Korean handwriting contest opens for foreign nationals

Kyobo Book Centre will hold the 10th Kyobo Handwriting Contest with a new category for foreign nationals this year, the largest bookstore chain in Korea announced Thursday. The contest aims to promote an appreciation for the beauty of Korean handwriting and provide an opportunity for foreign residents in Korea to experience Korean culture. The application period is open from Thursday to Sept. 1, and foreign nationals living in Korea are eligible to participate. Participants can choose a sentence

July 11, 2024

Anton Hur joins International Booker Prize panel as first Korean judge

Author and acclaimed translator Anton Hur has been appointed as a judge for the prestigious International Booker Prize for next year, becoming the first Korean to serve on the panel since the prize introduced its international category in 2005. Hur joined the panel of five judges, chaired by bestselling author Max Porter, according to the Booker Prize Foundation on Wednesday. The panel includes Caleb Femi, a prize-winning poet, director and photographer, Sana Goyal, a writer and publishing direc

July 11, 2024

Overseas interest in Korean literature grows with more awards, recognition

Korean literature continues to make notable strides on the global stage this year. Three Korean works have won international awards and five more have been nominated in the first half of 2024, according to the Literature Translation Institute of Korea. Acclaimed poet Kim Hye-soon's collection "Phantom Pain Wings," translated by Don Mee Choi, won the poetry prize at the National Book Critics Circle Awards in the US in March. Kim was the first Korean to receive the prestigious award

July 9, 2024

Seoul book fair stands strong without government backing

The 2024 Seoul International Book Fair, the first edition to be held without government subsidies, wrapped up its five-day event with resounding success on June 30. “We deeply apologize to the readers who experienced inconveniences during the weekend due to the large crowds,” the Korean Publishers Association, the fair's organizer, posted on Instagram on the final day of the fair. According to the KPA, approximately 150,000 visitors attended the fair over its five-day run from J

July 4, 2024

Saudi Arabia introduces ancient Arabic poetry in Korean at SIBF

Classical masterpieces by renowned Arab poets from the pre-Islamic period have been translated into Korean in a new Saudi-published volume. As part of efforts to bridge Korean and Arab cultures, Saudi Arabia's King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture, also known as Ithra, unveiled the Korean edition of "The Mu'allaqat for Millennials” at the Seoul International Book Fair, where Saudi Arabia was celebrated as this year’s guest of honor. The launch was organized in partne

July 4, 2024

[Herald Interview] Murder by design: 'The Consultant' examines dark side of corporate restructuring

The man is very good at his “job” -- crafting simple, elegant and effective solutions for “restructuring.” Not so obvious or messy, certainly nothing anyone would ever suspect as murder. The natural deaths he plans have always gone well: a medicine swapped here, a mechanism jammed there. But when his next assignment turns out to be someone he not only knows but cares about, he begins to question the role he plays in the vast, anonymous Company. This is the gripping plot o

July 3, 2024

Oxford hosts inaugural Korean literature festival with actor-writer Cha In-pyo

The University of Oxford's Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies hosted its first annual Korean Literature Night on Friday, featuring Cha In-pyo, an accomplished actor and novelist, as a special guest. Held at the Ioannou Centre for Classical & Byzantine Studies, the event opened with Cha presenting his 2009 novel "Once We Look at the Same Star," which addresses the issue of sex slavery in the Japanese military during World War II. Korean linguistics professor Jieun Kiae

July 1, 2024

Literature is evidence of liberation, says Booker-winning novelist Jokha Alharthi

The very existence of literature is evidence of liberation and freedom, according to Booker-winning Omani novelist Jokha Alharthi. "Literature transcends nations and cultures. By reading literature, humans can broaden their horizons and expand their experiential knowledge. They can experience another world," said Alharthi, who won the Man Booker International Prize in 2019 for her novel "Sayyidat al-Qamar," published in English as "Celestial Bodies." Alharthi is the

July 1, 2024

Michelle Zauner to chronicle her journey of learning Korean in next book

Bestselling author and Grammy-nominated singer Michelle Zauner fondly recalled her mother’s words that if she lived in Korea for a year she could be fluent in the language. The author of the 2021 memoir “Crying in H Mart” Zauner is now following her late mother’s advice, living the “life of a humble Korean student”: She is documenting her yearlong immersion in learning Korean for her upcoming book. Six months into the process, she’s currently studying at

July 1, 2024

'My Friend Kim Jong-un' 'carries message of peace,' Keum Suk Gendry-Kim says

Acclaimed graphic novelist Keum Suk Gendry-Kim urged readers not to stop at the title, as she introduced her latest book, "My Friend Kim Jong-un." Gendry-Kim attended a Korea-France dialogue at the 2024 Seoul International Book Fair, which kicked off Wednesday at Coex, Seoul, with French graphic novelist Lea Murawiec. "I know some people may stop reading because of the title, but this book actually carries a message of peace," Gendry-Kim said. The graphic novel, which will be

June 27, 2024

Son Woong-jung at book signing event amid child abuse allegations

Son Woong-jung, director of the SON Soccer Academy and father of South Korea national soccer team captain Son Heung-min, attended the Seoul International Book Fair on Wednesday for a book signing event. Earlier in the day, news broke that Son and two coaches at his soccer academy had been accused of verbally and physically abusing a youth athlete, according to the police. Son appeared as scheduled at the Munhakdonge Publishing's booth in Coex around 3 p.m. As Son arrived at the signing even

June 26, 2024

Lyricist pays tribute to Korean War fallen with new song cycle of elegies

Ahead of the 74th anniversary of the Korean War, a new song cycle has been published to commemorate the fallen spirits and lingering pain of the war. Hahn Myung-hee, the lyricist behind the beloved Korean art song "Bimok" (Wooden Epitaph), has compiled a series of poems inspired by the Korean War and the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas into a poignant collection titled “Thus the DMZ Speaks: A Song Cycle in Memory of the Korean War Dead.” “Bimok” (19

June 23, 2024

Beloved poet and nun Lee Hae-in reflects on 60 years in convent

In celebration of her 60th anniversary of entering the convent, beloved poet and nun Lee Hae-in has released a collection of short essays titled "Precious Treasures" (a direct translation of the Korean title). "Having lived in the convent for 60 years, I thought it might be forgiven now to reveal the notebooks I kept. I wanted to share my personal stories with readers,” said Lee during a press conference at the Franciscan Education Center in Jung-gu, Seoul, on Tuesday. Havin

June 21, 2024

Seoul International Book Fair hopes to set off new voyage into better future

Early this year, novelist Kim Yeon-su received a proposal from Joo Iroo, CEO of the Seoul International Book Fair, to rewrite Jonathan Swift's "Gulliver's Travels" (1726). The CEO's intention was to shed new light on Swift's message, particularly the Land of the Houyhnhnms, which Gulliver visits on his fourth journey, describing it as an orderly and peaceful society. Inspired by the Land of the Houyhnhnms, the book fair has set this year's theme as "Houyhn

June 20, 2024

[Latest Read] Revolutionary poems from Korea's darkest days published in English decades later

A monumental work of Korean labor literature, Park No-hae’s poetry collection “Dawn of Labor” has recently been published in English. In 1984, Park Ki-pyung, better known by his penname Park No-hae, meaning liberation of laborers in Korean, published a book of poems, “Dawn of Labor,” as a 27-year-old laborer. The book was promptly banned by the authoritarian regime. Despite the ban, about a million copies were published. Its raw, powerful depictions of laborers&rsqu

June 19, 2024

Literary giants from France, India, Ireland nominated for Pak Kyongni Prize

Three writers -- Sylvie Germain from France, Amitav Ghosh from India and John Banville from Ireland -- have been nominated for the 13th Pak Kyongni Prize, according to the award’s organizer, Toji Cultural Foundation, on Wednesday. The judging committee conducted a review of writers from around the world over eight months starting in October last year and narrowed down this year's candidates to three. Germain debuted with "The Book of Nights" (1985) to great acclaim, winning

June 13, 2024

[New Book] Sequel to ‘I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki’ hits UK shelves

The sequel to the bestselling therapy memoir "I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki" hit the shelves in the UK last week, on June 6, with a US release slated for August. Titled "I Want to Die but I Still Want to Eat Tteokbokki," the new volume continues the raw and honest conversations between essayist Baek Se-hee and her psychiatrist. International Booker Prize- shortlisted Anton Hur translated the text. Building on the first book, which captured readers with its candid

June 12, 2024

[New in Korean] Time-slip fantasy explores love, friendship and choices

"Shaker" By Lee Hee-young Rabbit Hole Bestselling author Lee Hee-young of "Paint," which sold over 400,000 copies, has released has released "Shaker," a time-slip fantasy. "Shaker" follows 32-year-old Na-woo, who, after a fateful encounter with a stray cat, finds himself reliving the most painful memory of his 19-year-old self. The unexpected plunge 13 years into the past sets the stage for a poignant exploration of love, friendship and consequences. Na-wo

June 9, 2024

[New in Korean] Space opera romance set against looming war

"The Proposal" By Bae Myung-hoon Book House A leading voice in the Korean science fiction scene, author Bae Myung-hoon has revised his 2013 novella “The Proposal” after 11 years. In an extensive revision, the author rewrote almost every sentence, updating descriptions and expressions to align with contemporary sensibilities. The book comprises 12 intimate letters sent by the narrator, "I," who is a space-born operations officer serving in the army near Jupiter, 18

June 8, 2024

[New in Korean] What if AI learns the most primal evils

"Anti Sapiens" By Lee Jung-myung EunHaengNaMu Publishing Eight years ago, during the historic Baduk, also known as Go, match between Lee Se-dol and AlphaGo, developed by DeepMind Technologies, what caught Lee Jung-myung’s attention was Aja Huang, then the lead programmer at DeepMind, who physically placed AlphaGo’s moves on the board. Observing Huang, who faithfully carried out the AI's moves, Lee wondered if humanity might become like that. Set in the near future, &ld

June 8, 2024