Mastodawn

Following my post here

https://c.im/@jemmesedi/115483897308266747

I got hold of a copy of "The Vegetarian" and finished it this afternoon.

On one level, this novel - or is it a trilogy of linked novellas? - is a critique in fiction of the repression of women in socially conservative South Korea.

Yet "The Vegetarian" is much more than that, questioning as it does our distinctions between sanity and madness, care and cruelty, and humanity and nature.

More disturbing for me than all the body horror aspects of the book was the suggestion that a supreme moment of creative expression might be inextricably bound up with cruelty, exploitation, and betrayal.

At just under two hundred pages, this is not a long read. Thanks to @isa for your recommendation!

#Books #TheVegetarian #HanKang #Fiction #Literature #KoreanLiterature #SouthKorea

Alo Japan Nov 4

https://www.alojapan.com/1406741/the-tokyo-bookstore-where-translated-korean-literature-sparks-conversation-across-borders/ The Tokyo bookstore where translated Korean literature sparks ‘conversation across borders’ ##metoo #BookshopInTokyo #Chekccori #ChoNamJoo #CuonInc. #feminism #HanKang #Japan #JeongSoYeon #jimbocho #KCulture #Korea #Korean #KoreanAuthors #KoreanBooks #KoreanCulture #KoreanLiterature #KoreanNovels #KoreanPoetry #news #SouthKorea #Tokyo #TokyoBookshops #TokyoNews #TranslatedKoreanLiterature #東京 #東京都 On a quiet street in Jimbocho, a Tokyo neighb

The Tokyo bookstore where translated Korean literature sparks ‘conversation across borders’ - Alo Japan All About Japan

On a quiet street in Jimbocho, a Tokyo neighbourhood known for its second-hand bookshops and publishing houses, one shop stands out: Chekccori.

Alo Japan All About Japan

Jonathan Emmesedi Nov 3

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202511/1347167.shtml

Now I want to read "The Vegetarian" and some of the other works that Dong Xi mentions, especially Zhuangzi -- On Seeing Things as Equal.

#Literature #Books #KoreanLiterature #HanKang #TheVegetarian #ChineseLiterature #OnSeeingThingsAsEqual #DongXi #Transformations

All transformations aim to achieve normality - Global Times

Aiming to build a new platform for cultural exchange between China and South Korea through literary dialogue, the Global Times

impala at KillBait Oct 20

The Impact of Baek Se-hee’s Book on Mental Health Awareness in South Korea

Baek Se-hee's book, I Want to Die but I Want to Eat [translate:tteokbokki], has resonated deeply in South Korea and beyond since its 2018 release. The title's candid contradiction captures the author's struggle with dysthymia and anxiety, shared through conversations with her psychiatrist. The book ... [More info]

Show thread

Adam Hartzell Jul 22

#NowReading2025 THE WHITE BOOK by Han Kang translated by Deborah Smith via
@grantabooks thanks to the Arakawa Public Library imbibed at Catea #Oshiage #押上 #Books #KoreanLiterature #Coffee
@bookstodon #CoffeeStodon #CoffeeMastodon #BooksStodon #BooksMastodon #Korean

Jonathan Emmesedi Jul 11

I've been dipping into "Lost Souls", a volume of short stories by Hwang Sunwon.

One that has particularly caught my attention is "Booze", written in 1945.

Following the August 15th liberation of Korea from Japanese rule, the Nakamura distillery is to be taken over by Koreans. Which Koreans though? As we follow the head clerk Chunho's attempts to manage the takeover, his household, and himself, we see a decent individual struggling with challenges going way beyond a change of name for the distillery.

"Booze" not only absorbed me in its narrative but also made me think about both decolonization and writing about decolonization.

#HwangSunWon #KoreanLiterature #Booze #ShortStories #Books #TwentiethCenturyLiterature #Postcolonialism #AsianLiterature #Korea

https://cup.columbia.edu/book/lost-souls/9780231149686/

Lost Souls | Columbia University Press

These captivating short stories portray three major periods in modern Korean history: the forces of colonial modernity during the late 1930s; the postcolonia... | CUP

Columbia University Press

Waywords Studio Mar 14

𝟯 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗱 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄: “𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗩𝗲𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗻” 𝗯𝘆 𝗛𝗮𝗻 𝗞𝗮𝗻𝗴 -

A surreal/but-real tale of a woman who dares to make her own choices and of the struggles of family (most male) who cannot contend with it.

#bookreviews #books #bookworm #readreadread #3words #hankang #thevegetarian #nobelprize #koreanliterature #asianliterature

Karen Mardahl Mar 14

Reading “Welcome to the Hyunam-Dong Bookshop” by Hwang Bo-Reum. It’s a bit slow going - more than I expected, but that’s OK. I think it is because I am savouring the atmosphere and getting to know the people. The main character does a kind of philosophizing about life all the time, and I think that is what is drawing me in. It adds a layer of meditation or rumination. My reading plans have been interrupted a lot, but this is due Monday so I plan to chill with it on Sunday. :) #fredagsbog #bookstodon #KoreanLiterature #BooksAboutBooks