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Life resists explanation, story begins in uncertainty
Wi Soo-jung has been named the winner of the 49th Yi Sang Literary Award, one of the country’s most prestigious prizes for short and medium-length fiction. Her winning work, “Snow and Pebbles,” was announced Tuesday by Dasan Books, the award’s organizer, at a press conference in central Seoul. “I still consider myself early in my career as a writer, so the honor feels both overwhelming and deeply gratifying,” Wi said. The 48-year-old author, who began her literary career in 2017, added that she
Jan. 29, 2026 -
Mun Ka-young's good heart comes from reading good books
Mun Ka-young is one of Korea’s most devoted celebrity readers -- an actor whose love of books led her to become an author. She describes herself as “a person who acts, reads and writes.” Born in 1996 in Germany, where she spent her early childhood, Mun returned to South Korea around the age of 10 and began acting almost immediately. She made her film debut in horror movie "Bloody Reunion" (2006). After starring in hit drama series including "True Beauty," "The Interest of Love" and "My Dearest N
Jan. 27, 2026 -
Revisiting Park Wan-suh, 'the auntie next door'
Every January, as the cold hardens and the year begins in earnest, Korean readers return to the quiet warmth embedded in Park Wan-suh’s stories. Thursday marked the 15th anniversary of the death of a central figure in modern Korean literature. Park was born in 1931, during Japan’s colonial rule of Korea (1910-1945), and died in 2011 at 80 from gallbladder cancer. The anniversary has prompted publishers and readers to return to her work, with new editions and commemorative volumes drawing renewed
Jan. 24, 2026 -
Why are Koreans so obsessed with education? Min Jin Lee to explore it in 'American Hagwon'
Min Jin Lee, the Korean American novelist whose sweeping epic “Pachinko” became a global phenomenon, will publish her long-awaited new novel this September, nearly a decade after her last work of long fiction. According to publishers, “American Hagwon” will be released in the US and UK on Sept. 29. It is her third novel and will join her earlier debut, “Free Food for Millionaires” (2007) and “Pachinko” as part of what critics have begun calling her “Korean diaspora trilogy.” “American Hagwon” fo
Jan. 15, 2026 -
Teenage authors talk about finding their voices early, sharing their success
Most children naturally begin drawing and trying to write, but few achieve success before adulthood. Not so Jeon Isoo and Baek Eun-byul, two 16-year-olds whose stars have risen high enough to be invited as speakers on the same program at the Busan International Children's Book Fair last month. Jeon Isoo, a teenage painter and children's book writer, has been publishing books since he was 8. Baek Eun-byul is a comparative late bloomer, breaking through at the ripe age of 14 with her debut novel “
Jan. 14, 2026 -
Son Jong-won's good vibes and unsparing reading list
Son Jong-won has been building a following through his appearances on JTBC cooking variety show "Chef & My Fridge," but his recent turn on the second season of Netflix's megahit "Culinary Class Wars" propelled him into full-fledged stardom. A member of the show's "white spoon" team of established chefs, the 41-year-old is the executive chef behind two Michelin-starred restaurants: Eatanic Garden and L'Amant Secret. Well-mannered and neatly styled, with a composed demeanor and an unshowy confiden
Jan. 13, 2026 -
What’s behind Jang Won-young’s ‘Lucky Vicky’ mindset
When Kyobo Book Center released its list of the top 10 bestsellers for 2025, one title stood out amid a sea of Korean books: “Super-Translated Buddha's Words,” by a Japanese monk. Its unlikely rise can be traced to a single moment. In January, Jang Won-young of the K-pop group Ive mentioned the book during her appearance on tvN talk show “You Quiz on the Block.” Almost immediately, sales took off. Originally published in May 2024, the book climbed rapidly into the upper ranks of the weekly bests
Jan. 10, 2026 -
Cultural and arts activities in Korea showed steady growth in 2024
Cultural activities grew steadily in 2024, data from Arts Council Korea showed Friday. The total number of different concerts, exhibitions, performances and other cultural endeavors registered with the council, also known as ARKO, reached 62,442, up 4.7 percent compared to the previous year. The figures count tours and show runs as one endeavor, so the 30,273 endeavors in the performing arts sector includes 145,543 performances. ARKO covers fine arts, but not pop culture such as K-pop, movies an
Jan. 2, 2026 -
Steady notice abroad, modest gains at home
A year after Han Kang’s historic Nobel Prize win in literature, Korean writers and translators continued to land nominations and awards across major global literary prizes throughout 2025. At home, even as the broader publishing market struggled, Korean fiction emerged as a rare source of optimism, buoyed by younger readers and a new generation of writers. In January, Bora Chung was named a finalist for the Philip K. Dick Award, marking the first time a Korean writer had been shortlisted for the
Dec. 29, 2025 -
How to live a little better in the new year
As one year draws to a close and another begins, many people find themselves lingering on what fell short while summoning fresh resolve for what lies ahead. It is a familiar moment of reckoning -- part regret, part determination. In recent months, several figures widely loved in Korea have published essays and self-reflection books shaped by lives devoted to practice, work and focus. Together, they offer modest, practical insights for living a little better in the year to come. For Sister Lee Ha
Dec. 20, 2025 -
It's okay to 'speak like a river'
BUSAN — At a book talk held Saturday during the Busan International Children’s Book Fair, children’s literature critic and translator Kim Ji-eun told a story that drew a warm round of applause, reminding the audience how a single picture book can reach a child who has not yet found his voice. “There is a child who read ‘I Talk Like a River,’” Kim said, turning toward the book's author, Canadian poet and children’s book writer Jordan Scott. “He spoke very little for a long time, and his parents w
Dec. 16, 2025 -
What book titles reveal about Korea in 2025
If book titles are a reflection of society’s collective curiosity or simply what sells in bookstores, artificial intelligence is firmly at the center of Korea’s intellectual landscape. According to data released by Kyobo Book Center on Sunday, 224 books published between Jan. 1 and Nov. 28 this year included “AI” in their titles, making it the most frequently used keyword among newly released books. The surge is evident not only in titles but also in overall output and sales. According to Kyobo’
Dec. 14, 2025 -
'Everything in life is a cycle of relationships': Hwang Sok-yong's new novel traces bonds linking humans, nature
A single bird in flight opens Hwang Sok-yong's new novel. Even in a 64-year career, it was a first: a novel with no human character until halfway through. “It was the first time I’d written a story with no people in the opening half,” Hwang said during a press conference in Seoul on Tuesday. “As a writer, crafting a narrative emptied of human characters felt awkward. But as I kept writing, I also felt a kind of joy and surprise. ‘Ah, I’ve never written anything like this before.’ I don’t think I
Dec. 10, 2025 -
Can the past save the present?
When Han Kang delivered her Nobel Prize lecture last year, her question, “Can the past save the present?” reverberated far beyond the hall in Stockholm. Her meditation on memory against violence resonated deeply in Korea, resurfacing debates about military dictatorship and the enduring wounds of state power. One year on, Yonsei University, Han’s alma mater, has inaugurated Yonsei Nobel Week, a symposium devoted to revisiting that question and exploring how literature can confront trauma, surface
Dec. 10, 2025 -
'Dream Life of Mr. Kim' asks: Who are you without your title?
In Korean society, we could say that identity is rarely a solitary thing. From an early age, we are placed into systems: given a class number at school and later assigned to a department in a company, a title affixed to our name. That title matters because it becomes social proof of who we are. So we grow up learning to exist as “someone who belongs somewhere.” That frame defines us. And as long as it holds, our place in society feels stable. The novel recently adapted to the hit eponymous drama
Dec. 2, 2025