Han Young-ae returns after 15 years

It has been 15 years since classic rock singer Han Young-ae released a new album. Yearning to tackle the arduous task of adapting her original ’80s psychedelic music style to today’s more eclectic music scene, Han admitted to adding a new word to her repertoire to help jumpstart her upcoming sixth studio album, “Shakipo.” “‘Hybrid’ ― have you ever heard of this?” asked Han, during a press showcase Wednesday for her new album. “This is a new term that I didn’t know until recently.” Han Young-ae p

PerformanceNov. 20, 2014

Shields writes of life with mother

There was a Little Girl: The Real Story of My Mother and MeBy Brooke Shields (Dutton)Brooke Shields, the iconic model-actress-Princeton grad, entered the literary scene in 2005 with her memoir about postpartum depression. This time, she sheds light on the relationship she shared with her mother, and it’s a well-crafted and insightful read from beginning to end. It would be a shame to dismiss “There Was a Little Girl” as a celebrity tell-all. Instead, it’s a thoughtful, poignant and provoking sto

BooksNov. 20, 2014

‘Woman with a Gun’ feels like movie

Woman with a GunBy Phillip Margolin (Harper)Phillip Margolin takes a lighter approach with “Woman with a Gun,” an entertaining novel that, however, lacks the tight plotting and insight into the law of his legal thrillers.Instead, “Woman with a Gun” is more like a Lifetime movie with pedantic dialogue, a few improbable twists, romance and revenge. Still, some of us like Lifetime movies and, despite its flaws, “Woman with a Gun” makes one want to know what’s behind the photograph of a woman at the

BooksNov. 20, 2014

‘Rain Reign’ shows love for ‘special’ kids

Rain ReignBy Ann M. Martin (Feiwel & Friends)If Rose Howard’s family was well off, she’d be a “special” girl who was considered smart and quirky by the teachers at her private school for children who have Asperger’s syndrome.But Rose, the main character and the narrator of “Rain Reign” by Ann Martin, has a dad with a sometimes job in a garage and a career drinking in the nearby bar, so instead Rose is a bit of trouble. She disrupts her fifth-grade class, gets kicked off the school bus and bugs m

BooksNov. 20, 2014

Baldacci’s novel tugs at heart strings

The EscapeBy David Baldacci (Grand Central Publishing)One of the most compelling characters in David Baldacci’s thrillers is John Puller, a crackerjack investigator of military crimes. In “The Forgotten” and “Zero Day,” readers learned that Puller has an older brother, Robert, who is serving a life sentence for treason. In “The Escape,” Baldacci reveals the reason for Robert’s imprisonment. The story begins on a stormy night in Kansas. There’s a major power failure at Robert’s maximum security p

BooksNov. 20, 2014

‘Gutenberg’s Apprentice’ tells story of how printed Bible came to be

The world is about to change.Europe in 1450 is a godly place, and books are sacred and scarce. Each is hand-lettered by a scribe, directed by the hand of the Almighty.In Alix Christie’s telling of how Johann Gutenberg’s revolutionary printed Bible took form, overcoming the idea of a mechanically produced holy book is a serious concern. Peter Schoeffer, a young scribe who is the apprentice of the book’s title, views the idea as the work of the devil.Schoeffer, an actual historical figure who was

BooksNov. 20, 2014

Herbie Hancock’s memoir recalls a creative life and all that jazz

Herbie Hancock has had the kind of career that’s unlikely to ever be duplicated. Appearing on landmark recordings with Miles Davis as well as his own band in the 1960s, Hancock memorably scaled to even greater fame while fusing jazz and funk with the Headhunters in the ’70s and becoming the first crossover hip-hop artist in the early ’80s with the Grammy-winning “Rockit.”It’s a life marked by sonic evolution and a restless, even relentless drive toward creative expression that remains undiminish

BooksNov. 20, 2014

[Design Forum] ‘Bringing emotion to people’

Belgian fashion designer Olivier Theyskens debuted in the high fashion world with a much-praised show for Rochas in 2003. Imbued with Parisian elegance, Theysken’s creations were regarded as a redefinition of haute couture, as he made it relevant to younger people. His fresh take on fashion continued when he moved to Nina Ricci in 2006 and to Theory in 2011 as creative director. His creations fascinated many young women who wanted to look chic and sleek while retaining a feminine and romantic am

Arts & DesignNov. 19, 2014

[Design Forum] Fast fashion meets designer names, changes consumer trends

This is the fifth in a weekly series that examines the expanding role of design in the run-up to the Herald Design Forum 2014 on Nov. 26. ― Ed.Over 300 people from their 20s to their 60s camped out in the rain in front of an H&M store in Myeong-dong, downtown Seoul, in the early morning of Nov. 6.Some were office workers who took a day off to stay up all night in the queue.With tents and sleeping bags on the streets, they were there to get a piece of “Al Wang,” (“Wang” means king in Korean) thei

Arts & DesignNov. 19, 2014

[Herald Interview] Bringing heaven down to earth

For pop-opera singer Lim Hyung-joo, 2014 has had some unexpected turns. At the start of the year, the 28-year-old musician had high hopes for his fifth full-length album, “Finally,” which came out at the end of 2013.Those hopes were crushed when the ferry Sewol sank on April 16. The country’s entire cultural scene came to a virtual standstill, as the nation mourned the loss of over 300 lives, mostly of them teenagers, in the tragic accident. Then, suddenly a song from his 2008 EP “My Hero” toppe

PerformanceNov. 19, 2014

Yi Yook-sa’s poems published in English

During his short life, Yi Yook-sa (1904-44), a Korean poet and independence activist, composed only about 40 poems. Yet his compelling poems, written during the darkest period of modern Korean history, captured the heroic spirit of the Korean people’s resistance and the nationalist movement against Japanese colonial rule. “The Vertex” is an anthology of 36 of Yi’s poems, in both Korean and English, compiled and translated by Lee Sung-il, a professor emeritus of English literature at Yonsei Unive

BooksNov. 19, 2014

‘Side Show’ a soaring, must-see musical

NEW YORK (AP) ― After the favorably reviewed musical “Side Show” closed its original three-month Broadway run in 1997, swallowing a $7 million loss for its producers, it still garnered four Tony Award nominations. Potential audience members stayed away because the idea of seeing the story of real-life British conjoined twins Daisy and Violet Hilton onstage seemed disturbing. Seventeen years later, so-called “freaks” are in vogue on TV and “The Elephant Man” is about to begin a Broadway revival.

PerformanceNov. 19, 2014

‘Mockingjay’ stars reflect on growing up together

NEW YORK (AP) ― Sitting down to interview Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson and Liam Hemsworth, stars of the blockbuster “Hunger Games” franchise, feels a bit like hanging out with three siblings. While Hutcherson ponders a question, Lawrence and Hemsworth are surreptitiously playing a game of hand-slap, Lawrence pulling her hand free just in time. When one of the guys says reflectively, “Maybe I was just an idiot,” Lawrence pipes up: “Yes, you ARE an idiot!” There are giggles, and a totally in

FilmNov. 19, 2014

10cm gets risque on new ‘3.0’ album

The lighthearted lyrical masterminds of acoustic duo 10cm have finally unveiled their third studio album, “3.0,” a release that will surprise some fans with songs of a more sexual nature. Kwon Jung-yeol and Yoon Cheol-jong, the duo that helped catapult indie music into the mainstream by singing good-natured songs about Americanos and loving someone even if they smell, claim they are slowly starting to shift toward more risque topics on their new 10-track album, which dropped Wednesday. “To be pe

PerformanceNov. 19, 2014

A dance with Daddy: Federal inmates get chance to go to the ‘ball’

MIAMI ― In a Federal Bureau of Prisons first, inmates serving time in a Miami federal detention center were allowed to dance with their daughters for an afternoon as part of a reentry program. The theme: There’s still time at the ball, still time to take an active role in their daughters’ lives.Inmate Ernest Williams, serving a 41-month drug sentence, had long stopped asking his family ― a wife and five children ― to come see him at the Federal Detention Center Miami. The visits, he says, left h

CultureNov. 19, 2014

Art of therapy practiced through pictures

DALLAS ― Rachel Nash is a licensed professional counselor. She works with a diverse group of clients, including children, adults and the elderly. She talks with them. She builds relationships with them. She guides them through discerning their own complex emotions.In these ways, she is similar to other counselors.What separates Nash from her colleagues are the art supplies that accompany her in every therapy session. Nash is an art therapist.Art therapy is a well-established but sometimes overlo

PerformanceNov. 19, 2014

Accessible home sits sky-high over Seattle

SEATTLE ― Anne and Brom Wikstrom have lived in the city’s Magnolia neighborhood for a very long time. They’re used to beautiful views. Blue water. Purple mountains. Rising city.So when they started talking about a new place, they didn’t talk about a nice view. They didn’t want a nice view.They wanted a stunning view. This view: Puget Sound from Seattle’s shipping terminals, across Alki Beach, the sweep out to Bainbridge Island, Olympic Mountains, around to Queen Anne Hill, over the Space Needle,

CultureNov. 19, 2014

Filmmaker explores meaning of freedom in ‘Haebangchon’

A drug crime movie set in Haebangchon might sound like the tawdry imaginings of a xenophobic campaign group, but the plot in “Haebangchon: Chapter 1” seems to have more to do with the area’s Korean-influenced nickname ― Liberation Village.“Each individual person in this film needs to find their own individual freedom. That’s what the film is really about. That’s what the premise is, to be able to be free,” said director James Williams III by phone from the United States.The film, to get its Seou

Expat LivingNov. 18, 2014