to grow like this? The book is exactly the answer to such a question.

What is characteristic of the book is its high documentary value. It contains a variety of visuals reaching over 800 shots and 41 interviews out of the data collected from 70 or so musicians; hence it carries value as historical material that vividly attests to the history of K-pop. There has been nothing like this so far. Yet, that is not to say that the book functions merely as historical data.

It also offers a solid description of the historical and social background and conditions that K-pop was faced with.

In short, the book in of itself is a social history of K-pop as well.

K-pop has developed amid conflicts between the traditional and the contemporary; Asian culture and Western culture; and the older generation and the young generation. As well, the repressive and authoritative political situation of the 1960s and the 1970s worked as shackles upon popular music and musicians. (The book is comprised of two volumes, each covering the 1960s and the 1970s respectively.) Through the book, readers come to understand how K-pop has overcome such conflicts and repression and evolved into music with a style of its own.

By Pyo Jeonghun

Korean popular music, aka K-pop, has recently been enjoying a surge of popularity in many Asian countries. It may seem a little premature to call it a success as yet, but some of the artists are

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 55

REVIEWS Culture

A New and Strange Encounter with the City Traveller: Tokyo Kim Young-ha, Artbooks Publishing Corp., 2008 304p, ISBN 978-89-6196-013-7 04800

lis, Tokyo, through the bodily senses.

The result is pictures that depict daily scenes of Tokyo made sometimes anew and strange, and at other times, tranquil. His essay accompanying the photos penetrates precisely into the essence of Tokyo.

Kim writes: “If Adam Smith’s ‘invisible hand’ refers to the mechanism of the market, the ‘invisible hand’ of Tokyo can be explained as the existence that finely tunes the distance between man and man; man and object; and object and object. In Tokyo, one gets the impression that everything is exquisitely set and carefully controlled. It seems that everything needed is in its place and everything moves precisely as if planets revolve in orbit.”

By Pyo Jeonghun

Publication Debut

Kim Young-ha is a novelist who has drawn both public and critical acclaim in Korea. Some of his works have been translated and published into French, German, Dutch, and other languages.

Also, the English version of some of his works is already scheduled for publication. Traveller: Tokyo is one volume of Kim’s ongoing project, “One City for One Camera.” The project focuses on his travels to eight cities around the world using a different camera in each city to capture different urban landscapes. In this volume, the photographs are complemented with a short story (which is set in each city) and an essay written by Kim. Kim Young-ha took shots of the Tokyo landscape with a Rollei 35. On this camera known to be difficult to use, he commented, “It returns the functions which our human bodies yielded to the machine back to our bodies.” With the camera, he wanted to face the metropo56

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

Showcasing Korea’s New Writing New Writing from Korea Korea Literature Translation Institute, October 2008 374p, ISSN 2005-3258

New Writing from Korea, a serial publication in English that reflects the most recent trends in contemporary Korean literature, was launched in October 2008.

This collection is the result of over a year of open discussion and massive effort on the part of the selection committee and editing committee, made up of critics, translators, and academics.

This first issue of 374 pages contains a total of 10 short stories and 41 poems.

Five of the short stories form a special feature section with the theme “Crossing Borders.”

The short stories printed include stories selected as works of merit in 2006, such as “Discovery of Solitude” (Eun Hee-kyung), “Raising the Swallow” (Yoon Dae-nyeong), “Light of Spring” (Jeong Ji-a), “The Glass Shield” (Kim Junghyuk), and “Unfinished Words” (Yoon Sung-hee), while the special theme section features “Brown Tears” (Kang Youngsook), “Sea and Butterfly” (Kim In-sook), “Elephant ”(Kim Jae-young), “The Korean Soldier ”(Jeon Sung-tae), and “Under the Fig Tree” (Jung Mi-kyung). In the case of the poems, five anthologies of poetry published in 2006 were scrutinized, and 14 poems were selected from these anthologies. A further 27 selections were chosen from poems published individually during 2006.

Future issues of New Writing from Korea will continue to print works that represent literary output over one publishing year (covering 2007 in the 2009 issue, and so on), and as well as provide a special feature section on the latest major issues in Korean society and Korean literature.

Until now there has been no serial publication in English that systematically introduces the newest trends and works of Korean literature to an overseas audience, and it is anticipated that New Writing from Korea will be a vital medium for fulfilling this role in the future.

Publishing companies and agencies interested in subscribing to New Writing from Korea are invited to contact us by email at the following address: mykim@ klti.or.kr

STEADY SELLERS

A Must-read for Literature Buffs The History of Korean Literature Kim Yoon-sik and Kim Hyun, Minumsa, 1996, 478p ISBN 978-89-374-1111-3

The History of Korean Literature, first published in 1973, has been the mustread title for those who study Korean literary history. Kim Yoon-sik (1936~) is a renowned scholar who has produced a massive body of work on the modern history of Korean literature, while Kim Hyun (1942-1990), a French literature expert, was a leading literary critic.

When the book was first published, it sent a shock wave throughout the country’s academic circles because the authors set the 18th century as the key milestone from which Korea’s modern literature began.

Previously, Korea’s modern literature was believed to have started in the early late 19th century or 20th century, but the authors of this groundbreaking book set the clock backwards by more than a century. Why? Before considering this important question, one should take into account that the authors’ conclusions were a result of a great deal of sociological research for their book. They apparently tried to identify the true relationships between literature and society before describing the literary trends in society.

In the 18th century of the Joseon Dynasty, the merchants and independent craftsmen emerged as a force that kick-started a nascent marketplace economy, and even farmers began to engage in large-scale cooperative management. In a departure from the upper class-oriented culture, the mid-level class entered the cultural mainstream.

All of this brought confusion to Joseon’s class system. In literature, major works in traditional genres were compiled while new literary styles and writing methods began to appear. The book’s authors view that the late Joseon period witnessed a significant change in which writers sought to identify the society’s longstanding problems with new voices,

marking the beginning of modern Korean literature.

It was widely accepted that modernity in Korea came directly from the Western world. But the authors oppose such a view; instead, they persuasively argue that modernity was germinating up within the existing traditional Ko-

rean society. This implies that there is a link between pre-modern and modern Korean literature. As expected, the authors’ bold move sparked huge disputes not only in literary history but also in other academic fields.

The book also drew keen public interest by the time it hit the shelves because it covered leftist writers. In the 1970s, Korea was gripped by anticommunism, and the state suppressed any academic discussion about leftist ideologies or figures. Despite the touchy political situation, the authors demonstrated a remarkable level of academic candor and courage by including writers who leaned toward leftist ideologies.

By Pyo Jeonghun

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 57

REVIEWS History

REVIEWS History

What is Truth?

The Korean War Park Tae-gyun, Cumlibro, 2007, 407p ISBN 978-89-91221-10-9 03900

Why did the Korean War break out?

Was the division of the peninsula really unavoidable?

Why is it still stuck in a “cease-fire?”

Having seized global leadership following World War II, the first war in which the United States got a taste of defeat after sending in large numbers of troops was not Vietnam as many assume, but in fact Korea. It was the only war in UN history in which multinational allied forces were sent into actual combat under the banner of the UN. It was the first large-scale international conflict in which U.S. troops directly faced Chinese troops, the first stage of full-scale entry into the Cold War, and the starting point of the restructuring of East Asia under U.S. command maintained to this day. Nevertheless, the Korean War has been easily erased from the minds of Americans and westerners.

After millions were killed or injured and the peninsula was laid to waste, what was the truth of the Korean War, which concluded with adherence once again to division? We have yet to hear a clear answer.

Park Tae-gyun, a Seoul National University Graduate School of International Studies professor, poses this question again in his book, The Korean War. He asks why the Korean War broke out, whether division of the peninsula was really unavoidable, why it began on June 25, 1950, why the war continued for two years past the start of cease-fire negotiations, and why it is still stuck in a “cease-fire” situation without an ending.

The person who shed new light on this forgotten war was Bruce Cumings, author of The Origins of the Korean War 1, 2. Park uses Cumings’ work as a starting point for his own study of the Korean War, but he points out that Cumings’ method harbors a “large pitfall.” Though

it is clear that Cumings develops his research by analyzing the Korean War in terms of social structure and international politics, his world systems theory perspective views world history in terms of central and peripheral nations, and places undue analytical emphasis on the U.S. by focusing on how peripheral nations changed based on the policies of central nations. As a result, the dynamic strength of peripheral nations, that is, the internal dynamism or independent response of Korean society, has been overlooked or underestimated.

For example, Cumings’ view is correct in that the war would not have begun if foreign powers (i.e. the U.S.) had not divided the peninsula; however, Park’s theory is that it was merely a “necessary condition,” and the reason the Korean War developed as it did was be-

cause it possessed “sufficient conditions,” i.e. the calculations and maneuvers of internal powers in Korea that sought to acquire political gains by colluding with foreign powers. He approaches the issues from the very realistic and practical point of view that the Korean War still definitively controls our lives and is becoming the center of political issues in East Asia, and that if we don’t properly understand and deal with the problem, the tragedy will not end. He does not, however, provide any answers. Instead, by providing an opportunity to more broadly and more deeply examine the Korean War and our lives that are still tied up in the war, he brings Koreans one step closer to the truth.

By Han Sung-dong

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 59

REVIEWS History

Full of Pain and Sorrow The Age of Maritime Expansion Jou Kyung-chul, Seoul National University Press, 2008 581p, ISBN 978-89-521-0867-8 93920

The dominance of Europe vis-a-vis Asia was established in the latter half of the 19th century. Though it is true that modernity was led by Europe, it is a mistake to view all of world history prior to modernity through a modern European lens.

The formation of the modern world cannot be imagined without Columbus’ “discovery of the new world” in 1492.

The transformation into a European-led pan-global modernity was achieved not over land but on the seas. However, that entailed an untold amount of violence and tragedy. Compressed within the phrase “discovery of the new world” is the ruthlessly violent worldview of a white Euro-centrism, which reordered the world in its own interests and trampled on the environment and countless human civilizations, as well as the bloody history accumulated behind it.

For indigenous peoples who are thought to have numbered between 50 million to 1 billion people, the islands in the Caribbean where Columbus arrived, and the continent of America that he later discovered, were neither a new world nor a new discovery.

Seoul National University professor Jou Kyung-chul’s The Age of Maritime Expansion is a reinterpretation of modern history, one which completely dismantles and reassembles the entire structure of the world and human consciousness from the perspective of the 60

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

Annales School, encompassing not only people and products but livestock, crops, and even germs from the viewpoint of the expansion of the maritime world. Professor Jou received his PhD in history from the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales (School for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences; EHESS) in Paris, where the Annales School of historiography holds sway.

After Columbus’ voyage, about ten million Africans were forcibly sent into slavery, and countless numbers died in the process. American Indians faced extinction, Asia became impoverished, and thousands of local cultures, tribes, and languages disappeared.

The Age of Maritime Expansion tracks and synthesizes this pain and sorrow-filled process, both micro and macroscopically. However, Professor Jou states that the establishment of European dominance with regard to Asia only happened in the late 19th century. He writes, though it is true that modernization was led by Europe, it would be a mistake to view all of world history prior to modernity through the lens of modern Europe. He adds that

history after the modern period, as well, cannot be understood through the mythical Eurocentric worldview that regards non-European history as merely a passive, dependent object.

Though the trigger for globalization was Western civilization and the West clearly held world power during the Age of Imperialism, it does not mean that the West alone created the world. Jou writes, “The entire world may seem to have been dragged into a single market economy and the system of imperialist domination spread without end, but in truth, depending on each region’s culture, that violent trend was sometimes blocked, sometimes modified, and sometimes voluntarily assimilated. We must remember that the Age of Maritime Expansion was an era of worldwide violence that brought about terrible destruction, but at the same time, it produced creative countermoves.”

In history, nothing is fixed. Our future is what we make of it.

By Han Sung-dong

REVIEWS Science

Particle Physics Made Palatable Quest for the God Particle Lee Jong-phil, Mati, 2008, 288p ISBN 978-89-920532-0-4

A Korean physicist introduces what particle physics is in a vigorous fashion at a time when all eyes are placed on the activation of LHC (Large Hadron Collider), one of the most important and large-scale scientific experiments of modern time.

Dr. Lee Jong-phil, research fellow who works on particle physics at KIAS (Korea Institute for Advanced Studies), gives vivid descriptions about the principles and mechanisms that govern the fast-evolving field. One notable advantage of the book is that even though Lee targets ordinary readers, he does not fall into the trap of giving oversimplified explanations. Instead, Lee provides sufficient detail in a simple, understandable way, as if having a conversation with the reader.

For lay people, particle physics comes off as an outlandish academic subject. Particle physics studies the ultra-microscope world, which is smaller than the atomic nuclei. Quantum mechanics and specialty relativity dominate the world of particle physics, far from the ordinary world with which we are familiar. To understand particle physics, unfortunately, readers should arm themselves with a basic knowledge of both quantum mechanics and special relativity; Lee duly devotes plenty of pages to explaining the two famous yet abstruse academic theories. The author, widely refusing to go into detail with

mind-boggling mathematical formulas, instead offers a comprehensive overview about the two dominating theories while incorporating the latest research topics. There are many science books that attempt to explain Einstein’s theory of relativity but few offer a helpful context for lay people. Lee pulls off a combination of communicating both theory and research results ranging from relativistic effects in a global positioning system, Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe’s dark energy, to the production of mini black holes at the

LHC. Following the overview of the related theories is a description of the standard model in particle physics, illustrating the progress modern physics has made in the past century. The book’s title is inspired by L. Lederman’s The God Particle, which deals with the LHC experiment’s crucial objective concerning “Higgs boson.”

By Lee, Kang Young

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 61

REVIEWS Practical

REVIEWS Practical

A Simple Meal of Hope Beautiful Meals at Mountain Temples Lee Gyeong-ae, Jogye Order Publishing, 2008, 227p ISBN 978-89-86821-91-8 03800

The story of temple meals made of natural, fresh ingredients

If there’s a universal language for mankind in the 21st century, it might be Coca-Cola, or McDonald’s. Coca-Cola is everywhere, from Greenland, where people enjoy seal stew, to Cuba, where food is rationed. As the world has grown smaller and smaller, it is no longer difficult to find food from all over the world right in the middle of Seoul. One can enjoy Japanese sushi, Thai fried rice noodles, and Italian gnocchi, all in one night.

Is it a blessing, indeed, that there is now an abundance of food, and globalization of cuisine? With the solution to the problem of hunger, a problem mankind had been afflicted with for a long time, come the problems of obesity, diseases, and harmful food. Eating well refers to a change in dietary habits, from one centered around grains and vegetables, to another centered around meat.

People, once partakers of food that was seasonal, have become used to processed food and junk food. In the end, an abundant and diversified meal has become a table of death, not of hope, for mankind.

Here is a simple meal, a far cry from an abundant meal. It is called Beautiful Meals at Mountain Temples. This is a

book about the meals of Buddhist temples in Korea, with food made from fresh, clean ingredients from the nearby natural surroundings, prepared simply and sparsely, and to be eaten slowly, with gratitude.

In temples, the process of preparing and eating food is called an offering, which means to offer food with a respectful heart. The kitchen is called the offering place, and the priests preparing the food are called offering priests. Whenever they prepare a meal, they recite a prayer of offering.

Lee writes: “Even a single drop of water carries the grace of heaven and earth, and a single grain of rice carries the hard work of people. With this food, we will strengthen our bodies, set our minds and bodies straight, and live pure lives. May all those who have worked hard be filled with the pleasures of the law, by making seonjeongsammae (a method of Buddhist meditation, through which the mind is concentrated on a single object) their source of life.”

The Buddhist concept of daseonilyeo states that there is no difference between drinking tea and doing good.

Offering is also a means of aesthetic practice. For this reason, those in train-

ing get up at three in the morning, prepare their offerings with care so that not even a single, tiny grain is washed away, and finish their food so that there is no need for washing up.

Temple offerings are prepared as simply as possible, with no meat. This is done in order to take in the goodness of the ingredients as wholly as possible. In addition, only natural ingredients grown in soil and in season, are used. This is done in order to set the table according to the laws of nature. Consequently, no matter which temple one goes to, the table will be set simply, with foods such as stews with radishes and tofu, wild greens and kimchi, peppers, and so on.

As a Buddhist nun at the Gaesim Temple in Seosan said, “A month or two of eating temple food will heal most stomach troubles.” Such simple meals are good for both the mind and the body. In the end, a table of simplicity is a table of hope.

By Han Mi-hwa

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 63

REVIEWS Graphic Novels

Unsteady Lives of the Indigent Indigenous The Native Korean Choi Kyuseok, Changbi Publishers, Inc., 2008, 163p ISBN 978-89-364-7145-3 07810

On the way home from school, a boy runs into his father who works at a construction site. The father runs over to his youngest son as soon as he sees him on the street and buys him soondae, a kind of sausage so big that his cheeks look like they are about to explode. The same father comes home drunk later that night and swings a long hay cutter at the boy’s mother. He still says such things as, “We need wars every now and then so the shits can die and the world will become clean again.”

The graphic novelist Choi Kyuseok, whose works A Sad Homage to the Dinosaur, Dooly and The Marsh Ecology Report put him in the spotlight, narrates an autobiographical story that comes from interviewing his family. The youngest of six children, the author draws a vivid picture of the common poor, such as his family and neighbors, who quietly suffered through contemporary history.

The tales of his sister who quit school for her family and started working in a factory when she was seventeen, the trials of his brother who struggled hard and failed to escape from poverty, the strength of his mother who made breakfast every day for 50 years without fail, and the racket his father often made when he came home drunk, come together to create a picture unlike the typical, peaceful middle-class home that only exists in soap operas. This is the story of people who endured the pain of a nation divided by war as well as the throes of rapid industrialization that rendered them rootless for years. The place where they had raised their children has disappeared without a trace, 64

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

and the things that were once a part of their everyday lives are now archived and displayed in museums. The author refers to this breed as the “indigenous” of Korea.

The book does not illustrate the characters as larger-than-life or in a beautiful light. The author transfers his father’s conservative opinions and his mother’s unreasonable domestic martyrdom (a tearful “It’s all my fault” at the end of every sentence) onto the page without alteration. Despite the bluntly frank depiction, the author continues his efforts to understand and communicate. The author sometimes places reallife characters in fictional settings to emphasize the uniqueness of their lives.

For example, the irony of an uneducated, war generation is revealed when his mother, an old lady who has trouble learning new words, glibly incorporates words like “B-29” into everyday conver-

sations.

Choi brings us a slice of life from the past to remind us of the honesty and diligence upheld through poverty, and the prototype of the Korean spirit shared among Koreans before modernization. The book also tells us stories that contemporary Korean society is going through great lengths to ignore.

He draws attention to middle-aged woman divers crossing the neatly paved expressway to get to the sea, people who plant vegetables in tiny patches of land all over cities, and the elderly at a traditional culture event who demonstrate how to plant wheat seedlings by pushing fake seedlings made of plastic into a fake lawn. Borrowing the author’s words, stories are “like pebbles embedded deep within their hearts, so full of sorrow they must come out.”

By Kim Jinwoo

REVIEWS Graphic Novels general tendency to criticize those with different tastes in the The Devil Wears Pra d a s e g m e n t . In t h e My Su p e r Ex-Girlfriend part, he applauds the film for finally mocking the unvarying outfits and heroism of superheroes, and in Pride and Prejudice, he does a comparative analysis of the performances of Mr. Darcy in different versions of the film.

The sharp-tongued witticism and unconventional approach to discussing each film leaves the readers chuckling throughout the book. Already a celebrity among book illustrators, the author’s excellent sense of color and layout often has the drawings jumping out from the frames. His less-than-pretty caricatures of famous directors and actors such as Woody Allen and Peter Jackson are well worth a trip to the bookstore.

By Kim Jinwoo

A Wisecracking, Canine Film Critic Old Dog's Movie Notes Jong Ooyol, Gobooky Books, 2008, 279p ISBN 978-89-92479-27-1 07680

Olddog is an introverted, white puppy that philosophizes over the little details in life with witty observations.

Representative of the author’s persona, the cute puppy became a favorite among netizens who followed the comic strip on a blog.

In Old Dog’s Movie Notes, Olddog takes a stab at analyzing 64 films, each in a different, new light. King Kong, Mission Impossible, Pride and Prejudice, Brokeback Mountain, The Devil Wears Prada, and Sideways are some examples of films Olddog serves up with a dash of wit. The author, who happens to be a film buff, takes the readers along for a fun ride through the 64 movies, discussing each film as a work of art, as well as the directors, actors, and various characters of Hollywood blockbusters and independent films.

In discussing the Woody Allen film Match Point, he notes that one must come to terms with the fact that life is all about luck, and finds fault with the

The Obsessive, Insecure Working Girl

and Luna Park – Juvenile Working Girl.

The book is an honest portrayal of a twenty-something working girl who hangs onto her dreams and joys despite the busy life she is pulled into at her company. Luna is your typical office drone who can’t sleep at night because there are so many things she’d rather do, then curses the world in the morning after having stayed up to ungodly hours.

Like all office workers, she goes through dramatic mood swings over the 48hour-weekend period – singing for joy on Friday night, and muttering profanities on Sunday night.

Luna always wishes that she were more nonchalant and strong, but is always careful not to hurt and be hurt.

She wants to correct the co-worker who confidently and incorrectly named the TV show that Brad Pitt was in and tell him she is right, but agonizes over the possibility that she will come off as petty.

The book captures in detail the fleeting thoughts and experiences in life that we most often overlook, and reads like a diary without being prone to exaggerations and devoid of egotism. The portrait of an insecure working girl who wanders in search of meaningful things and ponders people and the world in an effort to stop her life from turning into a meaningless routine, speaks to many thirty-something as well as twentysomething working women.

By Kim Jinwoo

Luna Park – Juvenile Working Girl Hong In-hye, anibooks, 2008, 239p ISBN 978-89-5919-216-8 07810

If the blanket turns upside-down in the middle of the night, Luna can’t have a good night’s sleep unless she turns it right side-up. This is one of twentysomething ad copywriter Luna’s 1,728 peeves. Unable to tolerate the idea of someone disliking her, Luna wouldn’t be able to stop thinking about a hypothetical “Alexandra in Rio de Janeiro” if Alexandra were to harbor unfavorable opinions of Luna.

Luna Park is a self-proclaimed “insecure working girl,” whose work and life unfolds through the delectable and witty illustrations and narratives in Luna Park

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 65

REVIEWS Nonfiction

Trusting Nature Healing Garden Kim Ju-deok, Da Vinci, Inc., 2008, 221p ISBN 978-89-89348-98-6 14590

nights until she noticed a glimmer of hope. She sold her house in the city and moved to the countryside, following the path guided by nature. Rocky fields, then, changed into a fertile ground of fruits and vegetables; her innermost wounds transformed into flowers of all shades. Music from the plants and flowers began to flow into her. Healthy food provided by nature restored her health.

Friends and guests started dropping by.

The author says that gardening goes beyond a simple encounter with the earth and plants. It involves humbling oneself and paying due respect. Human life is, after all, part of the cycle of nature. Kim’s book illustrates the universal principle that nature strengthens humans, not the other way around.

By Kim Jinwoo

With a house she built and calls “Cheongjaeseolheon” at the foothills of Ha l l a s a n ( m o u n t a i n ) o n Je j u - d o (island), author Kim Ju-deok captures the colors of the four seasons in vivid photographs and musings. Her essays ponder a wide range of flowers including sedums, orange daylilies, hosta longipes, king sago palms, lilies, asters, and camellia trees. But rather than venturing out to offer practical tips on housing and gardening she focuses on the idea that a garden, and by extension, nature, brings about a much-needed process of healing.

The author cultivates and illustrates the truthful values in living together with nature, a lesson she has learned through her mind and through her body. In a serene and meditative style, she details how her flowers, the trees, and the earth have helped her through difficult times when everything else failed to provide solace and comfort.

A peaceful period in her life ended abruptly when her husband passed away. She suffered unbearable days and 66

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

The Majority, the Individual, and Your Power Visible Hands Kim Yong-sub and Jeon Eun-kyung Gimm-Young Publishers, Inc., 2008, 370p ISBN 978-89-349-2873-7 03320

In 2006, a popular American weekly newsmagazine selected “YOU” as the Person of the Year, stressing that ordinary people are spearheading the digital revolution. In politics, culture, society, and the economy, a rapid power shift is taking place. The silent majority of formerly obscure individuals, is taking on a central role and pushing the traditional elite groups to the sidelines.

Indeed, individual consumers are flexing their muscles on the Internet, especially concerning corporate management and marketing. For instance, an online review community pushed a manufacturer to resume the production of a long-forgotten product by selecting it as their favorite model, a showcase of

the consumer’s influence that relies on the powerful word-of-mouth effect of the Internet.

As the title clearly implies, consumers are riding a wave of evolution. Not long ago, consumers bought products without asking questions. Now, they are becoming ever more powerful and influential, often neutralizing and upending corporate marketing activities.

Corporate players who fail to pick up on the fast-paced changes in consumer sentiment are duly pushed out of the market; nimble manufacturers that track and reflect consumer needs are rewarded with bigger and more lucrative opportunities.

The co-authors, experts on media trends, argue that the digital media revolution is bolstering the growth of the socalled Online Generation. Individuals, once powerless against corporate giants, are joining forces with each other to emerge as a collective power that can no longer be ignored. Market trends, accordingly, are experiencing a whirlwind of changes. The book avoids a traditional analysis of corporate management and marketing in favor of providing readers a vast number of case studies and sociocultural backgrounds. To that end, it introduces 12 key socio-cultural codes designed to unlock such transformative trends that involve online-oriented consumer behavior, the emergence of luxury goods marketing, the tricky mechanism of pricing, the fair trade movement, and design-oriented digital products.

By Kim Jinwoo

STEADY SELLERS

An Inspiring Travelogue to Unknown Places Daughter of the Wind Travels Around the World Han Bi-ya, Prunsoop Publishing Co., Ltd., 2007, 379p ISBN 978-89-7184-746-7

“Travel is not about going and seeing something, but about encountering my different identities in the process. Many things happen in the course of travel but the incidents get incorporated into my experiences, shaping who I am.” Han Bi-ya, a Korean woman, packed up and resigned from her company in 1993 in order to travel the world. Since her

early childhood, she dreamed of walking around the world. The first itinerary she took covered Africa, the Middle East, and Central Asia. “Almost every day, I slept in a new place, met new people, and experienced something new on the road – the life of a traveler. I don’t know why, but I really enjoy this uncertainty and strangeness. When faced with the

world of the unknown, I feel more curious and willing to confront challenges instead of fearing something new,” she says.

Han Bi-ya published her first travelogue in 1996, which subsequently became an instant hit in Korea. She emerged overnight as a star. Afterwards, she started a job at an international relief organization, World Vision, while working as a writer and essayist. What distinguished her travelogue from other titles is her talent in mingling with local people. She joined traditional family functions and willingly enjoyed festivals with strangers she met for the first time. To no surprise, this book has left a strong impression on Korean readers. Even until the mid-1990s, a trip to a remote location was an unfamiliar and strange experience for Koreans. Socializing with local people on the road was similarly unheard of among Koreans. In addition, most Korean travelers automatically associated foreign travel with developed countries such as Europe, Japan, and the United States. In contrast, Han Biya took a dramatically different route, a shocking experience that inspired many Korean readers to rethink the meaning of travel itself.

But the fact that Han Bi-ya’s travel stories were refreshingly new in style and method is not the whole story behind the book’s success as a steady seller. It was Han Bi-ya’s attitude on the road: respecting cultural traditions in areas where she traveled and following the rules of locals. This multicultural approach came off as truly refreshing for Korean readers. Another reason for the book’s popularity is Han Bi-ya’s honest and unadorned writing about what she felt. “When I was traveling in Africa, I realized how beautiful it is to lead a simple life. Africa has taught me an important lesson, a lesson about the possibility that I can live a rich and happy life with only the bare essentials,” she says. All told, Han Bi-ya offered a lesson to Korean people that there is a new way and attitude for meeting new people in other countries and navigating through the unknown world.

(The books were originally published by Kumtobooks from 1996 to 1998, and since then have been distributed by Prunsoop Co., Ltd.)

By Pyo Jeonghun

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 67

REVIEWS Children’s Books

68

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

REVIEWS Children’s Books

Without You I’m Nothing From Mouth to Butt Park Kyunghyo, BIR Publishing Co., Ltd., 2008, 36p ISBN 978-89-491-0158-3 77810

“What if there were no butt? In my family, in our society, and on earth, which are just like one organism, who are the mouths and who are the butts?”

Through the digestive system, this book demonstrates the relationship between food and fecal matter, and the remains of the food after digestion within our body. The way the author illustrates this journey is new and interesting. One day, the mouth brags about the great things it does for the body and asks the nose, eyes, ears, hands, and feet what each do.

Then, the rest of them start to brag about what they do in turn. In the nick of time, the butt passes gas and everyone frowns and gives the butt a hard time, saying all he does is make dirty waste. However, the mouth has a dream and starts to realize how tough it would be if the butt did not exist. Without the butt, gas and fecal matter would have no exit and would have to come out through the mouth. After waking from his dream, the mouth apologizes to the butt, saying, “I am sorry that I was mean to you. You are my best friend.”

The butt just smiles slightly.

This illustrated book reminded me of a well-known story about boasting.

The organs of a human body brag about what great work each of them do so they end up arguing. They stop functioning in order to prove how important their work is. Consequently, the story ends with the death of the human body.

This allegory’s lesson is that if the members of a group do not do their respective jobs, none of them can exist. What is different from the allegory and this book is that the latter is one-step ahead by explaining in easy detail what each organ does and helps readers realize that each organ is precious and important.

Even with an interesting story and clear message, it could have been difficult for the author to visually express

personified organs properly for an illustrated book. Also, this could have ended up being a book with uninteresting content for children. However, Park made use of exaggerated comic book styles and other various lettering styles to overcome such limitations. When the major characters such as the mouth, teeth, and tongue appear in the book, Park made the font style and illustrations consistent for each character. In this way, the readers are expected to pay more attention to the specific organs on each page. Also, with the variation of the size and slope of the letters, the readers will pay more attention to the letters themselves. Park believes that font styles and text layouts are not intended only to relay content but also to play an important visual role on each page.

According to Park, his inspiration for this book came from the question,

“What are the things in our body that are the most contrary to each other?”

When he thought, “What if there were no butt?” he thought it would make an interesting story. On completing the story, he asked himself again, “In my family, in our society, and on earth, which are just like one organism, who are the mouths and who are the butts?”

The author wishes this book to be read as a book to reflect on the problems of communities, not just as an illustrated book with information. By asking, “What if ?” the author requires readers to have both a scientific and social imagination.

By Eom Hyesuk

REVIEWS Children’s Books

Respect for the Tool Tools at Work Kwon Yoon-duck, Gilbut Children Publishing Co., Ltd., 2008, 40p ISBN 978-89-5582-083-6 77810

Tools at Work, an illustrated book, begins with a girl taking a walk with her cat in her village. A village map with winding paths shows the workplaces they will visit that day. They visit many places: a farm, a hospital, a shoemaking factory, a tailor’s shop, a Chinese restaurant, a carpenter’s shop, and an artist’s studio.

At each place, the author first illustrates many tools. Looking closely at the pictures, we can see that the author intentionally adapted the composition of the pictures to catch readers’ attention and to draw their curiosity to the tools.

Next, she shows people using these tools 70

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

in each workplace. By walking through the pictures, the readers learn naturally how the tools are used.

Kwon Yoon-duck became a famous children’s illustrator and author with Mahn-hee's House in 1995. She has a graduate degree in industrial design from Hongik University, and studied fine brushwork painting, known as gong bi hua, in China. She has devoted herself to expressing traditional Korean colors and Korean sentiments in her illustrated books. In Tools at Work, she showcases beautiful Asian colors by her mixed usage of half light and half deep colored

hues from natural dyes. She drew them based on the Goryeo Buddhist painting techniques by applying mostly orange, patina, and navy blue colors on both sides of silk fabrics. Brushing these colors several times on both sides of the silk creates colors that are richer and deeper than those painted with different colors.

Therefore, the colors of the tools are emphasized more than their details.

After visiting nearby workplaces and interviewing people about the shape, name, and usage of their tools, Kwon depicted beautiful images of people working with the various tools. The readers experience the use of these tools in each workplace through the girl who makes things and proudly brings them home.

Kwon not only shows the relationship between the tools and their functions but she also shows how the artisans’ spirit and sweat are melded into the tools. It is pleasing to see people cut cloth with scissors, plane wood, and move frying pans over an open flame.

After graduating from university, Kwon became active in a social movement through an art campaign. She planned to work on this illustrated book to show that all kinds of jobs are important, helping readers overcome prejudices about different kinds of jobs.

She believes that young readers should learn how important people are in each workplace so that they can realize that even everyday objects are created by an individual’s devotion. Currently, in collaboration with Korean, Chinese, and Japanese illustrated book writers and illustrators, she is working on a joint book project under the theme of peace.

By Kim Young-wook

REVIEWS Children’s Books

Learning Beyond the Book I’m a Naturally Poor Learner Eun Yi-jeong; Illustrator: Joung So-young Changbi Publishers, Inc., 2008, 183p ISBN 978-89-364-4244-6 73810

shield children from an ultimately competitive system where children with high test scores are given free reign, even to the point where rude behavior is permitted, while children with bad scores should hang their heads in shame.

Chani, who is not good at math but very good at raising rabbits, is always confident in front of his teacher and his friends. His friend, Jin-kyung, who is always the class’ top performing student, supports Chani’s dream to be a vet.

The homeroom teacher used to believe that children could learn only through books, through Chani and Jinkyung, he realizes in the end that there are other ways in which children learn.

Finally, the teacher does his best to find the potential in each student in his class.

This book challenges readers to think about the concepts of study and growth through a broader lens.

By Kim Ji-eun

Children’s small bodies gradually grow into adults. However, their minds grow much bigger than their bodies. They start to feel and learn new things and think in new ways, which is how they become adults. For their bodies to grow, they need to eat and sleep well, and exercise. What, then, do they need to do to help their minds grow? Generally, both parents and teachers try to solve this issue with one small word: study.

They believe that if children study hard and get high scores on tests, they become smart and their knowledge will increase. In Korea especially, where competition at school is severe, the words “You should be a wise person” are often replaced by “You should study hard.”

In this book however, the author explains that just studying hard does not help children learn. The author tries to

A Tangible Expression of Love

chology of attachment, discovered that newborn rhesus monkeys would cling to a snug cloth surrogate mother that was devoid of milk rather than to a mother made of wire that had plenty of food.

Inspired by the results of Harlow’s research that focused on physical touch as a key element of affection, the famous American pediatrician William Sears stressed the importance of physical contact in raising children. Young children need continual reaffirmation of their parents’ love, and hugging, petting or kissing one’s child is more effective in fostering a sense of security and feeling of happiness than just saying, “I love you.”

Kim Dongsoo majored in painting at university and then entered the world of illustrated books with her story, How I Caught a Cold. An outstanding illustrated book artist, she understands the extraordinary way that children think and the things that only children worry about, and conveys this in her clear and simple illustrations. Her watercolor reproductions are succinct and make excellent use of vivid primary colors.

The images radiate sweetness as the large mother animals, and the baby animals so tiny by comparison, kiss each other. Naturally, the key message of Kissing Mom is, “If you love, then kiss.”

By Kim Young-wook

Kissing Mom Kim Dongsoo, Borim Press, 2008, 24p ISBN 978-89-433-0721-9 77810

A board book the size of a grown-up’s hand, Kissing Mom is a picture book for infants based on the theme of kissing.

Starting with the monkeys on the cover, and including ducks on a pond, tortoises among pebbles, kangaroos on a grassy plain, and sloths in the branches of a tree, mothers and babies of 11 different animal species are depicted sharing a cozy kiss. The text for each picture consists of one of the affectionate pet names that mothers use when addressing their babies, followed by the simple refrain, “Kiss Mommy, my darling.”

Harry Harlow, an expert in the psy-

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 71

REVIEWS Children’s Books

The Joyful Work of Women A Story of Three Mothers Shin Hae-won, Sakyejul Publishing Ltd., 2008, 44p ISBN 978-89-5828-301-0 77810

read: for example, the mother, still dressed in her skirt and high heels, tries planting beans with a spoon. The grandmother then shows up on a bicycle, while the great grandmother appears on the scene riding a bull.

The narrator of the story is the family’s little girl, and so the story depicts a complete picture of the four generations. All the women work together good-naturedly, each freely expressing their own opinions. Although the story ends at the point where the women are finally making the soy malt, we can guess that some tofu and the bean flour rice cakes so longingly desired by the mother will finally be made from the leftover beans. The men folk – the little girl’s older brother, father, and grandfather – also appear in the story and work alongside the mothers. They are only assistants, however, and it is the three mothers who are the leading characters from beginning to end. In this respect, the book highlights the fact that mothers, i.e. women, are hard-working and productive. This may also be why “A Story of Three Mothers” was chosen as the title.

By Eom Hyesuk

A Story of Three Mothers is an informative picture book packed with charming, comic illustrations. A mother who has moved with her family from the city to the country longs to eat bean flour rice cakes, and so she decides to plant soybeans in the kitchen garden. She starts sowing the beans, but finds it backbreaking work so she asks her own mother to help. The two of them work together for a while, but it is still grueling work, and so the grandmother asks her own mother to help as well! Thus the three mothers work together tilling the soil, planting the beans, weeding the field, threshing the beans, and finally making blocks of malt.

By putting emphasis on providing useful information, it is all too easy for educational books to become rather dry.

However, A Story of Three Mothers shows us the tasks of plowing, sowing, weeding, threshing, and making malt. It introduces us to the tools and their usage with an exaggerated humor that makes this picture book great fun to 72

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

ated out of a fear or curiosity about death. It is difficult to understand shamanism, exorcism, or fortunetelling without looking at their relationship to death. How, then, does traditional Korean culture see death?

This picture book consists of three parts. In the beginning, a young boy asks his grandmother to tell a story. In the middle, she tells him a story about what happens after death. And at the end, we get to see the boy’s reaction to the story she told. The grandmother's story, the main part of the book, deals with what the next world looks like, the relation between this world and the next, and the issue of reincarnation. The grandmother uses a story about two tigers and tells her grandson how one's good and evil deeds are judged in the next world.

She also talks about the messenger who takes a dead soul to the afterworld, the ten kings who judge the dead soul for its deeds, and the different kinds of hell where sinners are punished. In the part where the good tiger is reborn as a human being, we can see how precious human beings have been treated. The modern images of the afterworld are also vivid and interesting. This book is a good indication that Korean traditional culture has been passed on from one generation to the next by word of mouth.

By Eom Hyesuk

Passing On the Afterlife The Tiger Taken Away by the Messenger of Death Kim Mi-hye; Illustrator: Choi Mi-ran Sakyejul Publishing Ltd., 2008, 48p ISBN 978-89-5828-278-5 77810

What is death like? What happens after a person dies? People everywhere in the world have contemplated death in all kinds of ways. Considering that all religions have different concepts about death, religion itself may have been cre-

STEADY SELLERS

Banned for 50 Years, the Timeless Lives of Children I’m Not Playing with You Hyun Duck, Changbi Publishers, Inc., 1995, 186p ISBN 978-89-364-4146-3

I’m Not Playing with You is a storybook full of the joyful daily lives of three to six-year-old children from the same village. Born when Korea was under Japan’s control, Hyun Duck overcame his family’s unfortunate situation and became a promising author in his late twenties.

In particular when he was caring for his children, he serialized their stories in a newspaper over the course of a year.

Those stories have now been published in this book. He used the same characters in subsequent stories. However, the behind story to this story is that Hyun was influenced by Korea’s sad modern history; readers were not able to have access to the subsequent stories for over 50 years.

When Korea was divided into the North and the South, Hyun Duck

went to the North. The publication of his works was prohibited by the South Korean government, along with works by other authors who chose to live in the North. The ideology of the Cold War had cast an icy magic on his stories.

When a scholar republished Hyun’s stories in 1995, like real magic, an amazing thing happened: contemporary children, who seek new things day after day, were captivated by the 50-year-old stories and their heroes. Though their clothes and hair are different from children of fifty years ago, their natures are the same.

We meet Noma, Young-i, Kidong, and Ttol-ttol in this book. Among them, Noma is our hero. Except for Kidong, all of the other children are from poor families, especially Noma, who lives with his mother as his father has left them. Still, Noma is very gallant, wise, and brave. Young-i is a good girl who takes care of her brother while her mother is working. Ttol-ttol is younger and smaller than others, but still amicable. Kidong, a child from a wealthy family, is rather greedy but tenderhearted.

He is afraid of being left out in the cold by his friends. Though they have very different family backgrounds and they sometimes argue, they like to play together. All of them are pure and honest.

If the children don’t have toys around, they play make-believe, by playing trains, climbing up and jumping off walls, mimicking cats or rabbits, or playing market. The characters in the book run around as if they are the wind, or sometimes listen carefully to the sound of crickets. And though they are very young, they try to console their friends when they are sad and take care of their friends’ wounds when they fall and get hurt.

Though they were only short episodes serialized in one small section of a newspaper, Hyun’s simple yet beautifully rhythmic sentences leave a lasting impression. On the one hand, the author Hyun Duck has been a victim of Korea’s dark modern history. On the other hand, he is a lucky author who has been loved by many readers. Since its publication in 1995, I’m Not Playing with You has become a bestseller and has sold more than 20,000 copies a year with continuous reprints.

By Park Suk-kyoung

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 73

MEET THE PUBLISHERS

left: Prunsoop staff right: The Design studio of Prunsoop

Prunsoop Publishing Green Forest of Bestsellers “There is almost everything in a forest and books.

We breathe in a forest filled with plants, grass, flowers, fruits, water, wind, and sunlight. And we fill up our minds through books.”

74

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

Prunsoop Publishing Co., Ltd., founded in 1988, has published some 500 titles so far, covering a wide range of categories including literature, essays, humanities, social science, business, practical issues, children, and youth. In fact, the publishing house is engaged in almost all the major categories. In Korea, the proportion of translated books is fairly high. But Prunsoop departs from the general trend by publishing works mostly by Korean writers. Even better,

it has produced many of the bestselling titles. The publisher can even sum up its 20-year history with a long list of its bestsellers.

This list includes I Miss You Even When You Are by My Side by poet Ryu Si-hwa; My Sister, Bongsoon and Our Happy Hours by Gong Ji-young; Marching off the Map, Han Bi-ya's Travel Record in China, The Daughter of the Wind Travels Around the World

by Han Bi-ya. In particular, Han Bi-ya’s books have helped Korean

left: A reading corner within the building premises right: Editing room where the books of Prunsoop exhibited

readers rethink the meaning of travel and the way of looking at the world through her inspiring adventures in remote areas.

Prunsoop’s corporate logo contains an ancient Egyptian god called Toth.

Ancient Greeks regarded Toth as Hermes, guardian of the academy, arts, character, and knowledge. It is no wonder that Prunsoop’s corporate mission is to play the modern-day role of Toth and Hermes. In addition, Prunsoop means “green forest” in Korean.

Prunsoop CEO and president Kim Hye-kyung says, “ There is almost everything in a forest and books. We breathe in a forest filled with plants, grass, flowers, fruits, water, wind, and sunlight. And we fill up our minds through books.” Kim also took a leading role in the Korean publishing industry by serving as chairwoman for the Korean Publishers Society.

Prunsoop also published a number of high-quality social criticism titles and cultural essays. Jin Joong-gwon, a leading social critic and aesthetician, published Violence and Vulgarity - Jin Joong-gwon’s Ex Libris at Prunsoop, so did renowned philosopher Kim Yongseok, who put out Discovery in Daily Life. Chun In-kwon also published his book Birth of a Man, an in-depth investigation of what it means to live as a man in Korean society, with Prunsoop.

In the 2000s, Prunsoop broadened its scope towards other fields such as

youth titles. It solidified its position in Korea’s youth publishing industry by producing hit series such as Stepping Stone Classics, Trees of the Mind and Trees of Thought - a collection of thought-provoking stories targeting young adults.

The domestic book market is in a protracted slump as of late, but Kim Hye-kyung seems optimistic. She says, “Korean publishers are competing in a market of less than 50 million people, which is by no means a huge

market. Nevertheless, the quality of books published here has improved dramatically. In addition, Korean readers’ appetite for knowledge is stronger than any other country in the world, promising a high level of potential for publishers.

By Pyo Jeonghun

2 1

1 Discovery in Daily Life Kim Yongseok, 2002, 282p ISBN 89-7184-354-3

3

2 Birth of a Man Chun In-kwon, 2003, 300p ISBN 89-7184-377-2 3 I Miss You Even

When You Are by My Side Ryu Si-hwa, 1991, 110p ISBN 89-7184-338-1 4 My Sister, Bongsoon Gong Ji-young, 2004, 264p ISBN 89-7184-415-9 5 Our Happy Hours Gong Ji-young, 2005, 315p ISBN 89-7184-429-9

5

4

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 75

MEET THE PUBLISHERS

left: Bori staff right: Bori Children’s Guide to the Plants

Bori Publishing

A Cultural Community that Portrays the Nature of Korea through Miniatures

The founder, once a professor of philosophy, went to live in a rural town to become a farmer and a publication planner with the aim of creating books that would imbue children with fine sensibilities.

With a newly kindled interest in nature, I began to wonder about the names of trees and flowers. That’s when I stumbled upon Bori Children's Guide to the Trees, published by Bori Publishing Co. Ltd. The book is in a large-format hardcover edition, and somewhat expensive, but owing to the warmth of the miniature paintings that took 6 years to complete, and the simplicity of the content which can 76

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

easily be read and understood by both children and adults, it has never failed to make lists of recommended books over the past 7 years.

Established in 1991, Bori Publishing occupies a unique position in the Korean publishing industry. They publish books that can be read by all, from babies to adults, and they also devote themselves to the publication of original works by Korean authors, having published almost no translated works in the past 17 years.

In particular, Bori Publishing is specifically devoted to producing illustrated guides using miniature paintings, original illustrated books, and educational illustrated books.

Books by Bori Publishing mainly focus on nature and education. The two are combined in the books for children using miniature paintings.

These books, including Bori Children’s Guide to the Animals and Bori Children’s Guide to the Plants, the first-ever illustrated guides of Korea published in 1998; Bori Children’s Guide to the

Insects; Dotori Seasonal Picture Book Series; Bori Baby Picture Books Series; and Bori Picture Books on Nature and Living, including How to Live in the Fields, How to Live in the Mountains, How to Live in the Seashores, have been well received, not only by children but by parents as well.

One may wonder, why are miniature paintings, and not photographs, used to portray objects in detail? The answer to this question can be found in the philosophy of Yoon Goobyoung, the founder and publication planner of Bori Publishing. Yoon, once a professor of philosophy, is now a farmer, as well as the founder of the Byeonsan Community, an alternative community of ecology and education located in Byeonsan on the west coast of Korea. He believes that education is “what people need in order to live on this earth as human beings and sustain life.” Making books that will help cultivate the strength to live on this earth as human beings is the aim of Bori Publishing, while miniature paintings

are the means.

Bori Publishing is a community of sorts, in which people who share the same aim and mindset as Yoon gather.

Incoming staff is trained at the Byeonsan Community. They till the fields, plant rice, and remove weeds. Every fall, all of the staff participates in the harvest of crops and fruits, along with the members of Byeonsan Community, and get firsthand experience that teaches them the value of labor. Such experiences become the basis of books that portray nature and the people of Korea in an open and frank manner.

Stated above Bori Publishing emphasizes not only nature but also education. From early on in their lives, most children in Korea are put under great pressure regarding university entrance. This is due to the “education fever” of parents. Bori Publishing has expressed a deep interest in the

children’s writing movement, which promotes original thinking by children and the expression through the Korean language. In addition, they have published books containing the voices of those with experience in teaching children, including Lee Oh-deok, a pioneer in the children’s writing movement in Korea. They also publish books of poetry by children, in which they sing of their daily lives through their own voices.

Proper use of language must precede proper education. Selected Works of Korean Classical Literature, a collection of classic literature ranging from songs and poetry to journals, prose, and stories that depict timehonored traditions of Korea in the modern Korean language, is also a work which represents Bori Publishing.

Bori Korean Dictionary, published after eight years of preparation, was also created in the same vein. Published in the summer of 2008, the dictionary had its roots in the concern that despite the use of the same language in the South and the North, the linguistic environments of the two Koreas were gradually changing due to factors such as the inflow of borrowed words.

Bori Publishing is a place where people make books that portray Korea just the way it is, with its nature, people, and their thoughts and ways of living.

By Yoon Min-yong

2

1

1 Bori Korean Dictionary, Tobagi Dictionary Editorial Committee, 2008, 1497p ISBN 978-89-8428-543-9 2 Bori Baby Picture Books Series, 2008 3 Bori Picture Books on Nature and Living; How to Live in the Fields; How to Live in the Mountains; How to Live in the Seashores, 2007

3

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 77

INDEX Title Original Title Publishers Copyright Agent E-mail Phone Homepage

7p A Fulfilling Life Gaseum Ttwineun Sam Sam & Parkers Kim Yiryung Yr_kim@smpk.co.kr 82-2-324-0395 www.smpk.co.kr 7p Bad Samaritans Nappeun Samariaindeul Boo-Kie Roh Jonghyun agentroh@bookie.co.kr 82-2-325-0846 www.bookie.co.kr 7p I Am Happy Now Jigeum Haengbokhae Changbi Publishers, Inc. Kim Jun-su copyright@changbi.com 82-31-955-3369 www.changbi.com 7p Treasure Hunting in Mexico Meksikoeseo Bomulchatgi I-seum (mirae-n culture group) Moon Young morene1220@hanmail.net 82-2-3475-3921 www.i-seum.com 7p A Real Estate Slump is on the Way The Korea Economic Daily & Business Publications Inc. Kim Myung Hyo m9310783@hankyungbo.com 82-2-360-4558 www.hankyungbp.com 8p Cholatse Chollache Prunsoop.Publishing Co., Ltd. Kim Mijung iledor@prunsoop.co.kr 82-31-955-1410 (ext.128) www.prunsoop.co.kr 9p I’ll Spit on Your Grave Ne Mudeome Chimeul Baechim Kaemagowon Park Daewoo pelle@kaema.co.kr 82-2-326-1012 www.kaema.co.kr 9p Violence and Vulgarity Pongnyeokgwa Sangseureoum Prunsoop.Publishing Co., Ltd. Kim Mijung iledor@prunsoop.co.kr 82-31-955-1410 (ext.128) www.prunsoop.co.kr

78

9p The Agora Almanac Daehanminguk Sangsiksajeon Agora Yeouwadurumi Kim Nam-il yeouwadurumi@hanmail.net 82-2-825-7707 blog.daum.net/yeouwadurumi 10p Encountering Mannam Dolbegae Publishers Kim Heejin odradek@dolbegae.co.kr 82-31-955-5033 www.dolbegae.co.kr 10p A Dialogue Daehwa Hangilsa Publishing Co., Ltd Ahn Minjae anuri@hangilsa.co.kr 82-31-955-2000 www.hangilsa.co.kr 10p It’s Good, It’s All Good Gwaenchanta, Da Gwaenchanta Alma Publishing Corp.

Jeon Sanghee shjeon@munhak.com 82-31-955-2643 www.munhak.com 10p Three Circles: Mind, Idea and Perception Segaeui Donggeurami Hangilsa Publishing Co., Ltd Ahn Minjae anuri@hangilsa.co.kr 82-31-955-2000 www.hangilsa.co.kr 10p Quest for Transformation Jeonhwanui Mosak Thinking Tree Publishing Co. Park Yeonju yeon@itreebook.com 82-2-3141-1616 (ext.303) www.itreebook.com 11p Seventeen-Year-Old Hair Yeol Ilgopsarui Teol Sakyejul Publishing Ltd. Kang Hyunjoo kanghjoo@sakyejul.co.kr 82-31-955-8601 www.sakyejul.co.kr 12p Step in Donggweol, the house of Chosun Joseonui Jip Donggwore Deulda Hyohyung Publishing co.

Park Byeongkyu editor@hyohyung.co.kr 82-31-955-7609 www.hyohyung.co.kr 12p Seoul Essay Seoul Essay Youlhwadang Publishers Yi Soojung ysj0710@youlhwadang.co.kr 82-31-955-7006 www.youlhwadang.co.kr 12p Seoul is Deep Seoureun Gipda Dolbegae Publishers Kim Heejin odradek@dolbegae.co.kr 82-31-955-5033 www.dolbegae.com

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

12p Vanishing History Seoureul Geonilmyeo Sarajyeoganeun Yeoksareul Mannada Alma Publishing Corp.

Jeon Sanghee shjeon@munhak.com 82-31-955-2643 www.munhak.com 14p Treasure Depot of Seoul Seoul-ui Bomulchang-go Vi-Book Kim Jaemahn book@100doci.com 82-2-3012-0117 www.100doci.com 14p One Dollar Cultural Excursion to the History of Seoul 1000Woneuro Sijakhaneun Seoul Yeoksa Munhwa Yeohaeng Golden Owl Cho Yeonkon nahppydream@goldenowl.co.kr 82-02-338-9151 www.goldenowl.co.kr 14p What to do along the Cheongye Stream?

Cheonggyecheoneseo Mwolhaji?

Gilbut Publishing Kim Hakheung k14h@naver.com 82-2-330-9705 www.gilbut.co.kr 15p Seoul Restaurants 2008: Blue Ribbon Survey Seoul Restaurants 2008 Kleinix Inc. Yoh Minjong mjyoh10@empal.com 82-2-512-2146 www.bluer.co.kr 15p Seoul, Have you been here?

Seoul Ireon Got Wabosyeonnayo?

Hangilsa Publishing Co., Ltd Ahn Minjae anuri@hangilsa.co.kr 82-31-955-2000 www.hangilsa.co.kr 17p The Square Gwangjang Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd. Seo Eun-mi kaiseo@moonji.com 82-2-338-7224 (ext.111) www.moonji.com 17p Taebaek Mountain Range Taebaeksanmaek Hainaim Publishing Co., Ltd. Park Sujin sujinpark@hainaim.com 82-2-326-1600 (ext.302) www.hainam.com 17p The Heroic Age Yeongungsidae Minumsa Michelle Nam michellenam@minumsa.com 82-2-515-2000 (ext.206) www.minumsa.com 17p Land Toji Nanam Publishing House Kim Youngjoo tojicul@chol.com 82-33-762-1382 www.nanam.net

17p A House with a Deep Yard Madang Gipeun Jip Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd. Seo Eun-mi kaiseo@moonji.com 82-2-338-7224 (ext.111) www.moonji.com 20p The Land of Strangers Gaekji Changbi Publishers, Inc. Kim Jun-su copyright@changbi.com 82-31-955-3369 www.changbi.com 20p Our town Uridongne Minumsa Michelle Nam michellenam@minumsa.com 82-2-515-2000 (ext.206) www.minumsa.com 20p Gwanchon Supil Gwanchonsupil Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd. Seo Eun-mi kaiseo@moonji.com 82-2-338-7224 (ext.111) www.moonji.com 20p A Bad Harvest in the City Dosiui Hyungnyeon Segyesa Publishing Co., Ltd. Park Sunghoon segyesa1@naver.com 82-31-955-8060 www.segyesa.co.kr 23p The Walls of Rumor Somunui Byeok Yolimwon Park Jiae hydo48@naver.com 82-2-3144-3700 www.yolimwon.com 23p There, a Petal Falls in Silence Jeogi Sorieopsi Han Jeom Kkochipi Jigo Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd. Seo Eun-mi kaiseo@moonji.com 82-2-338-7224 (ext.111) www.moonji.com 23p The River Gang Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd. Seo Eun-mi kaiseo@moonji.com 82-2-338-7224 (ext.111) www.moonji.com 23p Seoul - 1964 - Winter Seoul 1964, Gyeoul Malgeunsori Kim Hyun-jin to2001@hanmail.net 82-2-323-1488 www.msoribook.com 23p Garden of Childhood Yunyeonui Tteul Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd. Seo Eun-mi kaiseo@moonji.com 82-2-338-7224 (ext.111) www.moonji.com

29p Dongbaekggot Dongbaekggot Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd., Seo Eun-mi kaiseo@moonji.com 82-2-338-7224 (ext.111) www.moonji.com

50p Best Korean Fantasy Hanguk hwansangmunhak Danpyeonseon The Origin Kim Minki somebuddy@wjbooks.co.kr 82-2-736-0435 www.wjbooks.co.kr

62p Beautiful meals of Mountain Temples Sansaui Areumdaun Bapsang Jogye order Publishing Lee sangkeun lsk530@hanmail.net 82-2-733-6390 www.jogyebook.com

71p Kissing Mom Eommarang Ppoppo Borim Press Eom Heejeong omugeng@borimpress.com 82-32-955-3456 www.borimpress.com

37p Song of Strings Hyeonui Norae Thinking Tree Publishing Co. Park Yeonju yeon@itreebook.com 82-2-3141-1616 (ext.303) www.itreebook.com

50p The Painter of Wind Baramui Hwawon 1 Millionhouse Publishing, Inc Lee Hyowon millionhouse@naver.com 82-2-541-2179

64p The native Korean Daehanminguk Wonjumin Changbi Publishers, Inc. Kim Jun-su copyright@changbi.com 82-31-955-3369 www.changbi.com

72p The Story of Three Moms Se Eomma Iyagi Sakyejul Publishing Ltd. Kang Hyunjoo kanghjoo@sakyejul.co.kr 82-31-955-8602 www.sakyejul.co.kr

65p Old Dog's Movie Note Oldeudogui Yeonghwanoteu Gobooky Books Kim Jae-hyun webmaster@gobook2.com 82-32-623-8585 www.gobook2.com

72p The Tiger Taken Away by the Messenger of Death Jeoseungsajaege Japhyeogan Horangi Sakyejul Publishing Ltd. Kang Hyunjoo kanghjoo@sakyejul.co.kr 82-31-955-8603 www.sakyejul.co.kr

37p Fortress on Mt. Namhan Namhansanseong Hakgojae Kang sanghoon hakgojae@gmail.com 82-2-745-1722 38p Song of the Sword Karui Norae Thinking Tree Publishing Co. Park Yeonju yeon@itreebook.com 82-2-3141-1616 (ext.303) www.itreebook.com 42p A Journey through wild flowers Jayeon Gihaeng Kachisa Joo Jihyeon senara25@dreamwiz.com 82-2-736-7768 www.kachibooks.co.kr 44p Embracing Evening Jeonyeoge Youlhwadang Publishers Yi Soojung ysj0710@youlhwadang.co.kr 82-31-955-7006 www.youlhwadang.co.kr 46p Hesperus Gaebapbaragibyeol Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.

Kim Mijeong mijeong@munhak.com 82-31-955-2662 www.munhak.com 48p The Flowering Whale Kkotpineun Gorae Changbi Publishers, Inc. Kim Jun-su copyright@changbi.com 82-31-955-3369 www.changbi.com 49p The Night is Singing Bameun Noraehanda Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd. Seo Eun-mi kaiseo@moonji.com 82-2-338-7224 (ext.111) www.moonji.com 49p Hyecho Vol 1, 2 Hyecho Vol 1 & 2 Minumsa Michelle Nam michellenam@minumsa.com 82-2-515-2000 (ext.206) www.minumsa.com

20p, 51p A Dwarf Launches a Little Ball Nanjangiga Ssodaollin Jageun Gong Iseonggwa Him Cho Joonghyeop hesperion@naver.com 82-2-322-9383 54p Korea from Above Haneureseo Bon Hanguk Saemulgyul Jo Hyung-joon sm3141@kornet.net 82-3141-8698 55p Dreaming of a Ground of Life Kkumeul Salda Kungree Press Kim Hyunsook kungree@chol.com 82-2-734-6591 55p Archaeology of Korean Pop 1, 2 Hangukpabui Gogohak 1, 2 Hangilart Lee Hyunhwa blueseahy@hangilsa.co.kr 82-31-955-2010 www.hangilart.co.kr 56p Traveller: Tokyo Gimnyeongha Yeohaengja Dokyo Artbooks Publishing Corp.

Son Heegyoung artbooks21@naver.com 82-31-955-7977 www.munhak.com 57p The History of Korean literature Hangungmunhaksa Minumsa Michelle Nam michellenam@minumsa.com 82-2-515-2000 (ext.206) www.minumsa.com 60p The Age of Maritime Expansion Daehanghae Sidae Seoul National University Press Kim Jinsik kimjins2@snu.ac.kr 82-2-880-5252 www.snupress.com 59p The Korean War Hanguk Jeonjaeng Cumlibro Kim Youn-il prpub@hanmail.net 82-2-335-1982 61p Quest for the God Particle Sinui Ipjareul Chajaseo Mati Jung Heekyung matibook@naver.com 82-2-333-3110 blog.naver.com/matibook

65p Luna Park – Juvenile Working Girl Runapakeu - Sachungi Jikjangin anibooks Kim Mijeong mijeong@munhak.com 82-10-7354-0999 66p Healing Garden Hillinggadeun Da vinci, Inc. Park Sungsik alma0077@naver.com 82-2-2266-2501 66p Visible Hands Sijanggwollyeogui Jungsim, Sobijaga Jinhwahanda Gimm-Young Publishers, Inc. Lee Youjeong rights@gimmyoung.com 82-2-3668-3203 gimmyoung.com/english 67p Daughter of the Wind Travels around the World Baramui Ttal Georeoseo Jigu Sebakwi Ban Prunsoop.Publishing Co., Ltd. Kim Mijung iledor@prunsoop.co.kr 82-31-955-1410(ext.128) www.prunsoop.co.kr

73p I’m not playing with you Neohago Annora Changbi Publishers, Inc. Kim Jun-su copyright@changbi.com 82-31-955-3369 www.changbi.com 75p My Sister, bongsoon, etc.

Bongsuni Eonni Prunsoop.Publishing Co., Ltd. Kim Mijung iledor@prunsoop.co.kr 82-31-955-1410 (ext.128) www.prunsoop.co.kr 76p Bori Children's Guide to the Trees, etc.

Semilhwaro Geurin Bori Eorini Singmul Dogam Bori Publishing Co., Ltd. Park Yongsurk pys@boribook.com 82-31-955-3535 www.boribook.com

68p From Mouth to Butt Ibi Ttongkkoege BIR Publishing Co., Ltd. Song Jungha ha@minumsa.com 82-2-515-2000(ext.207) www.bir.co.kr 70p Tools at Work Ilgwa Dogu Gilbut Children Publishing Co., Ltd Kim Youjung youjung@dreamwiz.com 82-31-955-3262 www.gilbutkid.co.kr 71p I'm a naturally poor learner Nan wollae gongbu motae Changbi Publishers, Inc. Kim Jun-su copyright@changbi.com 82-31-955-3369 www.changbi.com

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008 79

AFTERWORD

Remembering Things Past My own true and meaningful acquaintance with Korea now covers more than 23 years; it was 1985 and I was a freshman at UC Berkeley when I took my first Korean language class. It was only a few years later that I began to be exposed to Korean literature, first as a tool for learning the language and later as entire works in translation. Although I did not begin with a plan to remain in the field of Korean studies – I was headed for law school – a series of fortuitous coincidences conspired to keep me. Primarily, I was lucky to meet a number of excellent and dedicated teachers and mentors, without whom I never would have endured.

And I am now in the (to my mind) enviable position of being able to teach both Korean literature and literary translation to a new generation of students.

Being in Seoul, the majority of those students are Korean.

But they have tremendously diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds, many have lived longer outside Korea than in, and are multilingual.

So, although they still sometimes ask me why my Korean is “so good,” they also immediately understand when I tell them it’s because I’ve been studying it longer than they’ve been alive, and often spent more years in Korea than they have, too. Language and culture are learned, and are an accumulation of things past.

The same, of course, is true for literature. Thus, in my literary translation courses I have been concentrating on some older works.

They will never garner their authors Nobel Prizes, but they will give my students an appreciation for the roots and foundations of modern Korean literature. Just as the “new literature” from the first decade of the 20th century is difficult to understand and appreciate without a firm grounding in Korea’s premodern literary tradition, today’s literature stands firmly upon the efforts and experiments of generations past.

As such, I was extremely pleased when my students reacted positively to my suggestion that we spend a second semester on Yi Sang’s essays.

I had expected them to demand something from the 21st century, but instead they commented that they enjoyed the challenge of mastering an earlier iteration of the language and a different take on Korean society during the 1930s.

Their approach will force them to do historical research, learn Chinese characters, and confront many of their preconceived notions of life during the Japanese colonial period, all of which will prepare them well for moving either backward or forward in time in their future studies of Korean literature. More importantly, beyond the study of literature itself, it will acquaint them with people and things past, and thereby equip them to better know themselves.

By John M. Frankl

80

list_ Books from Korea Vol.2 Winter 2008

The Launching of Korean Books Publishing Project Website!

Since 2005, the Korean Literature Translation Institute has maintained an Overseas Publications Marketing program. As part of our effort to strengthen exports of Korean publishers’ publications and Korean books, our overseas publications marketing program provided many useful services. These services included producing sample translations and synopses, as well as assisting with overseas publisher relations and supporting marketing activities for Korean literature overseas.

The Overseas Publications Marketing program has been relaunched under the new name of Korean Books Publishing Project on Dec 5, 2008. Some of the services offered include an introduction to a wider range of books in English and Chinese.

www.koreanbooks.or.kr

Vol.2 Winter 2008 Vol.2 Winter 2008

Special Section Established Writers Vol.2 Winter 2008of

Korea Examined through Keywords:

War and Memory Industrialization and Democratization Special Section The Established of Alienation andWriters Introspection Korea Examined through Keywords: In the Spotlight War and Memory The Selected Poems of Ko Un

Industrialization and Democratization Feature Alienation and Introspection

Kim Hoon: A Writer Who Writes with His Body Kang In theWoon-gu: Spotlight“The Photograph Accepts the Subject” The Selected Poems of Ko Un and Reviews Bestsellers, Steady Sellers, Publishing Trends of 2008 Feature Kim The Hoon: Place A Writer Who with Entire Body The Village thatWrites Formed theHis Backdrop of Twelve Novels Kang Woon-gu: Theme Lounge “The Photograph Accepts the Subject” Reading SEOUL Bestsellers, Steady Sellers and Reviews Publishing Trends of 2008 The Place The Village that Formed the Backdrop of Twelve Novels Theme Lounge Reading SEOUL

ISSN 2005-2790

ISSN 2005-2790

The Launching of Korean Books Publishing Project Website!

Since 2005, the Korean Literature Translation Institute has maintained an Overseas Publications Marketing program. As part of our effort to strengthen exports of Korean publishers’ publications and Korean books, our overseas publications marketing program provided many useful services. These services included producing sample translations and synopses, as well as assisting with overseas publisher relations and supporting marketing activities for Korean literature overseas.

The Overseas Publications Marketing program has been relaunched under the new name of Korean Books Publishing Project on Dec 5, 2008. Some of the services offered include an introduction to a wider range of books in English and Chinese.

www.koreanbooks.or.kr

Vol.2 Winter 2008 Special Section Established Writers of Korea Examined through Keywords:

War and Memory Industrialization and Democratization Alienation and Introspection In the Spotlight The Selected Poems of Ko Un Feature Kim Hoon: A Writer Who Writes with His Body Kang Woon-gu: “The Photograph Accepts the Subject” Bestsellers, Steady Sellers, and Reviews Publishing Trends of 2008 The Place The Village that Formed the Backdrop of Twelve Novels Theme Lounge Reading SEOUL

ISSN 2005-2790