[_list: Books from Korea] Vol.8 Summer 2010

Vol.8 Summer 2010

Special Section

Korea’s Next Generation Interviews Novelist Gong Ji-young Novelist Kim Young-ha Theme Lounge

Trees of Korea

ISSN 2005-2790

KLTI Grants for Prospective Publishers KLTI Overseas Marketing Grants

KLTI Overseas Publication Grants

Areas of Funding Publication marketing events and advertisements

Applicant Qualifications Any publisher who has signed a contract for the publishing rights of a Korean book.

The book should be published by December 2010.

Applicant Qualifications Publishers who have published Korean books in translation within a year and are planning to hold promotional events.

The event should be occur within 6 months following the final apprication deadline.

Grant Amount - Roundtrip airfare and accommodation expenses for the author, expenses for events and advertisements, etc.

- The amount will be determined by KLTI after due consideration of the marketing plan and scale. * The grant will be provided directly to the author or to the overseas publisher in two payments, before and after an event.

How to Apply Register as a member on the website (www.koreanbooks.or.kr) and complete the online application form.

Application Documents All documents should be scanned and uploaded on the application page of the website.

1. Introduction of the publisher, along with its history and past publications, including any previous books related to Korea 2. Breakdown of total event costs 3. A copy of the contract between the publisher and the translators 4. A copy of the contract between the publisher and the copyright holders 5. The translator’s resume Other Information to Include 1. Detailed event plan including a breakdown of anticipated expenses 2. Publication cost 3. Total cost of event (marketing or promotion) 4. Requested grant amount Application Schedule Submission period: 2010. 1. 1 ~ 2010. 9. 30 Grant notification: monthly from February to October Contact Name: Kim Ji-eun Email: grants@klti.or.kr

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Vol.6 Winter 2009 A Quarterly Magazine for Publishers Vol.6 Winter 2009 A Quarterly Magazine for Publishers

Top Five Questions for Vol.6 Winter 2009 A Quarterly Magazine for Publishers

Vol.6 Winter 2009 A Quarterly Magazine for Publishers

Vol.6 Winter 2009

Vol.6 Winter 2009 A Quarterly Magazine for Publishers

Grant Amount - Part of the total publication expenses.

- The amount varies depending on the publication cost and genre of the book.

- The grant will be awarded after publication.

1. What is list_Books from Korea,forand where can I find it?

A Quarterly Magazine Publishers

How to Apply Register as a member on the website (www.koreanbooks.or.kr) and complete the online application form.

The printed edition of list is available in English and Chinese.

The webzine (www.list.or.kr) is available in English, Chinese, and Korean.

Application Documents All documents should be scanned and submitted on the application page of the website.

1. Introduction of the publisher, along with its history and past publications, including any previous books related to Korea 2. Publication plan including the dates and budget for translation and publication in detail 3. A copy of the contract between the publisher and the translator 4. A copy of the contract between the publisher and the copyright holders 5. The translator's resume Application Schedule Submission period: 2010. 1. 1 ~ 2010. 9. 30 Grant notification: April, July, and October Contact Name: Kim Ji-eun Email: grants@klti.or.kr

list is a quarterly magazine packed with information about all kinds of Korean books. Register online at www.list.or.kr to receive a free subscription.

2. Can I get it in English?

3. What if I want more information about Korean books more often?

We offer a bi-weekly online newsletter.

Simply email list_korea@klti.or.kr to begin receiving your free copy.

4. Who publishes list_Books from Korea? list is published by the Korea Literature Translation Institute, which is affiliated with the Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

LTI Korea’s mission is to contribute to global culture by spreading Korean literature and culture abroad. Visit www.klti.or.kr to learn about our many translation, publication, cultural exchange, and education programs.

5. I understand there are grants available for overseas publications, right?

LTI Korea offers many useful programs for overseas publishers, including Overseas Marketing Grants and Overseas Publication Grants.

Visit www.koreanbooks.or.kr for detailed information.

Contact: list_korea@klti.or.kr

Foreword

An Encounter with Korean Youth For as long as the human race has existed, it has been impossible for the older generation to fully understand the younger generation. Since the 1990s, in particular, as new generations of young Koreans have emerged, the older generation has named each of them X, W, N, and so on.

Lately, a new theory about generations is drawing attention. What prompted this was the excellent performances of young Korean athletes at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. In the past, Korean medalists invariably shed tears, deeply moved by the moment while remembering the difficult times. The medalists in Vancouver, however, expressed their joy of victory with confidence. They were not intimidated by the Olympics and knew how to enjoy their victory. Their confidence was refreshing to the older generation.

Those who are in their 20s have not experienced widespread poverty or suffered under a dictatorship. Having come of age in the relative affluence of a post-authoritarian society, they are active and sound of mind and body, and also the first generation to be comfortable with globalization. Sometimes they are called the G generation, taking the first letter of the color “green” and “global” which refers to globalization.

This issue of list puts the spotlight on young Koreans. The first section “At the Top of Their Game” examines the passion of young athletes who have risen to the top of their respective sports, ranging from Kim Yuna who won the gold at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics to Shin Jiyai who became a triple-crown winner on the US LPGA Tour. “The Truly Unique Cultural Guerrillas” catalogs the distinct features of young people who do not distinguish between work and play. The many talents displayed by Ku Hye-sun, Tablo, and Big Bang confirm this idea.

The youth today devote all their passion and energy to things that are valuable to them. “Crazy About Their Dreams” tells the stories of young people who thus became advertising geniuses or hardcore students.

On the other hand, as experience overseas has become commonplace, there are young people who discover and examine themselves by traveling rather than hitting the books. Their story can be found in “The Road Schooler: Searching for the Answer on the Road.”

The younger generation nowadays is known as the optimistic G generation but at the same time, they are also the “880,000 won generation” (which refers to the fact that many of them are temporary workers making only 880,000 won a month). To shed objective light on the many faces of young Koreans, the special feature begins with the subheading, “Defying the Idea of Generations.”

By Han Mihwa (editorial board member)

Copyright © Lee Changsu Journey to Wonderland, Sigongsa

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 1

KLTI Scandinavian Forum & Meeting of Authors Korea Literature Translation Institute (KLTI) extends an invitation to writers, translators, publishers, and those who share an interest in literature, to participate in a discussion on Korean literature today with author Kim Young-ha and literary critic, Jeong Myeong-kyo, focusing on the translation and the publication of Korean literature in Sweden.

Meeting of Korean-Swedish Authors, ABF Stockholm (Hedensalen) 14th June 5-7 pm Korean author Kim Young-ha meet Swedish authors Niklas Rådström and Lena Andersson for a discussion of each others works.

Open to the general public.

Scandinavian Forum, The Museum of Eastern Antiquities (Östasiatiska Museet) 15th June 5-7 pm Literary forum discussing and exchanging ideas on literature in translation.

Kim Young-ha

Jeong Myeong-kyo

Niklas Rådström

Lena Andersson

"Welcome!"

For further information: leeyoomi@klti.or.kr

Contents Summer 2010 Vol.8

01 06 07 10 12

Foreword Trade Report News from LTI Korea Bestsellers Publishing Trends

Special Section

Korea’s Next Generation

Defying the Idea of “Generation” At the Top of Their Game Cultural Guerrillas Break the Rules The Road Schooler:

Searching for Answers on the Road 22 Crazy About Their Dreams 14 16 18 20

Interviews 24 Novelist Gong Ji-young 30 Novelist Kim Young-ha

Excerpts 28 My Sister Bongsoon by Gong Ji-young 34 Your Republic Is Calling You by Kim Young-ha

Overseas Angle 36 The Last 4 ½ Seconds of My Life by Sung Suk-je 37 A Mother Never Dies by Choi Inho 71 Writer’s Note: Gong Ji-hee 73 Book Lover’s Angle: Min Jin Lee

The Place 38 Hanok, Korea’s Traditional Houses

Theme Lounge 42 Trees of Korea

Reviews 46 Fiction 66 Nonfiction 76 Children’s Books

A Prize Winning Short Story

49 Sampoong Department Store By Jung Yi-hyun

Steady Sellers 63 The Black Leaf in My Mouth 81 King or Beggar

Meet the Publishers

82 Hainaim Publishing

New Books

84 Recommended by Publishers 90 Index 92 Afterword

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 3

Contributors Kim Hyoung-joong is a literary

Bruce Fulton

teaches Korean literature and literary translation in the Department of Asian Studies, University of British Columbia. He and Ju-Chan Fulton have been translating modern Korean fiction for 30 years.

Han Mihwa writes on the subject of

Chen Xiaofan

Jang Sungkyu

is the manager of the foreign literature department at the Writers Publishing House. She has worked for many years as an editor for newspapers, magazines, and books.

publishing. Her written works include Bestsellers of Our Time and This Is How Bestsellers Are Made 1, 2. She is also an editorial board member of list_Books from Korea. is a literary critic.

He currently lectures at Kwangwoon University.

critic. He is a professor of Korean Literature at Chosun University and is an editorial board member of the journals Literature and Society and Literatures. He was awarded the 28th Socheon Lee Heon Gu Prize in Literary Criticism in 2008 and has published various books of criticism, including An Analysis of Literature and the Mind.

Kim Hyunmi is the editor-in-chief

at the Weekly Dong-A. She has covered education, publishing, and culture for the Weekly Dong-A, and has worked as an editor and producer of books on the publishing team for the Dong-A Ilbo from 2004 to 2009.

Park Suk-kyoung

works as a translator and children's literature critic. Park is an editorial board member for the Changbi Review of Children's Literature.

Pyo Jeonghun

is a book reviewer, columnist, translator, and freelance writer. He has translated 10 books into Korean and written Books Have Their Own Destiny, A Short Introduction to Chinese Philosophy, and An Interview with My Teacher: What Is Philosophy?

Choe Jae-Bong

is a reporter on the Culture Desk of The Hankyoreh newspaper.

Richard Hong is a book columnist

Doh Jaekee

is a reporter on the Culture Desk of The Kyunghyang Daily News.

Jeong Yoonsoo

Kim Ji-eun

Kang Gyesook is a literary critic.

Kim Jongwhee is a literary critic.

is a literary critic.

He is currently an editorial board member of the internet newspaper OhmyNews and an adjunct professor at SungKongHoe University. His most well-known works include Protect the Soccer Field and Listening to the Times Through Classical Music.

Goh Kyu-hong

is an adjunct professor at Inha University and a regular newspaper columnist. His works include Big Trees of Korea and Thus Spoke Tree.

She is presently an editorial board member of Literature and Society, and has published a collection of criticism called A Beautiful Language. She also won the Changbi Prize for New Figures in Literary Criticism in 2002.

Kang Yu-jung is a literary critic.

In 2007, she published Oedipus' Forest. Currently, she teaches at Korea University and is a member of the literature editorial committee for the quarterly publication Segyeui Munhak.

Kim Dongshik is a literary critic Guenter Peperkorn

studied literature, philosophy, and politics at the University of Goettingen (Germany) and has worked on academic research projects for over 20 years. In 1991 he founded his own publishing house, specializing in literature and cultural history with the main emphasis on East Asia.

4 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

and a professor of Korean language and literature at Inha University. He is a contributing editor for the journal Literature and Society. He is also an editorial board member of list_Books from Korea.

is a writer of children’s stories and a critic of children’s literature. She currently lectures on theories of writing fiction for children in the Department of Creative Writing at Hanshin University. She is also an editorial board member of list_Books from Korea.

He is also the head of the Social Enterprise Noridan and the vicedirector of Haja Center. He has been awarded the Peter F. Drucker Award for Nonprofit Innovation and has written Work While Enjoying Yourself and Learning.

Kim Stoker earned an MA in Asian Studies at the University of Hawaii.

She is currently a full-time lecturer at Duksung Women’s University.

Lee Ji-young

is a reporter on the Culture Desk at the JoongAng Ilbo. She joined the JoongAng Ilbo in 1994, and after working on the life science team, the nationwide network, and the social policy section, she became a reporter for the Culture Desk in 2004, taking charge of the children’s books section.

Park In-ha, comic book critic, is a

professor in the Department of Cartoon & Comics Creation at Chungkang College of Cultural Industries. He is involved in the planning, criticism, and research of comics.

and the head of BC Agency. He translated 13: The Story of the World’s Most Notorious Superstitions, appeared on KBS 1 Radio’s “Global Today,” and writes columns for The Korea Economic Daily and Posco News. He is also an editorial board member of list_Books from Korea.

Shin Junebong

is a journalist on the Culture Desk of the JoongAng Ilbo.

He received his MA from Goldmiths, University of London in 2008, and is interested in theoretical analyses of literature, cultural phenomena, and customs. He is also an editorial board member of list_Books from Korea.

Yi Soo-hyung is a literary critic and

a senior researcher at the Seoul National University Academic Writing Lab. He studied contemporary literature, and has taught at Hongik University, Seoul Institute of the Arts, and Korea National University of Arts.

Yu Youngjin is a critic of children’s

literature and a teacher at Ja-un Elementary School. He is the author of The Body’s Imagination and Fairy Tale.

Translators Ann Isaac

has a BA and MA in Classics and English Literature from Cambridge University, and an MA in Japanese Studies specializing in translation from the University of Sheffield. 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.

Vol.8 Summer 2010 A Quarterly Magazine for Publishers

PUBLISHER _ Kim Joo-youn EDITORIAL DIRECTOR _ Kim Yoonjin

Cho Yoonna is currently the youngest

MANAGING DIRECTOR _ Park Kyunghee

Dafna Zur

EDITORIAL BOARD Han Mihwa Kim Dongshik Kim Ji-eun Richard Hong Shin Junebong

master's student at the Graduate School of Interpretation and Translation at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, majoring in Korean-English and Korean-Spanish translation and interpretation.

lives in Vancouver, where she is a PhD candidate in the Asian Studies department at the University of British Columbia. She is currently completing her dissertation on national identity in North and South Korean children's literature, 1920-1960.

Jung Yewon studied interpretation and

translation at GSIT, Hankuk 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.

Kim Eungsan graduated from Seoul

OVERSEAS PUBLICATION COMMITTEE Joseph Lee Paek Eunyoung Rosa Han MANAGING EDITOR Choi Hye-in Cha Yongju EDITORS Kim Stoker Krys Lee ART DIRECTOR Choi Woonglim

National University in German Literature and also studied at the Free University of Berlin. He earned an MA in Comparative Literature.

DESIGNERS Kim Mijin Lee Jaehyun Jang Hyeju

Kim Hee-young

PHOTOGRAPHER _ Lee Kwa-yong

is a freelance translator. She is currently working on the translation of a collection of the experiences of comfort women titled Histories Behind History.

Krys Lee

is an editor, translator, and fiction writer. She also teaches full-time at Duksung Women’s University. She is currently completing a short story collection.

PRINTED IN _ EAP

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

Y i Je o n g - h ye o n

All correspondences should be addressed to the Korea Literature Translation Institute at 108-5 Samseong-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, Republic of Korea 135-873 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

Sue Y. Kim received her B.A. in English

Copyright © 2010 by Korea Literature Translation Institute ISSN 2005-2790

i s a f re e l a n c e translator. She has translated several books and papers on Korean Studies including Korean Traditional Landscape Architecture (2007), and Atlas of Korean History (2008).

Literature and International Studies from Ewha University in Seoul, Korea. She currently resides in Los Angeles, pursuing a master's degree in Creative Writing at the University of Southern California. Kim has been with KLTI since 2005, when she worked on the Frankfurt Book Fair project in which Korea was the focus country.

Cover Photograph © Kang Pan-kwon

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 5

Trade Report

Black Bean Diet Sweeps Japan One of the common points of interest worldwide is health. Reflecting this concern with health, various books on anti-aging, diet, bodybuilding, and so on, have recently been appearing in the world publishing market in rapid succession. But now in Japan, after its introduction by Korea, the black bean diet fever is raging.

After Lose 12kg in 3 Months with Fleshdevouring Black Beans—a book that revealed the secret of the so-called black bean diet— was translated and published by Japan’s Softbank Publishing in November 2009, various magazines and television stations all rushed to be the first to visit Korea, interview the author, and introduce the diet method to their audience, displaying a phenomenal interest in the black bean diet.

Flesh-devouring Black Beans, published

by Kugil Media, relays the diet method by which a 23-year-old man who weighed over 100kg succeeded in losing 50kg in just four months. This method is different from the various existing diet methods which involve acute suffering, in that just by eating black beans, which are full of protein and fat, one feels satisfied, and can cut down the amount

of food one normally eats. The book also explains that the main elements of black beans such as lecithin, linolenic acid, and saporin, perform the function of breaking dow n f at , a nd s o c a n f u nd a ment a l ly improve a constitutional tendency towards obesity. Following the publication of Fleshdevouring Black Beans in Japan, the book was featured by Japan’s well-known health magazine Jangkwae; FYTTE, the monthly health magazine aimed at women in their 20s and 30s; TBS broadcasting; and Nihon Television’s “How to Live longer” show. It was so popular that at one time it climbed to third place in Amazon Japan’s overall ranking, and until now has shown sales of around 50,000 copies. Owing to the popularity of Flesh-devouring Black Beans, Softbank Publishing is planning to publish The Black Bean Diet Recipe Book towards the end of June 2010.

Korea and France Team Up with Books for Kids An export agreement has been made with the French publishing company ValbertBi l b o qu e t f or a n u npr e c e d e nt e d c o production of three books from the First Knowledge Picture Book children’s series published by Woongjin Think Big Co., Ltd. This copyright export is significant in that, unlike contracts under the usual license system, it is a co-production, which means that the book is exported as a finished product, from printing and production to transportation.

In the case of picture books, publishers, especially major British, American, and European publishers that publish picture books by famous authors, usually insist on co-production agreements rather than license agreements when they make translation and publishing contracts. In light of this practice, the current export of Korean children’s picture books under a co-production system can be considered a first step towards new opportunities and possibilities.

According to the head of copyright at Woongjin Think Big, exporting books by co-production means that by being able to 6 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

precisely grasp the scale of sales, one can reduce the effort spent on such matters as royalty reports. He also said that on the basis of the number of copies of Bilboquet’s first import order, sales two and a half times higher than under existing royalty contracts could be expected, and that the company planned to make more active progress regarding co-production copyright exports in the future. This occasion’s co-production consists of the manufacture in Korea and export of three pop-up style picture books: 1, 2 , 3 , S p l a s h ! , H i g h e r Than the Clouds, and Gray is Pretty. Three thousand copies of each will be printed, making a total of 9,000 books.

By Richard Hong

By Richard Hong

News from LTI Korea

Literary Event Marks 60th Anniversary of Diplomatic Relations Between Korea and Spain On April 2010, in celebration of 60 years of diplomatic relations between Korea and Spain, a Korean literature event was held at Circulo de Bellas Artes de Madrid in Spain in which literary figures from both countries participated. With Pio Serrano, head of Spain’s Verbum Publishing, presiding, Korean novelists Kim Hoon and Yi In-seong, and Korean poet Kim Kwang-kyu, spoke in turn on the question “Why write novels?” while Spanish poet Antonio Colinas and Alicante University Professor of Comparative Literature Pedro Aullon added their comments as panelists. In addition, actress Angelsolo Homerico gave staged readings of Korean literature.

The other event was held at Malaga University. Antonio J. Doménech del Río, professor of Malaga University, acted as a chairman, and novelist and poet Francisco Ruiz Noguera and poet Antonio José Quesada Sánchez attended as panelists. Actress Klara Martínez and actor Pape Labraca also gave staged readings of Korean literature. Both of two events were held successfully.

Over 200 publishing representatives and ordinary readers attended, and through this event KLTI could ascertain the high level of appreciation and interest in Korean literature among Spanish readers and publishers.

KLTI also donated translations of Korean works of literature and DVDs introducing Korean literature to Malaga University, Salamanca University and Casa Asia, making a concerted effort to encourage the growing interest in Korean literature and to establish a Spanish distribution network.

KLTI Berlin Forum on Literary Translation The KLTI Berlin Forum, the first of a number of forums planned for 2010, was held on the theme of “cultural translation.” German publishers and translators of Korean literature from the University of Bonn and Bochum University came together at the Forum, and, after an introductory address by writer Sung Suk-je, held detailed discussions on specific topics including “the prospects and problems of publishing Korean literature” and “practical solutions for translating culture.” In an additional event, Korean writers Kim Won-il, Sung Suk-je, and Eun Hee-kyung gave readings of their work and met German readers. During this event, which was hosted by the Korean Culture Center in Berlin, the three authors read from The Wind and the River, The Last 4.5 Seconds of My Life, and A Gift from a Bird, works which have already been translated and published in German. A similar reading event was also held at the Hungarian Writers’ Association Library.

In addition, as part of the task of promoting translations of Korean literature, Korean books translated into German, Hungarian, and English respectively were presented to organizations such as the Free University of Berlin, the Korean Embassy in Hungary, and the Hungarian Writers’ Association.

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 7

News from LTI Korea

2010 Seoul International May is the month when the Seoul sky is at its bluest. Under such a sky the 2010 Seoul International Writers’ Festival was held, the third of its kind. The first and the second festivals were held under the name of “Seoul Young Writers’ Festival,” and now, with the new name, “Seoul International Writers’ Festival,” the biennial festival has opened its door wider to the world. From May 10 to 14, poets, novelists, and children’s book writers from all over the world gathered at the House of Literature in Namsan, Seoul, the Jeonju Hanok Village, and the Seoul International Book Fair.

A total of 24 writers from 12 countries participated in the event, held under the theme, “Fantasy + Empathy.”

8 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

The participants included Ines Abassi, Bae Suah, Iwona Chmielewska, Choi Seung-ho, Gilles Cyr, Junot Diaz, Hallgrimur Helgason, Jeong Chan, Kim Ae-ran, Kim Minjeong, Kim Haeng-sook, Kim Nam-joong, Kim Hye-jin, Satoshi Kitamura, Leena Krohn, Andrey Kurkov, Kwon Hyeok-woong, Maja Lee Lang vad, Min Jin Lee, Vivek Narayanan, Park Hyoung-su, Pyun Hye-young, Ra Hee-duk, and Edwin Thumboo. They paired up for book readings on stage for the audience. In addition, writers working in the same genres grouped up to discuss the theme “fantasy in my works” with readers.

At the Jeonju Hanok Village, where they stayed overnight,

Writers’ Festival the writers took in works of art in traditional Korean houses, immersing themselves in the Korean culture of 5,000 years.

Though the visit was brief, the writers gathered in twos and threes to indulge into Korean food and culture.

The book signing and reading held on the last day at the Seoul International Book Fair provided the writers with an opportunity to talk about their works amid greater excitement in a wider arena. The festival came to a successful end.

Junot Diaz, an American novelist who participated in the festival, said during a discussion among the writers that: “Reading is an act of maintaining the rhythm of humanity against the rhythm of machinery.” In that vein, writers are

at the forefront of the march of maintenance. In addition, Jeung Chan, a Korean writer, said: “Compared to the flow of capitalism, the act of writing is the most manual and outdated task. That, however, is why this task is noble and significant.”

The writers deeply agreed that there exists a world of fantasy which can be created by literature in an era of “being digital,” and that in such a world exists a definite solidarity of empathy.

By Kim Ji-eun

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 9

Bestsellers

What We’re Reading Fiction

Nonfiction

1026

Sohyeon

Dreaming in the Attic

Kim Jinmyung, Saeum, 2010, 472p ISBN 978-89-9396-414-1 A novel based on a tragic event in modern Korean history in which President Park Chung-Hee was killed by Kim Jae-gyu, the head of the KCIA and the president’s closest aide, on October 26, 1979.

A Korean lawyer working in the U.S. reveals that the murder of Park Chung-Hee was a conspiracy by the powers surrounding the Korean peninsula.

Kim Insook, Jaeum & Moeum Publishing, 2010 340p, ISBN 978-89-5707-484-8 A historical novel about Sohyeon, the unfortunate crown prince, who was taken hostage by the Qing empire during the Manchu War of 1636, then died two months after his return home. The book focuses on the inner world of Sohyeon, who is conflicted between the Qing empire, in which he was under hostage for eight years, and his homeland.

E Ji-sung, Kugil Media, 2007, 258p ISBN 978-89-7425-489-6 People like Estée Lauder and Conrad Hilton had a humble beginning but became great. This book introduces their keys to success.

Red Boots Ekuni Kaori, Sodam & Taeil Publishing House 2010, 232p, ISBN 978-89-738-1577-7 A novel by Ekuni Kaori, a Japanese woman writer with a wide-ranging popularity in Korea, whose works include Between Calm and Passion and Tokyo Tower.

The book sheds light on the complexity of married life through episodes about the daily life of Hiwako and Shojo, a childless couple who have been married for 10 years.

The Days of Seonggyungwan Confucian Students Jeong Eun-gwol, Paran Media, 2009 ISBN 978-89-6371-006-8 A novel about Lady Kim, disguised as a man, who sneaks her way into Seonggyungwan, the top educational institution of the Joseon era that was forbidden to women, and gets involved with a man. The main characters include Kim Yun-hee, disguised as a man, and Gu Yong-ha, an expert on wine, women, and gambling.

Paradise Bernard Werber, Openbooks, 2010 ISBN 978-89-329-1041-3 A collection of short stories by Bernard Werber, the French writer who became a bestselling author in Korea with his works such as Empire of the Ants.

The two volumes are comprised of 34 short stories about a fantastic future and a paradoxical past, contrived by the author’s unique imagination.

Princess Deokhye Kwon Bee-young, Dasan Books, 2009, 420p ISBN 978-89-6370-034-2 A historical novel about the life of Princess Deokhye, who was born in 1912 as the youngest daughter of Emperor Gojong of Joseon, who had his country taken away from him by the Japanese who ousted him from his seat as emperor. The book depicts the unfortunate life of the princess, who was taken to Japan and forced to marry a Japanese man, suffered mental illness, and finally returned home after 37 years.

Heated Silence Paik Ji-yeon, Joongang Books, 2010, 288p ISBN 978-89-2780-002-6 A new book by Paik Ji-yeon, the youngest anchorwoman in Korea. Now a communication specialist, she talks about what she has learned in life, and useful communication skills for presentations.

Words and Silence Beopjeong, Samtoh Co., Ltd., 2010, 278p ISBN 978-89-464-1342-9 A book of quotations from Buddhist sermons on silence compiled by the venerable Beopjeong. The thoughtful explanation by the author makes it easy to understand Buddhist doctrines.

Study Like a Fool and Dream Like a Genius Shin Ungjin, Myung Jin Publications, 2007 296p, ISBN 978-89-7677-243-5 The story of Ban Ki-moon, the UN SecretaryGeneral. The books reveals the dreams and the journey of a country boy on the path to becoming UN Secretary-General.

Reflections on Samsung Kim Yong-cheol, SahoiPyoungnon, 2010, 476p ISBN 978-89-643-5050-8 A critical look at Samsung by Kim Yong-cheol, a lawyer. He urges that now is the time when Samsung must go beyond seeking advanced management and global competitiveness, and rethink its morals.

These list totals are based on sales records from eight major bookstores and three online bookstores from Feburary to April 2010, provided by the Korean Publishers Association.

The books are introduced in no particular order.

1026

The Days of Seonggyungwan Confucian Students

10 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

Heated Silence

Words and Silence

Reflections on Samsung

It’s Fate

Children's Books Letters from a Wood Hut

Sister, Mongsil

Like Kim Yu-na

Beopjeong, Ire Publishing, 2009, 258p ISBN 978-89-5709-093-0 Letters to the world by the venerable Beopjeong, written while he lived a solitary life in a mountain cabin to practice his philosophy of non-possession.

The book is alive with the spirit of a simple, humble life.

Kwon Jeong-saeng, Changbi Publishers, Inc. 1984, 286p, ISBN 978-89-364-4014-5 This May saw the third anniversary of the death of Kwon Jeong-saeng, and many readers came looking for his works. Sister, Mongsil, the most beloved of his works, depicts the weary life of children in Korea after the war.

Kim Yu-na, JDM Co., Ltd., 2010, 168p ISBN 978-89-4512-516-3 A story of the life of Kim Yu-na, the Vancouver Winter Olympics figure skating gold medalist. The book unfolds with autobiographical stories about how she began her career and how she came to be where she is today.

It’s Fate

The Strongest Rooster in the World

Tears of the Amazon for Children

Roh Moo-hyun Foundation, U Si-min Dolbegae Publishers, 2010, 392p ISBN 978-89-719-9387-3 The autobiography of President Roh Moo-hyun, who passed away in 2009. Materials including unpublished manuscripts, notes, letters, and interviews have been organized for a look into his life from his birth to death.

Lee Ho-baik, Jaimimage Publishing Co., 1998 ISBN 89-8656-504-8 A story about a mighty little chick growing into the mightiest rooster and experiencing changes. A steady selling book that says that no one can be the best forever.

Lee Miae, Baleunmirae Publishing Company 2010, 144p, ISBN 978-89-9269-360-8 A children’s book based on the highly praised documentary, Tears of the Amazon. It deals with the Amazon, the ecological crisis, and the importance of the environment.

Bicycle Thief

A Newspaper for the Bathroom

From Intellectuality to Spirituality

Pak Wansuh; Illustrator: Han Byoung-ho Da Rim, 1999, 284p, ISBN 89-8772-121-3 A steady seller for children, illustrated for a more enjoyable reading, that deals with the issues of theft and conscience.

Editorial Department, Samseong Publishing Co. 2009, 280p, ISBN 978-89-1507-408-8 A newspaper for children, a copy of which can be stuck on the bathroom wall each day. Information on the economy, history, and sports are printed in the form of newspaper articles so that children may read with interest.

Lee O-young, Yolimwon Publishing Co., 2010 304p, ISBN 978-89-706-3651-1 A book of confession by Lee O-young, who served successively as the Minister of Culture, Sports, and Tourism. Known as the intellect of the era, Lee talks candidly about his faith and the process through which he became a Christrian.

Hackers TOEIC Vocabulary David Cho, Hackers Language Research Center 2010, 504p, ISBN 978-89-9070-034-6 The Hackers series is the bible for studying TOEIC. The book helps readers learn the vital TOEIC vocabulary in 30 days, in a fun, easy manner.

Mom, I Like This Outfit Kwon Yoon-duck Gilbut Children Publishing Co., Ltd., 2010, 56p ISBN 978-89-5582-099-7 A lovely picture book about the clothes Korean children wear in the different months of the year, along with stories about their everyday life. The revised version comes with paper dolls.

Hon. Chang. Tong : Do You Have These 3 ?

Lee Jee-hoon, Sam & Parkers, 2010, 304p ISBN 978-89-9264-786-1 A book by the editor of “Weekly Biz,” the business/ economics section of Chosun Ilbo, about the three keys to success gathered by interviewing CEOs and scholars of the world.

From Intellectuality to Spirituality

Mom, I Like This Outfit

Tears of the Amazon for Children

A Newspaper for the Bathroom

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 11

Publishing Trends

Seoul International Book Fair 2010 © Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.

Kim Kyung-uk giving a book reading

A Meeting of Writer and Reader – Book Concert Culture Spreads There is only one way for readers to encounter books. That is, to actually pick up a book and read it. However, there are various ways for readers to meet authors; for example, in newspaper and magazine interviews, on television publishing news, and in signing sessions and public lectures.

Recently in Korea, readers who have met writers by participating in so-called book concerts are on the increase. A book concert is a modest event on a small stage, where the author invites readers to come and hear them talking about their work.

A musician whose style of music suits the book is on stage with the writer, and gives a live performance, the music providing a background to a reading from the book.

From the author’s point of view, a book concert is an event that is considerably less pressurized than a conversation with readers. This is because the writer does not have to lead the meeting alone. Another advantage is that, with the help of the music, the author can meet readers in a relaxed atmosphere. There is quite a burst of activity in organizing this sort of event because readers are eager to know more 12 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

about the author’s personal life in the same way they might learn from essays or selfdevelopment books. From the readers’ point of view, such events are attractive because they have the added bonus of being able to watch a performance, as well as meeting the writer face to face.

The cable television channel PBC is producing a regular book concert program, visiting various places in Korea and bringing together books, music, and readers. Publishing companies too are rushing to organize their own book concert events, and are bringing out new publications on the topic. Regarding tickets, bookings and distribution are often dealt with by the event corners of online bookstores.

W hen ma rket ing ta ke s t he form of book concerts, choosing music that fits the atmosphere of the book is vital.

Otherwise, an event that has taken a lot of trouble to organize will not contribute anything towards promoting the book and its author; the book will end up merely playing a supporting role to the music. The 2010 Seoul International Writers’ Festival also featured a short book concert which was enthusiastically received. As an analog method in a digital age, book concerts seem a gentle way of marketing books.

By Kim Ji-eun

“The Book Reads the Future” was the slogan for the 16th Seoul International Book Fair, which was held over five days from May 12-16. Over 660 publishers from a ll over the world had booths, including well-known Korean publishers such as Woongjin Think Big, GimmYoung Publishers, and Munhakdongne; Peking University Publishing House from China; Bungeishunju and Diamond Inc. from Japan; and Amarin Printing and Publishing PCL from Thailand. Publishers made active progress in making copyright deals, and at the same time staging various events for ordinary readers visiting the book fair.

The highlight of this year’s Seoul International Book Fair was, without a doubt, the events surrounding the French author Bernard Werber, who was selected in a survey as the writer Korean readers most wanted to meet. The author said of the ‘Werber syndrome,’ whereby his books The Ants, God and most recently Paradise beca me bestsellers the moment they were published, “I am delighted that my novels are loved in Korea even more than in France,” and greatly appreciated the opportunity to forge a closer connection with his Korea n readership through lectures and signing sessions. France was this year’s Guest of Honor, and French publishing compa nies visited Korea alongside a number of famous French authors apart from Werber, including Marc Levy and Hervé Tullet, and opened a window of new opportunity by providing a basis for networking between Korean and French publishers with activities such as an exhibition of books about France, a French publishing forum, and other cultural events.

Professionals’ Day, which was first introduced last year, was a huge success again this year. The organizing committee designated the opening day of fair, May 12, as Professionals’ Day, and set up a copyright center and a consultation desk within the pavilion. Korean and overseas copyright agents worked to adva nce business in the import and export of copyrights, creating an atmosphere of even greater vibrancy than previous years.

By Richard Hong

Spotlight on Martyr Ahn Jung-geun March 26, 2010, was the 100th anniversary of the patriotic death of Ahn Junggeun. Commemorative events have been held one after another throughout Korean society. In the early 20th century, Korea was invaded by Japan and was subjected to ma ny years of colonia l rule. A hn Jung-geun protested against the unjust Japanese rule and at Harbin Station in Manchuria he shot Ito Hirobumi, who had spearheaded the colonization of Korea. Ahn was instantly arrested by the Japanese, and then transferred to Lushun Prison where he was executed.

In order to pay t ribute to A hn’s sacrifice for his country, reassessment of Ahn is currently very active in Korea. The famous Korean novelist Yi Mun-yol has published Immortality, a novel about the life of Ahn, in which he portrays a man who lived life boldly but brief ly, like a spark. Actually, Ito Hirobumi Shoots Ahn Jung-geun is a novel written jointly by history scholar Professor Yi Tae-jin and Professor Cho Dong-sung, a descendent of Ahn’s mother, Cho Maria. Uniquely, it tells the sad story of the sufferings of Ahn’s

son. Two other publications are A Critical Biography of Ahn Jung-geun, which gives an objective and realistic account based on historical documents and witness records, and Ahn Jung-geun’s 11 Days in Harbin, which traces like a documentary Ahn’s progress from his arrival in Harbin to his removal to Lushun Prison on November 1.

In addition, On Peace in East Asia has been published, a collection of studies on Ahn’s vision of East Asian peace.

2010 is not only the 100th anniversary of A hn’s death, but is also the 100th anniversary of Japan’s forced annexation of Korea and the 60th anniversary of the start of the Korean War. In 2010, Korean publishers plan to introduce a stream of new books that reappraise modern Korean history, starting by focusing on patriotic martyr Ahn Jung-geun.

By Han Mihwa

Monk Beopjeong’s Books Fill Bestseller List One of the hottest news topics in the Korean publishing world during the first half of 2010 has been the explosion in popularity of the books by the Venerable Beopjeong, who recently pa ssed away. Beopjeong was a Buddhist monk greatly revered by the Korean people. Even allowing for the fact that religious leaders are extremely influential in Korea, Beopjeong is a special case.

Beopjeong was born in 1932 in Haenam, Jeollanam-do (province), in t he sout hwestern pa r t of t he Korea n peninsu la. He bec a me a Buddhist monk in 1954. In the 1970s, he resisted the military dictatorship and took part in the democratization movement, but then in 1975, he suddenly left the scene for a small retreat near his hometown. The collection of prose he wrote there, Non-Possession, became very popular, and Beopjeong started to gain attention as a writer. From its publication in 1976 up to present, Non-Possession, which sets out Beopjeong’s philosophy of non-possession in simple and concise language, has sold three million copies.

Beopjeong left behind his lifetime’s legacy of over 50 original works and translations, over 30 of which are still on the market today. The popularity of Beopjeong’s books stems from the fact that in his last will and testament he said, “I have written too much,” and requested that after his death his books would not be further published. Two months after he passed away on March 3, Beopjeong’s book s accounted for a round ha lf of all Korean bestsellers. One publishing company made sales of 700,000 copies during the month following his death, while the 1993 edition of Non-Possession has recorded sales worth 1.1 million Korean won in online auction sa les.

Moreover, the extraordinary situation has arisen where books that Beopjeong expressed a liking for, such as Walden by David Thoreau, have followed suit and are also selling well.

T he popu la rit y of t he venerable Beopjeong’s books can be summed up with the fact that his philosophy of nonpossession offers a gleam of comfort to Koreans who are forced to live life in the fast lane due to excessive competition, and are weary in body and soul. But, ironically, the sales of Beopjeong’s books are directly opp o s e d to h i s ph i lo sophy of nonpossession. There is even an expression for this - “Wanting to possess non-possession.”

By Shin Junebong

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 13

Special Section

Korea's Next Generation

Defying the Idea of “Generations” G generation—taking the first letter of the word “global”—was born just as overseas travel, language study programs abroad, and study abroad became commonplace, and naturally came to form a global mindset and attitude without any antagonism or insecurities toward the world’s leading powers. But the term “G generation” fails to embody the diversing of today’s youth.

The older generation always tries to restrict the younger generation. This is a common phenomenon true of all times and places. Life is difficult and the future is uncertain. To the older generation who has already experienced these truths, the younger generation appears immature, lazy, and unnerving. They thus try to guide the youth towards a safer and more certain path.

But is this all there is to it? Is the older generation perhaps driven by their ambitious desire to keep the young from deserting the world that they have worked so hard to establish? In an attempt to tow the youth to the world they have formed—a secure and pleasant world that they have designed and organized?

Such attempts accord the older generation of Korean society a certain historicity. For the older generation, the 20th century was a series of trials and tribulations. Even if Japanese colonization and the Korean War can be set aside as events of the past, this generation still had to endure the burdens of poverty and dictatorship. They had to lead their families out of poverty and protect them from the cruel realities of living under a dictatorship.

When their children—whom they had sacrificed so much to raise—participated in protests for democratization or took paths that veered away from their wishes, they tried to stop them with tears. Since survival itself was an absolutely necessary task, generational conflict was always extremely pressing and grave.

However, Korean society began to change rapidly in the 1990s. Three distinct types of change became apparent. First, democracy saw a steady progress. The authoritarian rule of the past was no longer possible. The end of severe dictatorship also meant that the many related forms of authoritarianism, both tangible and intangible, could no longer be in place. Once the dictatorship collapsed, revisions of laws and policies soon followed.

The loss of authority combined with the factors mentioned above swiftly dismantled the existing customs.

The second factor is the diversification of culture. The younger generation has moved beyond the mere role of cultural users (consumers) to become active producers (or participants). Thanks to the work of young artists who felt tired of the authoritarian nature of the established arts culture, the society’s culture began to diverge into many channels and branches, and this became the language of youth. The older generation determined that it would be safer to tolerate the youth’s cultural desires as long as they didn’t completely break away on a fundamental level. That Seo 14 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

Taiji and Boys, the most iconic pop group in the 1990s, became celebrities loved by everyone, proves this point. The time period was marked by the blurring of generational conflicts through the flourishing of cultural production.

Lastly, there was economic change. I have deliberately used the term “change” instead of “progress.” The 1997 IMF crisis and the 2009 economic crisis, which happened about a decade apart, prompt the use of the term “change,” notwithstanding all the superficial progress during this period. This economic context reveals that today’s generational conflict exists on a plane very different from that of the past. If generational conflict in the past manifested as political conflict or cultural tension, today’s conflict is strictly dictated by economic realities.

In other words, Korean society has reached a situation where its very survival is threatened. Most of the youth today endures a grueling university entrance examination process only to face heavy tuition costs, and if they survive the murderous war for employment, they only end up with bad credit. Given these conditions, generational conflict rarely occurs within the individual family unit. Today’s older generation has endured the political situation of the 1980s and the cultural shift of the 1990s.

They rarely exhibit the authoritarian patriarchy of the past.

In fact, generational problems are more often seen among certain groups and the majority of the younger generation.

Through jargon, those who hold cultural power are constantly casting a net of language in order to keep hold of the youth trying to break free. The most common example is the attempt to account for certain generations by using letters of the alphabet.

There was the X generation in the 1990s. The letter “X,” which was used as a symbol of intense negation, soon became the fashionable sign of the digital industry. And the icons of pop culture that represented the contemporary youth culture degenerated into ad campaigns for soft drinks, automobiles, and electronics trying to create a sophisticated image. Then there was the W generation at the time of the 2002 World Cup, as well as the N generation in response to the flourishing Internet culture.

Although such nomenclature does reflect certain aspects of the younger generation’s lifestyle and sensibility, whether it can reflect an entire generation remains dubious.

The G generation, which suddenly emerged following the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, can be regarded in the same vein. Referring to the global stage of today’s youth, the name G generation has taken the first letter of the word “global.” Those who belong to the G generation entered elementary school at a time when globalization became a national slogan and grew up enjoying the diverse cultures of the global community in real time via the Internet.

Just like the youth of any given time in history, today’s younger generation is also disgruntled and difficult to control.

The older generation (especially those who have to turn the youth into active consumers in the short run and industrious workers in the long run) forms a mold using specialized language and forces the younger generation into it.

Nevertheless, there are limits to the older generation’s linguistic strateg y to turn the youth into conformists by simplifying their complex inner world through the use of terms like “initiative” and “challenging spirit.” The complexity of their inner workings and the diversity of reality do not permit such a strategy. The term G generation fails to address the many young people who do not fall prey to (or who try to escape) this linguistic trap. There are some who join the ranks of the working poor who earn a mere 880,000 won a month, while there are others like a

certain noteworthy university student who quit school “to pursue the path toward becoming human.” Countless young people, as their parents had done in their youth, continue to search for their own paths, as they feel lost and anguished in all sorts of ways and make the most dignified decisions they can. Their struggle—the pursuit of a better tomorrow amidst the present confusion and turbulence—is not exclusive to Korean society, but a rather typical phenomenon all around the world.

By Jeong Yoonsoo (cultural critic)

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 15

Special Section

Korea's Next Generation

At the Top of Their Game Sports, gastronomy, fashion, and classical music. Young Koreans are distinguishing themselves in their respective fields and drawing international attention. Their books contain stories about their passion for their dreams, and their endless effort toward making their dreams come true, rather than mere stories of success.

Recently, Korea’s Hanguk Ilbo and Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun held a joint survey on Korean and Japanese public opinion. In response to the question, “Please name up to three celebrities or athletes of the other country that you feel close to,” Kim Yu-na was the most popular answer among Japanese respondents and Asada Mao, among Korean respondents. It is interesting that Koreans and Japanese picked these figure skaters that competed vigorously for the gold medal at the Vancouver Winter Olympics. They most likely remember their rivalry as a “beautiful match.”

In Japan, it is common to find new books on famous athletes.

There are already some 10 books on Asada Mao. Even though she ended up winning the silver medal, two new books—Asada Mao: Power & Beauty by her nutrition and training support team and Princess Mao by Aoshima Hirono—have been newly published since the Olympics ended. There is even a book on Mao specifically for readers aged 15 to 18. But Mao has yet to author her own book.

Twenty-year-old Kim Yu-na’s book Kim Yu-na’s 7-Minute Drama was published right before the Vancouver Olympics. The book is all the more meaningful because it is a compilation of notes Kim recorded herself during her training. In the author’s preface, she explains that she decided to "try writing it myself,” asking her mother for help with events in her childhood and sometimes watching old recordings of competitions from long ago.

The book’s title refers to the short program, which is 2 minutes and 50 seconds, and the long program, which is 4 minutes and 10 seconds; combined together, they are 7 minutes long. Kim goes on to tell the readers about going to the Gwacheon indoor skating rink with her family and trying on skates for the first time; training to become a figure skater with Michelle Kwan as her role model; entering her first international competition; rebelling during her adolescence; forming the dream team (with coach Brian Orser and choreographer David Wilson); and participating in all sorts of competitions. The book is a product of the writing Kim managed to squeeze into her hectic schedule, which alternates between training and rest from 8 am to 7 pm everyday.

Another athlete who has widely advertised the power of Korean women is the golfer Shin Jiyai. The youngest recipient of the Rookie of the Year award in LPGA history and the winner of the most prize money as well as events, Shin was also selected as the Female Player of Year by the Golf Writers Association 16 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

of America in 2009. She first started playing golf as a member of the “Pak Se Ri Kids” in the fifth grade. On her journey to the top, however, Shin had to overcome a great sadness. Even after the tragic death of her mother in a car accident in 2003, she did not give up golf and prevailed against other players at every crucial moment, thanks to her strong spirit, which earned her the nickname “the queen of finals.” The book Shin Jiyai, the Extraordinary Queen of Finals was written by her father Shin Jae-sup. She has said about the book, “It contains stories about the difficult times in my life, so it will help keep me on course whenever I begin to slack off.”

The 29-year-old Park Ji Sung, who plays for the prestigious Manchester United, published his second book this year. If Endless Challenge, published in March 2006, focused on his process of joining the Premier League, his new essay Giving Up Myself to Become a Greater Self introduces his secrets for achieving his dream. After receiving confirmation that he had been excluded from the roster for the 2007-2008 UEFA Champions League final between Manchester United and Chelsea on the day of the game, Park made a new resolution: “I continually overcame my own limits in order to join Manchester United. The only way to survive now is to give up everything and be reborn anew.” His survival strategy was a “strategy of devotion, whereby he would always run harder than everyone else and secure an open space for his colleagues.”

Koreans have also been distinguishing themselves in fashion and gastronomy. Edward Kwon is the head chef of Dubai’s 7 star Burj Al Arab. (The highest rating that can be given to a hotel is 5 stars, but the Burj is called a 7-star hotel because it is considered far superior to other 5-star hotels.) There was once a time when he wanted to become a priest. After failing the university entrance examination on his first try, he ended up entering the Culinary Arts Department at a technical college and pursuing a career as a chef, eventually achieving his dream of becoming a hotelier. The 2006 recipient of Dubai’s Chef of the Year Award, Kwon reached the top, not with Korean cuisine but with continental cuisine. He has remarked: “To cook the dishes of another country, another culture is to understand their religion, culture, race, dietary habits, ingredients, and history.” Cooking 7 Stars contains the recipes for success from the successful “kimchi chef ” who has conquered Dubai.

Fashion designer Choi Bumsuk began selling fabric in Dongdaemun market with just a high school degree and rose to

Sookyoung’s Shooting for the Stars in New York. This book is a compilation of interviews conducted with 20 Korean or KoreanAmerican New Yorkers who are diligently working their way to the top in the world’s most competitive city. If the Emmy Awardwinning ABC News anchor Juju Chang, is one of the forerunners, then the 22-year-old ballerina Seo Hee, who has been chosen to play the lead in American Ballet Theater’s new production, is one of the youngest. Other interviewees include a violinist, fashion photographer, chef, and a florist. One cannot help but express awe at the diversity of the fields in which these young Koreans and Korean-Americans are excelling.

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By Kim Hyunmi (editor-in-chief, Weekly Dong-A)

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become a fashion icon among young people through his brand Mu, which means “to have nothing and to know nothing.” In 2006, just three years after he launched the brand General Idea

by Bumsuk, he became the first Korean to open a showroom in Printemps and Le Bon Marche department stores, and in 2009 he successfully showed his collection in New York Fashion Week both in the spring and the fall. From a Single Wall is an autobiographical essay that tells his life story—from leasing a corner stall near Hongik University to selling his line in a prestigious foreign department store. In his other book Idea by Choi Bumsuk, he introduces his sources of inspiration, including vintage items, art galleries, and pop art. Choi has surprised the world once again by becoming a professor at the Korean National University of Arts without a college degree.

There are many Korean photographers working on the global stage, but it is rare to find a female photographer in photojournalism, a field dominated by white male photographers.

Thus, Jean Chung is a rare and welcome gem. In 2004 her photos of the tsunami in Thailand landed on the front page of The New York Times, and in 2007 her work capturing the appalling conditions faced by pregnant women in Afghanistan, earned her the Pierre & Alexandra Boulat Award at the international photojournalism festival in Perpignan, France; these photos went on to become the first prize winner of the Days Japan Photojournalism Awards. Chung has published three books to date. A Photographer in Kabul is a collection of her work in Afghanistan; Tears in the Congo, her work in the Democratic Republic of Congo; and Struggling for Hope, her reportage on Brazil, the Congo, and the Middle East.

For those interested in learning more about young Koreans active in a wider variety of fields, I would recommend Cho

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1. Kim Yu-na’s 7-Minute Drama Kim Yu-na, JDM Co., Ltd., 2010, 288p ISBN 978-89-451-2515-6 2. Shin Jiyai, the Extraordinary Queen of Finals Shin Jeseop, Minumin, 2010, 287p ISBN 978-89-9421-017-9

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3. Giving Up Myself to Become a Greater Self Park Ji-sung, Joongang Books, 2010, 268p ISBN 978-89-2780-030-9 4. Endless Challenge Park Ji Sung, Random House Korea, 2006, 236p ISBN 978-89-5986-529-1 5. Shooting for the Stars in New York Cho Sookyoung; photographer: Kim Nayoung Sigongsa, 2010, 414p ISBN 978-89-527-5555-1 6. Photographer in Kabul Jean Chung, The Dong-A Media Group, 2008, 304p ISBN 978-89-709-0549-5 7. Cooking 7 Stars Edward Kwon, Bookhouse Publishers, 2009, 285p ISBN 978-89-5605-305-9 8. From a Single Wall Choi Bumsuk, Bookhouse Publishers, 2007, 316p ISBN 978-89-5605-189-5

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 17

Special Section

Korea's Next Generation

Cultural Guerrillas Break the Rules Nowadays one can be an actor and a writer, as well as a director.

This is not just because today’s younger generations are particularly multi-talented; rather, it is also because they invest a lot of time and effort in things they enjoy.

According to an old Korean adage, “You must dig only one well if you want to succeed.” The value placed on a singular focus has long been upheld like a creed in Korean society. Parents have taught their children that any activities other than studying are a waste of time. When a specialist ventures outside of his or her area of specialization, it is described as “stepping out.” Those who do not focus on a single goal have been criticized negatively.

However, Korean society is beginning to see a great many young people who pursue several paths at once.

Unlike college students in the past, today’s students do not devote themselves only to academics. Hobbies and volunteer work are considered essential. Their interests and their thoughts on jobs and careers are varied; they do not decide on a single profession and dedicate all their time to pursuing it. Whether it is music, film, or electronic equipment, they think it is natural to pursue academics and the things they love simultaneously. For them, constantly keeping at something they do not enjoy is a sin, and enjoying things that make them happy is the supreme good.

One person who exemplifies this pattern is Ku Hye-sun. Her popularity surged, thanks to her leading role in the popular TV drama series “Boys over Flowers.” But she did not rest content with herself as a television actress good at cute roles. In 2009, she made her debut as a writer with the publication of her novel Tango, which even includes her own illustrations.

Ku used the motif she thought of while listening to tango music to write this novel. Tango is a dance that requires a perfect harmony between a man and a woman; love for Ku is like a tango. The novel is a rhythmic unfolding of the story of a woman who has to overcome pain after being abandoned by her lover, to whom she had been so devoted. However, Ku’s pursuits did not end there. She held an exhibition of her paintings, in addition to recording an album with her own compositions and throwing a concert. Moreover, she has made her directorial debut with the short film The Madonna and is currently awaiting the release of her first feature film titled Magic. It is not clear which is her main job and which is her hobby. The blurring of the boundary between work and play is a new trait that characterizes today’s youth.

Furthermore, younger generations nowadays do not set 18 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

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1. A Very Private, Long Relationship Mah Chonggi and Lucid Fall, Woongjin Think Big Co., Ltd. 2009, 261p, ISBN 978-89-01-09566-0 2. Shouting You to the World Big Bang, edited by Kim Seah, Sam & Parkers, 2009, 266p ISBN 978-89-92647-60-1 3. Tango Ku Hye-sun, Woongjin Think Big Co., Ltd., 2009, 303p ISBN 978-89-01-09342-0

professional success or making money as their only goal.

In fact, what’s remarkable is that they are more concerned about pursuing happiness than success or money. The famous Korean boy band Big Bang is a great example. In their essay Shouting You to the World published in 2009, they give an honest account of their dreams and struggles. They admit that they did not wait around for the world to permit them something. Instead, they “shouted to the world” the only thing they wanted. Therein lies what has created the “Big Bang syndrome.” Before every performance, everyone gathers, and shouts, “Let’s go have a good time” (literally, “let’s play together”). For them, singing and performing on the stage are not examples of work, but play.

In the past, such behavior might have been frowned upon.

Afraid of what others might think, the older generations refrained from neglecting their work but when they did, they did so in secret. But to the younger generations today, being different from others has become the object.

Having a game of their own with which they can amuse is an effective way to demonstrate their identity, which is distinct from that of other people. Their other activities are what form their individual identity.

This observation is true of Tablo, the leader of the trio Epik High, which became the first Asian group to land the No. 1 song on the iTunes hip-hop chart. After majoring in creative writing and literature at Stanford University, Tablo has been working as a singer in Korea. In 2008, he published Pieces of You, a collection of the fiction that he had written during college. The book became an instant bestseller as soon as it was published. While the success can be attributed partly to his existing fans, it was also thanks to the positive reception of his unique work, which offers an honest account of the confusion and secrets he bore as a 20-yearold.

The one-person band project Lucid Fa ll published an essay collection titled A Very Private, Long Relationship in 2009. Lucid Fall’s biography is unusual as well: he majored in chemistry as an undergrad and completed a doctorate in bioengineering at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne.

His thesis drew a lot of attention, even getting published in Nature Chemistry, which belongs to the Nature Publishing Group. A Very Private, Long Relationship is a collection of the letters Lucid Fall exchanged with the poet Mah Chonggi during his many years of studying abroad. Even though he is an engineering student, he is a singer-songwriter who is also well versed in Brazilian music and enjoys poetry.

The omni-directional nature of young people’s interests, their multi-ta lents —that which ma kes them cultura l guerillas—are no longer regarded as a neglect of their work, but rather as the driving force behind creativity. For young Koreans today, work and play have become somewhat integrated. Their efforts to lead a unique life unlike anybody else’s are also a new aspect of Korean society that reflects its dynamism.

By Han Mihwa (critic)

4. Pieces of You Tablo, Munhakdongne Publishing Corp., 2008, 250p SBN 978-89-546-0690-5

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 19

Special Section

Korea's Next Generation

The Road Schooler: Searching for Answers on the Road On the road, they encounter people who are different from them and seek their wisdom.

On the road, they are thrilled as they reconfigure the meaning of work and play that they have learned in life. For them, this is a process of self-discovery that cannot be learned at any top university and the road is another type of school.

What does traveling mean to young Koreans?

Without going too far back in time, let us examine the period following the 1988 Seoul Olympics. The following year the South Korean government liberalized overseas travel.

From then on, most middle-class families and newlyweds began to travel to tourist attractions in Europe and the U.S. or luxury resorts in Southeast Asia. Around this time, college students in Korea started going on short-term backpacking trips in small groups during school breaks.

In fact, overseas travel gave rise to a backpacking boom among teens as well as people in their 30s that centered on Europe and lasted through the mid-1990s.

These adventurers were driven by the desire to broaden cultural horizons by visiting museums and historical sites in Europe, enjoying personal freedom, and experience first-hand being global citizens by befriending locals. However, as a result of the 1997 IMF financial crisis, Korea turned into a mature society with no new jobs created, and the backpacking boom subsided. Young Koreans have since been driven into the immense competition of going abroad to study English rather than give into the temptation of backpacking. Even in this context, a small number of young people are beginning to show signs of traveling as self-discovery.

Journey to Wonderland and One Planet Photo Studio can be seen as touchstones that reveal how much the sensibility of young Koreans has matured. Lee Changsu, the 20 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

author of Journey to Wonderland which was published in 2006, traveled the so-called “revolutionary road” by bike to retrace Che Guevera’s steps, while Choi Changsoo published One Planet Photo Studio based on his travels to mostly poor countries from Mongolia to Ethiopia. One detects differences in the sensibilities of the 20-something authors captured in their books, but they share the main narrative of the rediscovering of oneself through exposure to the nature and history of unfamiliar worlds.

What does it mean for two young men in their 20s who have graduated from the most prestigious universities in Korea to escape the pattern of a “successful life” consisting of graduationemployment-marriage and instead, rewrite their self-narratives through arduous travels to unfamiliar places? Lee’s book begins with Carl Jung’s famous quote, “Anyone who refuses to experience life must stif le his desire to live—in other words, he must commit partial suicide.” And it ends with a quote from the movie Waterboys: “It's better to be a fool for one day than to regret having lived a life devoid of meaning.” Choe, on the other hand, writes the following as his travels draw to an end: “Recently, I climbed to the top of a tower in Bagan, Myanmar and thought, ‘I’d be happy to die right now.’ It was because I felt that I’d fulfilled my mission on this earth.”

“Partial suicide” or “I’d be happy to die right now” are ironic expressions of slightly emotional confessions from two young men: life’s goal and fulfillment, for them, lie not in gaining admission to a prestigious university or getting hired by a top corporation, but in their solitary travels and being on the road. They are metaphorical expressions of the thrill they feel as they reconfigure the meaning of work and play that they have learned in life.

Once we arrive at The School of the Road and Road Schooler, both published in 2009, Lee and Choi’s travels no longer seem like pioneering travelogues for 20-somethings; they are now adventures of growth that can be experienced as early as one’s teens. Even if we do not travel to remote parts of the world, we can still experience travel of the everyday in our own neighborhoods.

Before writing The School of the Road subtitled “18-year-old Bora’s Road Schooling,” Lee Bora made a documentary called Road Schooler about a group of teenagers. Road Schooler is the collaborative effort of 12 teenagers who belonged to this group.

It is a memoir of these teenagers who, having declared themselves as “road schoolers,” encounter people who are different from them and seek their wisdom. Therein lies the reason for our curiosity about what kinds of stories they will grow up to tell in their 20s and 30s, having experienced first-hand in their teens that travel is the essence of learning as well as life itself. And how will they be different from Lee and Choi?

If we collected in one place the trend of backpacking in Europe among college students, young people’s travels to remote places of the world for the purpose of self-discovery and examination, and teenagers’ “declaration of road schoolers,” as well as the travelogues of young people that will be published in the future, we would be able to see a generation’s inner longings and global concerns unfold in a chronological panorama.

By Kim Jongwhee (vice-director of Haja Center)

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1. The School of the Road Lee Bora, Hankyoreh Publishing Company, 2009, 249p ISBN 978-89-8431-330-9 2. Road Schooler Gogeulri, Alternative Culture Press, 2009, 247p ISBN 978-89-85635-83-7 3. Journey to Wonderland Lee Changsu, Sigongsa, 2006, 249p ISBN 978-89-5274-538-5 4. One Planet Photo Studio Choi Changsoo, Bookhouse Publishers, 2008, 247p ISBN 978-89-5605-197-0

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 21

Special Section

Korea's Next Generation

Crazy About Their Dreams It doesn’t matter whether they can make a living. They also don’t care about their status or reputation. In order to pursue their dreams, young Koreans put everything on the line.

It is often remarked that “kids today don’t relentlessly pursue anything.” Unlike their parents’ generation, they rarely have a clear objective to succeed in life. This is accounted for by the fact that they grew up in affluence, an explanation which reflects the older generation’s envy as well as concern. But we should be so partial in our judgment. The ambitions of today’s youth—dreaming of attending not just one of the top Korean universities but an Ivy League college and becoming No. 1 on the international stage—are in some ways more ambitious than those of their parents. They have expanded their horizons beyond Korea. There are also many eccentrics who devote themselves to things that might not reward them in terms of money or reputation, as long as they believe in the value of their work.

Youth who are crazy about their dreams—today’s generation, liberated from the struggle to make ends meet, can happily enjoy the challenge of pursuing it all.

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A Red Belt in Studying, A Black Belt in Perseverance The author Park Wonhee excelled in academics. After graduating from high school in two years, she was accepted to 10 top American universities including Harvard, Princeton, Stanford, Cornell, UC Berkeley, Johns Hopkins, Duke, University of Michigan, and Northwestern. What makes this feat all the more surprising is the fact that Park had never studied abroad. In her book A Red Belt in Studying, A Black Belt in Perseverance, she introduces her study methods. She tells her readers that she was a social outcast in her first year of middle school. It was then that she decided she would earn the highest marks in her grade to earn the respect of her teachers and peers. She read and re-read her textbooks to a point where she knew even all the maps and marks.

She often stayed up until 3 a.m., burning the midnight oil. Even her parents began to ask her to take it easy. To master English, she spent two hours everyday reading English texts (she says she kept this up even during exams); with math problems, she kept at them on her own without consulting an answer sheet, no matter how difficult they were. She emphasizes that she is not a genius by any means; she always set her sights on becoming the very best and devoted all her efforts and passion toward her goal. Perseverance and passion are the keywords to her success that have been her guiding principles since her early teens.

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1. A Red Belt in Studying, A Black Belt in Perseverance Park Wonhee, Gimm-Young Publishers, Inc., 2010, 267p ISBN 978-89-349-1631-4 2. Oh My, I Made It! Kim Oujun et al., Lifelong Learning Books, 2009, 320p ISBN 978-89-640-6902-8 3. Advertising Genius Yi Jeseok Yi Jeseok, Hakgojae, 2010, 216p ISBN 978-89-5625-107-3 4. Goodbye Jean-Marie d’or, The Small Window of Paris Kim Jihyun, Munhakdongne Publishing Corp., 2010, 368p ISBN 978-89-93928-07-5

Oh My, I Made It! The world’s standards of success is set in stone: a high social status, a secure job, financial independence, and a comfortable family life are some of the criteria. The pressure to adhere to these standards burdens everyone in the modern world. Even if we manage to land on the road to success, we can’t rest easy, for we might fall behind at any moment. This restlessness is inevitable, since the standards of success lie outside of ourselves.

Oh My, I Made It! is a book that studies the secrets to success of 10 figures who paid little attention to the world’s standards.

Instead, they carved out places for themselves in the world where they pursued their own self-development. No matter what others said, they stuck to the paths they enjoyed and had chosen for themselves. This book shows that there is more than one road to success.

The book examines a diverse group of people including: Kim Oujun, the head of Korea’s first Internet media Ddanji Ilbo; Ban Ejung, a full-time art critic; and Sung Namhun, a documentary photographer. Their advice for finding the road to success is delightful: “pursue your dreams to the bitter end”; “take your life seriously”; “you can learn from everything in life”; and “it’s never too late.” One can feel the youthful energy behind these lessons.

In 2007, Kim returned to Korea after studying in France for five years. She printed her very first business card in her 30s, and she now works under the alias “ageha.” She has been involved in the album cover art for singers Kim Dong-ryul, Jeong Jae-hyeong, Yun Sang, Jo Won-sun, and the Peppers Stones, among others, in addition to overseeing the video art for various indie bands including Loros. Even though she is steadily establishing herself as an artist, it would be premature to characterize her achievements thus far as an astounding success. Nevertheless, her life is without a doubt unfolding successfully. The fact that she managed to survive in a foreign country, studying what she wanted to pursue in a foreign language—that process itself is already success.

By Lee Ji-young (reporter for the Joongang Ilbo)

Advertising Genius Yi Jeseok This is a book written by Yi Jeseok, the advertising art director who has won countless awards and honors abroad including: a Gold Pencil for design at New York City’s One Show Design Awards, one of the world’s top three advertising festivals; a Clio, known as the Oscars of advertising; and an Addy, awarded by the American Advertising Federation. In his book, Yi introduces his successful methods of coming up with ideas. Examples include: “overturn the game and change the rules;” and “try looking at it differently; look at it upside down.” As a matter of fact, Yi was considered mediocre until his teens. He didn’t do well at school or pay attention during class. Somehow he managed to earn a degree in art but he couldn’t find a job, so he set up a sign shop in his neighborhood. Sadly, no one recognized his talent. Yi refused to give up: he decided to move to New York to compete against the best of the best in advertising. For about a year, he learned English in exchange for giving free art lessons on a U.S. army base. His success story began with his acceptance into the School of Visual Arts in 2006. Six months later, he began to win one advertising competition after another. After graduating from SVA, he was courted by the largest advertising firms in the U.S. including JWT New York and BBDO. But he only worked for these firms for two years. Now he runs his own operation called the Jeski Social Campaign for his career objective has shifted from advertising for capitalist enterprises to advertising for anyone in need of assistance; in other words, from advertising products to advertising that changes society by dealing with political, economic, social, and cultural issues.

Goodbye Jean-Marie d’or, The Small Window of Paris This book is the visual artist Kim Jihyun’s memoirs of her experience studying abroad in Paris as a 26-year-old. She took off for Paris without any concrete plans, for the sake of the second half of her youth. She wasted no time worrying about getting married. Even her mother’s concerns about French being a useless language could not dissuade her. She managed to get into Ecole Nationale Superieure D’arts de Cergy-Pontoise (ENSAPC) on her third try, and she studied art by visiting galleries all over Paris. list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 23

Interview

In Tune with the Times

Gong Ji-young, the Novelist The popularity of Gong Ji-young in Korean society goes beyond imagination.

More than simply a novelist, she is a socio-cultural icon whose every move is regarded with interest by the public. Her novels and essay collections become bestsellers without fail.

In addition, there is very little separation between the author’s life and her works.

As a result, the interest of the readers often leads to their support of the dramatic life of the author. Reporter Shin Junebong seeks to reveal what it means to Gong herself that “the distance between the author’s life and her works is close,” and what are her keys to success.

On April 23, the interviewer and the interviewee met at Gong’s home. She had a meeting with readers, to be held at a large bookstore in Korea, ahead of her that day. I asked her how her book was doing in terms of sales. The classics of literature that go down through generations were bestsellers in their time, and the sales of a work is an important factor in estimating the caliber of a writer.

Gong made her literary debut with the short story “Breaking Dawn,” which deals with her participation in the labor movement in 1988. Since then, she has published about 20 volumes of work, ranging from short stories and novels to essays. “In 2008, the total volumes of all my works sold were about 8 million. I’ve stopped counting since then,” Gong said. According to the author, the work with the highest sales record was My Sister, Bongsoon, a novel, which sold 1.6 million copies. Another novel, Our Happy Hours, sold 950,000 copies, and the novels Alone Like a Rhinoceros Horn, Mackerel, The Good Girl, and the essay collection, I Will Support You No Matter What Kind of Life You Choose, each sold about 700,000 copies. The short story collections, Respect for Human Beings, Tears of Existence, and The Field of Stars, each sold about 200,000 copies. The Crucible, published in 2009, has sold 250,000 copies in just 11 months.

The numbers are relevant, for Gong is not a writer of popular literature who writes with a book’s commercial potential in mind. Gong, resorting to a Korean expression, is a writer of “pure literature.” I make no assertion that a work of art must be the bearer of truth, as Heidegger states, but I do believe that it must at least expose the truth, or be able to do so. It’s fascinating that novels and essay collections that seek seriousness, not frivolity, sell 24 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

by the hundreds of thousands.

It can be said that by seeking out sensitive social issues that the era requires or the public readership has an interest in, Gong has become successful in terms of both critical evaluation and sales. At least, the dominant assessment is that Gong cannot be excluded when speaking of the Korean literary scene of the 1990s.

Her most representative work is Alone Like a Rhinoceros Horn, published in 1993. The novel deals—through the stories of three women in their 30s who were friends in college, and who opt for divorce or suicide after periods of serious domestic discord and violence—with the oppressive and unequal patriarchal institution of family in Korean society. The work is deemed to have played a vital role in establishing feminist discourse as one of the major trends of Korean literature in the 90s. Published hand in hand in 1994, Mackerel, the novel, and Respect for Human Beings, a short story collection, contributed to the coinage of the new term, “reminiscence literature.” The two novels were labeled “reminiscence literature” for their reminiscence of the 80s, in which hope and passion were still alive in the student movement generation, to the 90s, in which the prospect of revolution disappeared due to the collapse of the socialist Eastern European bloc.

The early 1990s, in which Gong published such novels, was a time in which the Korean literary world was touched by the wind of the so-called “introspective aestheticism.” As a reaction to the literature of the 80s, which some would say was overly ideological, “the solitary writing reaching out into the interiority of an individual, lonely freedom, and the manifestation of autistic fantasies” was a refreshing breeze for Korean readers. Compared

Interview

reporter Shin Junebong and novelist Gong Ji-young

“We’ve made our way into the 90s, but the absurdity of the reality in this country hasn’t changed fundamentally. I must speak for my generation. That’s the realization I came to.” to this trend, Gong’s attempt in trying to find the cause of the external breakdown or internal division of an individual in a social context, whether it be the aftermath of the democratization movement or the patriarchal family order, was clearly distinct. In retrospect, the early 90s was a time which required an evaluation of the accomplishments and failures of the 80s, even in the area of novels, when the 80s, a time heated with the longing for revolution, could no longer continue. Where had the intensity of the 80s gone? And how was the 90s, without a breakthrough, to be lived? People wanted answers to such questions. “Respect for Human Beings,” the title piece of the short story collection by the same name, depicts in detail, through the thoughts of the narrator, those bewildered by the two questions. To the narrator, the 90s is not a time of discussing what’s right or wrong, but rather, what one likes or dislikes. It was also an era in which lonely, sleepless people found comfort in the questionable new philosophy which stated that being alive in the universe was worthwhile in itself, and so life was worth living. In a way, Gong provided a way for those who didn’t know where to turn, stuck in the gap between the 80s and 90s, to put an end to the 80s and finally accept the 90s. In other words, she’d hit the nail on the head. The focused interest on feminism, stirred up by Alone Like a Rhinoceros Horn, can also be understood in the same context. The procedural democracy of the late 80s and early 90s, which enabled to an extent the transfer of political power, had put a dent to the existing order which had stood unshaken in the society, culture, and economy of Korea.

The feminism of Alone Like a Rhinoceros Horn swiftly infiltrated the spot in which the order of patriarchal authoritarianism was being shaken.

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Let’s turn now to the questions at the beginning. First, there was the question about the key to her popularity. An experiential truth learned in the 80s of Korea was that when works of art, including novels, are reduced to a political message, the works themselves can be empty. A work of art that’s nothing but a slogan, a rough and thin framework, is meaningless. Even under the assumption that social and utilitarian values still appeal to the people of Korea, who obtained democracy by fighting against political powers in the 80s and 90s, and expressed their political stance on a large scale through the candle-lit demonstrations of 2008, those values do not guarantee the popularity of a novel.

Touching upon sensitive and volatile social issues might increase a work’s potential for popularity, but will not secure it.

A special feature on Gong, published in 2006 in Writer’s World, discussed the keys to Gong’s success. Im Yeong-bong, a critic, pointed out how speedy her novels are, like a TV show, with short chapters; how full of dialogue they are; and how they are without complex figures of speech or descriptions that interrupt the flow of the story. Choi Jaebong, a literary journalist, talked about Gong’s remarkable beauty and dramatic personal life; the clear distinction between good and evil, and the deftness through which dramatic scenes are arranged; and the colloquial form of speech. In the interview with Choi Jaebong, Gong said, “I try to write so that readers won’t get bored, because ever since I was young, I’ve disliked works that aren’t very readable,” and “I don’t try to embellish my sentences or twist them around. Great sentences arise from situations.”

During our inter view, Gong said, “I’ve always liked Hemingway and Herman Hesse, and when I was young, I thought if I became a writer, I would write short sentences like they did,” emphasizing the easiness of her writing style. She also said that she writes with the readers in mind, and in such a way that her words can be understood by all.

1 2 1. Our Happy Hours (2009, published in Italy) 2. My Sister, Bongsoon (2006, published in Bulgaria)

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3. One Very Light Feather (2009, Hankyoreh Publishing Company) 4. It’s Good, It’s All Good (2008, Alma Publishing Corp.)

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5. I’ll Support You No Matter What Kind of Life You Choose

(2008, Openhouse)

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6. My Sister, Bongsoon (2010, Openhouse) 7. Our Happy Hours (2010, Openhouse) 8. My Happy House (2008, Prunsoop Publishing Co., Ltd.) 9. Mackerel (2006, Prunsoop Publishing Co., Ltd.) 10. The Crucible (2009, Changbi Publishers, Inc.) 11. The Field of Stars (2004, Changbi Publishers, Inc.)

Touching upon the key issues of the day, but doing so in words that are easy to understand—such is the key to Gong’s popularity, and it provides a clue with which one can approach the second question, about “the distance between Gong’s personal life and her works.” It has already been pointed out that the distance between her life and works is particularly close. In the case of Gong, the consistency between her life and works has its basis in her protest against injustice and wrongs on a social level, not to mention a personal level, and a high level of ethics.

The roots of such characteristics can be traced back to the days of her debut. Gong was born in 1963 into a well-to-do family.

Her father had studied abroad in the U.S., which was a rare thing at the time, and had his own apartment and automobile, which were objects of envy. Although she could have lived an easy life, having graduated from a prestigious university, the era in which she lived did not let her be. Out of a sense of indebtedness to the democratization movement, Gong received a year of training after college graduation and plunged herself into the scene of the labor movement, participating in the protest against the illegal ballot count during the 1987 presidential elections, for which she was detained at a police station. One sleepless night, she typed up the horrific experience, which resulted in the short story, “Breaking Dawn,” her debut piece. It’s natural that Gong, who began her career as a writer in such a way, talks about the 80s and the oppression of women.

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In an interview conducted during the mid-90s, Gong stated, in explanation of her engagement in the field of reminiscence literature, “We’ve made our way into the 90s, but the absurdity of the reality in this country hasn’t fundamentally changed. I must speak for my generation. That’s the realization I came to.”

Gong’s critical mind and assessment of reality have remained unchanged through the 2000s and into the 2010s. The subjects that interest her include capital punishment, dealt with in Our Happy Hours, and the problem-ridden establishment of the haves, called into question in The Crucible, published last year.

Gong’s novels, which range from reminiscence novels ref lecting on heated times to novels pointing out socia l contradictions, have undergone changes, always in tune with the times. The genealogies of her novels, which show the flow of such changes, reflect the changes in the Korean society itself, just as they occurred.

By Shin Junebong (reporter for the Joongang Ilbo)

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Excerpt

I was still squatting by a table at the window, long after I had hung up. The house I had moved in had windows facing south. The crisp sunlight of early spring was penetrating my frayed curtains, revealing old dust piled on the narrow gaps between the telephone buttons.

There, between 1 and 2, 2 and 3… Only the corners between 4 and 1, 2 and 1, 8 and 9 were slightly safe from the dust. Probably, I pressed those buttons more often to call Mom. That reminded me I barely called anyone else. Once I had called Mom. It was when I had moved into this hilly neighborhood on a cold wintry day last month, after a blazing row with the movers over the extra charges.

Oh, yes, I did call. I called the gas and the telephone companies for new services. But I used the landlord’s phone because mine was not working yet. I also called a Chinese restaurant once. After frantically unpacking my stuff for days and nights—as if I had been in a

Bittersweet Reflection

war with someone I had hated for long until the last

My Sister Bongsoon

smelled awfully new. Wondering why it was so quiet in

Gong Ji-young, translated by Park Jung-eun Mosaic Press in U.S.A., 2005

drop of blood—I had fallen asleep around dawn. The blinding sunshine through the window woke me up and I stared absently at the unfamiliar wallpaper that this neighborhood, I got out of the bed, and called the restaurant. Of course no one answered; it was seven-thirty

My Sister Bongsoon is an autobiographical novel about a middle-class women’s reminiscence of her family’s maid. Told from the perspective of the 5-year-old narrator, this novel sheds light on the neglected servant class during Korea’s early stages of economic growth.

in the morning.

I called that particular Chinese restaurant for no other reason than to get some spicy soup delivered. But I would not have dared to call, if not for the phone number sticker of the restaurant on the windowsill—a legacy of the previous tenant. Honestly, I must confess that I was so tired of my fellow human beings and I did not want to call anyone in this quiet and new neighborhood, except the Chinese restaurant for a delivery. I was even grateful that no one there answered the phone.

Actually, I had been thinking of Bongsoon by then—a sudden reflection after more than 20 years. Maybe, I had already expected what I just heard from Mom as my

28 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

mind had raced back to Bongsoon out of the blue.

about to hang up, I called her abruptly, as if I remembered

“You see, Bongsoon disappeared again, honey.”

something. But the line was already off. What was I about

Mom was saying each syllable carefully, not to stir up

to say? Did I mean to say something like “Oh dear, how

my nerves, which were ready to explode any minute.

could she do that at fifty, Mom? Leaving four children

“Yesterday, your aunt in Moraenae bumped into

behind!” No, nothing like that… I knew it. I knew that

someone from Daeji-gol Village at a wedding and heard…

Bongsoon could do it. She could do it even if she were in

er… she eloped with a tramp dog-vendor. Really, doesn’t

her sixties; that’s how she was. First, she ran away from

she ever feel ashamed of herself, leaving four children with

her stepfather, next from a deacon’s house; then she eloped

different fathers?”

with a drycleaner guy, again with a tramp carpenter, and

“Her kids are still in school, aren’t they? Where on earth did she elope to?”

“How should I know? Thank God, her first daughter

now, with a dog-vendor… Hesitating to pick up the phone again, a strange feeling of helplessness struck me. I could not even move a finger.

got married and settled in Gwangyang! I heard the others

It was a sort of premonition that struck me dead. I

are all grown up, too! She told them she would be back

used to shiver over uncertain premonitions from time to

to get them soon, after making lots of money. No matter

time. Once, one of my college seniors, whom I hadn’t

what she said, isn’t it outrageous? Well, I meant to ask

heard of for many years, had appeared in my dream. The

more questions, but I did not, honey. After all, I can’t be

very next day I was told that he had killed himself with

responsible for her forever! No, no. I was only confused…

poison. Another time, no sooner I had dreamed of strolling

I shouldn’t have told you… But I don’t know why I am

with a friend in my old campus, I got a call from her who

having the jitters… I only heard that a man took her

was living in the U.S. I was thinking of Bongsoon as soon

away. Honestly, she is not a sleeping beauty, is she? What

as I moved here, on that morning when I woke up after

kind of man will pick up a woman old enough to be a

unpacking my stuff, wondering why it was so quiet in this

grandmother to elope with? Believe me, the man must

neighborhood.

have lured her out to slave her away. You know she is a

All of a sudden, I felt I was turning into a fatalist. I

hard worker. Don’t you remember the last time she was

was wondering if the soft skin of newborns was controlled

kicked out penniless, only to have one more child? After

from the very beginning by the massive power of the

she had worked like hell at the construction site for that

cosmos, the location of stars, the rotation of the Earth and

damn carpenter! I don’t know… She had such a miserable

the five elements of fire, water, wood, metal and earth.

childhood, and she never had a heyday… Really, no…

Then, people could never get away from those forces until

Never mind… How is your book selling, honey?”

they were re-born… If so, what was the point of grief and

I didn’t say a word. I knew exactly what Mom refrained

remorse, even if she ran away leaving four children, no,

from saying to me. “I shouldn’t upset you when you are

even if she died running away, no, no, even if I were dead

writing... It’s her fate, honey… It’s none of our business at

right now? The only job left for us was to be thunderstruck

this point how she lives or how her kids get along. After all,

at the new twist of fate and just mumble, “What is life

they are not our family… Just mind your business, honey.

anyway?” But, still…

Just yours…” Probably, something like that.

Mom must have sensed that I was very upset indeed, so she hung up after babbling few more words. When she was

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 29

Interview

An Outsider Within A Chat with Kim Young-ha Kim Young-ha is a representative of Korea’s new generation of writers.

His latest novel to be translated into English, Your Republic Is Calling You, will be published by Harcourt/ Houghton Mifflin this fall.

On a breezy, borderline windy spring day, I sat down with writer Kim Young-ha at an outdoor café with arguably the longest name in all of Seoul. Located in the Hongik University district wellknown for its indie music and club scene as well as its uncountable array of cafés, Look Outside the Window, The Wind Is Blowing, One Day from the North, One Day from the West is the kind of quiet, understated place just off the main street where you could imagine tucked in a corner. With eyes fixed to his laptop, fingers clicking in fits and spurts, a man pausing to look up in thought out a window. In other words, it’s the kind of place where Kim Young-ha feels right at home.

It was quite fitting that for a writer known as a hipster with a pulse on the state of contemporary culture and Korean society, Kim had with him a brand new iPad, not even available yet outside the U.S. Like many of his generation who went to university in the late 1980s during a time of tremendous political, economic, and societal change, or “chaos,” as Kim describes that time, he was struggling with finding a new identity in the midst of so much uncertainty. “As an author,” Kim commented “I feel my duty is to grasp and change and express the feeling of my generation.”

“My generation is different,” Kim says, in talking about how he and his contemporaries are no longer interested in writing about more traditional aspects or topics favored by Korean writers of the past. “We focus on the individual.”

Indeed, the characters that appear in Kim’s novels and short fiction are alienated, isolated, often without meaningful human connections wandering through the crowded neon-lit streets of Seoul, crammed into vehicles, trapped in elevators, or fixated on their computers while they listen to jazz, muse about Western art, 30 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

and drive imported cars.

Kim burst onto the Korean literary scene in 1996 with his short novel, I Have the Right to Destroy Myself, a story about connections and dislocations with an anonymous narrator who assists the walking wounded in committing suicide. Since then he has published several novels and dozens of short stories, over 24 of which have found their way into foreign language translations.

He’s also won numerous literary awards in his native country. His latest work, Quiz Show, which was also adapted as a musical last year, captures the inner lives of educated, talented, yet disaffected people in their 20s, groping for a cause that will give meaning to their increasingly isolated lives in cyberspace.

Likening the job of a writer as being similar to that of a spy, Kim says that of all his characters, the one he identifies with the most is Ki-yong, the North Korean protagonist-spy of his latest novel to be translated into English, Your Republic Is Calling You. According to Kim, both writers and spies spend their time observing and recording the life that’s going on around them, which at the same time puts them in the position of being slightly removed from those they attempt to get to know. “I felt myself an outsider as a university student, like Ki-yong,” he says, of the character who enters South Korea posing as a leftist activist university student during the 1980s. “After graduation I also felt like I was an outsider.”

It’s not only the distance that an observer must have in order to fully gain perspective of those being observed that makes Kim feel like an outsider. Growing up near the DMZ, often moving as a result of being raised as a soldier’s son, Kim’s sense of removal from his peers was exacerbated by an accident when he was 10years-old. His family was living in a cheap rental house on a

Interview

interviewer Kim Stoker and novelist Kim Young-ha

“I was looking for a character who sees Seoul and South Korea as a foreigner…[Ki-yong] always feels himself to be an immigrant, an illegal immigrant”

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2

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1. What Happened to the Guy Stuck in the Elevator (2006, Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd.) 2. Black Flower (2003, Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.)

3. Your Republic Is Calling You (2010, Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.)

4. I Have the Right to Destroy Myself (2005, Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.)

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military base. He and his mother were poisoned by gas fumes from a coal briquette (commonly used for heating at the time). As a result, Kim lost all of the memories from his childhood before age 10.

Without memory, without a concrete grasp of one’s past, it is hard to formulate a sense of place and belonging. Writing has been a way for him to “confront my inner problems…my past and trauma.”

“Sometimes I feel I have no roots,” Kim says. “I feel myself floating on water.” It wasn’t until he started to write in his 20s that he realized his early childhood memories had been lost. It was then that he confronted his subconscious. “Now I live just as a kind of nomad,” he says, comfortable living in Seoul or New York or any number of other cities throughout the world.

Set to be published by Harcourt/Houghton Miff lin this September, Your Republic Is Calling You tells the story of Ki-yong, a North Korean spy sent to the South who is now working as a distributor of foreign films in Seoul. He lives a typical middle class life as “The kind of man who supports his family but is ignored by them.” His wife’s indifference is masked by her secret love affair with a young college student, and their young teenage daughter is cautiously navigating her own way through adolescence. Told in a 24-hour span of time, Ki-yong has to figure out how to react after he receives “Order No. 4” commanding him to return “home”—the first directive he’s heard from Pyongyang in the past 10 years.

Kim Young-ha’s interest in the lives of those on the fringes of society takes a new turn in Your Republic Is Calling You. “This novel is about the new diaspora,” he explains. “Ki-yong is kind of an immigrant.” Kim goes on to explain how his complex antihero is not really North Korean or South Korean. “I was looking for a character who sees Seoul and South Korea as a foreigner…[Ki-yong] always feels himself to be an immigrant, an illegal immigrant.” To

be sure, Seoul from Ki-yong’s perspective is a dynamic, vibrant capitalist metropolis, yet at the same time it’s a surreal reminder of how alien he feels having grown up in the stifling “harmonica apartments” in the North. In the South he had to adapt and assimilate: “As a transplant in South Korean society, his whole mission was to adapt. He didn’t have the confidence or the courage to resist or reject change. That was a privilege of only the natives.” Ki-yong’s father told him, “Don’t be a fish; be a frog.

Swim in the water and jump when you hit the ground.”

Indeed, Kim’s depiction of the fast-paced lifestyle of Seoulites will be familiar to anyone who has spent time in the city. “Korea is a very fast changing country,” he says. “When I wrote that novel, I wanted to show Seoul to the readers, even to the Korean readers in different ways.” From the eyes of Ki-yong, an outsider within, the streets of Seoul have “never grown more familiar to him.” Kim would agree with his protagonist: “We think we know Seoul but I believe we don’t know [about] where we stay, where we live, so that’s why I combined Jongno with COEX. Jongno is a very old street and COEX is a newly built complex …Seoul is a city where everything is mixed, old things and new things, and weird things [that we take for granted.]”

These days, Kim is preparing for a year-long sojourn to New York where he will be a visiting scholar starting this fall at Columbia University. No matter where in the world he is, Kim Young-ha will continue to be a voice for those on the fringes of Korean modernity. “When I write I feel happy,” he says. “I feel alive.” Kim’s growing base of foreign readers should surely hope that he stays a happy man.

By Kim Stoker

5 6 7

8

5. I Have the Right to Destroy Myself (2006, published in Germany) 6. I Have the Right to Destroy Myself (2007, published in Turkey) 7. What Happened to the Guy Stuck in the Elevator (2008, published in Italy) 8. Your Republic Is Calling You (2009, published in France)

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9. Quiz Show (2009, published in China) 10. I Have the Right to Destroy Myself (2002, published in France) 10

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Excerpt

In the 1980s, when Ki-yong was in college, South Korea was closer to North Korea than it was to today’s South. Jobs were guaranteed for life and college students never worried about their futures.

The banks and conglomerates, with their lobbies of imported marble, seemed indestructible. Adult children took care of their parents and respected them. The president was chosen by a huge margin, through indirect election, and the opposition party existed only in name. Most people weren’t too interested in the world beyond South Korea’s borders. The North’s motto, “Let’s Live Our Way,” described South Korea during the 1980s. In redistributing resources, the government’s whim

A Spy Without A Country Your Republic Is Calling You Kim Young-ha, Translated by Chi-young Kim * This book will be published by Harcourt/ Houghton Mifflin this fall.

Your Republic Is Calling You tells the story of a spy who receives a mysterious calling to return back “home” to the North. He has 24hours to gather up the loose ends of his bourgeois life in the South.

was more powerful than market principles, so government employees were severely corrupted by rampant bribes and fraudulent dealings, just like in the North. All students, whether they were in high school or college, were in the government-controlled students’ national defense corps, heading to school a few times a week in drill uniforms. And once a month the entire citizenry would participate in civil defense drills. The capitals of both countries would turn pitch black once every few months for the mandatory blackout drills, initiated to better prepare for possible air raids.

The South today is nothing like the South of the 1980s. Today’s South is actually a completely different country, one that morphed organically into something different from the North. Now it’s

34 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

probably more like Singapore or France. Married

he’s believed that he was working a job that was

couples don’t feel the need to have children, the per

a little more dangerous than your average one. In

capita income is around twenty thousand dollars,

a world filled with large-scale layoffs and series of

the futures of banks and large conglomerates aren’t

bankruptcies, collapses of department stores and

set in stone, tens of thousands of foreigners arrive

bridges and fires in the subways, he didn’t think that

every year to marry Koreans and to obtain jobs,

his life as a forgotten spy was that perilous. But he

and elementary school students fly out of Inchon

forgot about his destiny, which hadn’t forgotten about

International Airport daily to study English abroad.

him, just like Paul Bourget’s poem that stated, “One

Russian guns are sold in Pusan, sex partners are found

must live the way one thinks or end up thinking the

online, people watch live broadcasts of the Winter

way one has lived.”

Olympics on their cell phones, San Franciscan Ecstasy is transported in FedEx boxes, and half the Korean population invests in mutual funds. The president, humorless and unable to laugh off satire, is the target of jeers, and a party representing the workers was elected to the National Assembly for the first time after liberation from the Japanese occupation. If Kiyong had predicted that the South would change like this in twenty years, he would have been treated like he was crazy.

Sitting on a red plastic Lotteria chair in Chongno -o-ga, Ki-yong thinks about the three countries he’s lived in. North Korea, the South of the 1980s and 1990s, and the South of the twenty-first century.

One is already a relic of history. He is standing at a fork in the road of his life. Which should he choose, the North or the South? For the first time in his life, he wants to kneel in front of someone and ask: What would you do? No, he would just ask, What do you think I should do? For the past twenty years,

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 35

Overseas Angle

The Last 4½ Seconds of My Life

Remembering Society’s Forgotten The Last 4½ Seconds of My Life Sung Suk-je, Edition Peperkorn, 2009

Edition Peperkorn has published more than 50 translations of Korean literature. Guenter Peperkorn, CEO of Edition Peperkorn discusses Korean your writer Sung Suk-je's collected short stories, The Last 4½ Seconds of My Life.

For almost 20 years our small publishing house has specialized in books referring to the literature and culture of East Asia, and since 1996 we have concentrated on Korea.

We have published more than 50 translations of Korean literature, among those are some of the most renowned poets like Hwang Tong-gyu, Oh Sae-young, and Chon Ponggon, as well as books with modern Korean plays by Oh Tae-Suk, Park Joh-Yeol, Kim Eui-Kyung, and Lee Kang-Baek. We published a collection of pansori songs, and books about history and cultural history – and in particular we exposed a lot of modern Korean novelists to the German reader. Even though there is only a small interest in foreign books except for those translated from the English language, it is our strong conviction that Korean literature is not any less attractive. But we think too that in order to understand Korean literature, it is indispensable to know something about the history and culture of Korea. That's why we do not concentrate on literature exclusively.

Since modern Korean literature for years has been dominated by the theme of the Korean War, the division, and all the consequences for individuals, nowadays there are young writers of a new generation who are finding their very own subjects. We are grateful to translators for turning our attention to these writers.

One of them is Sung Suk-je, born 1960, who is known for his partly unreal, partly absurd stories, in which often minor figures of society are at the center of attention: there are drunkards and thugs, criminals, and swindlers. The stories in his recently published book Die letzten viereinhalb Sekunden meines Lebens (The Last 4½ Seconds of My Life) are very different in style and form, but what they have in common is an idée fixe of the protagonists.

Hardly any of the stories has a happy ending, even if some of 36 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

them are extremely burlesque and entertaining. Two stories show the cruel fate of women as a consequence of Korean history, which proves that even younger novelists cannot free themselves from the traumatic events of the 20th century.

The fascinating cover story is about a small town gangster and the last few seconds of his life after his car crashes through a parapet and falls from a bridge into a gorge. In that moment all the personal and especially criminal events of his life pass through his mind, beginning as a knife man and ending as a minor Mafia boss. All stations of his career are described in a dry manner (complete with footnotes; for example, regarding the laws of physics of such a fall, details about the construction of the bridge, or a digression about time units in Buddhism) and partly seem like a comic strip. It is fascinating how Sung Suk-je is able to reveal the life of this disagreeable person in less than 30 pages.

This criminal was always proud to face the facts and accept the consequences, but in the very last second of his life he cries for his mother.

Such a fall is the fate of nearly all the protagonists in the stories by Sung Suk-je. They cannot evade it, but what they can do is to keep their composure. This is at long last the heart of what Sung tells in all his stories.

By Guenter Peperkorn (CEO of Edition Peperkorn)

A Mother Never Dies

Sympathy in Humor, Glamour in Simplicity A Mother Never Dies Choi Inho, The Writers Publishing House, 2008

In 2006, Professor Han Zhenqian, Chairman of the Korean Studies Research Center at Beijing University, sent his translation of A Mother Never Dies to the Writers Publishing House.

Choi Inho, the author of the original work, is one of the most influential writers in Korean literary circles. He has established a solid readership in China as well, and is now counted among the most popular Korean writers in China. Early on, I developed a keen affection for the author’s works, and became curious about this novel based on his own mother. Turning each page, I was moved by the candor and deep affection of the author. Countless works have been written about mothers, in all ages and countries, but this work is remarkable in that unlike the many works in praise and exaltation of motherhood, it portrays an ordinary mother living everyday life. Upon reading the manuscript, I decided that the work should be published. With Yu Baosheng and myself as joint editors, and with publication support from LTI Korea, A Mother Never Dies has been published in Chinese.

An autobiographical family novel, A Mother Never Dies begins when the author’s mother is 68-years-old, and describes, in the

form of journal entries or essays, the author’s change of heart and longing for his mother after she dies at the age of 80. With humor and sympathy, the author subtly portrays a mother in everyday life. Widowed in her middle age, she raised six children on her own with great difficulty. She is good-natured and timid, but shows an almost inexplicable abhorrence towards mice. Ignorant and plain, the mother is also stubborn and competitive; she is also frugal and thrifty, but from time to time, she plays tricks on her son to coax some extra money from him in addition to her allowance. In her later years, she begins to pay a lot of attention to her appearance, becomes fickle, and stirs up trouble for her children for no reason. Greatness and triviality, strength and weakness, fear and tranquility—such good and evil, and beauty and ugliness, coexist in conflict, making up the ordinary yet unique inner world of the mother.

The author depicts his mother without any exaggeration or embellishment. The book is all the sadder because it is true, describing the brutality and ruthlessness of life, but human warmth can be portrayed more convincingly through such truths.

The strength and devoted love of mothers shed an everlasting light of warmth and brightness on all the sons and daughters of the world.

Though a book about a mother, A Mother Never Dies reveals primitive truths and complexity by setting up the son as the first person point of view narrator. The narrator is a son beloved by his mother, but deliberately avoids her when she comes to his school for fear that his friends will make fun of him for his short, plain, and ignorant mother. Later, tired of her nagging, he does not go visit his mother though she lives alone because he says that he is busy. Then, as a middle-aged man, he begins to realize how difficult it is to raise children, and how extraordinary his mother’s educational philosophy was, when she hadn’t even finished elementary school herself. Her philosophy consisted simply of faith in her children.

The death of his mother pushes the narrator into endless thought. He regrets how poorly he treated his mother, who was so invaluable, and is pained that he left her feeling lonely in her later years. The middle-aged son, who has tasted both the sweetness and bitterness of life, is full of longing for his mother, and sincerely repents: “My mother, who suffered all kinds of hardships and raised, with her hands bereft of fingerprints, her children so that they grew into decent human beings, was a prisoner sentenced to life and locked up in a solitary cell by her intelligent but heartless children”; and, “I am sorry for the days past, in which I was ashamed and embarrassed of my mother.”

The mother is a mirror that reflects and corrects the son. The bitterness felt by the now-grown son gives a glimpse into longing, love, responsibility, and regret; such is the path of filial duty that we all must walk. This is a book about repentance by the son for his mother, and a moving story of a mother and a son.

The Writers Publishing House, a leading publisher of literature in China, has published various works of translated literature. Since 2002 with the support of LTI Korea, it has published works of Korean literature such as Minor League and An Anarchist’s Love, and full-length historical graphic novels such as Iljimae. The partnership between the Writers Publishing House and LTI Korea, established to facilitate the exchange of literature between Korea and China, is expected to continue.

By Chen Xiaofan (editor at the Writers Publishing House)

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 37

© Kim Jae-kyung, I’d Like to Live in Traditional Korean Houses, Dolbegae Publishers

The Place

Hanok Korea’s Traditional Houses

Houses are built upon generations of wisdom and t he epitome of adaptation to the environment.

Korea’s traditional houses, hanok, offer a unique glimpse into the lives and culture of Koreans.

I’d Like to Live in Traditional Korean Houses Dolbegae Publishers, 2007, 387p ISBN 978-89-7199-273-9

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© Park Young-chae, I’d Like to Live in Traditional Korean Houses, Dolbegae Publishers

Koreans have a saying, “without home or abode,” meaning someone so poor he has no place to go. In other words, the homeless were considered the most unfortunate. Home is the place where one sleeps, rests, and spends time with one’s family.

Home is at the center of our daily lives and communities. It is difficult to imagine life without a home. Humans have built houses from the start of history. From the caves and shelters of hunter-gatherer societies to the primitive houses of the agricultural age to high rises today, housing has always been a part of human life.

All people live at home, but they do not live in the same kind of house. Houses differ widely according to the natural environment, culture, and socioeconomic development. Igloos in the icy polar regions, bushmen huts in Africa, Bedouin tents in the desert, and stilt houses in tropical rainforests are prime examples of such houses. A house is the result of human adaptation built upon generations of human wisdom; therefore, a house says much about those that dwell in it. Looking at a house, it is possible to guess at the personality, cultural background, perception of the world and nature, and even moral values of its residents.

Korean houses are no different. Understanding hanok, or houses built in the traditional Korean style, is key to understanding Koreans—their lifestyle, values, and traditional culture. Just as one gains better understanding of the people of the Polar Regions by looking at igloos, it is possible to gain a

better understanding of Korean life and culture through their traditional houses. Back when most Koreans were farmers, most hanok were built in harmony with the hills and rivers that surrounded them. The four distinct seasons and changes in weather were also important factors.

Hanok are also distinguished by the use of natural, ecofriendly materials. Hanok have been enjoying new recognition of late, as more people are interested in green housing. Traditional hanok were built of clay, stones, wood, straw, and paper made from dak (paper mulberry). They were built on raised stone foundations, with wood used for the pillars, rafters, floors, and doors. The walls were built of clay or clay mixed with straw.

Roofs were covered with tiles of fired clay or thatched with straw or reeds. Tiled houses were for the upper class, while commoners lived in thatched roofed houses. Doors and windows were covered with paper instead of glass, and floors were also laid with oiled paper that acted as a waterproof polish.

Other distinctive features of a hanok are the ondol and maru.

Ondol, a method of heating the floor underneath using wood smoke, was installed in all rooms to guard against the cold, and the maru was an open space where the entire family could cool off during the summer.

Forms of hanok, as with dwellings in any other country, differed according to region and the socioeconomic status of owners. In the cold North, the buildings of a hanok were arranged in a square shape as to conserve heat and guard against the cold.

Windows were few and small, and roofs were low. In the South, on the other hand, the buildings of a hanok were arranged in a straight line, with many large windows, a large maru, and high roofs. In the Central regions an L shape was most popular, and combined both styles of North and South.

The layout of a hanok can be divided into rooms, maru, and courtyard (garden), but differs widely by era and owner.

Traditional spaces were designed to separate servants from owners, men from women, adults from children, and so on. Traditional hanok that survive today are mostly upper class, tiled houses that emphasize artistic as well as functional aspects.

Jinu Lee’s Houses Jinu Lee, Samin Books 2007, 252p, ISBN 89-91097-39-1

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© Park Young-chae, I’d Like to Live in Traditional Korean Houses, Dolbegae Publishers

The Place

Kim Bong-ryol’s Korean Architecture, Vols. 1~3 Kim Bong-ryol, Dolbegae Publishers, 2006 ISBN 978-89-7199-232-6

40 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

Nowadays hanok are fast disappearing due to rapid industrialization and the popularization of western-style housing. Seoul and other big cities are already filled with high-rise apartments, not hanok. Little distinguishes these houses in form and function from those of western countries. In smaller cities and in the country, however, there are still some modernized hanok. They are not completely obsolete in big cities, either. People are finding new ways to use old hanok by using space creatively or through partial remodeling. These days, hanok villages are protected by the government for their cultural value, while there is a growing interest in the science and beauty of hanok and their preservation as part of Korea’s cultural heritage.

Recent years have seen a rise in the publications of books about hanok. A variety of reading is on offer, from hanok architecture to modernized hanok, architectural analyses of hanok preserved for centuries, and essays on the joys of living in a hanok.

I’ d Like to Live in Traditional Korean Houses collects the detailed essays of architects and other experts on the meaning of hanok and a variety of examples of its usage. The book shows how hanok can fit in with a modern lifestyle and still maintain its integrity.

Twenty-seven hanok are the subject of the book, which looks at the defining characteristics, structure, and environmental placement of hanok, illustrated by 100 sketches and plans. The 300 photographs that accompany the text are sure to be eye-catching.

Jinu Lee’s Houses by the essayist and photographer Jinu Lee takes a nostalgic look into the details of fast-disappearing hanok. He examines front gates, outhouses, yards, rooftops, kitchens, windows, and rooms that bear the stamp of a uniquely Korean lifestyle that has long given way to

© Lee Inmee, I’d Like to Live in Traditional Korean Houses, Dolbegae Publishers © Lee Inmee, I’d Like to Live in Traditional Korean Houses, Dolbegae Publishers © Lee Inmee, I’d Like to Live in Traditional Korean Houses, Dolbegae Publishers

western customs. Foreigners unfamiliar with Korean culture will find this an insightful read into the Korean psyche via traditional Korean architecture.

Kim Bong-ryol’s Korean Architecture 1, 2, and 3 is a survey of the history of Korean architecture. The author, an architect and professor, uses temples such as Bulguk-sa, hanok villages such as Yangdong Village, and other ancient structures to show how Korean architecture has changed throughout the ages and how the spirit of the age has affected architecture. Most of the buildings in the book are also national treasures.

Tiled Houses Under the Sky is a collection of essays by Park Seon-ju, a scholar of traditional Korean architecture. Park’s photographs of hanok from all around Korea accompany essays on the beauty and Korean spirit of hanok.

Travelers visiting Korea need not look far to see hanok. The long history of Korea is evident in numerous traditional hanok throughout the entire country as well as Seoul, the capital. Many of these hanok have been designated national treasures, and are popular tourist attractions visited by travelers from home and abroad. Bukcheon Hanok Village is a place where visitors can see hanok in the heart of Seoul. The Village is located across Gahoedong, Samcheong-dong, and Gye-dong (district). Bukcheon Hanok Village is still populated, and some hanok are being used as cafés, galleries, and other shops. To the west of Bukcheon Hanok Village is Gyeongbok-gung (palace) and the Korean Folk Village, and to the east is Changdeok-gung (palace), a UNESCO World Heritage site. There are also many galleries and art shops in the area to visit.

In Pil-dong (district), in Seoul, there is Namsangol Hanok Village. Opened to the public in 1998, the village is a good place to see traditional gardens as well as hanok. The village also has a traditional crafts exhibition center and regularly hosts performances and other cultural events.

Then there is Jeonju Hanok Village of Jeonju, Jeollanamdo (province). This village is home to 500 hanok and also has accommodations for tourists. Visitors can spend the night in a hanok, taste traditional cooking, and experience various cultural activities.

Last but not least, there is Yangdong Hanok Village of Gyeongju, Gyeongsangnam-do (province), one of Korea’s top tourist destinations and a cultural treasure trove. This village is home to 500-year-old hanok, with the entire village designated as a national folk village. Yangdong Village is an excellent destination to experience traditional Korean architecture in a beautiful setting, with many different cultural activities on offer.

Tiled Houses Under the Sky Park Seon-ju, DD World, 2006, 231p ISBN 978-89-7766-068-7

By Doh Jaekee (reporter for The Kyunghyang Daily News)

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 41

Š Trees of Korean Palaces, Nulwa, 2001

Theme Lounge

Trees of Korea Wherever there are people there have been trees.

The trees of Korea, a nation with a long history as an agricultural society, bear witness to the livelihood and traditional culture of Koreans.

1 2 1. Wood Throughout the Ages Park Sangjin, Gimm-Young Publishers, Inc. 2008, 265p, ISBN 978-89-349-1443-3 2. Trees of Korean Palaces Park Sangjin, Nulwa, 2001, 432p ISBN 978-89-9508-526-4

42 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

© Thus Spoke Tree, Maumsanchaek, 2008

The trees of Korea came long before humans, growing to bear witness to the livelihood and history of the Korean people over time. Not only are they marked by the ministrations of their caretakers, but also the currents of politics and diplomacy as the lands they stood upon changed hands. Ancient trees, therefore, have historical as well as natural value.

Korea, thanks to its long history of agriculture, and close ties to nature, has many trees and forests that bear witness to peoples’ lives. History and culture therefore play an important part if one wishes to truly appreciate Korea’s ancient trees and forests.

The works of Professor Park Sangjin of Kyung-buk University are the first that come to mind when one thinks of literature on the historical and cultural value of trees and forests. Professor Park has written about trees for years on his personal website and as a contributor to local newspapers. Among his best-known works is Trees of Korean Palaces.

This introduction to Korean trees and their cultura l background focuses on trees that can be seen in palace forests.

The palaces of Seoul such as Changdeok-gung, Changgyeonggung, and Gyeongbok-gung (palace) are home to forests carefully planned to include a diverse mix of trees that have been tended to since the Joseon era. They are therefore excellent places to observe a variety of trees that do not normally grow together in nature.

This variety was the reason that the palace forests were chosen for the subject of Trees of Korean Palaces. From the beginning the book was planned as a guide for readers to visit the forests and experience the author’s descriptions firsthand. True to its purpose, the book includes detailed maps indicating the locations of individual trees, a virtue much appreciated by its readers. Park’s descriptions of the trees at Korean palaces are a clear departure from the usual botany guide. The author looks into everything about the trees from the meanings of their names, use throughout history, cultural significance, legends, and myths. Even readers uninterested in botany will find this eclectic mix of writings on trees an interesting read.

Among Park’s other works are Wood Throughout the Ages and Tree Treasures of Korea. Wood Throughout the Ages is a masterpiece that showcases the author’s expertise in wood anatomy and offers a profound analysis of wood’s importance in history. The slightly technical subject matter may be intimidating at a glance, but the author’s reader-friendly style puts any such qualms to rest.

Park knows how to pique the reader’s curiosity in seemingly mundane matters and is also adept at offering simple explanations to puzzling questions. For example, he determines that King Muryeong of the Baekje kingdom’s coffin is made from Japanese umbrella pine, or koyamaki, from which he deduces that the king had close ties with Japan. He also uncovers the secret behind the success of Admiral Yi Sun-shin’s turtle ships against the Japanese during the Seven Year War. The turtle ships were exceptionally strong, thanks to the pine used for their decks and oak, thorn tree, and camphor used in the areas that collided against the enemy ships. Park’s lively presentation of a relatively technical subject provides valuable insights into how Koreans used wood throughout history.

Tree Treasures of Korea is another one of his masterworks. This monolith is a survey of practically every Korean tree designated as a national treasure. For years the author visited trees and forests designated as national treasures and penned essays on 73 of them.

His photographs are stunning, the kind that are impossible to take without a deep understanding of trees. Told with humor and unfailing attention to detail, readers will find it hard to put down.

It also includes information on how to actually visit the trees

3

3. The Tree Book Yim Kyong-bin Iljisa, 2002, 209p ISBN 978-89-312-0521-3

4

4. Big Trees of Korea Goh Kyu-hong Nulwa, 2003, 368p ISBN 978-89-9062-000-2 5. Thus Spoke Tree Goh Kyu-hong Maumsanchaek, 2008, 223p ISBN 978-89-6090-030-1

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list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 43

6

7

6. Pine Trees Designated as

Natural Monuments in Korea

Chun Youngwoo Sisa Japanese Publishing Co., Ltd. 2005, 223p, ISBN 978-89-402-0591-4

7. Korean Pine Trees Chun Youngwoo Hyeonamsa Publishing Co., Ltd. 2004, 414p, ISBN 978-89-3231-258-3 8. Korean Trees Lee Yoo-mee Hyeonamsa Publishing Co., Ltd. 2010, 591p, ISBN 978-89-323-1309-2

44 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

8

and forests in the book, making it a practical as well as entertaining read.

Big Trees of Korea examines trees that are closely linked to our everyday lives. The author describes ancient trees of massive size that may not be national treasures but are awe-inspiring all the same, elaborating on the anatomy and cultural and historical ramifications of different trees. While writing this book the author discovered a ra re Korea n a sh tree in Hwa seong, Gyeonggi-do, and a huge persimmon tree in Euiryeong, Gyengsangnam-do (province), which he proposed and succeeded in having designated as national treasures.

The book is currently out of print due to certain passages being outdated and some of the trees having been cut or felled, but a revision is on the way.

Thus Spoke Tree is a collection of essays inspired by trees in literature. The author selected 70 poems that depict trees and wrote down thoughts inspired by them.

The text is accompanied by meditative photographs of various trees. With this book the author takes a different approach to exploring trees that he might have looked over in his encyclopedic research.

Writers approaching trees from a broader point of view are usually indebted to the late Yim Kyong-bin’s The Tree Book. Lim was one of the first writers to write about trees for the general public, contributing to newspapers and other media. The Tree Book collects 25 years of such work. Reach Up, Tree, a lighter, more casual version of The Tree Book, is also worth noting.

A not her ma ster work compa rable to The Tree Book would be Lee Yoo-mee’s Korean Trees. A scholar of forestry, Lee is a researcher at the Korea National Arboretum and writes about trees for a variety of

© Thus Spoke Tree, Maumsanchaek, 2008

© Dictionary of Trees, Munhakdongne Publishing Corp., 2010

Theme Lounge

© Trees of Korean Palaces, Nulwa, 2001

© Trees of Korean Palaces, Nulwa, 2001

publications. Her ability to translate her scientific expertise into beautiful prose makes her a much sought after writer. The first edition of Korean Trees was very well received, and a revised edition was released in 2005. Along with The Tree Book, this book is a must for both general readers and experts looking to deepen their understanding of trees. It includes everything any reader might want to know about trees, from anatomy to mythology and legends.

Lee Yoo-mee’s body of work includes many more masterpieces including Wildflowers of Korea, an easy-to-read, beautifully written work on common plants indigenous to Korea, with a focus on wildflowers.

Another respected scholar who has written numerous books on Korean trees and forests is forestry expert Chun Youngwoo. Chun Youngwoo is especially well known for his books on pine trees, including the masterly Korean Pine Trees. According to a recent poll, 44 percent of Koreans cite the pine tree as their favorite tree. In this book Chun Youngwoo writes about the history and culture of Korean pines based on the ecosystems of 29 pine forests he observed. The author has also published a collection of photographic essays called Pine Trees Designated as Natural Monuments in Korea, complete with photographs of pines he took himself. His photographs speak for themselves, as does his succinct prose.

Last but not least, Professor Kang Pan-kwon’s recently published Dictionary of Trees is also noteworthy. Kang, a scholar of Chinese agriculture, unearths the lexical and textual significance of Korean trees in ancient Chinese and Korean scripts. Readers interested in the etymology of tree names will find this a helpful resource. The text accompanied by photographs of trees and full color reproductions of ancient illustrations is a testimony to the increased sophistication of dictionaries. It is also an encouraging sign of the heightened interest in trees in Korean publishing.

Trees have always been present in every civilization. People cannot survive without trees, and there have always been trees where there

have been people. Along with the rapid wave of industrialization, however, trees and forests have been neglected. Considering the importance of trees and forests, there are still too few publications devoted to the subject. With more readers interested in this area, and with the increase of qualified editors, the time is ripe for a true retrospective of Korean culture and its coexistence with nature.

By Goh Kyu-hong

9 9. Dictionary of Trees Kang Pan-kwon, Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.

2010, 1135p, ISBN 978-89-93905-15-1

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 45

Reviews Fiction

A Musician Without a Country Rhapsody in Berlin Ku Hyo-seo, Woongjin ThinkBig Co., Ltd. 2010, 484p, ISBN 978-89-01-10679-3

On the surface, Ku Hyo-seo’s Rhapsody in Berlin assumes the form of a mystery.

Kim Sang-ho, also known as Yamagawa Kentaro and as Thomas Kim, is a Korean musician living in Berlin who leaves behind a diary upon his death. Sixty-seven at the time of his death, his diary mentions his Japanese girlfriend of 40 years ago, Hanako. Leaving the cryptic description that she is “the place I dreamed of all my life,” Kim Sang-ho commits suicide.

Hanako, hearing this news, traces the 40 years of his life since they were apart as she searches for and finds the true reason behind his death. From this point of view, this novel is a classic mystery.

At the same time it is also a love story of two lovers separated for 40 years and reunited through death. It is not, however, a sentimenta l or insipid stor y at a ll.

Rhapsody in Berlin is a sweeping romance, all the more so because the barriers that separate Kim Sang-ho and Hanako for 40 years are nationalism and ideology. In a country once colonized by the Japanese and divided by armistice, where ethnic homogeneit y is a dominant nationa l ideology, the defeat of the lovers’ romance by nationalism and ideology raises complex questions. A parallel love story within the story is that of Johann Hintermaier, a late 18th century German composer that Kim Sang-ho is obsessed with, and Lea, his teacher Eiblinger’s sister. The love of Hanako’s father for his daughter and the love of Eiblinger for his sister also overlap and contribute to the theme of unrequited love.

The mixture of mystery and romance makes for an irresistible story. The crux of Rhapsody in Berlin, however, lies elsewhere.

Beyond the intrigue and fancy, the core

of the story comes down to diaspora. The Japanese Yamagawa Kentaro, the Korean Kim Sang-ho, and the German Thomas Kim are one person. The protagonist is Korean, Japanese, and German at the same time. In other words, he is a non-national, a man on the border, a “homo sacer,” as Agamben says (this is also the title of two chapters of the novel). His nationality loses him the love of his life; his ideology robs him of human dignity and 17 years of his youth. Finally, living as a musician in strange lands, he takes his own life. As art and artists dictate, he longed for a life unconstrained by borders, but his country, his people, and his ideology called to him and ultimately drove him to ruin and death. His lifelong dedication to music was an expression of his longing to transcend all borders. It was this longing that caused him to fixate on the 18th century German composer Johann Hintermaier, a man whose life closely resembled his own and who also became a Korean national like himself.

In the end, the overlapping stories of Thomas Kim, expatriate musician, and Johann Hintermaier, the 18th century German (later Korean) composer whom he searches for all his life, transform Rhapsody in Berlin into an epic künstlerroman. The author’s thorough research on the musical circles of 18th century Germany and organs and other instruments makes this novel a künstlerroman truly exceptional in the history of Korean literature.

The most touching passage of this künstlerroman, however, is towards the end of the novel when Hanako finds the protagonist’s tombstone and reads the disarmingly simple inscription on it. The inscription reads, “5P 3/10.” As readers

interested in color might have guessed, the cryptic inscription is a color code. The code is for violet, the color of the asters that bloomed along the country roads that Hanako and Kentaro traveled on when they were young at the most beautiful and peaceful time of their lives. But is that all?

Those aware that color can become the symbol of an ideology or establishment, and, by association, the object of strict taboos or fawning adulation, will guess that there is more. Violet is the shade that combines red and blue. It is therefore the color of reconciliation in a country where the “red” North and “blue” South killed one another, a color transcending the dichotomy of ideology. The place that Kentaro dreamed of all his life, therefore, is not only his beloved Hanako. He dreamt of a violet music, and a violet nation (that was not a nation). He dreamt of a world where everyone belongs to the border, not North or South nor left or right, where diaspora has no place, no hold whatsoever over the world, music, and love.

By Kim Hyoung-joong

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 47

Reviews Fiction

A Passionate Struggle for Life Leave Now, the Wind Is Blowing!

Han Gang, Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd. 2010, 390p, ISBN 978-89-320-2000-6

A Prince Forgotten Sohyeon Kim Insook, Jaeum & Moeum, 2010, 332p ISBN 978-89-5707-484-8

In the early 17th century, with the Ming and Qing (Manchu) fighting for rule over China, pro-Ming Joseon was invaded twice by the Manchu. Defeated in the second invasion of 1636, Joseon was annexed by Qing and forced to send its two princes, Crown Prince Sohyeon and Prince Bongrim, to Qing as hostages. Kim Insook’s Sohyeon depicts the tragic life of Crown Prince Sohyeon, who was kept hostage for nearly 10 years in the enemy capital, Shenyang, and died shortly after his return to Joseon in 1645.

T h e s t o r y o f So h y e o n s t r i k e s a particularly resonant chord with Koreans, who were left behind in the era of industrialization and suffered under decades of Japanese colonial rule in the early 20th 48 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

Han Gang’s novel Leave Now, the Wind Is Blowing! is a struggle for interpretation between two people surrounding the death of a woman. The aspiring artist Seo Inju dies under suspicious circumstances at the Misiryeong mountain pass at dawn. The art critic Gang Seogwon who was in love with her concludes that she committed suicide, and attempts to publish a book that mythologizes Inju’s life and art. However, Inju’s other friend Yi Jeonghui, who knew Inju’s passion for life, tries to find the truth behind Inju’s death. With Jeonghui as the narrator, the novel begins when Jeonghui and Seogwon meet for the first time and alternates between Jeonghui’s memories of Inju and some new stories about her that they learn from other people. In the process, they discover that Inju’s mother, an alcoholic who suffered from depression, also took her own life at the Misiryeong mountain pass 40 years before. Seogwon

century. The dilemma whether to stay loyal to the declining Ming, or more realistically cooperate with the rising Qing, evokes the late 19th century dilemma of choosing between upholding tradition or embracing modernization. Sohyeon, furthermore, is known to have studied modern subjects under a Jesuit priest he met in Beijing.

Was Sohyeon assassinated by conservatives in the court? Would Joseon have been more open to modernization if Sohyeon had survived to become king?

These are the questions that are usually asked by later generations, but the author of Sohyeon focuses on the solitude the prince must have felt while living under such tumultuous conditions. The following excerpt is an example of this approach: “The Crown Prince went out to the yard and stood facing the sunset. That was where the King was. It was also where he would return someday. Bongrim must be there as well, so the Crown Prince felt better just facing that direction. Word had it that Bongrim had received the blank missive. The Crown Prince knew that Bongrim must have read much more in the letter than words could possibly say.

He also knew that that was his sorrow and solitude.”

and Jeonghui’s struggle for interpretation becomes more and more intense until Seogwon breaks into Jeonghui’s house, attacks her, and sets the house on fire to destroy Inju’s remaining paintings and other possessions. The last scene, in which Jeonghui is crawling out of the house engulfed by fire as she moans, “I want to live, I want to live,” shows the author’s passionate struggle for life, which is also the main theme of the novel.

By Choi Jaebong

The author speaks of the sorrow and solitude written in the “blank missive.” In the words of one of the book’s characters, it may be likened to the sorrow of one who has endured so many grievances that the words cannot fit on his tombstone but must be left blank. Indeed, such is the depth of sorrow and solitude depicted in Sohyeon that the book may be likened to a “blank missive” as well.

By Yi Soo-hyung

A Prize Winning Short Story

Sampoong Department Store

By Jung Yi-hyun Translated by Krys Lee

Sampoong Department Store On June 29, 1995, Thursday at 5:55 in the afternoon, Sampoong Department Store in the 1675-3 district collapsed. It took less than a second for each floor to fall.

That spring I had many things. I had comparatively genial, moderately conservative parents, a clean full-size bed, a semi-transparent, green Motorola pager, and four handbags.

And at night, with my boyfriend recently employed at an investment firm company, we dated according to The Ideal Couple’s Dating Manual (although I didn’t actually check to see if the book actually exists.) Those nights were responsible, boring dates. Because I believed that if I only tried I could become whatever I wanted, naturally I didn’t want to be anything. The fact that 1990 was barely half over was intolerably confusing. I’d start to say, “It was a really wonderful year,” then after thinking, would feel irresponsible like a real estate telemarketer who presses any phone number and pressures you to invest.

The first chapter of my organized education 20 years before 1995: my mother, who had optimistic expectations about the reality of South Korea’s preschool education, held her daughter’s hand, who wasn’t yet even four-yearsold, and visited the local day care center. It was the most renowned school in the area. The director, with plastic butterf ly-shaped glasses perched at the end of her nose, carefully studied my face. She still looks likes a baby. My mother’s feelings were hurt. Is that so? But she’s a much more competent character than she looks. I didn’t want to disappoint my mother, so I kept my mouth firmly shut like a clam and looked as fierce as I could. Even now, when I want to protect myself while meeting new people, I occasionally 50 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

still do this. After the director gave me permission to attend, she left me the following curse. Now it’s time for you to slowly learn order in a group environment. The grand order of a group environment: waking up from the same dream to carry the same bag to attend school at the same time and sing the same songs and dance to the same rhythmic dance, then eat the same snack off the menu.

Four years old. Tardiness was inevitable. Why every morning someone forced me to wake up from a sweet morning sleep, I couldn’t understand. I couldn’t even accept it. Each morning my mother had to throw me on her back and run through the side streets. Our housekeeper Sukja who at the time worshipped the top star Nam Jin, ran with her while hefting up my butt with her hands. The supervising teacher began to wonder about the cause of my repeated tardiness. That…Teacher, it isn’t my fault. When the round sun rises, I get up. The way you taught us to, Teacher. After I get out of bed first I brush my teeth, the top then the bottom teeth, then I wash my face and brush my hair and dress, then next in order I try to eat. But, oh no! Wouldn’t you know that my mother and my Sukja were still sound asleep? There wasn’t a single person getting my breakfast ready. Teacher, as you must know I’m only four, too young to make breakfast on my own. So I woke up my mother, waited for breakfast to be ready, then thoroughly chewed my food and ate, so I was late. The side dishes were black beans in soy sauce and pan-fried anchovies, and seaweed soup, all things I like. As the guardian of a habitually tardy student, my mother was immediately summoned. Though it probably felt unfair, she couldn’t let her daughter be branded a compulsive liar so she promised that even if there was a catastrophe, she would get up earlier than her child and have breakfast readily prepared. It was a period when, as if I were possessed by some god, lies flowed smoothly out each time I opened my mouth.

Unfortunately, my parents didn’t seem to take seriously the laziness or habit of lying, all signs of people unfit for society. Instead, it’s probable that they were proud that their child’s language skills excelled in comparison to other children of the same age. Thirty-five. It was especially the

case with my parents who’d had their first child very late for the times. There was an anecdote of how my father had compared his little girl to an Olympic marathon medalist for gripping the table on her first birthday and barely managing to stand, and surprised the relatives who had gathered for my first birthday celebration. Before I started school, my father would call me out to the living room for visitors and have me read the newspaper in a loud voice. Goodness, you mean she mastered Korean this quickly? The visitor politely faked surprise and my father would modestly return with another question. Aren’t all children like this these days? As if I were a wunderkid, I covered my mouth and laughed. And because the visitor might ask me what time it was, my heart pounded furiously. I could read everything but the Chinese characters in the morning paper’s editorials in a clear voice, but I was a kid who still couldn’t read a clock. If numbers intruded, like an iron-deficient anemia patient I suddenly became dizzy and the world began to turn round and round.

After 1, I couldn’t understand why not 5 or 8 but 2 had to come. Likewise, for the longest time I couldn’t tell my left hand from my right, but when I was eight-years-old my left wrist was cut on a glass door, and that problem was naturally solved.

If she had been pierced a fingernail more to the side, it would have damaged her arteries, she’s a very lucky child.

From gynecology, internal medicine, pediatrics, ENT, to orthopedics, the all-in-one neighborhood physician who diagnosed me made disorderly stitches to sew the broken skin back up. On my left arm I had a long and coarse scar running down. What will we do with that scar on a woman’s body, my mother cried, but I was as happy as if the heavens were flying. At the words, “Everyone raise your left hand,” I would no longer falter and have to sneak glances at the kid next to me. Now I just had to quickly raise the hand with the scar! It was a scar stitched up so clumsily that in the distant future, the indignation of my friend S’s husband, the head of a national plastic surgery association, wouldn’t subside, but for some odd reason, there wasn’t a single time I was ashamed of that scar. One day in 1990 when I couldn’t have been more bored, I measured it with a ruler and found

it was a total of eight centimeters long. The shoes that a trendy group at the time was wearing was about that same height. When I ran into a girl wearing heels about that height, I was overwhelmed with a faint intimacy and an unexpected sadness at the same time.

J un e 29, 19 95. T h e weath e r w as h ot e n o u gh to su f f o c ate yo u . 5: 03 in th e af te r n o o n . I e nte re d Sampoong Department Store. Valued customer, we apologize, said the elevator girl. The air-conditioner throughout the entire department store is out of order.

It will most certainly be repaired by tomorrow, she said with a pleasing smile.

That spring I had on the intranet myself, 24 friends who were either college students, college students taking time off from school, or college graduates, Seo Taiji’s first, second, and third albums, and a LeMot 3 model word processor. In my desk drawers were Min Byeong Cheol and Jeong Cheol’s language books, and scattered i.d. cards with Pagoda Academy’s seal printed on them. In the early 90s, I was definitely spending more time at the language institutes around Gangnam Station than at the Seongbuk-gu campus.

If time were relative and not absolute this was even more true. I gave myself the nickname “Sally.” Classmates in my conversation class asked me if I’d gotten it from the movie “When Harry Met Sally,” but actually, I’d adapted it from the Japanese anime “Sally the Witch.” As long as I didn’t have to go by my real name, I felt like Sally, Candy, Eliza, or even Pippi was fine with me. Because it was of the generation when Jeong Hyeon-cheol became Seo Taiji.

My formal education came to an end in 1995. The fact that I was the same age as Seo Taiji was for me, both then and now, a source of pride and inferiority. In March 1992, the single “I Know” and in August 1994, “Dreaming about the Past” were released. There is one thing I truly desire.

When can we see our people in this divided land? As we hesitate, we lose ourselves. When I came to my senses, it was late fall in my final semester at university. We’re finally really turning into old women, my friend S said with a sigh. list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 51

I’d been staring at S’s shiny lips for a while. I wondered what lipstick brand she used. A girl’s who’s got a job in one hand and a boyfriend in the other is a potential gold medalist, but a girl who doesn’t have either is a candidate for the noose.

Another friend W made this chilly joke. According to W’s laws of classification, she herself was a gold medalist with her internship at a prestigious investment firm and a boyfriend at a public university that senior year of our second semester.

At night I couldn’t sleep. For over 20 years I had filled in blanks for profession with the word student without hesitating. I’d never imagined that other paths existed after graduating from high school besides becoming a college student or studying at an institute to retake the college entrance exam. Graduating from college was no different.

I dug through intranet message boards and tracked down the studio known to take the best i.d. photos in all of Seoul trying to look docile, reliable, and amiable, I said “whiskey” in front of the camera, and smiled. A friend who’d recently passed the national airline exam had given me this tip. The me in the resume photo with her teeth half-exposed and the edges of her lips lifted was difficult to insist was not me.

I wrote over 10 cover letters with my LeMot 3. I am a solid person. The cover letter that I sent a brick-producing company began like that. To a stationary and office supplies manufacturer, I began: At this very moment a pen with your logo on it rests beside me. I wrote, I will be the kind of person whose body is a ball pen sacrificing all its ink for the company. For companies whose purpose I just couldn’t grasp, I wrote this. I was born and raised by benevolent parents in an ordinary environment. I would like to sacrifice my youthful dreams and passions for your company. Please just give me a chance. I received a page from one company.

It was a film company. I couldn’t remember what I’d written on that cover letter. Only at the interview did I realize why I’d passed the document screening.

The film company was at the top of a fifth f loor building with no elevators. Like a local real estate office, after passing an office with a worn-out leather sofa, steel cabinet, and cheap office desks crowded together, I reached the unexpected luxuriousness of the president office. The 52 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

president was a small, skinny man in his 40s. He stared into my face. You’ve got a mole under your eye. You’ll have to get rid of it in order to get married. Ah, yes. If he asked me between marriage and work, what would I choose, I was resolved to say, I don’t think choosing between marriage and work is an issue for the modern woman, but he didn’t ask. You wrote that you’re skilled in English. Yes. If you have to put a circle around “advanced,” “intermediate,” and “basic,” everyone would put down “advanced.” In any case, I had completed an intensive course at the Pagoda Language Institute. But then the president suddenly began speaking informally to me: You can write some, can’t you? I didn’t immediately understand what he meant by writing some.

I put on an idiotic expression. This is frustrating. I mean when you were young did you go out to writing competitions and things like that. English and a good sentence writer.

We’re looking for someone uniting these two talents. Well, I was on the liberal arts track in high school, and I once won a prize for writing a poem. I’d gotten this far when I somehow began to feel myself being very hard up.

The president looked doubtfully at me and asked again.

That’s fine. Then what’s an erotic movie that made the biggest impression on you? What? You don’t know what erotic movies are? No, well…Nine 1/2 Weeks and Red Shoe Diaries. A smile spread across his face. There, there’s a lineage there somewhere. He gave a lengthy explanation of what kind of work I would be in charge of, which reflected that he intended to hire me. You’ve heard of rice cake films, right? When it came to words beginning with rice cakes I didn’t know anything but rice cakes and rice cakes with ramen, but I couldn’t boldly shake my head and say no. Ultimately what our company intends to do is bring in unknown third-world art movies and introduce them to Korean audiences. We’re waiting for the right time but very soon theaters exclusively showing art movies will open.

Then what do you think will be most urgent? That’s right, stable funding. This thing called a life in society, you can’t live just doing what you want. To achieve your dreams, there are times you have to lower yourself. At the end of heroically discussing his thoughts as an importer of erotic

movies with a mere first-time job-seeker, he told me that my work would actually be to edit and smoothly embellish the rough translations of foreign films—mainly age 18 and over adult movies—that had never been released in theaters but had gone straight to video. Since moaning’s the bulk of it, it won’t be too difficult. You can start next week, right?

Well, why aren’t you answering? If I could have some time to think… The president’s eyes widened. He’d received my timid voice like a count whose proposal had been rejected by a girl from the countryside. Tsk, tsk, you’re still young.

Still not hungry enough. I confusedly accepted the white envelope that accounting managers usually take care of, and left the film company. “Interview Fee” was written on the envelope in thick lettering. Inside, there were two crisp 10 thousand won bills. Is it always done this way? I thought.

It was my first interview so I had no way of knowing, but I was surprised. While I walked down the five flights of stairs, I felt overwhelmed with regret for throwing away a chance to work at this excellent, conscientious company. Then and now I was a typical, capricious human being.

The Q brand was located on the right at the end of the women’s clothing floor. I passed by the Q store but I didn’t see R. There was only another pink-uniformed employee tapping leisurely at the cash register. R might have gone out for a snack. R liked spicy buckwheat noodles with half a b oile d egg. She was always complaining that the spicy noodles sold as a snack in the department store cafeteria for employees was missing the egg.

My new friend.

My new friend I’d gotten that spring, no one knew her.

R and I were classmates at Z girl’s high school. While we attended school, we had hardly ever spoken to each other.

There wasn’t any special reason for this. R was a quiet girl who you never noticed was there or not. Though we were in the same class our freshman year, our student numbers weren’t close, our height or our grades weren’t similar, we

didn’t have any good friends in common, and even our route to school was different. At Z girl’s school near the north end of the Han River, there were five buses operating for nearly 40 percent of the students coming in from the Gangnam area. After only moving into the famous eighth school district for less than 30 months, the school’s parents couldn’t accept that their kids had been forced to transfer to another school; there was an organized movement to retransfer as a group, and the school had to do their best to appease them.

We will make sure that your child has a safe commute. Isn’t the return trip more of an issue than the arrival? So they don’t leak out in the wrong direction, delivered for certain to your front door. As soon as evening study hall ended, I ran like there was a fire in order not to miss the school bus.

Though I found this out later, R’s house was about 20 steps away from the school’s back entrance. As soon as our eyes met, R and I recognized each other. This was in February 1995.

It was less than a week before my college graduation ceremony. My friend S called me. I’m in trouble. They say my company’s suits only. W’s at a financial firm where it’s all uniforms, so clothes won’t cost her anything, isn’t she lucky? I couldn’t think of the right thing to say. Hmm, well, I think it’s still better to wear your own clothes than all wear the same outfit. Yeah, that’s true, isn’t it? Say, what are you wearing for graduation? Um, anyways whatever we wear will be covered by the black gown, so will anyone even see what we’ve got on? Still, that’s not right. Let’s go shopping. I’ll head out to Sampoong. The department store I’d agreed to met S at was five minutes away from my house. The entire time I was slowly walking out of the apartment complex, I kept fingering the beeper in my coat pocket. It didn’t vibrate.

At the time I was waiting to hear from a cosmetic magazine and a custom design furniture company. No one was giving me money for showing up at interviews, so I found myself longing again for the film company. A few nights later after I’d had a few beers, instead of calling my first love, who was also my ex, I called the film company office, but I only got the dial tone for five minutes. It was definitely a good company where you didn’t have to work late hours. I list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 53

couldn’t believe that within a week I would become a person without an affiliation.

S wanted to try on all the clothes that the mannequins were wearing in the ladies department. A velvet dress by U brand didn’t flatter S’s plumpish figure, but she insisted on buying it. Q makes good two-piece pants suits, she said.

We went to the Q store. Look, and there was R standing in a pink uniform. “Wow,” R first said. “Hi! Oh, how are you?” I said. That was our first conversation ever. “I work here,” she said, though it was obvious without her saying anything. “I see, I didn’t know. I pass here often.” “Yeah,” she said, “I moved from the Myeongdong Lotte store not so long ago.” It was extremely awkward. S’s eyes seemed to ask me who she was, but I pretended not to notice. There was no real appropriate explanation, plus I couldn’t just whisper to her, she went to the high school as me but you could say we just know each other by face. S picked out a two-piece khaki trouser suit and went into the dressing room. It was only R and I now. Feeling awkward, I laughed. R said, “You haven’t changed a bit. When you laugh you still look pretty the way you used to.” Had R seen me laughing before? I’ve been the city type since I was born. I learned that if someone compliments you, you have to respond with another compliment. So I said, “You’ve gotten much prettier than before.” R gave me an embarrassed smile. “Yeah, I was kind of chubby back in school, wasn’t I?” “Now that I think of it, you have lost weight.” We became silent again. “It’s strange.

The design of the pants must have changed. Don’t they make me look shorter?” S stood in front of the full-length mirror turning this way and that to look at herself. “No, customer, it looks good on you.” “Is it because it’s too long, I can’t tell.” S looked completely dissatisfied with herself in the mirror. “Should I adjust the length for you?” R got down to her knees at S’s feet to take up the pants cuff. R’s hair was rolled up into a black hair net, and a few stray hairs were scattered across the back of her neck.

S ultimately didn’t buy the pants. I said slowly, “It was good seeing you today.” “Me too. Have a good day shopping, and next time you’re around here, you have to stop by.” “Yes, let’s meet next time.” “Wait a second,” R called, so I turned.

54 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

“Give me your pager number. If there’s a sale, I’ll let you know early.” To be polite, I asked R for her pager number too. R jotted down a pager number beginning with 015 and a store number beginning with 5 on a memo pad with the Sampoong Department Store’s round, flat logo on it. A week passed without contact from the cosmetic magazine company or the custom design furniture company. On graduation day I didn’t go to school. Winter break was long but the first day of this non-school break felt different. My parents must have felt a variety of emotions towards their eldest daughter who they had briefly mistaken as a “possible genius” when I was very young and was now an unemployed college graduate, but they didn’t probe deeply. They were well-off enough not to need their daughter’s monthly check to help them get by.

Instead of inviting them to the graduation ceremony and getting my head covered with a cap and being nailed into a graduation photo, I tacitly accepted the offer of a blind date, so was able to escape being a completely undutiful daughter.

A man studying at an American dental school had returned in search of a bride. He said his major was the recovery of damaged teeth. He stopped walking down the street and pointed at a 10-story building. If I see just three patients a day, I can put up a building like that in no time.

It was the first time I’d actually met someone outside of a drama television series who could say something like that with sincerity. At the same time he earned my contempt, he’d gained my mother’s interest. Mom, are you crazy?

How can I live where I can’t even communicate? You always studied English at institutes. I poured all that money into those institutes so why can’t you communicate? Anyways, I can’t. There’s absolutely no way I’m living in another country. Why? Because I’m a person capable of speaking high-level Korean. That’s when I realized I’d learned English not to leave but to stay. March was a blink away.

When I woke up in the morning, noon had already passed. I got my leather backpack and left for the National Library in Seocho-dong. At the library’s entrance, I flashed them my student card, not my national identity card. The man handing out library passes didn’t seem interested in things like student card expiration dates. In the periodical

section, the typical magazines published domestically were displayed. As I read magazines like Design House and Working Women, my head felt like it was being emptied out.

I tried exactly one time the library cafeteria’s soggy curry consisting of only potatoes and carrots. For a late lunch I’d eat instant noodles with kimchi or drink a Pocari Sweat from the vending machine. Since I still had a coat on, it wasn’t spring yet. Then it was the fifth day. The library was too cold. I poured hot water over instant noodles with kimchi in the library’s store and was pulling the noodles apart with chopsticks when I suddenly felt a coolness up my spine. I tossed the untouched noodles into the trash can and left the library. I took the local bus and headed to Sampoong Department Store.

On the fifth floor of the department store, the spicy mixed noodles were unbelievably good. I put a dollop of mustard over the deep crimson noodles and mixed them around. It was so spicy, tears oozed out of my eyes. I burned the roof of my mouth drinking a cup of hot beef broth. I took the escalators and went down a floor at a time. The fourth f loor was sporting goods, the third f loor men’s wear, then I looked closely across the second floor women’s clothing department. There still wasn’t a better place to spend an electrifying time for free than a department store. In the right-hand corner store I spotted R helping a customer. She was laughing amicably in front of a large middle-aged woman who looked like she wouldn’t look right in the Q clothes that didn’t come in anything bigger than a size 6. I came up behind R and was about to tap her on the shoulder, but turned away. On the first floor I tried out a new eyeshadow in the display case, and toyed with a pair of Audrey Hepburn-style oversize sunglasses. On the basement floor I went into a stationery store and bought a canvas pencil case with baby Pooh bear drawn on it. At the next door bookstore, I read an entire collection of prizewinning stories whose contents I’ve now forgotten. Much later I raised my head, but I couldn’t tell how much time had passed.

Then and now, there were no clocks in department stores.

My stomach started growling. I overturned my backpack, looking for R’s note. I went into the phone booth on the first

floor lobby made to look like a street in Paris, and called R on the second floor. Hi, it’s you. R said my name correctly.

Wait just two hours for me. If I hurry, I can get out by eight.

Years after 1995 had passed, I sometimes wondered. Why had R answered my call so calmly? Had she predicted that I would call first? Or, at the time, had R also needed a new friend who didn’t know anything about her?

Just after eight, a slew of women poured out towards the outdoor parking lot area. Even in the dark, the onceuniformed women now in everyday wear still had pearlywhite skin and looked full of life. R tapped me on the shoulder first. Were you waiting long? In jeans and a hooded sweater, she looked the same as she had in high school. I’m hungry, let’s go. She took my arm as if it were the most natural thing to do. We walked down towards the Seoul Express Bus Terminal area. After we’d gone into a knifecut noodles eatery and ordered did I remember that I’d also had noodles for lunch. Wow, I’m crazy about noodles. So you are too! Even so, you should eat wheat products only every other meal. If you don’t, you’ll end up ruining your stomach, like me. Everyone in this field eats irregularly so they have messed-up stomachs. I bit into a pickled radish.

You’ve worked for a while in department stores? Since I started when I was twenty, it must be five years now. I hadn’t heard a single wisp of news about R since graduating from high school, so I couldn’t have known that she hadn’t gone to college. I see. Do you like the work? It’s all right. Making a living is the same for anyone, really. Say, they’d gone into distribution. Even if they habitually went around saying they’re going to quit since the work’s so hard, they can’t escape. The knife-cut noodles arrived. We silently ate the steaming noodles. R didn’t ask me what kind of work I was doing. She didn’t even ask me if I’d graduated. When we got up to leave the eatery, R took the check. I quickly took four 1,000-won bills out of my wallet. It was my share. By the early 1990s, splitting the bill down to the coin had become a common way of paying between female university students.

R forcefully declined and pushed my hand away. I had to put the four bills away. Then I’ll get coffee, I said. R took up my arm again. Truthfully, I find cafes a waste of money. list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 55

Why don’t we just go to my place? It’s just one bus stop away from here.

We got off at the bus stop next to Z Girl’s High School.

I followed R down a dark, gloomy labyrinth-like alley and pushed through until I saw a back entrance to Z school. It’s a shortcut, she said. I’d gone to the school for three years but didn’t know this road. My house is really close to the school, isn’t it? I nodded. Out of all the students, I probably had the shortest commute. There were times when the sun came up while I was sitting in a totally empty classroom, R said with a shy smile. To get to R’s house, we had to go through the main gate, and beside a house, go up a long flight of cement stairs. It was dark, and the stairs were spaced out widely so it was a little difficult. R turned on the lights in the living room. The room was simple, but the lights of Seoul from the window were spectacular. Wow, I blurted, and exaggerated my amazement a little. This is a killer view. It may not look like much here, but it’s still Nam mountain, R added as if she were embarrassed. I knew you would like it. There was a purple cloth over a typewriter and low table. R pulled aside the typewriter to the window. The faintly sweet coffee enveloped my tongue.

Before R returned, I took the escalator down to the basement floor. The Sampoong Department Store’s layout was so spacious that you could close your eyes and still get around. I went to the stationery store and got a hardcover diary. I was torn between a water droplet print and a zebra print cover, and finally chose the zebra print. It was so humid I could barely breathe.

Three or four employees in uniforms stood near the cash register chatting. Did you hear? The roof over the fifth floor buckwheat noodle store started sagging.

What’s this? It’s not collapsing today, right? There’s no way it can happen today. I mean, I wore my new pants. Ha, ha, the girls laughed. It actually was a joke.

Customer, it’s 4,900 won. I took the 100 won change and left.

It was early spring. I became rapidly close with my 56 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

new friend. As if all of my 24 friends were busy, my green Motorola pager was awfully quiet. Aside from R, I didn’t contact my other friends either. As usual, daylight was short in March. I was running out of the i.d. photos where I’d raised the ends of my lips. I had to take the negatives from the studio reputed to take the best photos in Seoul and get 10 more copies printed at the Sampoong Department Store photo booth.

What do you do all day at the library, R asked. Well, I just read and study. R’s eyes grew wide. Don’t you get bored? What is it you keep studying? Sorry about that, but I’ve never ever studied until I’ve gotten bored so I’m feeling guilty. If you don’t have anywhere to go in the day, I should give you my house keys. No friend had ever spoken to me like that before. I merely smiled. It’s empty anyways so you could make ramen, read, and make yourself comfortable.

Just wash up after yourself. The contract conditions were really basic for loaning out her house. The moment R took out a silver key, I felt indescribably burdened. I shook my head vigorously. No, it’s fine. What am I going to do in your house without you? Just take it. You never know. If I die of a heart attack in my sleep, use the key to come in and find me.

Hey, why’re you being so morbid? Then if I slip and fall in the bath, come and save me, all right? All right. At least I’ll get you dressed before calling 911. Uh, ha, ha! You promise?

The key that went from her hand to mine looked small and imperfect.

That key, I don’t ever remember putting it in the keyhole and entering R’s house alone. After the library closed, I would walk to the Sampoong Department Store. I usually took the local bus, and on days the weather was warmer, I walked. Some days I walked to the right and passed the juniper trees around the Seocho-dong intersection. On other days, I crossed the street from the library and crossed through the Gangnam Saint Mary’s Hospital. The two hours or so I waited for R passed quickly. I read, picked through music, looked at clothes, or ate ice-cream. I did everything there. A department store’s essentially that kind of place. If I got bored, I went to the Q store and helped

R out. To a customer trying on clothes, comments from another customer like me had more weight than R’s words.

Actually, I think pastel tones suit you better than neutrals.

The light green trench coat you tried on before looks 10 times prettier on you than the gray jacket you’ve got on now. Even if it’s a little more expensive, if I were you I’d definitely buy that one. After the customer left with a full blue shopping bag in her arm, R and I faced each other and faintly smiled. The way I see it, you’ve got a singular talent in this area. R praised me this way.

As closing time approached, the number of customers dwindled. When it was closing time, “The Sorrow of the Parting” flowed out over the speakers. Even after hearing the fast, lighthearted arrangement “The Sorrow of the Parting” every day, it still felt unfamiliar. My old friend that I care about so much, why do we have to say goodbye? Do you have to go? Even if I go away, how would I forget you? Our deep friendship, let’s sing for the day we’ll meet again. As I quickly hummed the lyrics to myself, I left the department store, I waited for R who was changing into jeans. R and I took turns paying for dinner. But you don’t have any money!

R would protest, but I had never even imagined bumming off of another person. In fact, my finances weren’t bad. I didn’t know about pizza, chain restaurants, and steak, but I could afford spicy noodles or sushi rolls every day. I hadn’t told R that I was still getting an allowance from my parents.

After dinner, we’d go to R’s house and watch a video or drink beer. For snacks we had peanuts or onion ring snacks.

R would absolutely not buy snacks that smelled like squid.

She wouldn’t even eat dried squid. She said she couldn’t bear their twisting bodies as they roasted over the gas range without her eyes closed. You don’t have to look, I said. I’ll roast them. R didn’t even pretend she heard me. They drag these squid from the deep sea to land, then it’s not enough that for days they’re dried to the bone in the hot sun. Isn’t it a little brutal to finally roast them over a fire? She had a point. My desire to dip squid in mayonnaise then gnash it into pieces with my molars disappeared. We always ran out of beer before the onion ring snacks. When we ran out of beer, I got up. R walked me to the bus stop. For the last

few days, the unusual evening weather had been becoming unusually mild. One by one, the forsythia trees around Nam mountain’s circular road were shooting buds one by one.

With the street lights glimmering, I couldn’t tell just how bright yellow the flowers were. They could have even been azaleas, not forsythias. Come to think of it, I’d never even seen R’s face in plain daylight.

Though R would have told me if I’d asked, I never asked her why she lived alone. That was common courtesy according to my standards. R might have even felt a little hurt that I didn’t ask. Determining the appropriate emotional space between people, both then and now, is extremely difficult for me. I was also curious about the poetry chapbooks on her shelves, but I didn’t ask about those either. The Black Leaf In My Mouth by Ki Hyung-do with a caramel-colored cover, part of the Moonji series of 80 poets, was one I also owned. “For a long time, I could not write.

The weather was bad here and I couldn’t endure the weather.

Then, too, there was a street and the cars passed.” When I reread the excerpt on the back of the chapbook at R’s house, I knew it wasn’t the weather I couldn’t bear. It was myself.

I went into the first floor phone booth and paged R. R didn’t even have an ordinary message recorded on it. Uh-hum, I cleared my voice and began to leave a message. It’s me. I stopped by on my way through here, but I didn’t see you. Are you off getting a snack?

You’re doing okay, right? I’m doing fine, too. Sorry for not keeping in touch. Working life seems to be like that.

When I come back home, I’m busy just getting ready for bed. Today I just left in the middle of work. I left, but I don’t have anywhere to go. Take care of yourself. I’ll come again next time. Even now, I’m not sure whether R ever heard my message or not.

It was Saturday. I woke up late and washed my face, then saw the Q store’s phone number flash on my pager. Can you work for just one day? Our manager’s grandmother suddenly passed away, so she has to go down to the provinces right away. They say we’re getting support from the head office list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 57

tomorrow, and since it’s the sales season, there’s lots of customers. Help me out just one day. I answered, sure. I opened my closet. Since it seemed best to wear the Q brand clothing, I looked for a white Q brand blouse I’d bought last spring and put it on. Underneath, I wore a black skirt I’d bought at a store selling bonded goods around the Ewha Womans University area that R was always mistakenly saying, It’s one of our pieces.

R was in the Q store with a man I’d seen for the first time. Manager, this is our help for today, she said as she introduced me. He took my national identity card and jotted down a few things elsewhere. Then he said, Please change into a uniform. R was even more confounded than me. But she’s only helping for one day. Why a uniform? Those are the original rules. But we didn’t do that way before. Well, the people who didn’t wear it made a mistake. But she’s a student and my friend, and she’s only helping us for today.

Please just let it go this once, she said. I flinched because I wasn’t a student. R was resolute. If people passing had seen, they would have thought it wasn’t the department uniform he wanted me to wear, but a prison uniform. I dissuaded R. I’m fine. I’ll just wear it. R looked at me. Her eyes were like a young calf’s soft eyes. You sure it’s fine? I sniffed, Of course. It’s not a big deal. Manager, please get a name tag on her that says part-time worker. The uniform fit me perfectly.

I was part of the generation free of uniforms. Outside of my Girl’s Scout outfit in elementary school, this was the first uniform I’d worn in a long time. The uniform was heavier than I’d thought. Strangely enough, that’s how it felt to me.

Everything was different from when I used to stand by and help R while wearing whatever and saying anything I wanted. At noon, customers came swarming in. There was so much to do but I was sluggish and unused to the work.

Far from picking out clothes that flattered customers, I was dripping sweat just trying to find the sizes they asked for. R covered for me as best she could, but if she was looking for leftover stock in storage or dealing with another customer, I didn’t know what to do. If I was pinning up the sleeves of one customer, it was typical for a customer who’d come in later to suddenly get peevish. How much is 30 percent off 58 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

this blouse? It was too much for me to know what was 30 percent off not 150,000 won, but 148,500 won. On top of that, wasn’t I the kind of person who got dizzy merely at the sight of Arabic numbers? I looked at R. On the other side of the store, she was busy picking out a top to go with the white pants a customer liked. The cashier at the register also looked madly busy. Miss, what are you doing? Quickly total that for me. I’ll take these four suits, so take 30 percent off them. I carefully tapped the calculator. The problem was, the busy cashier didn’t check my careless arithmetic.

It wasn’t long before the customer who’d given me a 100,000 won cashier’s check and received her change came back. Which bitch did the math? Bitch, she pronounced the word with her unblinking eyes fixed straight ahead. I didn’t realize yet that the object of her curse was me. What is the problem? R stepped forward and blocked me. It wasn’t you a little while ago. She rang up the total, over there. She’s our temporary staff. You can speak with me. What, why are you using temporary staff that doesn’t even know the basics?

Did she even graduate from junior high? She can’t even add?

Anyhow, I was undoubtedly temporary staff that didn’t even know the basics, so I kept my head completely bowed.

I apologize, R said. I’ll ring you up again immediately. She bowed low several times. There was no way for me to know how I’d managed to add around 40,000 won extra to the total. After the customer who got her money back glared at me, she pulled a scarf off a mannequin. I’m so angry, I can’t just leave like this. I’ve wasted so much time here because of that idiot, I’ll take this as compensation. Take it out of her day’s wage or something. R snatched away the scarf from her. Customer, she said. That’s difficult because this is a regular store item. We will give you another complimentary gift. The customer snatched the scarf back and raised her voice. Who wants to receive your cheap complimentary gift?

I like this so I want to take this, so what’s the problem?

The uproar came to an end when the manager rushed over. In the end the customer left with the scarf shoved into her shopping bag and squarely left. As R listened to the manager’s stinging reprimands, she kept her lips shut tight.

I, I just wanted to run away from there. After the manager

left, R said to me, It’s all my fault. Sorry. Now thinking back, I should have said those words first. I just managed to speak. Are you all right? Her eyes shifted. Of course. This doesn’t even come close to the worst. R brushed the dust off the shoulders of my uniform. Good work today. The worst is about over so you can go now. I couldn’t say anything. I’ll settle your payment later for your work today. You should change. Will you be all right alone? Yeah, I’m fine alone. I’ll hurry up and get changed. R thrust me into the changing room used by customers. In the dressing room, I took off the department store uniform and changed back into my clothes.

The white blouse and black skirt. Though they weren’t a uniform, they felt heavy. It felt like iron was pressing down on my shoulders. It was merely four hours since I’d arrived at the Q store. I left R and quickly left the department store.

I felt like the pink Sampoong Department Store building, thud, thud, was following me.

It’s not uncommon to grow apart from someone you were once close to. It’s especially common as an adult. Not long after the incident, I got a job. It was a company that imported animal feed. It was surprising to learn how many kinds of animals there were in the world. I was part of the marketing department and sold feed for laboratory test animals. Hamsters required 10-14 grams, and rats required 15-20 grams. Rabbits required at least 120 grams. Neither R nor I paged the other. The vending machine coffee in the company’s hallway was awful compared to R’s coffee. I was busy introducing myself to hospitals and university research labs that used our products, that I didn’t even notice spring passing. We had to wear suits on the weekdays, but on Saturdays, jeans were permitted. I was pleased with at least that. I picked up the phone several times then put it down again.

I also got a boyfriend. When I met the guy, a man newly employed at an investment firm, we usually talked about work. He said he liked me because I was cute. What do you mean by cute? It’s just what it means. You’re not pretty, but you look cute. You’ve got white skin, and there’re three wrinkles at the corners of your eyes when you smile.

There was no doubt that he would think Ki Hyeongdo was the name of an isolated island off of Hallyeo Maritime National Park. But he wasn’t bad because he was kindhearted and an optimist. That spring I had many things. I had comparatively genial, moderately conservative parents, a clean full-size bed, a semi-transparent, green Motorola pager and four handbags. Everything was the same again. Spring passed languidly, and then summer came.

The Sampoong Department Store that opened its doors on December 1989 was a modern five floor, four basement floor building. On June 29th, 1995, that day the air-conditioner wasn’t working and it was extremely hot inside. Sweat ran like rain. When did it suddenly become summer, I muttered at 5:40 while walking across the first floor lobby. At 5:43, I left through the front door. At 5:53, I opened up my zebra print diary.

While I was writing, Today I… I heard Boom! It was 5:55.

Sampoong Department Store had collapsed. It took less than one second for each floor to fall.

Then a lot of things happened. My semi-transparent green Motorola pager message box was full. The woman who lived the f loor below us left to buy tofu at the Sampoong Department Store while making dinner and didn’t return. They say there was a half-shredded stalk of green onion left on her cutting board. The rainy season began. A few days later a list of the deceased and missing was printed in the morning paper. I didn’t read it. In the next column, a celebrity had penned a special editorial.

The content was about how perhaps the collapse of the Sampoong Department Store rumored for its decadence was a warning from heaven to a country steeped in extravagance and pleasure-seeking. I called the newspaper’s customer service to complain. The paper said that they couldn’t release the writer’s phone number. I couldn’t help but scream at the customer service representative. Did that woman say she’d ever been there? I would have been breathing heavily while laughing. I felt bad but I couldn’t help it. I still feel grateful to the person who held the phone waiting until I stopped list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 59

weeping.

From the concrete ruins, I saw the rescue of a girl who had survived in there for over 230 hours. There was even a girl who’d survived for over 285 hours. I did nothing but watch television. My boyfriend worried about me.

Being born means we’re all going to die someday. When I was serving as a medic in the army, I saw several deaths.

My maternal uncle was an army general so we could have greased some palms, but my father deliberately had me sent there. I can’t say it was precisely because of everything that had happened, but soon after, we broke up. He promptly started dating a college student four years younger than me who looked like a cute Japanese doll. By registered mail I received notice that I was fired by the company I hadn’t shown up since June 29th. The reason given was absence without notice. That was an appropriate expression. Three hundred seventy-seven hours after the collapse a 19-yearold girl was discovered. Her first words were, What day is it today? The casualties of the Sampoong Department Store’s collapse on June 29th were a final tally of 501 deaths and 938 injured. What if you’d left ten minutes later? People told me that I’d been very lucky.

The small, imperfect silver key stayed in the last compartment of my desk drawer for 10 years. When I was hurriedly looking for something like Scotch tape or a heating pad I would open this drawer. R didn’t contact me once. R and my pager numbers had already disappeared from the face of this earth. From pagers to cell phones and “I Love School” sites to blogs, people frequently changed their toys.

As I began writing this, I used the “find people” function on Cyworld to track down R’s blog. There were a total of 12 women born in 1972 with R’s name. I clicked on each of these names. As if most of the 12 with R’s name were busy, their sites were not elaborate. Thirty-three. We must have been in the very middle of going through the realities of life.

When I went into the 11th blog, on the front page there was a photo of a young girl. The kid looked about three to four years old. I enlarged the photo and looked at it for a long time. Her eyes were large and good-natured. As I looked 60 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

closely, her round chin also seemed to resemble R’s. I wanted to look at some clearer photos, but there was only the one photo. I earnestly desired that child to be R’s daughter.

Many things had changed and stayed the same. For a time the Sampoong Department Store lot remained vacant until 2004 when a high-rise apartment complex took its place. A few years before that apartment complex was completed, I moved far away. Even now occasionally I pass that spot. Sometimes a part of my heart feels stiff and numb, and sometimes it doesn’t. A hometown isn’t always a place that you earnestly yearn for. Only after I had left that place, was I able to write.

Sampoong Department Store Jung Yi-hyun Hyundae Munhak Co., Ltd. 2005, 276p SBN 978-89-7275-341-4

Reviews Fiction

Who Murdered My Wife?

Ashes and Red Pyun Hye-young, Changbi Publishers, Inc. 2010, 260p, ISBN 978-89-364-3373-4

“There are always plenty of warning signs of danger, but when danger does befall, it always comes out of nowhere.”

This epigram-like sentence opens Pyun

Hye-young’s Ashes and Red, a novel on pandemics and the widespread hysteria they inspire. The protagonist is a researcher at a pharmaceutical company whose ordinary life is thrown off track when he is sent to work in country C. At the airport he is detained for a day as a suspected case of the pandemic that is sweeping the country, but after his release he becomes stranded because he has lost his mobile phone. He finally finds a place to stay, only to be quarantined because another guest has been confirmed to have the disease. All this is bad enough, but not so much as to be unbearable.

However, when he learns that his wife has been brutally murdered the day before he left for country C and that he is now a prime suspect, his first instinct is to run.

Penniless in a strange country, he takes to sleeping on the streets until he is driven into the sewers to live a ghostlike life. Just like the opening epigram says, danger comes out of nowhere and

Remembering a Revolutionary Immortality Yi Mun-yol, Minumsa, 2010 ISBN 978-89-374-8295-3 (set)

Yi Mun-yol’s Immortality is the story of Ahn Jung-geun, its publication marking the centennial anniversary of his death.

Interestingly, Immortality starts not with Ahn Jung-geun but his father, Ahn Taehoon. In the chaotic years of the Donghak (Eastern Learning) rebellion, with its first ideals in decline, Ahn Tae-hoon stands up to the heretics. Unfortunately, the very people who should have supported him turn against him. The first volume of Immortality narrates the story of Ahn Taehoon’s long struggle against the heretics that ultimately leads to his undoing by those closest to him. This part of the story, at times, seems to receive even more attention than the cause that Ahn Junggeun advocates.

The reason why Yi Mun-yol devotes such a substantial part of the first volume of Immortality to the philosophy and struggles of Ahn Tae-hoon is because he believes that Ahn Jung-geun was heavily influenced by his father. It is only after his father’s sudden death that Jung-geun comes in to his own. After his death, Jung-geun focuses on a straight path without any detours or hesitation with resolute willpower.

This is the focus of Yi Mun-yol’s Immortality as well. Yi Mun-yol’s subject is not the heroic actions of Ahn Jung-geun the revolutionary, but the sheer will of a human being pursuing the cause he believes in. In this light Ahn Jung-geun is depicted as a stubborn yet romantic revolutionary.

There is no compromise for him. Another key element is Ahn Jung-geun’s relationship with the revolutionary Kim Gu. Armed with thorough research and a writer’s imagination to connect the dots, Yi Munyol paints a compelling picture of their

drags him down. Not all is lost, however, for luck is also equally fickle. He manages to escape the sewers and find work at a pharmaceutical company, where he slowly makes the transition back to everyday life.

In some ways the protagonist’s experiences in country C are not so far removed from our own. All of us panic at the outbreak of a pandemic, but after some time we go back to our daily lives: “News of the spread of infection, the mounting death count, and the shortage of vaccines did nothing to the immune system of everyday life. People still went to work, to school, to sell their wares.” As dictated by the indefatigable norms of daily life, the protagonist also goes to work as usual.

Well then, is that all? The problem, however, turns out to be not the monster of the pandemic but the monster within.

Much as he may wish to deny it, which is why he ran away, he killed his wife, he killed on the streets, and he killed a woman.

Yet his life has not been touched a bit. A monster outside is one thing, but what does one do about one’s monster within?

By Yi Soo-hyung

complex relationship.

While Ahn Jung-geun has gained increased recognition as a folk hero, his legacy is too often evoked for the sake of narrative, not historical demand. In contrast, Yi Mun-yol offers new perspective amidst this flurry. It is truly this perspective that marks him for the master he is.

By Kang Yu-jung

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 61

Reviews Fiction

Rabbit Beats Humanism Rabbit the Genius, Mr. Cha Kim Namil, Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.

2010, 364p, ISBN 978-89-546-0958-6

Confronting the Father Mid-afternoon Gaze Lee Seung-u, Erum, 2009, 160p ISBN 978-89-5707-469-5

62 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

Kim Namil was one of Korea’s most prominent activist writers from the 1980s to early 90s. Social change and progress in the name of reason was his credo. Now he’s back with a breed of homo cuniculus that flies in the face of humanism.

The question raised in Kim Namil’s Rabbit the Genius, Mr. Cha is this: Is progress in the name of reason still a valid concept?

What if humanism itself, the canon of our age, is a set of values that excludes and oppresses all other forms of life on Earth?

Would that not require a complete revision of our concept of progress as defined by our ancestors? At the bottom of these questions is a fundamental skepticism of humanism, the basis of modern Western thought.

Kim Namil’s Rabbit the Genius, Mr. Cha is an important work in this sense. Is man the final product of evolution, the measure of all values? Kim begs to differ. According to the author, humanism as we know it is nothing more than a fictional ideology created by Western modernity. Therefore any progressive attempt to move beyond Western modernity poses a substantial challenge. The task before us is now clear. The worldwide spread of Western modernity is feeding the world domination

of capitalism. It is impossible to fight this with modern Western humanism.

Listening to non-human organisms, focusing on the power of these mutants, listening to the voices of these non-subjects is what will open the door to a new world.

Kim Namil could not have painted a clearer picture of this future if he wished.

Once a seminary student, Lee Seung-u has an unusual background for a Korean writer. Unlike most writers in Korea, his work focuses on the philosophical study of human existence itself. His Mid-afternoon Gaze is a philosophical study of the Oedipus complex, of the inescapable gaze of the father.

Freud’s discovery made it clear that the Oedipus complex is a universal mechanism of protest. This discovery led to the realization that the novel is an expression of the desire to escape from the gaze of the father. Lee Seung-u paints a remarkably clear picture of this discovery in Midafternoon Gaze. He confronts the gaze of the father that has no existence for the son in reality, but is still the omniscient ruler of his life. Pointing out how the son cannot break away from the gaze of the father, he shows that this struggle is what gives shape to the novel.

Lee Seung-u’s literary achievement lies here. He does not advocate an immediate escape from the father. On the contrary, his achievement lies in the literary depiction of the impossibility of breaking away from the father because the

omniscient gaze of the father is truly that of the other.

One thing left to be desired, however, is that while it may be impossible, Lee Seung-u does not experiment with the concept of escape from the father. Of course, as one aware of the impossibility of this task, he may have considered it an unnecessary attempt. However, if the gaze of the father is a mechanism that reproduces fixation on a subject, would not the attempt of escape itself be meaningful? Are not the characters of this work ever so slightly lacking in this spirit?

This disappointment weighs all the more considering that literature should always attempt the meaningful, no matter how impossible.

By Jang Sungkyu

By Jang Sungkyu

Steady Sellers

A Song of Melancholy Youth The Black Leaf in My Mouth Ki Hyung-do, Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd., 2000, 159p ISBN 978-89-320-0397-9

The year 2009 marked the 20th annivers a r y of t he de at h of K i Hy u ng- do.

Anthologies were published in his honor, and memorial services were held. It seemed that to those who gathered at a small café mourning him, Ki Hyung-do was more of a historical symbol representing an era, and the name of youth that was to be remembered forever, than a deceased poet. It’s not just a handful of readers who remember him this way. Twenty years after his death, Ki Hyung-do is one of the poets most beloved by Korean readers, especially the young.

Born in 1960, Ki Hyung-do died a

sudden death at age 29 in a rundown t he ater i n a big cit y. He publ i shed i ngen iou s poem s du r i n g h i s l i fe a s a journa list, but was unable to gain recognition in his lifetime. The Black Leaf in My Mouth, published in 1989, is a posthumous collection. The collection, however, created a great sensation. It set an unprecedented sales record for a collection of poetry, and has sold over 400,000 copies thus far.

Why do Ki’s poems continue to be popular among the public today? First, the untimely death of the poet becomes one with his poems, becoming poetic

in itself, a dramatic event. The physical death of the poet, however, is not the root cause that turned his poems into legend.

His poems create a delicate inner space in which the melancholy lamentations of the youth, faced with the abyss of death, come together with a modern sensibility. His poems captivate the allusion of one’s fate and infect readers with an ominous silence with their gloomy tune, which brings to mind the darkness of modern civilization.

In addition, they are laden with the sad modern history of Korea, with its past military dictatorship, and sharp criticism on the absurdity and corruption of the modern world that lie hidden in a big city.

The title piece, “The Black Leaf in My Mouth,” illustrates the traces of massacre in t h is way : “ T hat su m mer, people disappeared in heaps/ and reappeared suddenly before the silence of the shocked/ the streets overflowed with the tongues of the dead.” Such indiscriminate violence is depicted to have taken root even in daily life. The fear felt has its peak where the phantom of the dead is overlapped with confession: “I pass this wilderness, this twilight, for the first time/ I’m afraid of the black leaf sticking stubbornly in my mouth.” If the “black leaf ” refers to the deaths of nature and humans, the “black leaf in my mouth,” a metaphor for a stiff tongue, signifies that the life of the silent is no different from death.

It’s not the poetic warning criticizing modern life alone that makes Ki Hyungdo a living, breathing poet today. He was a poet who sang of despair, not hope, in the midst of his youth, and felt the gloom of the streets to be the advent of death.

The desperation of his poems rose from the scene where an era of history came to an end; it was a painful elegy dancing the dance of death, and a longing for truthfulness that refused all pretentious poses. His poetic language tells us that modern civilization, running towards an unpredictable future with its systemized power and its underlying hidden violence, and our souls, complacent in a sick reality and coming to ruin, are dying an even more miserable death. Unless the “mist” before us is dispelled, and unless the history of crisis that has continued in the “mist” is overcome, Ki Hyung-do will forever be remembered as a poet who embraced despair, born of an era as the fundamental pain of life; and his poems, unlike the poet who died young, will continue to carry on that fate.

By Kang Gyesook

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Reviews Culture

In Search of a Life-Changing Book The Book Wanderers in New York Seo Jin, Prunsoop Publishing Co. Ltd. 2010, 292p, ISBN 978-89-7184-834-0

This book records a pilgrimage to 51 bookstores in New York undertaken in a period of about three months. The book, however, is not a simple record of the pilgrimage nor is it a travel essay. In the form of fiction, the book has three different characters that go from bookstore to bookstore in search of a single book.

Mostly taking place in bookstores, it hovers between fiction and nonfiction. One of the three characters is trying to finish writing a novel titled Burning Up a Library. Another is trying to prevent the novel from being completed. Yet another is also trying to write a novel by the same title, Burning Up a Library.

The three characters of the novel share a passion for books, yet they have different kinds of desire regarding books. This book is a guidebook on New York bookstores as well as a novel. For example, the book has a section titled “3 Books Only” where the

Modern Asia from the Front Lines The Scene Is the History Jung Moontae, Asianetwork Publishing, 2010, 536p ISBN 978-89-9602-395-1

The author Jung Moontae is one of the most renowned independent journalists of Korea. He is widely recognized for reporting on disputed areas of the world.

So far, he has traveled to over 40 such areas, interviewing presidents, prime ministers, revolutionary leaders, and other important figures. This book contains the information he gathered in seven places: Indonesia, Aceh province, East Timor, Myanmar, Cambodia, Malaysia, and Thailand between 1994 and 2009.

The events about which he reported on are fraught with historical significance.

For instance, there was the declaration of independence by East Timor, which in 2002 became the first newly independent nation of the 21st century, and the civil 64 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

uprising in Jakarta in 1998, through which the totalitarian regime of 32 years was ousted. The part that stands out the most, however, is the interviews, including the interview with Aung San Suu Kyi, the symbol of democracy in Myanmar, who was placed under house arrest in 1995 under the rule of a military dictatorship, and after six years was finally freed for a brief period of time; the 2001 interview with Thaksin Shinawatra, who became the prime minister of Thailand as the greatest business leader of the nation, just prior to his election; and the 1999 interview with Xanana Gusmao, the first president of East Timor, conducted in prison. Other figures, including Abdurrahman Wahid, the Indonesian president, Hun Sen, the Cambodian prime minister, a n d M a h a t h i r Mo h a m a d , t h e Malaysian prime minister, have been interviewed as well.

In the midst of the serious political

author asked the staff at bookstores in New York: “If all the books in the world were to disappear, which three would you want to save?” Each staff in each bookstore gave a different answer, of course. In today’s world where e-books and digital media are all the rage, the author expresses his affection for printed books. He says the following: “I love books whose pages I can turn with my hands, whose scent I can smell.

Paper books are cultural products that are complete in and of themselves, being both the apparatus and the content. They don’t require batteries or players. They’re longlasting, portable, and even aesthetic when displayed on bookshelves. Love for paper, like love for a longtime sweetheart, may die suddenly and unexpectedly; until the love is over, however, it can never be discarded.”

By Pyo Jeonghun

unrest in Thailand, the interview with Thaksin Shinawatra, the former prime minister, stands out. The author asks Thaksin, who was charged with corruption: “Why were you charged?” He answers: “Because I have too much money. I’m saying that if you have succeeded in business, you should not go into politics.

Someone went through my money. My money is clean.” The author asks again: “If the charges of corruption are ruled unlawful and there’s political confusion, shouldn’t someone else be nominated?” Thaksin replies: “There’s no one but myself. The first, the second, the third—no one but myself.”

By Pyo Jeonghun

Reviews Culture

Emperors Who Founded Empires The Story of the Han Empire, Vols. 1 & 2 Kim Tae-kwon, ViaBook Publisher, 2010 ISBN 978-89-936-4215-5

Kim Tae-kwon is a young graphic novelist who has gained great popularity through his books on culture, history, art, ideas, and current affairs. Having studied aesthetics in college, he is currently studying Western classics in graduate school.

He is also one of the few authors in Korea who writes educational and cultural graphic novels. Now, he has published the first two volumes in the series, The Story of the Han Empire, planned as a series of 10 volumes.

The influence that the Han Empire of ancient China had on the history of East Asia can be compared to that of the Roman Empire on the history of the West. In short, The Story of the Han Empire is not simply the tale of an empire of ancient China, but of the formation of the East Asian civilization itself.

A Look at the US-ROK Alliance over the Years A Conflicted Alliance— Sixty Years of Korea-U.S. Relations Yuksa Bipyung Editorial Committee, Yuksa Bipyungsa 2010, 319p, ISBN 978-89-7696-536-3

The historical origin of Korea-U.S. relations had its roots in the mid-19th century, but an alliance, the highest form of partnership between two nations, can be traced back to the establishment of the government of the Republic of Korea in 1948. With the signing of the ROK-U.S. Mutual Defense Agreement in 1952, the Korea-U.S. alliance played a key role in maintaining and guaranteeing the peace and stability on the Korean peninsula.

In the past six decades, the relations between the two nations have been tinged with tension and conflict, even in the midst of an alliance. This book analyzes Korea-U. S. relations since 1948 during the various regimes of the two nations. An analysis

The first volume deals with the first Qin emperor, who founded the Qin empire, the first unified empire of China. The first Qin emperor is commonly referred to as a tyrant, but he was also a sovereign who made great achievements in various fields, such as culture and the military. The author seeks to break away from common notions about the emperor, and to see him with a balanced perspective. The second volume deals with Liu Bang, who founded the Han Empire after the fall of the Qin empire, and Xiang Yu, his greatest rival. Many strategists and generals who are followers of Xiang Yu, from an aristocratic family, and Liu Bang, a commoner, played active roles in the two rivals’ face-off.

The most remarkable thing about these unique graphic novels is that the author has broadly researched the culture and history of ancient China, which is reflected in the storytelling. Such exhaustive research has contributed immensely to the high quality of the book. The forthcoming volumes in the series are much anticipated as well.

By Pyo Jeonghun

characteristics of Korea-U.S. relations during different regimes of the two nations.

By Pyo Jeonghun

conducted in such a framework is quite rare.

Of these, the key issue in Korea-U.S. relations during the Kim Dae-jung regime was that of North Korean nuclear weapons.

Kim’s liberal diplomatic philosophy served to establish a partnership with the Clinton administration, but with the advent of the Bush administration, it collided head on with the U.S. Christian right and neoconservatives. During this period, the leaders’ philosophy and ideas, and the approaches of Korea and the U.S. on the North Korean issue were greatly influenced by the infrastructure of politics in Korea.

For Kim Dae-jung, the highest priority was to maintain peace on the Korean peninsula as a matter of survival, but for Bush, revenge for the 9/11 terrorist attack came first. In the end, the two governments were at opposition in terms of both belief and interests, which created conflict. In this way, this book clearly points out the list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 65

Reviews Nonfiction

The Secrets of Overachievers Hon, Chang, Tong: Do You Have These Three?

Lee Jee-hoon, Sam & Parkers 2010, 304p, ISBN 978-89-9264-786-1

Steve Jobs, the most innovative man in technology, has once again made world headlines with the launch of Apple’s new iPad. How does this man continue to distinguish himself in such ways that never cease to amaze us?

He says: “Don’t be tied down to what others think. Don’t let the voices of other people clutter the voice within yourself that speaks the truth. The most important thing is to have the courage to follow your own heart and intuition.” Jobs has always dreamed new dreams, exemplifying extraordinary creativity through cutting edge innovations. But more than that, Jobs has always been someone who strived to communicate and share his visions with others. “The Weekly Biz” in the Chosun Ilbo’s economics section consists of extensive interviews with international business gurus and distinguished scholars and is a popular column among Korean CEOs. Dr. Lee Jee-hoon, editor of the Chosun Ilbo’s “Weekly Biz,” notes ‘hon’ (魂), ‘chang’ (創), and ‘tong’ (通) as the three common traits that distinguish these world-renown businessmen from others.

‘Hon’ (魂) refers to the vision, dream, and convictions of an individual. It is being purpose-driven and having the conviction of one’s calling. Shigenobu Nagamori, CEO of Nidec Corporation, a global electronics manufacturing company based in Japan, notes: “30-40 years ago people didn’t have jobs (in Japan) and whatever job you had, even if it was difficult, people worked hard. But we live in a time where

any competent individual can get a job and work. Take myself for example. I have a lot of money. But why do I get up at fivethirty in the morning and work until the late hours of the night? It’s because I love to work.” Not only Nagamori, but Japan’s business guru Kazuo Inamori, founder of Kyocera Corporation, and Virgin group’s CEO Richard Branson, also confess to revel in their workplace. Furthermore, by choosing an altruistic business philosophy in pursuing their work, these business leaders have made their mark in the world with true greatness.

Chang (創) is transposing ‘hon’ (魂) with hard work and spirit, as well as battling the ordinary. Novelist Bernard Werber says, “I feel that I have ‘lost time’ on the days I am not able to obtain something original and new.” Alan Arkin, 2007 Academy Award winner for Best Supporting Actor and musician says, “People are either rotting or growing.

There is no middle ground.” Continuously working to improve oneself is the spirit of ‘chang.’ Chesley Sullenberger III, the pilot who saved the lives of 155 passengers in 2009 in what was called the “Miracle on the Hudson,” logs 19,000 hours of f ly ing time. Accord ing to t he book Outliers by bestselling writer Malcolm Gladwell, people who have achieved greatness all have the commonality of having painstakingly put in 10,000 hours of work in the area of their expertise; this is equivalent to putting in three hours of work every day for 10 years.

“Tong’ (通) refers to sharing dreams and respecting the differences between people. ‘tong ’ does not simply mea n communication, but communicating t he org a n i z at ion’s ra ison d ’ êt re, i n other words, conveying the ‘hon’ of the corporation. Mary Kay Ash, CEO of Mary Kay Cosmetics, says that the best way to acknowledge employees is to listen carefully to what they have to say and to extol them for their accomplishments.

This is because the final goal for ‘tong’ is to have all employees enjoy coming to work and finding satisfaction in their work place, and this would mean listening to their thoughts and visions concerning the company.

By Richard Hong

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Reviews Nonfiction

See What You Can’t See The Creative Habit Lee Hong, Forest Publishing Co. 2010, 271p, ISBN 978-89-94418-10-0

A man stepped into a bank in Los Angeles and requested to borrow $5,000 for a twoweek trip to Paris. The bank employee asked for collateral and the man pointed to the Ferrari parked outside with a market price of more than $250,000. Then the owner of the car handed the keys to the bank employee and the employee took the car and parked it in the safety of the bank’s collateral vault. Two weeks later the owner of the car returned and paid back the bank in full, including interest. After realizing that the owner of the car was very wealthy, the baffled bank employee asked, “Why would a rich man like you borrow $5,000 dollars from the bank?”

The rich man answered, “I was wondering where I could safely keep my treasured car while I was away. I thought that the bank’s vault might be the best place.”

To the bank employee the vault was a place to keep collateral; to the rich young man the meaning of the vault was extended to

Strategies for Success Goo Bon-hyung’s Lethal Strategies in the Office Goo Bon-hyung, Dasan Life 2010, 239p, ISBM 978-89-6370-145-5

68 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

Goo Bon-hyung worked for over 20 years at IBM Korea as a cutting edge business administrator. He is now recognized as a top business executive in the country, one who is sensitive to change and innovation.

Goo introduces “lethal strategies” to office workers living perilous existences prone to lay-offs, and brings excitement to the average employee who endures the daily drudgery of a repetitive, boring office life purely for the paycheck that pays the bills.

In Korean, “lethal strategies” is a term utilized in sports such as wrestling, referring to skills that can knock down an opponent in one blow; but in the book, the term refers to a unique set of skills an individual possesses that no one else can emulate.

“I will die pursuing what I love, and if that means that resigning equals death, then be it.” Goo introduces his work ethic, and counsels readers that the most pressing matter in devising one’s own “lethal strategy” is to know what kind of work one is doing, and to find the field of work one likes to do best in that particular environment. This is because those who

a parking lot. Likewise, creativity begins when one begins to think outside the box.

Professor Lee Hong, a recognized creativity mentor in the country, emphasizes that, “Creativity is much more of a habit than the specific characteristic of an individual.” Han Kyung-hee, a homemaker turned successful entrepreneur who developed the steam vacuum cleaner; the mother who came up with the idea of the bending straw while tending to her convalescent son; and the old lady who invented the foot-accessible-faucet for her daughter-in-law washing dishes—these are all examples of discovering the unique habit of seeing what you can’t see, the habit of breaking away from conventions, and the habit of standing on the edge. Lee’s book is full of examples that will fill and guide readers who are hungry to create.

By Richard Hong

enjoy what they are doing will thrive and become experts in that field and will have the freedom to embrace all of life’s pleasures, whereas others doing the same work will only be mediocre at their job due to their lack of enthusiasm.

“What will I be famous for?” Asking yourself this question is the first step to creating your own “lethal strategy.” If you have found your special talent then the next step is to concentrate on developing that talent. The logic behind Goo’s “forte revolution” has to do with further developing one’s strengths as opposed to trying to improve one’s weaknesses. The most important factor in realizing one’s own “lethal strategy” is to develop the power of habits. For example, Goo spends two to three hours every day concentrating on writing. This habit has become his joy, and it has helped him embody the courage to refer to himself as “a writer.”

By Richard Hong

Reviews Nonfiction

A Little Effort Goes a Long Way Small Differences Yeon Joon-hyug, Wisdomhouse Publishing Co., Ltd. 2010, 299p, ISBN 978- 89-6086-242-5

The golf brand Callaway is one of the leading manufacturer’s today in golf balls and golf clubs. Ely R. Callaway started a small business in 1982 that developed a line of drivers called “the Big Bertha” in 1991, which subsequently changed the destiny of his company. This extraordinary success started with sitting down and watching people. Callaway, the founder of the company, was sitting at a country club simply observing the people there when he came to an important realization. At the time golf was widely known to be a sport played mostly by the retired elderly, but Callaway noticed that in actuality, there were not many senior citizens at the club.

Callaway interviewed senior citizens and found out that many of them refrained from playing golf because they wanted to avoid the humiliation of swinging and missing the ball. This made Callaway come

Behind Children’s Poor Eating Habits Children's Nutrition The EBS Children's Food-Table Producer Team Educational Channel, 2010, 279p ISBN 978-89-527-5801-9

This book sheds light on the scientific and psychological motivations behind children’s poor eating habits. It analyzes the reasons why children adopt poor eating habits and intends to offer fundamental solutions to these problems.

Among the problems dealt with in this book are the “sweet tooth instinct,” fussy eating, and overeating. The question of why children like sweets and dislike bitter tastes has long been taken for granted, and has not been addressed at all.

This book agrees with the conjecture that the preference for sweets is a natural instinct. From an evolutionary perspective, sweets provided humans with energy, and provided that comforting taste associated

with survival. The enthusiasm for sweets is an instinct that starts in the womb and is something common to all mammals, not just humans. The instinct is so powerful that it requires a great deal of effort on the part of parents to prevent children from becoming slaves to sweets. When babies start eating solid foods it is essential to avoid sweet fruit, and of course providing chocolates and sweets as a reward for good behavior is also something that must be avoided. If the adored sweets become a reward, then these become even more of a preferred food.

The role that parents play in their children’s eating habits is even more central in the case of issues of fussy eating and overeating. The Korean saying, “a child’s preferences is its mother’s preferences” in food comes from the fact that parents exert an absolute influence on their children’s eating habits. When eating together, for example, a child’s reaction can be

to the conclusion that he must create a driver with a bigger head that would allow players to strike the ball more easily. This was the beginning of the revolutionary Big Bertha.

People generally believe that there is an enormous gap between those who succeed and those who fail. However, success usually derives from small differences. Submitting a project two days ahead of the deadline, beginning all your answers with “yes,” always carrying a book, complimenting or crediting someone not present, typing your short-term or long-term goals on your cell phone home screen–Yeon’s book offers up 33 small habits anyone can cultivate that will eventually develop greatness.

By Richard Hong

dramatically different, if the mother eats a cookie and scowls, or if she eats it and smiles in delight.

Investigations also led to some amusing results: for example, that the more parents denounce a certain food, the more the child wants to eat it; and that the larger the plate, the more the child will eat. The message of this book is that no matter if parents are concerned about overeating or undereating, it is important for parents to remain levelheaded. This scientific approach offers a much easier and more effective method of adjusting children’s eating habits.

By Lee Ji-young

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Reviews Nonfiction

Harmony of Music and Art The Moment of Hearing the Painting and Seeing the Music Noella, Bacdoci Co. Ltd., 2010, 272p ISBN 978-89-94030-11-1

Must Reads of Our Time Ven. Beopjeong’s Favorite Books Editorial Dept., Forest of Literature, 2010, 487p ISBN 978-89-93838-10-7

One of Korea's most famous Buddhist monks, Venerable Beopjeong, passed away on the 11th of March, 2010. Through such famous works as Non-Possession, he introduced Buddhist philosophy with simplicity and elegance. Venerable Beopjeong won widespread respect particularly through his service, through example, and his lived practice of “nonpossession” and “discard, leave behind.”

As the monk attests, one of the true and few pleasures that he experienced in his life were the times when he was able to read books without interference. No matter where he was, who he was meeting, or what frequent meetings he held, the 70 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

This is a collection of art-related essays

by Noella, a violinist and columnist of music and art. The author, who released her album “Shining Cloud” in 2008, demonstrates through this collection an innovative approach to appreciating art through music and music through art.

Violin performers must learn to express the nuances of the music through their bow strokes. These nuances are not easily perceived by beginners, but when you imagine a bow to be a paintbrush, this perception changes. Understanding how different strokes—straight or curved—are created by a thick or thin brush clarifies the way in which the violin bow, too, creates different sounds.

Painting and music are the same.

The author explains that seen and heard together, music and art are easier to understand. This essay collection goes beyond any classification of genres and speaks of music and art with great emotion a nd enthusia sm. Noella’s method of capturing music and art is by creating couples: she pairs up works of music and

conversations that he maintained about books were dear to his heart. Even when he decided to join the priesthood, and he shaved his head and donned the priestly robes, the one thing that kept him from leaving the house easily was his one beloved possession: books. As he himself admitted, his relationship with books was lifelong and not easily severed.

Venerable Beopjeong’s Favorite Books is, as its title indicates, a book that introduces 50 of the monk's best-loved books. The two years that it took to compile this collection were spent in conversation and correspondence with the monk over these texts. The books in this collection are diverse. They include, for example, Walden by Henry David Thoreau, Ancient Futures by Helena Norberg Hodge, The Man Who Planted Trees by Jean Giono, and other books that contemplate the joyful coexistence of humankind and the Earth.

Other artistic books include Terre des Hommes by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Letters of Vincent van Gogh, and Zorba the Greek by Nikos Kazantzakis.

What is clear is that the books loved by Vernable Beopjeong all demonstrate a way

art that evoke similar emotions. Monet’s atmospheric paintings go along with, for example, the music of Debussy, that elusive music that creates feelings of awe and mystery in the listener. The powerful colors and touch of the expressionist painter Edvard Munch creates similar associations as the music of Arnold Shoenberg. The provocative and unconventional erotic paintings of Egon Schiele conjure up the music of Alban Berg’s opera Lulu, which tells of the passions of human desire.

Noella also discusses the relationship between the works of Jackson Pollock and John Cage, Wassily Kandinsky and Alexander Scriabin, and Francisco Goya and Ludwig van Beethoven.

This book does not place emphasis on a complete, in-depth understanding of the music, nor on the value and place of a work of visual art. The purpose is rather to imagine and then convey to the reader the emotions which drove the creation of the art, rather than to explain any particular artistic or musical technique. The message that the author of this collection wishes to convey is this: perhaps not everyone can be an artist, but it is not difficult to feel art.

By Han Mihwa

of living that is filled with spirit and soul.

This book is a guide to finding the right path in today's society and world; it feels less like a book and more like another of Venerable Beopjeong's teachings.

By Han Mihwa

Writer's Note

In Search of Lost Curiosity That’s right—I had left. I’d forgotten it for a little while. My journey, for what did you lead me here? I asked, and then forgot, once again, that I was on a journey. And I felt sad that even though my body had been brought to a completely different place, my spirit hadn’t. My journey, won’t you bring my spirit to this new place, too?

I don’t remember exactly when, but as I got older, something left me—curiosity about the world, about life, about people. I’d always thought such symptoms were fatal for a writer.

Changes in seasons, beautiful things, the intensity of life—nothing moved me. Was it because of the weight of my daily life? Was it boredom, or lethargy? Even searching for an answer was part of tedious daily life. And then, like a gift, the publisher suggested that I go on a trip. Even with the trip ahead of me, however, I didn’t feel that enthusiastic about packing and looking for a place where I wanted to travel. Why did I have to leave?

On a cold day that didn’t feel like spring, I made my way to the children’s book fair held in Bologna, Italy. On display at the entrance were familiar characters from Korean picture books.

There was a tiger, an old woman, and flat-nosed children, all from Korea. The characters seemed to be asking me, for what have you come? Then they said, it seemed, it’s good to see you. My heart felt softened. I felt proud to see a Korean picture book awarded the Ragazzi Award, and grew comfortable and relaxed as I met some of the writers. How hard they must have worked, and how difficult it must have been for them, I thought. Their shy smiles before the camera felt like warm candlelight.

In the Korean booths, lovely books from Korea, and some of my own, were on display. The foreigners, thoroughly examining the Korean books and holding meetings with one another, sounded serious and lighthearted at the same time. They were calm and quiet, but confident. I walked slowly. I floated lightly through the books, for I hadn’t come to buy or sell books.

How and why has this book come to be here? How did it get here? Why is it on display here? What country is it from? Who made this book? Is the person who wrote this book alive or dead? When was this book written, and why did the author feel prompted to write it? Was it the present, or the long ago past? And what kind of a story is contained in this book? The books, full of words I couldn’t read, stimulated my curiosity. I took a book in my hand, flipped through the pages, feeling them with my own hands. I wanted to know everything that was in the book. Does my book make someone feel curious like this? I wondered. It would be wonderful if the stories I’ve written were reborn in unfamiliar languages and told with warmth and affection to unknown readers.

At intervals, I went to explore the unfamiliar land and its cities. The things I saw there for the first time made me reflect on things—myself, others, and the streets and scenes from life. Looking at unfamiliar things and people, I became curious as to why they were made in a certain way, why they talked and moved and ate and looked at me in a certain way. I became awfully curious.

Perhaps all journeys start out from a desire—a desire for things you’ve always wanted, the kind of house you want to live in, the food you want to taste, images you like, and ornaments, colors, traditions, and movements, and so on. For the first time in a long time, I felt desire, and curiosity. The thing that had left me in the place I’d left behind was springing up in me again.

It felt pleasant.

When the unfamiliarity grew somewhat tedious, I became a sojourner in the daily life to which I had returned. I became curious about the people here, where I had lived. I explored the signs and shops and trees that I used to see every day. I took a close look at the books, the clothes, the bowls and teacups I’d been used to. And I often asked myself: What is this place?

What do I do, and why am I the way I am? I make sure to take the rising curiosity with me in my pocket. It’s a new start.

By Gong Ji-hee * Gong Ji-hee is a children’s book writer. She debuted in 2001 in the Seoul Daily Newspaper with the fairy tale The Friends in the Attic and received the Hwang-guem Dokaebi Award in 2003 for Yeongmo Has Disappeared. Her most well-known works include The Kind Footprint and Today Is a Happy Day.

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Reviews Nonfiction

Craftsmen at Work The Essence of 21st Craftsmanship Spirit Yu Hong-june, et al., Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.

2010, 255p, ISBN 978-89-546-1067-4

A craftsman is someone who pours their heart and soul into the creation of their art.

It is precisely the presence of the craftsman spirit that can take the contemporary viewer's breath away when looking at an ancient ceramic piece, a pagoda, or a painting. In traditional society, the spirit of craftsmanship was a product both of a long process of mentoring between a master and his student, as well as the result of accumulated experience. Today, however, this concept is associated only with creativity and original ideas. The very term "craftsman" has been discarded.

Six members of the non-profit organization Arumjigi (‘Culture Keepers’) who are responsible for the protection and cultivation of Korean cultural heritage were called for this project. They were asked questions such as, "Where do you see the meeting place between craftsmen

of the past and craftsmen of the present?" and "What, in your mind, is the essence of craftsmanship in today's day and age?"

This book contains their responses to these questions, and provides an opportunity to observe the work of contemporary craftsmen.

The book provides two kinds of pleasures. The first is the pleasure that comes from witnessing the beauty of Korean culture as well as obser ving traditional craftsmen at work. The book is filled with photographs that reflect the beauty of Korean traditional fashion, architecture, traditional music, cuisine, and painting, and these photographs enhance the reading experience even further.

Art historian Yu Hong-june highlights that the beauty of these craftsmen comes from a moving experience communicated through their work. Kim Youngil, who established a recording company for professional Korean traditional musicians, claims that Korean music is a living organism. A true craftsman is one who performs music through his soul. Bae

View a Film, Begin an Adventure Daydreaming on the Road Lee Dongjin, Wisdomhouse Publishing Co., Ltd. 2010, 288p, ISBN 978-89-591-3434-2

There are films in the world that make you want to hit the road as soon as you watch them. This is because films leave imprints of their images in people's hearts. What would it be like, for example, to visit the places where films such as Once, Star Wars, Mamma Mia, and Castaway were created and filmed? This book attempts to answer this precise question through practical means.

Author Lee Dongjin is a film journalist famous for his literary film critiques. He established the company Lee Dongjin. com, and works as a freelancer writing professionally about films.

Films and travel are par t of the 72 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

romantic pursuits that people dream about.

This book captures not one but both of these dreams. Of course, the travel part of this book is, to a certain degree, intimately tied to film. The kind of information about places or the stories about people who met on the road and other such random episodes are not so important. Rather, this book examines the highly personal feelings awakened by particular film scenes.

For this purpose, the author of this novel travels to the island of Fiji where the protagonist of the film Castaway survived 1,500 days in isolation, and tries to imitate him exactly. Hearing of the great Ingmar Bergman's death, the author travels to Porer Island where he has the opportunity to face not death but the fond memories of his own childhood, during which he loved Ingmar Bergman so dearly. And seeing musicians playing acoustic guitars

Bien-u, made world famous through his photographs of pine trees, translated the space rooted deep inside him, a space that represents for him—his mother and homeland—into photographs. Other experts such as fashion designer Jung Kuho explain the art of traditional Korean fashion in contemporary terms, and architect Kim Bong-ryol shares his ideas about the essence of the craftsman spirit in contemporary times.

By Han Mihwa

in Dublin, Ireland, the setting for the film Once brings up memories of love and breakup that resonate with the title of the film.

Life begins where films end, of course, but there are times when those afterimages also create life. This book explores those memories that are created by film.

By Han Mihwa

Book Lover's Angle

Found in Translation When people tell me that Koreans are loud, dishonest, aggressive, and too competitive, I do not yell at them, lie to them, punch them, or try to beat them. I nod calmly then I tell them that Koreans are also funny, brilliant, truthful, direct, smart, romantic, generous, truthful, sensitive, and compassionate. Of course, I always mention that Koreans are also very good-looking.

By 2010, the world outside of South Korea knows of her accomplishments. Koreans can skate, cook, play classical music, sing opera, golf, act, design buildings, paint, produce films and soap operas, create high fashion, and make great cars, electronics, and mobile phones. The people of Korea have rebuilt a wardevastated nation and become a significant global player. And yet, the persistence of negative stereotypes about the Korean people make me believe that the world does not know enough Koreans intimately to see our humanity.

When we know enough people of any country or any tribe, we resist making generalizations. But if we cannot have intimate relationships with 100 assorted Russians, Chinese, Mexicans, Indians, Iraqis, Peruvians, or Nigerians, how can we know them? Is there a short-cut?

Sort of.

Through their pages, Tolstoy, Borges, Kafka, Tanizaki, Flaubert, Neruda, Dumas, Shakespeare, Faulkner, Woolf, Balzac, Elias Canetti, Naguib Mahfouz, Goethe, Wharton, Lu Hsun, Ngugi wa Thiong’o, and Nadine Gordimer have shown us what their countrymen have struggled against—revealing the respective national soul of their people.

As a gyopo (overseas Korean), I’ve learned about my heritage from different sources, but one of the best ways has been to read Korean literature translated into English.

The foremost translator of Korean literature in America is Peter H. Lee, Professor Emeritus of UCLA who began the formal instruction of Korean literature at Columbia University in 1960 and taught the subject continuously for 47 years until his retirement in 2007. Professor Lee made Korean literature a legitimate academic subject in the United States through his teaching and by publishing over 20 volumes of translations and scholarship. Bruce and Ju-Chan Fulton, David McCann, Brother Anthony, Kevin O’Rourke, Kim YoungMoo, Ahn Jung-hyo, and many others have toiled without recognition or reward in the service of sharing Korean literature with the English-reading population and thereby enriching Korea around the world. These individuals are the patriots and true friends of Korea.

Recently, the Feminist Press of CUNY asked me to review a manuscript of From Wonso Pond—a fascinating novel written by Kang Kyong-Ae and translated by Samuel Perry. It was thrilling to learn about the complex political and emotional viewpoints of the Korean people during this difficult era of Korean history.

The translation of Kang’s seminal work was supported by a fellowship from the Korean Literature Translation Institute. In May, KLTI sponsored its 3rd annual Seoul International Writers’ Festival so writers from around the world and South Korea could share their works with the public and each other. Junot Diaz and I represented the United States.

Sadly, the average person in the United States or Europe is unable to name a single work of literature written in Korean; he has never heard of the hyangga, changga, sijo, kasa or pansori, but the American or European has knowledge of both the sonnet and the haiku.

So there is much good work to be done. After a Korean book is translated, it must be supported through reviews, targeted marketing, academic conferences, and most importantly these translated books should be taught in schools through various university departments—History, Literature, East Asian Studies, and Korean Studies.

This can be an exciting time for Korean literature. Pioneers like Peter H. Lee did much of the heavy lifting of establishing Korean literature as a respected academic discipline, and scholars like Samuel Perry and Yu Youngnan (translator of Yom Sangsop’s Three Generations) continue to advance the creation of a body of translated Korean literature through their rigorous labor. KLTI is also broadening the global understanding of Korea through its literature.

Richard Howard, the Pulitzer Prize winning poet wrote recently in The New York Times that “translation matters because it is an expression and an extension of our humanity.” Translated Korean literature will add greater depth and create universal connections to the Korean people. With our accomplishments and our literature, Koreans can best define who we are in all our glorious complexity.

By Min Jin Lee *Min Jin Lee is a novelist. Her debut novel, Free Food for Millionaires was a New York Times Editor’s Choice, a Wall Street Journal Juggle Book Club Selection, and a national bestseller. She is a Morning Forum columnist at the Chosun Ilbo.

She lives in Tokyo with her husband and son where she is working on her second novel Pachinko.

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Reviews Graphic Novels

Exploring Young Love Tomorrow Is Fine Kim Euijeong, ISMG, 2008 ISBN 978-89-532-8454-8 (set)

T he rom a nt ic c ome dy w h ic h spi n s amusing, episodic tales about love, is a relatively contemporary genre. The origins of comedy lay in the antics of mischievous boys, and this was later expanded to encompass families. Romance tended to be tragic, or, in the case when there were happy endings involved, the goal or target was always made clear. The romantic comedy, in which men and women create laughter and love through playful banter, was less focused on a specific goal (such as marriage, for example); rather, it was more interested in illustrating different characters’ situations. But because mere love interest is not necessarily amusing, humor was added to the mix. And the more cha racters appea red, t he more amused the readers grew.

Writer Kim Euijeong made her debut in 2004 with her graphic novel Wink, and her first serialized novel Fruit used fruit to expose her characters’ heartwarming stories with humor by stringing together different narratives. Tomorrow is Fine! is Kim Euijeong’s second serialized publication.

The first technique that she used to string together narratives was fruit; this time, she chose jewelry. The protagonists in this graphic novel are three 24-year-old women: narrator Cho Ah, who is both a screen writer and aspiring actress; officewoman Yi Hwayeong; and fashion reporter Kim Miseon. Another character, Yi Dusik, is the younger brother of Yi Hwayeong and a friend to all three women. Dusik invests his knowhow to set up a coffee shop/ jewlery shop which he calls ‘Tesoro Mio’ (“my precious” in Italian). Cho A-ra begins to work for the coffee shop at Dusik’s recommendation. Of course, there are men hovering around these three women, and love is both given and received. The vivacious and jovial daily lives of these

twenty-something women, and the stories of those who come to this coffee shop to buy jewelry, are highly amusing.

By Park In-ha

Traditional Music Merges with Fantasy Ari Ari Kungtakung Funny Factory; Illustrator: Yoon Changwon Fox Tree, 2009, ISBN 978-89-963416-0-4 (set)

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Graphic novels can be about anything: food, dance, song, sports, even about studying. The more esoteric and unique their material, the more interesting they a re. Ari Ari Kungtakung is a unique c h i ld ren’s g r aph ic novel t h at t a ke s traditional Korean music as its theme and material.

Ari Ari Kungtakung is staged during t he Jose on era , but t h i s f ac t i s not necessarily important. Central are the two main characters: the boy Chiwoo, born to a goblin father and a human mother, a boy who, instead of horns, has the ability to move the power of gi (energy) in his body; and the girl Sora who is learning martial arts and other fighting arts that use the power of music and sound. When Chiwoo, who is a goblin despite his human looks, shoots out gi through his hands, he grows powerful; When he shoots gi out of his feet he can fly; and when he sends gi out of his ears he can hear extremely well. When

it comes out of his mouth, he can see everything.

The monster Yulmyeong-su appears right after the two main characters meet and they face him together, but it is Chiwoo who plays the danseo f lute and uses the power of sound to scare the monster away. The Yulmyeong-su monster refers to the 12 tones in traditional Korean music; the monster must be approached in the same tones in order for the attack to be effective. Later, a band of bandits appears and introduces a wide range of traditional Korean instruments, and they all come together in a musical face-off.

This graphic novel Ari Ari Kungtakung, which takes as its subject Korean traditional music, is a unique Korean fantasy graphic novel which will appeal to any young fantasy-loving reader.

By Park In-ha

Reviews Graphic Novels

Romance Meets Death Metal Maerie Is Out at Night Won Soo-yeon, anibooks, 2009 ISBN 978-89-5919-299-1

Full House is the title of a Korean soap opera that became well-known throughout Asia. This serial drama was an adaptation of a graphic novel by the same name. After writing Full House, writer Won Soo-yeon wrote Let Dye, which featured a story about homosexual love in an environment of tough high-school boys; she wrote Full House II, and then in 2009 published the serial novel Maerie Is Out at Night. In this last work, Won Soo-yeon’s unique f lair is distinctly expressed. This writer has a considerable ear for dialogue; the negotiations between her male and female characters carry her stories through. Just as in Full House, the female character Maerie and her male counterpart Mu-gyeol start bickering from the very moment that they meet, carrying on throughout the entire novel.

The novel begins when three friends go to a club to see a performance by the

A Secret World Baptist Yu Gyeong-won; Illustrator: Mun Seong-ho Daewon C. I. Inc., 2009 ISBN 978-89-2525-030-4

An incident occurs, and it is investigated.

A ny other detective might not ma ke much of this incident, but this particular one gets suspicious. His tireless pursuit uncovers an enormous secret that is hidden by the otherwise unremarkable incident.

The author of this book inserts, of course, a list of various codes. When someone breaks the code, the reader experiences great satisfaction. This book is anchored in mystery. If this involves a world-shattering conspiracy of epic proportions, especially if that conspiracy is in the realm of the sacred (religious, political, or scientific), then it is all the more fascinating. In this sense, this work echoes the American author Dan Brown’s novels The Da Vinci Code or Angels and Demons.

Titled Baptist a nd written by Yu Gyeong-won and Mun Seong-ho, it makes use of Christian symbolism (e.g. the 12 disciples, spirit, sheep, blood, John the Apostle) not unlike Dan Brown, but the secrets are not uncovered by the robot Langdon. Instead, the characters in the book are children of enormous power divided by good a nd evil who come together in a face-off. The book starts off as a detective mystery and changes into an action-graphic novel. Ultimately, the writers are successful in setting up an enormous power struggle and conspiracy in a way that captures the interest of the reader.

Volume one, the introduction, lures the reader into the mysterious world of Baptist by exciting the reader’s curiosity.

This set the stage for the protagonist, g e n iu s y ou n g s t e r Von Me ie r. T h i s introduction serves as an initiation of both the reader and the protagonist into a world of secrets. This action-packed graphic

death metal band “Strawberry Corpse.”

The image of romance and death metal—a subgenre of heavy metal—do not seem to compliment each other very well, and this is precisely where the problem begins.

Maerie, who has absolutely no interest in love, is listening to other music streaming through her earphones. But then the strawberries that are thrown by the band as a part of the performance fly towards Maerie. In that moment, the black-andwhite illustrations of the graphic novel are stained in red. And Maerie looks over to see the leader of that band by the name of Kang Mu-gyeol.

These two strong characters get to know each other better through their constant bickering, and they fall in love.

If Won’s novel Full House showed that all love is headed in the direction of marriage, this graphic novel closely examines the development of love. Won throws many an obstacle in the way of their love, but introduces their marriage early on. Maerie Is Out at Night, then, is an amusing exploration of the events following their wedding.

By Park In-ha

novel negotiates a range of genres and themes including religion, science, and fantasy. Five books have been published in the series thus far.

By Park In-ha

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Reviews Children's Books

Stone Buddha Meets Child The Stone Temple of Seokguram Kim Mi-hae; Illustrator: Choi Mi-ran Woongjin Think Big Co., Ltd., 2009, 45p ISBN 978-89-01-10209-2

At the last International Children's Book Festival that took place in Bologna in March of 2010 (BCBF), there was one book, a unique picture book about a blackand-white statue of the Buddha, that caught people's attention. The title of this book was The Stone Temple of Seokguram.

This book received mention in the fiction section amidst the flashier, more colorful prize-winning books in that category. The resting spot for that Buddha is in Korea, situated at the very tip of the peninsula that is at the eastern tip of the Eurasian continent and faces the Pacific Ocean.

Seokguram is the name of a temple built in 774 AD during the Silla dynasty.

It is a unique temple in that it was built as a cave from stone. The remains of this temple are today considered among the masterpieces of Asian Buddhist art. At the center of this temple is the gracefully peaceful stone Buddha, the epitome of Buddhist sublime beauty. Notable is its architectural design which naturally eliminates humidity despite its proximity to the sea, and this structure prevents the buildup of moss and other deterioration.

The fact that this stone statue still stands in one piece even after 1,200 years is very surprising. This masterpiece, which brings together architecture, mathematics, geometry, religion, and art has been chosen

by UNESCO as a World Heritage site.

The first charm of The Stone Temple of Seokguram is its stimulating pictures, which allow for the viewer to vicariously experience this beautiful world heritage

site. Tohamsan (mountain) in the city of Gyeong-ju, which is home to Seokguram, is also famous for its beautiful sunrises.

The path to Tohamsan leading up to the temple before sunrise is foggy. The hearts of those who plod up the mountain to make their wishes is earnest, and the possibility of their wishes coming true is as white and wispy as the fog. It is impossible to relax until one passes through the four guardians of the Buddha and until one arrives directly in front of the statue. But at the sight of the Buddha's benevolent smile, one feels at ease. This book captures the process of emotional development from fear to tension to relief through detailed ink paintings that bring these feelings to life. The most notable scene is the moment when the mother and child finally find themselves standing in front of the Buddha and gaze at his smile.

This book's other charms lies in its narrative. The poet, Kim Mi-hae, manages to create a bright and affectionate narrative that resonates with the reader even while it inspires through the weighty images produced only by the play of light and shadows. The child is waiting for the father to come back from a long journey that has taken him far away; through the Buddha's shiny forehead and the rising sun, the child's mournful appeal is transformed into hope.

During the Bologna Children's Book Festival, an American editor looked through this book, which was on display for its achievements, and expressed a

very favorable opinion: “I was deeply moved by the mysterious beauty of this unmoving stone Buddha, and by the dignified child who moved the Buddha's heart." Children's books usually feature bright experiences and spaces occupied by children bursting with energy. All things considered, then, the fact that a story about the silent interaction between a child and a Buddha received such positive responses deserves our attention. It is this reason that this book goes beyond pleasing an audience within a limited cultural context and is worthy of receiving international praise.

By Kim Ji-eun

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Reviews Children's Books

Where Liars Learn to Lie Liar School Jeon Seonghee; Illustrator: So Yunkyoung Munhakdongne Publishing Corp., 2009, 223p ISBN 978-89-546-0962-3

There is a school that, through a rigorous entrance exam, selects only the smartest of kids, sponsors them in all that they need, and guarantees them a post as a high-level government official upon graduation. The school, however, is a training school for liars. Are there any parents who would want to send their children to such a place? Horrifying as it is, the answer is yes.

There are many, in fact, at least in Korea.

The greatest fear for parents in Korean society is for their children to lag behind in competition and become losers; as long as their children can be among the winners, they might not have any qualms about sending them to such a school. Herein lies a reality more terrifying than any horror movie.

The science-fiction-like premise that

a school for liars run by the state in secret may seem outrageous at first, but the sentiments prevalent in Korean society, that lies can be a shortcut for success and personal gain, imbues this seemingly absurd story with reality. But how complicated and inexplicable are human beings! Humans cannot be turned into computers that automatically produce lies through the input of a program for lies. Thus, no matter how corrupt the world becomes, there must be hope in humanity.

The paradoxical story, in which the children who enter the school to learn how to lie grow closer and closer to the truth, provide gripping tension for readers till the very last page. The games of inference and logic about truth and lies, fit for an elite school full of intelligent students, provide an intriguing intellectual entertainment as well. Liar School is recommended to readers around 12 years of age, who have begun to seriously ponder whether they must submit to dirty games in order to become an adult. The work was awarded the 10th

From Stepping Stones to Space-Elevator Bridges: Linking People and the World Kim Hyang-geum; Illustrator: Lee Kyung-guk I-seum (mirae-n culture group) 2010, 41p, ISBN 978-89-378-4550-5

78 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

These days we can easily travel wherever we want at any time, but by the same token, our interest and delight in meeting new worlds has diminished. Bridges: Linking People and the World describes in detail the origins, changes, and historical significance of bridges. However, it is far more than simply a factual account.

When primitive man came across water in his path, he either had to swim across or go the long way round. And so he built the first bridge. Crossing that bridge, he visited the neighboring village for the first time, and was perhaps delighted to find a pretty girl there! It all started by tossing a few stones into a stream, but “necessity is the mother of invention,” and if we consider the continuous development of bridges right up until the present day— wood bridges, stone bridges, submerged bridges that can withstand floods, iron railway bridges, even ultramodern bridges that join islands to the mainland—we are

Munhakdongne Children’s Literature Award.

By Park Suk-kyoung

quite moved to realize how many stories lie hidden beneath the convenience we take so much for granted today. The will of human beings who were determined to cross their allotted boundaries of time and space led to the creation of bridges, and bridges linked people to the world, giving birth to today’s civilization. Humans will continue to build bridges. In the future, maybe there will be a bridge that links the Earth to the moon.

It is also fascinating to note that there are bridges that are virtually identical, as if they were twins, in countries distant from each other.

Various bridges from past and present are depicted in detailed photographs, while the people building and crossing the bridges are illustrated in a folksy cartoon style, adding to the reader’s feeling of involvement.

By Park Suk-kyoung

Reviews Children's Books

The Monster Within Taming the Monsters Kim Jin-kyung; Illustrator: Song Hee-jin BIR Publishing Co., Ltd. 2009, 85p, ISBN 978-89-491-6124-2

Throughout the world, the words that are most frequently used by parents to their children are probably “You must” and “You mustn’t.” The words that the children on the receiving end most want to employ are surely “Why?” and “I will!” However, most children continue to firmly repress their feelings of resistance because they are afraid they will get into trouble with their parents if they express themselves in such a way.

A young boy who hates going to afterschool piano lessons comes across two strange creatures in a grassy field by the river. When he asks them their names, the creatures give a howl and bark that sound like, “Why?” and “I will!” And so the creatures’ names are decided. One is ‘Why’ and the other is ‘I Will.’ Now,

these particular creatures cannot be seen by grown-ups. When the boy takes the creatures home, total chaos ensues. In trying to stop the monsters from behaving outrageously in the house, the boy yells out “Why?” and “I Will!” but it somehow looks as if he is answering back and disobeying his mother. Can the boy and the creatures continue to live in this house without serious conflicts?

These strange creatures represent the boy’s repressed ego. The boy’s uncle had a similar experience himself as a child, and he tells his nephew not to throw the monsters out, but to “tame” them and live together with them. All children suffer stress as they grow up, but rather than blindly suppressing it, children should learn to redirect psychological feelings of oppression themselves through play and adventure, and relieve such feelings.

Finding ways to deal with inner frustration and suppressed desires, which cannot be solved by their parents’ love and protection alone, is the first step towards growing

Through the Eyes of Robots Planet of Robots Lee Hyun; Illustrator: Oh Seungmin Prunsoop Publishing Co. Ltd. 2010, ISBN 978-89-7184-535-6 (set)

The debate on technology, which had died out for some time, has become vibrant again. The i-Pad has stirred up interest in analog reading and digital reading, and since the screening of James Cameron’s Avatar, a growing number of people have been using the unfamiliar term, “augmented reality.” The smart phone craze has opened an era in which humans actively equip their bodies with something. The smart phone is an external hard drive supplementing the function of the human brain, and at the same time, an artificial sensory organ enhancing the uncertainty of visual and auditory senses.

For a long time, humans have dreamed of robots; the robot has always been at the pinnacle of human-developed technology.

The recent trends in the development of technology demonstrate that the path isn’t too far ahead. Robots are creatures that vicariously perform human tasks. Can robots, then, love, suffer, and think for humans?

Planet of Robots is a children’s book about the civilization of technology and

up. This much-awaited story by Kim Jinkyung, whose work Cat School won the Prix des Incorruptibles in France, is for children around 10-year-old.

By Park Suk-kyoung

robots. The three volumes deal with robots that put their existence at stake. Robots are imitations of humans, but are physically superior to humans. Mentally, though, humans are more cunning than robots, and the human world is rife with conspiracy, betrayal, and struggles unimaginable by robots. Like classic works of cybernetic art, the story begins with a robot, which must live a passive life, awakening to a sense of its own identity. The story, however, unfolds in a very different manner. It does not deal with conflict between humans and robots, or the advance and retreat of robots. Instead, through the adventures of these neo-humans, it reveals insights on the structural contradictions and schisms of human society today.

In the world of Korean children’s literature, in which the mainstream consists of works on humans and nature, this is a rare masterpiece that has thrown into the air the topic of humans and technology.

It’s quite an existential work as well in that it does not move in the direction of the expansion or side effects of technology, but towards human self-introspection.

By Kim Ji-eun

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Reviews Children's Books

Calligraphy Turned On Its Head Why Did Pinocchio Swallow the Trick?

Park Yeoncheol, Sakyejul Publishing Ltd. 2009, ISBN 978-89-5828-434-5

Koreans have always spoken their indigenous language and have their own unique writing system known as hangul. But the Korean language was also heavily influenced by the Chinese writing system, and Koreans are therefore quite comfortable with Chinese characters.

Munja-do paintings are Korean calligraphy paintings using Chinese characters. Artists enjoyed painting them because each individual Chinese character carries its own meaning.

Long ago, Koreans used to hang such paintings in their houses for good luck, which also gave rise to professional calligraphers that would paint such pictures for the poorer members of society. Such paintings, known as popular munja-do, contain and reflect the dreams and sincere aspirations of the lower class in Korea.

Why Did Pinocchio Swallow the Trick? is a picture book that borrows the idea of those popular calligraphy paintings. This book turns

the meaning of words on their heads and parodies them in an amusing way, thus forcing children to think about ethical issues. Fundamental concepts of loyalty and love that exist between siblings, and issues of trust and consideration that exist between friends are introduced through bet placing and quizzes. The notable element of this book is its mixing of Asian calligraphy and ethics with famous western art techniques and characters.

Pinocchio, a character who suffered from his own lies, appears in this book as the key character that moves the action along by posing challenging questions.

Film director Alfred Hitchcock appears as the grandfather. In this book Park uses a Macguffin, a plot element used in films, as a method of trickery. The picture book opens up like a folding screen, both a traditional Asian painting medium and also a piece of furniture that keeps the wind out. This three-dimensional book, which fuses the artistic beauty of the East and West, provides children with a new world of images.

By Kim Ji-eun

Cultivating the Power of Observation Catch the Thief Park Jungsub, Sigong Junior, 2010, 25p ISBN 978-89-527-5561-6

The sort of picture book that children and parents really want is one that is fresh and interesting every time they look at it. Catch the Thief promises just that. Your child is bound to read it at least five times.

Moreover, every time she reads it, she will shriek with joy as she finds new things that she missed before: “I’ve found him! This one’s the baddy!”

A thief enters a house with a red roof.

The police soon arrive and ask the owner what the culprit looks like, what he is wearing, and which way he went. They then set off in pursuit of the thief. With each turn of the page, the locals appear one by one, each giving a clue about the burglar. But how come there are so many similar looking people in this village? It appears that the thief wears red glasses and 80 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

a line green suit with three white buttons, has braces, and is bald. With great difficulty the police narrow the search to six suspects.

But who is the real thief? It is up to the reader of the book to work it out!

In the last scene, we see the true culprit being taken away in a police van, but of course this too is only a hint. It is only by paying close attention and looking very carefully right to the last that the reader can discover the real thief and experience

the true fun of this book. It is also quite delightful looking around the charming down-to-earth neighborhood in the course of pursuing the criminal, and the casual cartoon-style illustrations are enchanting.

Children and the adults who read the book with them are sure to look and look, and become totally absorbed in the game of catching the thief.

By Park Suk-kyoung

Steady Sellers

I Can Choose What I Want!

King or Beggar Kim Yeong-ju; illustrator: Goh Gyong-sook, Jaimimage Publishing Co. 2009, 42p, ISBN 978-89-86565-52-2

King or Beggar, first published in 1999, continues to be popular today. What do you do when your friends make fun of you?

This book provides a great answer to the question.

A big boy arbitrarily yells out “king, beggar, king, beggar” at the bathroom urinal. Kids who use the king urinal get to be kings, and those who use the beggar urinal are made fun of. This is the game of “kings and beggars.” Kids line up in the king line, holding back the urge, so that they won’t become beggars. Jongmin, the main character, who has just transferred to this school, uses the beggar urinal without knowing what’s going on, and is made fun

of by the other kids.

The big boy who is the ruler of the game determines who the kids are by deciding whether they are kings or beggars.

The kids try to become kings by using the king urinal. Even if they line up for the king urinal, however, they can never be the king. The real king is the big boy who has the power to decide who will be kings and who will be beggars, and the only thing the kids can do is play the game. The kids

play without really thinking about what it means, and so a hierarchy is established.

Jongmin, whose parents run a Chinese restaurant, thinks about the game, trying to decide whether he will accept the game of kings and beggars and become part of the established order, or refuse to join in.

Jongmin can break and overthrow the vertical order through the power that is within himself. Having just transferred to the school, Jongmin is a marginal character, and as such, the existing order is unfamiliar to him. Choosing something outside of the existing order, however, can be dangerous.

Such a decision can turn one into an outsider forever.

In the end, Jongmin does not conform to the game of kings and beggars, but turns it into a game of “black bean sauce noodles, seafood and vegetable noodles, and sweet and sour pork.” As a result, he turns the vertical class order into a horizontal order of preference. Kids no longer obsess over the game of kings and beggars, in which they must line up at the king line, holding back a full bladder, but instead go wild over the new game of “black bean sauce noodles, seafood and vegetable noodles, and sweet and sour pork,” in which they can choose whatever they want.

Surprisingly, Jongmin’s act of subversion is a parody of the existing game, using its internal rules. He does not rely on outside powers, such as a teacher or a powerful adult, or spells commonly used in children’s tales; instead, he breaks the existing order merely by modifying it.

The rules of the game of kings and beggars change the signified by designating the urinals with the signifier, “king/beggar.”

Jongmin uses the rules the way they are, except that he changes the signifier to “black bean sauce noodles/seafood and vegetable noodles/sweet and sour pork,” to turn vertical order into an order in which individual tastes and preferences are acknowledged. The code of the game remains the same, except that the signifier of “king/beggar” is replaced by that of “black bean noodles/seafood and vegetable noodles/sweet and sour pork.”

This short tale about school life, which talks about the overthrow of power and the classification and ranking of bodies, shines forth even more brightly through the illustrations of Goh Gyong-sook, who received the Ragazzi Award for her work, Magic Bottles.

By Yu Youngjin

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 81

Meet the Publishers

Hainaim Publishing The World in Books, Books in People

Founded in 1983, Hainaim Publishing has published numerous bestsellers in literature, humanities, self-help, and business and investment.

Considered one of Korea’s top publishers, Hainaim is breathing new life into the Korean publishing industry with its swift response to reader needs and its mission of publishing current, trendsetting books.

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1. For Forgiveness Han Soo-san, 2010 2. Where I Don't Flow, Time Don't Flow Lee Oisoo, 2010 3. Women's Empathy Ahn Eun-young, 2010

82 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

3

Since its birth in 1983 under the motto “The World in Books, Books in People,” Hainaim Publishing has become one of Korea’s biggest publishers, representing a diverse array of writers and turning out dozens of bestsellers. In the 1990s the company had a succession of hits. The company’s Korean edition of Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s Finding Flow was a hit in 1999, showing that there was a market for the humanities, and the publication of Gail Evans’ Play Like a Man, Win Like a Woman in 2000 opened up a new market for women’s self-help books in Korea. In 2002, the publisher set a record unprecedented in Korean literature when Jo Jung-rae’s epic trilogy Taebaek Mountain Range, Arirang, and Han River sold over a total of 10 million copies. Its Hainaim Classica 50 series, published since 2001, has become a new classic of the video age, while its 2004 bestseller Korea 10 Years From Now set a new standard for publications in business and investing.

The company has also published numerous works of literature such as Nobel Prize-winning author José Saramago’s Blindness, Booker Prize winner John Berger’s To the Wedding, Orange Prize founder Kate Mosse’s faction novel Labyrinth, and bestselling Irish writer Cecelia Ahern’s P.S. I Love You, among others.

Hainaim’s first breakthrough came in 1991 when Lee Jae-wun’s To-Jeong-BiGyeol: A Novel sold three million copies, quickly followed by Kim Hangil’s Man of Woman, selling two million copies.

Hainaim was firmly established as one of Korea’s bestselling publishers after Kim Jin-myung’s Mugunghwa Has Blossomed sold a record 4.5 million copies in 1993.

Hainaim’s proudest achievement is Jo Jungrae’s Taebaek Mountain Range, Arirang, and Han River, often called “the true history of Korea.” This monumental odyssey, referred to as Jo Jung-rae’s epic trilogy, took decades to complete and has sold over a total of 10 million copies up to the present. Lee Oisoo is also one of Hainaim’s most iconic writers.

Such works as Monster, Outsider, and Ha-ak Ha-ak: Oisoo Lee’s Survival Skills have gained him recognition as being one of the most sensitive and innovative writers of his age.

Following up on its phenomenal success in literature, Hainaim is now branching out to nonfiction, humanities, business and investment, and self-help books. Ahn Eung-young’s Yeo-Ja-Saeng-Hwal-Baek-Seo carved out a new niche in women’s selfhelp books, selling 400 thousand copies in 2006, while such hip, publications as Rules of Dating, The Art of Fascinating, and All That

Wine have lured younger readers. Korea 10 Years From Now and The World 10 Years From Now by Dr. Gong Byeong-ho, Korea’s top self-help writer, are also prime examples of Hainaim’s mission to publish current, trendsetting books.

Hainaim is proud of its ability to open up new worlds of knowledge and culture for its readers, and its swift response to reader needs. Just as “Hainaim” means “to do” in Korean, Hainaim is surely destined to do great deeds in Korean publishing.

By Richard Hong

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4. Korea’s Growing Pains

Gong Byeong-ho, 2010 5. Smashing

Jung Sang-soo, 2010 6. Egoist Training

Kirschner, Josef, 2001

7. The World 10 Years From Now

Gong Byeong-ho (published in Japan) 8. Taebaek Mountain Range

Jo Jung-rae (published in Japan)

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9. Yeo-Ja-Saeng-Hwal-Baek-Seo

Ahn Eun-young (published in Taiwan)

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10. Taebaek Mountain Range

Jo Jung-rae (published in France) 11. Yeo-Ja-Saeng-Hwal Baek Seo

Ahn Eun-young (published in Japan) 9

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list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 83

New Books

Recommended by Publishers Korean editors have handpicked their favorite titles among the collections from their own publishing houses.

The following list contains hidden gems in Korea’s publishing industry. For further information, please contact the agents directly.

Fiction

Shoot Me in the Heart

Consultant

The Light

Jung You-jung, EunhaengNaMu 2009, 348p, ISBN 978-89-5660-299-8 03810

Im Seong-sun, EunhaengNaMu, 2010, 296p ISBN 978-89-5660-339-1

Kim Gomchi, Sanzini Books 2008, 382p, ISBN 978-89-92235-44-0

This book depicts the intense struggle of two young people who confront their oppressive destinies and, dreaming endlessly of breaking free, fight to make a new life. It is a tribute to the young people of this age who, although powerless, live their lives to the best of their abilities.

This work won the 2010 6th Segye Literary Award, worth 100 million Korean won in prize money. It is reminiscent of the American crime thriller drama CSI. Through writers who construct scenarios for committing the perfect murder, this book criticizes society for committing murder under the guise of suicide.

This is a novel about men, women, and religion.

Rather than listing aspects of the Christian doctrine, it portrays in vivid real-life language every small detail of the course of love between a man and a woman, and is cynical about the excessive mystification and deification of the image of Jesus.

Copyright Agent: Youn Ji-hyun ehbook@ehbook.co.kr 82-2-3143-0651 www.ehbook.co.kr

Copyright Agent: Youn Ji-hyun ehbook@ehbook.co.kr 82-2-3143-0651 www.ehbook.co.kr

Copyright Agent: Kim Eun-gyeong afid31@naver.com 82-51-504-7070 www.sanzinibook.com

84 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

All Right, You Are a Coward

The Detective Never Dies

The Sword of Genghis Kahn

Go Somyee, Dolpoong 2009, 328p, ISBN 978-89-9386-401-4

Lee Seulgi, ROK Media 2009, 367p, ISBN 978-89-257-1283-3

Chae Kyeongseok, Human & Books 2009, 464p, ISBN 978-89-6078-071-2 03810

All Right, You Are a Coward is the story of an ordinary family in an ordinary neighborhood.

The picture of everyday life in the diary of the main character, Gochan, appears to be fictitious, but it is also a portrait of our world. The author looks critically at the reality of crumbling values with a humorous gaze.

Jan Tronic is an exceptionally talented detective.

The Detective Never Dies relates incidents that happen against the backdrop of his ordinary and laid-back office. The writer’s robust style and keen imagination that keeps surprising us, makes this book a joy to read.

It is the end of the 12th century, a time of turbulence throughout the world. Against the backdrop of Mongolia and the Silk Road, this book follows the journey of a man who sets out to find the great Khan. It is a work of epic scale, boldly narrated.

Copyright Agent: Sohn Suzie eminentbough@empal.com 82-2-3273-5135 www.rokmedia.com

Copyright Agent: Ha Eungbaek hbooks@empal.com 82-2-6327-3535

Traditional Pavilions of Korea

Power of Family

I.D.E.A.

Heo Kyun; photographer: Lee Gap-chul, DD World 2009, 400p, ISBN 978-89-7766-090-8

Kim Mi-gyeong, Myungjin Publications Inc., 2009 277p, ISBN 978-89-7677-702-7

Suh Yong-gu, Myungjin Publications Inc., 2010 224p, ISBN 978-89-7677-426-2

This book takes a selection of 51 traditional Korean pavilions sites and describes in depth the etymology and origin of their names, the ideological background, and surrounding environment. This work is vital to understanding the thought and culture of Korea’s traditional “scholar gentlemen.”

This book expresses the firm belief that, even when the going gets tough, if families support and encourage each other, they can win in the end. The author, Kim Mi-gyeong, a business education professional, maintains that the family is the basis for the smooth running of both business and society.

The writer, a marketing specialist, explains simply and enjoyably through abundant examples a marketing formula called I (Identity), D (Differentiation), E (Emotion Bonding), and A (Aura). He also touches on core marketing strategy for success in business.

Copyright Agent: Jeong Yun-seon dd@ddworld.co.kr 82-2-739-8782 ddworld.co.kr

Copyright Agent: Ryu Sora tlsql272@hotmail.com 82-2-326-0026 www.myungjinbooks.com

Copyright Agent: Kim Juyoung dolpoongs@naver.com 82-31-912-7448 blog.naver.com/dolpoongs

Nonfiction

Copyright Agent: Ryu Sora tlsql272@hotmail.com 82-2-326-0026 www.myungjinbooks.com

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 85

Nonfiction

Happier If You Know Your Husband's Personality

Sorry Cuan, Mom and Daddy Are Hippies!

Lee Baek-yong, Song Jeehai, Vision & Leadership 2006, 351p, ISBN 978-89-90984-04-3

Park Eunkyong, Sam&Parkers Co., Ltd., 2010 240p, ISBN 978-89-92647-87-8

This is the story of a couple that used MBTI to understand each other’s character and temperament, and start a second life together.

Couples who hate each other and have a difficult time because they do not know the other’s personality can find a way of understanding each other with the help of this book.

The author, Park Eunkyong is the head of a hippie family. After working as a movie planner, she suddenly took off to India where she fell in love with an Australian man 13 years her junior, then with the birth of their child, Cuan, started the story of her happy hippie family. This book tells in a delightful style how to enjoy freedom to the full.

Copyright Agent: Song Kyoung-sun 80ksunny@duranno.com 82-2-2078-3404 www.visionnleadership.com

Copyright Agent: Kim Yiryung yr_kim@smpk.co.kr 82-2-3140-4671 www.smpk.co.kr

The Intellectual History of Women in the Joseon Dynasty

European Beer Travelogue

Japan Story Tour

Lee Kijung, Happy Dream Publishing Co. 2009, 336p, ISBN 978-89-9210-947-5

Lee Hyoungjun, Happy Dream Publishing Co., 2010 360p, ISBN 978-89-9210-955-0

The author has traveled the world in search of various full-bodied beers. Ireland, the center of stout production; the Czech Republic, birthplace of Pilsner; the beer exhibition in Belgium; Germany, beer heaven. He visited 20 cities in eight countries, making pilgrimages to breweries, beer bars, and pubs. This book tells us all about the food and the people, as well as the beer culture of various places in the world.

The writer, Lee Hyoungjun, kept a travelogue as he visited the actual scenes of fairy tales, novels, and films. From Otaru in Hokkaido, the background of the film Love Letter, to the forest of Princess Mononoke in Yakushima, Kyushu, he tells the story of 21 places that have been settings for novels and films.

LeeHae-soon, Ewha Womans University Press, 2007 416p, ISBN 978-89-7300-753-0 93810

This book is an in-depth study of eight female literary figures and scholars of the late Joseon dynasty. The writer asserts that these women are representative female intellectuals of the age, in the respect that they all reflected deeply on the problems of the period which they themselves faced.

Copyright Agent: Kim Hye-ryen hellen@ewha.ac.kr 82-2-3277-3162 www.ewhapress.com

86 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

Copyright Agent: Kim Jayoung springsu@naver.com 82-17-707-8311

Artist vs. Artist Hur Nayoung, EunhaengNaMu, 2010, 292p ISBN 978-89-5660-333-9

This book is about the lives and art of great artists sharing love, friendship, and hatred. The author introduces 11 artist couples with their great works, competition, friendship, and their love.

Copyright Agent: Youn Ji-hyun ehbook@ehbook.co.kr 82-2-3143-0651 www.ehbook.co.kr

Copyright Agent: Kim Jayoung springsu@naver.com 82-17-707-8311

Children's Books

The Donkey Girl

Plastic Bag Grass

Cheol Furrows His Brow

Kim Ye-in, Nurimbo, 2010, 32p ISBN 978-89-5876-103-7

Bang Mi-jin; Illustrator: Oh Seung-min, Nurimbo 2009, 32p, ISBN 978-89-5876-090-0

Jeon Mi-hwa, Nurimbo, 2009, 40p ISBN 978-89-5876-101-3

A donkey that dreams of casting off its boring life and going somewhere, one day meets a wandering poet. The poet takes the donkey to a mysterious forest, which only silent beings may enter. On this island, the donkey finds peace of mind. The imaginative style of the story gives it a deep resonance.

The flowers and grass play happily together, but a plastic bag is tucked away alone behind a telegraph pole. However, the wind starts to blow, and the plastic bag plays with the grass, dancing on the breeze. The form of the freely moving plastic bag is like a butterfly. The illustrations of Oh Seung-min, whose work Hide Well! won a prize as a work of merit at the 2004 international Noma Concours, add to the sense of freedom.

Cheol Furrows His Brow is the story of how a child who is angry because neither his parents nor the other people around him show any interest in him, develops an imaginary game.

He pours out his troubles to a teddy bear that is always on his side. Although he did not like the way he was, he is able to recreate himself.

Copyright Agent: Park Mi-suk dustsong@naver.com 82-31-955-7391

Copyright Agent: Park Mi-suk dustsong@naver.com 82-31-955-7391

Copyright Agent: Lee Hyun-ju chilly8@naver.com 82-031-955-7383 www.nurimbo.co.kr

Chasing the Korean Tiger

The Hole

A Subway to an Aquarium

Lim Soon-nam; Illustrator: Jung Suk-ho Marubol Publications, 2007, 40p ISBN 978-89-5663-156-1

Iwan, Marubol Publications, 2005, 72p ISBN 89-5663-070-4

Hwang Eun-ah, Marubol Publications , 2001, 40p ISBN 978-89-566-3257-5

Iwan was one of 19 Korean writers at the 2003 Angoulême International Comics Festival. Some children and animals who like making holes meet a child with no eyes on their travels…

This picture book shows that if there is no place left for nature, then there will be no place left for humans either.

A child visiting an aquarium with her father by subway suddenly falls asleep. Then she sees a whale going past outside the train window.

The child’s imaginary world is depicted with charming illustrations.

The tiger is an animal close to the hearts of Koreans. However, these days it is difficult to see a tiger except in a zoo. How about in the past? Let’s learn about the tiger, an animal that is part of Korea’s heritage.

Copyright Agent: Lee So-dam sodam@marubol.co.kr 82-2-790-4150 (Ext. 507) www.marubol.co.kr

Copyright Agent: Lee So-dam sodam@marubol.co.kr 82-2-790-4150 (Ext. 507) www.marubol.co.kr

Copyright Agent: Lee So-dam sodam@marubol.co.kr 82-2-790-4150 (Ext. 507) www.marubol.co.kr

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 87

Children's Books

Aro and the Perfect World Kim Hye-jin, Baram Books, 2004, 528p ISBN 978-89-90878-08-3

Aro finds a story of a perfect world at the library, and starts to have splendid adventures in the perfect world of the book. By means of fantasies that arise from his fertile imagination, the story becomes a metaphor and symbolic representation of reading and life, and also of growing up. This work displays new possibilities in the field of Korean fantasy children’s stories.

Ms. Lee Chan-shil's Quest for Furniture Park Mi-ra; Illustrator: Kim Joongsuk, Baram Books 2007, 112p, ISBN 978-89-90878-41-0

Ms. Lee Chan-shil has been living alone with her mother for many years. After her mother dies, she thinks she will make a new life for herself, so she sorts out a new house and moves.

But something is not quite right. Ms. Lee realizes that what she really needs are friends.

Jang Gunwoo, I’m Sorry Lee Gyeong-hwa, Baram Books, 2007, 90p ISBN 978-89-90878-40-3

This is the story of children who feel utterly lost on account of their teacher’s discriminatory treatment and favoritism. Told from the viewpoint of two children, Gunwoo and Soyoung, it vividly shows the conflict and confusion experienced by the children when, like the prince and the pauper, their situations are reversed.

Copyright Agent: Nam Kyungmee windchild04@hanmail.net 82-2-3142-0495 cafe.daum.net/barampub

Copyright Agent: Nam Kyungmee windchild04@hanmail.net 82-2-3142-0495 cafe.daum.net/barampub

Dad Needs Time Too

Prince

Looking For a Friend

Lee Sung Ja, Kim Joong Suk, Seoul Education Co., Ltd. 2009, 108p, ISBN 978-89-8378-259-5

Noh Seok Mee, Sigong Junior, 2010, 32p ISBN 978-89-527-5808-8

Jo Sungja; Illustrator: Hong Jungsun, Sigong Junior 2009, 160p, ISBN 978-89-527-5433-2

Dad Needs Time Too is the story of a father sunk in despair and not even able to look after his children after their mother dies. Min-kyu, his son, cannot understand his father. However, Min-kyu will become an adult himself one day, and will realize that thanks to his efforts, his father was able to get over his sorrow more quickly.

A prince appears to have things around him in abundance, yet he always feels lonely. One day, the prince happens to see a chrysalis dangling from the branch of a tree, turning into a butterfly. Strangely, the prince no longer feels lonely. He also realizes that he should set out on a journey.

Min-seok does not have a special friend. When his grandmother, who was like a close friend to him, dies, Min-seok sets himself a challenge – to make a friend. He reckons that he should find a friend who is good at studying, good at sports, and has a sense of humor. Ho-shik, who suffers from a tic disorder caused by stress, becomes Min-seok’s desk mate at school, then naturally becomes his friend.

Copyright Agent: Joe Myungsuk ms-puzzle@hanmail.net 82-2-791-0783 www.wiseibooks.com

88 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

Copyright Agent: Oh Jimyung nina2007@sigongsa.com 82-2-2046-2828 www.sigongjunior.com

Copyright Agent: Nam Kyungmee windchild04@hanmail.net 82-2-3142-0495 cafe.daum.net/barampub

Copyright Agent: Seo Jinwon cedar01@sigongsa.com 82-2-2046-2827 www.sigongjunior.com

Environmental Warrior, Save the World!

Shimcheong-ga; Korean Musical Folk Tale “Pansori”

Kim Sookyung; Illustrator: Kang Heejun Sigong Junior, 2010, 156p ISBN 978-89-527-5739-5

Lee Hyun-soon; Illustrator: Choi Eun-mi Chobang Editions, 2003, 32p ISBN 978-89-90614-05-6

Environmental issues can be difficult for children, but this book unravels them in a fun story. The main character is an ordinary child called Cho-rok (meaning ‘green’). In order to become an environmental warrior, Cho-rok arms himself with environmental knowledge, and confronts the villain Muyabe, who is intent on destroying the earth’s environment.

This picture book tells the traditional tale of Shimcheong, a girl who tries hard to help her blind father to see, adapting the story from pansori, a genre of Korean folk music.

Copyright Agent: Chung So-jung bang@chobang.com 82-10-6237-5267 www.chobang.com

Copyright Agent: Kim Ha-yeon veruca66@sigongsa.com 82-2-2046-2824 www.sigongjunior.com

Christmas 123 Suku, Chobang Editions, 2008, 28p ISBN 978-89-90614-25-4

This picture book about numbers makes practical use of the special characteristics of the traditional Russian matryoshka doll, where the big doll opens up to reveal progressively smaller dolls inside. At midnight on Christmas Eve, Father Christmas comes and leaves a present at a small cottage. Copyright for this book has been exported to France.

Copyright Agent: Chung So-jung bang@chobang.com 82-10-6237-5267 www.chobang.com

Korean Quilt 123

1940 - Twelve Year Old Dong-gyu

Where Has Everyone Gone?

Kim Hyea-hwan, Chobang Editions, 1996, 36p ISBN 978-89-90614-02-5

Sohn Yunja, Gesunamu Publishing House, 2009 232p, ISBN 978-89-8965-453-7

Hyun Kil-un, Gesunamu Publishing House 2010, 163p, ISBN 978-89-8965-459-9

This picture book about numbers divides the same size square into various numbers of pieces, and at the same time we can enjoy the naturally dyed colors of the cloth.

It is towards the end of the Japanese occupation, an age of pain when Koreans lost their country to Japan. A young boy, Dong-gyu, meets a dubious charcoal vendor and learns from him the Korean martial art of taekkyeon, so fulfills his dream of being able to defend himself. Even under desperate conditions, he follows the honorable path right to the end.

The main character, Gyu-myung is very upset to see the animals he has reared leaving one by one. The April 3rd Jeju uprising was a shocking event that left Gyu-myung bereft of everything that was precious to him. However, he sees a peach blossom flowering even amid the ruins, and finds the hope to live his life anew.

Copyright Agent: Chung So-jung bang@chobang.com 82-10-6237-5267 www.chobang.com

Copyright Agent: Park Hye-young gesunamu21@hanmail.net 82-2-566-6288

Copyright Agent: Park Hye-young gesunamu21@hanmail.net 82-2-566-6288

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 89

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

17p Kim Yu-na’s 7-Minute Drama Gimnyeonaui 7Bun Deurama JDM Co., Ltd. Lee Ju-hee rights01@joongangbook.com 82-2-714-0756 www.joongangbook.com

19p Pieces of You Dangsinui Jogakdeul Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.

Kim Mijeong mijeong@munhak.com 82-31-955-2662 www.munhak.com

27p One Very Light Feather, etc.

Aju Gabyeoun Gitteol Hana Eric Yang Agency Sue Yang sueyang@eyagency.com 82-2-591-8130 www.ericyangagency.co.kr

17p Shin Jiyai, the Extraordinary Queen of Finals Paineol Kwin Sinjiae, Golpeuro Bisanghada Minumin Kim Hyewon wony97@minumsa.com 82-2-515-2000 (Ext. 298) www.minumsa.com

21p The School of the Road Gireun Hakgyoda Hankyoreh Publishing Company Kim Yun-jeong simple@hanibook.co.kr 82-2-6383-1608 www.hanibook.co.kr

32p What Happened to the Guy Stuck in the Elevator, etc.

Ellibeiteoe Kkin Geu Namjaneun Eotteoke Doeeonna Imprima Korea Agency Joseph Lee josephlee@imprima.co.kr 82-2-325-9155 imprima.co.kr

17p Giving Up Myself to Become a Great Self Deo Keun Nareul Wihae Nareul Beorida Joongang Books Rachel Ahn rachel_ahn@joongang.co.kr 82-2-2000-6024 www.joongang.co.kr 17p Endless Challenge Meomchuji Anneun Dojeon Random House Korea Park Jiyoung jiyoung@randomhousekorea.com 82-2-3466-8907 www.randomhouse.com 17p Shooting for the Stars in New York Nyuyogeseo Byeoreul Ssoda Sigongsa Amélie Choi amelie@sigongsa.com 82-2-2046-2856 www.sigongsa.com 17p Photographer in Kabul Kaburui Sajinsa The Dong-A Media Group Hong Hyun-kyung kirincho@donga.com 82-2-361-1254 www.donga.com 17p Cooking 7 Stars, etc.

Ilgop Gaeui Byeoreul Yorihada Bookhouse Publishers Kim Kyoungtae kimkt@bookhouse.co.kr 82-2-3144-2701 www.bookhouse.co.kr 19p A Very Private, Long Relationship, etc.

Aju Sajeogin, Gin Mannam Woongjin Think Big Co., Ltd. Claire Yang shy07@wjbooks.co.kr 82-2-3670-1168 www.wjbooks.co.kr 19p Shouting You to the World Sesange Neoreul Sorichyeo Sam & Parkers Kim Yi-ryung yr_kim@smpk.co.kr 82-2-3140-4600 www.smpk.co.kr

90 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

21p Road Schooler Alternative Culture press Hwangbo Inkyoung tomoon@tomoon.com 82-2-324-7486 www.tomoon.com 21p Journey to Wonderland Wondeoraendeu Yeohaenggi Sigongsa Amélie Choi amelie@sigongsa.com 82-2-2046-2856 www.sigongsa.com 21p One Planet Photo Studio Jigubyeol Sajingwan Bookhouse Publishers Kim Kyoungtae kimkt@bookhouse.co.kr 82-2-3144-2701 www.bookhouse.co.kr 22p A Red Belt in Studying, A Black Belt in Perseverance Gongbu 9Dan Ogi 10Dan Gimm-Young Publishers, Inc. Lee Youjeong bookmaker@gimmyoung.com 82-2-3668-3203 www.gimmyoung.com/english 22p Oh My, I Made It! Appulssa Nan Seonggonghago Maratda Lifelong Learning Books Kim Younghee yhkim@eeel.net 82-2-3700-1276 22p Advertising Genius Yi Jeseok Gwanggocheonjae Ijeseok Hakgojae Kang Sanghoon hakgojae@gmail.com 82-2-745-1722

22p Goodbye Jen-Marie d’or, The Small Window of Paris Annyeong Jangmaridoreu Pariui Jageun Changmun Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.

Kim Mijeong mijeong@munhak.com 82-31-955-2662 www.munhak.com

38p I’d Like to Live in Traditional Korean Houses Hanoge Sareoriratda Dolbegae Publishers Shin Gui-young kysh80@dolbegae.co.kr 82-31-955-5020 (Ext. 1) www.dolbegae.co.kr 39p Jinu Lee’s Houses Ijinuui Jip Iyagi Samin Books Choi Insoo 82-2-322-1845 saminbooks@naver.com 40p Kim Bong-ryol’s Korean Architecure, Vols. 1-3 Gimbongnyeorui Hanguk Geonchuk Iyagi Dolbegae Publishers Shin Gui-young kysh80@dolbegae.co.kr 82-31-955-5020 (Ext. 1) www.dolbegae.co.kr 41p Wood Throughout the Ages Yeoksaga Saegyeojin Namu Iyagi Gimm-Young Publishers, Inc. Lee Youjeong rights@gimmyoung.com 82-2-3668-3203 www.gimmyoung.com/english 42p Trees of Korean Palaces Gunggworui Uri Namu Nulwa Kim Sunmi nulwa@chol.com 82-2-3143-4633 www.nulwa.com 43p Thus Spoke Tree Namuga Malhayeonne Maumsanchack Kwon Halla halla@maumsan.com 82-2-362-1451 www.maumsan.com 44p Pine Trees Designated as Natural Monuments in Korea Hangugui Myeongpum Sonamu Sisa Japanese Publishing Co., Ltd. Kwon Yijun yj5021@hanafos.com 82-2-742-0582 book.japansisa.com

44p Korean Pine Trees Uriga Jeongmal Araya Hal Uri Sonamu Hyeonamsa Publishing Co., Ltd. Park Min-young joje77@naver.com 82-2-365-5051 (Ext.237)

64p The Book Wanderers In New York Nyuyok Bimilseureoun Chaegui Dosi Prunsoop Publishing Co. Ltd. Kim Mijung iledor@prunsoop.co.kr 82-31-955-1410 (Ext. 128) www.prunsoop.co.kr

45p Dictionary of Trees Namu Sajeon Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.

Kim Mijeong mijeong@munhak.com 82-31-955-2662 www.munhak.com

64p The Scene Is the History Hyeonjangeun Yeoksada Asianetwork Publishing Lee Junggyu ljg@prunsoop.co.kr 82-31-955-1440 (Ext.109)

46p Rhapsody in Berlin Woongjin Think Big Co., Ltd. Claire Yang shy07@wjbooks.co.kr 82-2-3670-1168 www.wjbooks.co.kr

65p The Story of the Han Empire Hannara Iyagi ViaBook Publisher Park Jaeho pjh@viabook.kr 82-2-334-6123

48p Leave Now, the Wind is Blowing Barami Bunda, Gara Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd. Kim Phil-gyun feel@moonji.com 82-2-338-7224 (Ext. 122) www.moonji.com

65p A Conflicted Alliannce— Sixty Years of Korea-U.S. Relations Galdeunghaneun Dongmaeng Yuksa Bipyungsa Cho Su-jeong yuk@chol.com 82-2-741-6123

48p Sohyeon Jaeum & Moeum Lim Hong-yeol erum9@hanmail.net 82-2-324-2349 www.jamo21.net

66p Hon, Chang, Tong: Do You Have These Three?

Sam&Parkers Kim Yi-ryung yr_kim@smpk.co.kr 82-2-3140-4600 www.smpk.co.kr

61p Ashes and Red Jaewa Ppalgang Changbi Publishers, Inc. Lee Soonhwa copyright@changbi.com 82-31-955-3369 www.changbi.com/english 61p Immortality Bulmyeol Minumsa Michelle Nam michellenam@minumsa.com 82-2-515-2000 (Ext. 206) www.minumsa.com 62p Rabbit the Genius, Mr. Cha Cheonjaetokki Chasangmun Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.

Kim Mijeong mijeong@munhak.com 82-31-955-2662 www.munhak.com 62p Mid-afternoon Gaze Hannajui Siseon Erum Lim Hong-yeol erum9@hanmail.net 82-2-324-2349 63p The Black Leaf in My Mouth Ip Sogui Geomeun Ip Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd. Kim Phil-gyun feel@moonji.com 82-2-338-7224 (Ext. 122) www.moonji.com

68p The Creative Habit Changjoseupgwan Forest Publishing Co. Kim Soojung ham0311@nate.com 82-2-3141-8301 68p Goo Bon-hyung’s Strategies In the Office Gubonhyeongui Pilsalgi Dasan Life Lee Jungsoon sooni@dasanbooks.com 82-2-703-1723 www.dasanbooks.com 69p Small Differences Sasohan Chai Wisdomhouse Publishing Co., Ltd. Kwon Minkyung ohappyday@wisdomhouse.co.kr 82-31-936-4199 www.wisdomhouse.co.kr 69p Children’s Nutrition Aiui Siksaenghwal Educational Channel Kim Inhye judicious02@naver.com 82-2-2046-2865 www.sigongsa.com

70p Ven. Beopjeong’s Favorite Books Beopjeongseunimui Naega Saranghan Chaekdeul Forest of Literature Kim Hyun-jee laputa79@chol.com 82-2-325-5729 www.godswin.com

78p Bridges: Linking People and the World Saramgwa Sesangeul Inneun Dari I-seum (mirae-n culture group) Wei lina twins@i-seum.com 82-2-3475-3941 www.i-seum.com

72p The Essence of 21st Craftsmenship Spirit Uri Sidaeui Jangin Jeongsineul Malhada Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.

Kim Mijeong mijeong@munhak.com 82-31-955-2662 www.munhak.com

79p Taming the Monster Goemul Gildeurigi BIR Publishing Co., Ltd. Song Jung-ha ha@minumsa.com 82-2-515-2000 (Ext.207) www.bir.co.kr

72p Daydreaming on the Road Gireseo Eoryeompusi Kkumeul Kkuda Wisdomhouse Publishing Co., Ltd. Kwon Minkyung ohappyday@wisdomhouse.co.kr 82-31-936-4199 www.wisdomhouse.co.kr 74p Tomorrow Is Fine Naeireun Gwaenchana ISMG Lee Seungyeon manga0702@seoulmedia.co.kr 82-2-799-9193 www.seoulmedia.co.kr 74p Ari Ari Kungtakung Fox Tree Jung Won mojjiana@naver.com 82-70-8253-1922 75p Maerie Is Out at Night Maerineun Oebakjung anibooks Kim Mijeong mijeong@munhak.com 82-31-955-2662 anibooks.egloos.com 75p Baptist Daewon C. I. Inc. Park Sang-ki keypsk@dwci.co.kr 82-2-2071-2000 www.daiwon.co.kr 76p The Stone Temple of Seokguram Dollo Jieun Jeol Seokguram Woongjin Think Big Co., Ltd. Claire Yang shy07@wjbooks.co.kr 82-2-3670-1168 www.wjbooks.co.kr

79p Planet of Robots Robosui Byeol Prunsoop Publishing Co. Ltd. Park Changhee novel@prunsoop.co.kr 82-31-955-1410 (Ext.117) www.prunsoop.co.kr 80p Why Did Pinocchio Swallow the Trick?

Pinokioneun Wae Eompeongsonireul Kkulkkeokhaeseulkka Sakyejul Publishing Ltd. Kang Hyunjoo kanghjoo@sakyejul.co.kr 82-31-955-8600 www.sakyejul.co.kr 80p Catch the Thief Dodugeul Jabara Sigong Junior Min Yu-ree yrmin@sigongsa.com 82-2-2046-2855 www.sigongjunior.com 81p King or Beggar Jjajang Jjamppong Tangsuyuk Jaimimage Publishing Co. Song Su-yeon jaim@jaimimage.com 82-31-955-0880 www.jaimimage.com 82p For Forgiveness, etc.

Yongseoreul Wihayeo Hainaim Publishing Co., Ltd. Park Su-jin sujinpark@hainaim.com 82-2-326-1600 (Ext.302) www.hainaim.com

78p Liar School Geojinmal Hakgyo Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.

Kim Mijeong mijeong@munhak.com 82-31-955-2662 www.munhak.com

70p The Moment of Hearing the Painting and Seeing the Music Geurimi Deulligo Eumagi Boineun Sungan Bacdoci., Co., Ltd. Jeong Soonkoo soonkoo@100doci.com 82-2-3012-0117 www.100doci.com

list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010 91

Afterword

Looking Back Korean books—since 1979 I’ve been buying, borrowing, or receiving them as gifts, reading them, translating them (with Ju-Chan Fulton), and teaching them. Specifically, books of modern Korean fiction. An entire shelf in the living room of our Seattle home is taken up by the annual Yi Sang Literature Prize anthologies. Another shelf is filled by the works (and English translations of them) of Hwang Sunwon. So many books, so many authors, so many works of fiction, so much to translate and to teach. Where to start? Well, back in the late 1970s Korean books usually read from back to front, the type page from top to bottom and right to left. The titles and authors’ names usually appeared in Chinese, the covers were monochrome or had one color at best, and the graphic design was more functional than creative. Photos of authors were in black and white, and most of the faces wore stony expressions. My, how serious modern Korean literature is! I used to think.

Thirty years later Korean fiction books are very different. They are first of all more reader-friendly: very little Chinese, colorful covers, creative design, and have color photos of smiling authors.

A prime force in this change is the Munhak Dongne publishing company. Munhak Dongne— literature village—in that name I read, “Welcome to the world of contemporary Korean fiction.”

Much of the most interesting Korean fiction, and many of the most engaging of contemporary Korean fiction writers, are published by Munhak Dongne.

Next, what lies between the covers of all these books of fiction? In the late 1970s it was pretty depressing stuff. I was confused: Koreans all around me (I was living in Korea in 1978 and 1979 as a U.S. Peace Corps volunteer) were lively, energetic, outgoing, optimistic, and yet the fiction that many of their writers wrote was restrained, muted, and at its worst, conceptual and tendentious.

Over time I found that my initial impression was correct: modern Korean literature was indeed serious—how else were Korean fiction writers supposed to respond to the many calamities of modern Korean history? Fortunately, in recent years, the mundan (the literary establishment; the power structure within which literature in Korea is written, published, critiqued, and taught) has become more open in response to diversification among authors (more women, more graduates of university creative writing programs), different approaches to writing fiction (more imagination and more experimentation with narrative), and a change in authors’ world-view (more cosmopolitan and less nationalistic).

Finally, what about my translating and teaching of Korean books of fiction? The greatest challenge has always been text selection. Based on my years of teaching at the University of British Columbia and on commentary from a variety of readers—including readers of Korean descent— fiction that depresses is not an easy sell, whether inside the classroom or in the literary marketplace.

Ju-Chan Fulton and I have been fortunate. The authors we have chosen to focus on—Hwang Sunwon, Oh Jeong-hee, Ch’oe Yun, Cho Se-hui—continue to engage readers; our translations of their books remain in print. Why? I would like to think it is because all four writers are excellent storytellers and all of them approach fiction writing as a craft and an art at least as much as a sounding board for whatever they may think about modern Korea and its history.

Every now and then a pundit declares that literature is dead, that the book is a thing of the past. My response is this: Korean men and women since Shilla and Goryeo times have been telling wonderful stories, whether in prose or in poetry, whether orally or in writing. They will continue to do so, and if we can resist the tendency in our increasingly visual world to find our education and entertainment in images instead of words, our lives will be the better for it. Long live Korean books of fiction, and those who pour their heart and soul and imagination into them!

By Bruce Fulton (Young-Bin Min Chair in Korean Literature and Literary Translation Department of Asian Studies, University of British Columbia)

Copyright © Park Young-chae, I’d Like to Live in Traditional Korean Houses, Dolbegae Publishers

92 list_ Books from Korea Vol.8 Summer 2010

KLTI Grants for Prospective Publishers KLTI Overseas Marketing Grants

KLTI Overseas Publication Grants

Areas of Funding Publication marketing events and advertisements

Applicant Qualifications Any publisher who has signed a contract for the publishing rights of a Korean book.

The book should be published by December 2010.

Applicant Qualifications Publishers who have published Korean books in translation within a year and are planning to hold promotional events.

The event should be occur within 6 months following the final apprication deadline.

Grant Amount - Roundtrip airfare and accommodation expenses for the author, expenses for events and advertisements, etc.

- The amount will be determined by KLTI after due consideration of the marketing plan and scale. * The grant will be provided directly to the author or to the overseas publisher in two payments, before and after an event.

How to Apply Register as a member on the website (www.koreanbooks.or.kr) and complete the online application form.

Application Documents All documents should be scanned and uploaded on the application page of the website.

1. Introduction of the publisher, along with its history and past publications, including any previous books related to Korea 2. Breakdown of total event costs 3. A copy of the contract between the publisher and the translators 4. A copy of the contract between the publisher and the copyright holders 5. The translator’s resume Other Information to Include 1. Detailed event plan including a breakdown of anticipated expenses 2. Publication cost 3. Total cost of event (marketing or promotion) 4. Requested grant amount Application Schedule Submission period: 2010. 1. 1 ~ 2010. 9. 30 Grant notification: monthly from February to October Contact Name: Kim Ji-eun Email: grants@klti.or.kr

Vol.6 Winter 2009 A Quarterly Magazine for Publishers Vol.6 Winter 2009 A Quarterly Magazine for Publishers

Vol.6 Winter 2009 A Quarterly Magazine for Publishers Vol.6 Winter 2009 A Quarterly Magazine for Publishers

Top Five Questions for Vol.6 Winter 2009 A Quarterly Magazine for Publishers

Vol.6 Winter 2009 A Quarterly Magazine for Publishers

Vol.6 Winter 2009

Vol.6 Winter 2009 A Quarterly Magazine for Publishers

Grant Amount - Part of the total publication expenses.

- The amount varies depending on the publication cost and genre of the book.

- The grant will be awarded after publication.

1. What is list_Books from Korea,forand where can I find it?

A Quarterly Magazine Publishers

How to Apply Register as a member on the website (www.koreanbooks.or.kr) and complete the online application form.

The printed edition of list is available in English and Chinese.

The webzine (www.list.or.kr) is available in English, Chinese, and Korean.

Application Documents All documents should be scanned and submitted on the application page of the website.

1. Introduction of the publisher, along with its history and past publications, including any previous books related to Korea 2. Publication plan including the dates and budget for translation and publication in detail 3. A copy of the contract between the publisher and the translator 4. A copy of the contract between the publisher and the copyright holders 5. The translator's resume Application Schedule Submission period: 2010. 1. 1 ~ 2010. 9. 30 Grant notification: April, July, and October Contact Name: Kim Ji-eun Email: grants@klti.or.kr

list is a quarterly magazine packed with information about all kinds of Korean books. Register online at www.list.or.kr to receive a free subscription.

2. Can I get it in English?

3. What if I want more information about Korean books more often?

We offer a bi-weekly online newsletter.

Simply email list_korea@klti.or.kr to begin receiving your free copy.

4. Who publishes list_Books from Korea? list is published by the Korea Literature Translation Institute, which is affiliated with the Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

LTI Korea’s mission is to contribute to global culture by spreading Korean literature and culture abroad. Visit www.klti.or.kr to learn about our many translation, publication, cultural exchange, and education programs.

5. I understand there are grants available for overseas publications, right?

LTI Korea offers many useful programs for overseas publishers, including Overseas Marketing Grants and Overseas Publication Grants.

Visit www.koreanbooks.or.kr for detailed information.

Contact: list_korea@klti.or.kr

Vol.8 Summer 2010

Vol.8 Summer 2010

Special Section

Korea’s Next Generation Interviews Novelist Gong Ji-young Novelist Kim Young-ha Theme Lounge

Trees of Korea

ISSN 2005-2790