Bora Chung’s ‘Cursed Bunny’ short-listed for 2022 International Booker Prize

South Korean novelist Bora Chung’s “Cursed Bunny,” translated by Anton Hur, has been selected as one of six books for the prestigious 2022 International Booker Prize short list, organizers said Thursday.  　“It’s getting even more unrealistic, but I’m thrilled to even witness that Korean genre literature is recognized this much and loved worldwide,” Chung told The Korea Herald after the announcement.  “And personally, I’m very hon

April 7, 2022

Korean books to watch for this spring

Park Sang-young's queer coming-of-age tale “Love in the Big City” (translated by Anton Hur) is one of two Korean novels longlisted for the 2022 International Booker Prize. Together with Bora Chung’s ”Cursed Bunny,“ Park‘s debut novel and first book to be translated into English highlights the diversity of contemporary Korean literature. Chung’s short story collection tackles a variety of styles and concepts, from surreal horror and dark fairytales to sci

March 31, 2022

[Herald Interview] Giving back to Southeast Asia by introducing region’s art, literature to Korea

With South Korea riding high on the wave of its international success in the pop culture arena, ranging from the hugely popular “Squid Game” to children’s book illustrator Suzy Lee winning the prestigious Andersen Awards just last week, a foundation hopes to pay it forward by introducing Koreans to relatively unknown Southeast Asian literature. In pursuit of this goal, the Hansae Yes24 Foundation, established in 2014 and privately funded by Kim Dong-Nyung, chairman of Hansae Y

March 31, 2022

[Herald Interview] ‘Cursed Bunny’ author Bora Chung on writing from the margins

Like her stories, Bora Chung radiates terse, fierce energy like an electrical cable cut open. On a Thursday morning exactly one week after “Cursed Bunny” -- her collection of 10 short stories translated by Anton Hur -- was announced among the works longlisted for the 2022 International Booker Prize, Chung told The Korea Herald that she was still in shock. “Suddenly people are mentioning my name in the same sentence with Han Kang and Olga Tokarczuk, and I feel this is surreal

March 30, 2022

Korean illustrator Suzy Lee wins prestigious Andersen Award

  South Korean illustrator Suzy Lee won one of the most prestigious prizes given to authors and illustrators of children‘s books Monday. The International Board on Books for Young Children on Monday announced Lee as the 2022 winner of the illustration section of Hans Christian Andersen Award, which is specifically given in honor of the lifetime work of an illustrator. With the award, Lee has become the first Korean to receive or be nominated at the Hans Christian Andersen Award an

March 22, 2022

Two Korean novels in running for International Booker Prize

Two Korean novels have been named on the long list to qualify for the annual International Booker Prize, formerly known as the Man Booker International Prize. “Love in the Big City” by Park Sang-young and “Cursed Bunny” by Chung Bora are among 13 works announced as in the running for the international literary award announced Friday. In 2016, “The Vegetarian” by Han Kang won the prestigious international prize given to a book translated into English and pub

March 11, 2022

Published screenplays of hit TV series make bestselling book lists

Popular TV series have recently made their presence felt not only on the global viewership charts but also on local bestselling book lists. The script book of the romantic comedy "Our Beloved Summer," published on Feb. 16, placed second on the weekly bestsellers list for the third week of February by Kyobo Book Center, the biggest bookstore chain in South Korea. On the weekly sales list of Yes24, a local online bookstore, preorders of the series' screenplay book also ranked third in th

March 11, 2022

Daesan Foundation accepting grant applications for translation of Korean literary works

The Daesan Foundation is accepting applications for translation of Korean literary works. Applicants can choose a Daesan Literary Award prize-winning work that has not been translated into the target language, or others that the translator wishes to work on. The foundation funded translations of 13 Korean works last year. This year, up to 15 million won ($12,400) will be given for a single translation work, depending on the language and length of the selected piece. For English, French, Germ

March 2, 2022

Two Korean children’s books receive Bologna Ragazzi Award

Two Korean illustrated books, by Lee Su-zy and Choi Deok-kyu, respectively, won recognition in this year’s Bologna Ragazzi Awards for children’s literature The prestigious annual international awards identify the best products in terms of graphic and editorial quality, innovation and communication with young readers. Evaluated by an international jury of experts, the categories are divided into four genres: fiction, nonfiction, opera prima (debut work) and comics. Lee Su-zy&rsquo

Feb. 25, 2022

[Book Review] In ‘Future of Silence,’ Korean women’s voices resound across generations

We turn to literature to understand ourselves and others, across boundaries of time, space, and culture. When fictional characters reveal the whole, unvarnished truth of their lives, it can be a mirror to our own. Readers may experience such moments of recognition while reading “The Future of Silence: Fiction by Korean Women,” a collection of nine short stories spanning five decades from the 1970s to 2010s. In them, women find themselves in situations ranging from the Kafkaesque t

Feb. 24, 2022

2 Korean children's books win prizes at Bolgna Ragazzi Awards

Two South Korean children's books have won prizes at this year's Bologna Ragazzi Awards, one of the world's largest honors for kids' books and illustrations. "Summer," written and drawn by Suzy Lee, was listed as one of the three Special Mention works in the Fiction category, the organizers of the awards said Wednesday (Korean time) on its website. In the Non-Fiction section, "Father's big hands" by Choi Deok-kyu was also selected as a Special Mention piece. "Summer

Feb. 23, 2022

[Eye Plus] Indulge in Joy of reading at first public book museum

Songpa Book Museum, situated in eastern Seoul, is an establishment dedicated to reading.  The museum, which opened in 2019, is the first public book museum in Korea. At the museum, visitors can learn more about the practice of reading through various exhibitions. Some exhibitions explain how Korean ancestors read books during the Joseon era (1392-1910) or during the Japanese occupation (1910-1945). It also has a vast reading space for those who want to indulge in books.  The baseme

Jan. 29, 2022

Drama script sales emerge as indicator for success

The viewership of the SBS drama “Our Beloved Summer” might have been disappointing, but the sales of its scripts are telling another story. The scripts of the TV show have topped the bestselling lists of local online book stores Aladin and Yes24, proving the growing popularity of the 16-part series that is scheduled to end on Tuesday. The success of a TV series has been judged largely by its viewership rating, but the growing popularity of over the top platforms and services have le

Jan. 19, 2022

‘Kim Ji-young, Born 1982’ is most-sold Korean novel overseas

Although the pandemic has put overseas travels on hold to a great extent, Korean literature has constantly made daring adventures beyond borders. Over the past five years, 34 works of Korean literature have sold over 5,000 copies each in overseas book markets, according to the Literature Translation Institute of Korea’s data on Tuesday. “Kim Ji-young, Born 1982,” a 2016 feminist novel by Cho Nam-joo, has sold more than 300,000 copies abroad by the end of 2020. The piece has

Jan. 18, 2022

Educator explains Korean culture in new book

“Land of Squid Game” By Min Byoung-chul BCM Publishing Company 　 For many global audiences, 2021 may have been a year of discovering Korea. From Netflix’s megahit “Squid Game” to the mighty BTS, Korean cultural products have expanded their reach across the globe. Min Byoung-chul’s new book, “Land of Squid Game,” arrives at this opportune time when there appears to be growing genuine curiosity about South Korea, a country until not so long ago o

Dec. 27, 2021

Korean literature becoming popular overseas

Reflecting the growing popularity of Korean literature, 180 literary works were translated into 29 different languages with assistance from the Literature Translation Institute of Korea this year. This is the largest number of works translated in a year since LTI Korea was established in 1996. LTI Korea said the increased demand for Korean literature in overseas markets is also shown in the number of requests for translation support that it received this year. A total of 156 overseas publis

Dec. 22, 2021

Translators of ‘Yi Sang: Selected Works’ receiveMLA award

A team behind the translation of “Yi Sang: Selected Works” received a literary translation award from the US-based Modern Literature Association, the Literature Translation Institute of Korea said Monday. This is the first time the award has been given for a work of Korean literature, according to LTI Korea, which sponsored the book‘s translation and publication. Jack Jung, a visiting assistant professor of English at Davidson College, Sawako Nakayasu, an assistant profes

Dec. 13, 2021

German literature professor wins top prize at LTI Korea Translation Award

  The Literature Translation Institute of Korea on Tuesday awarded 13 translators for excellence in the translation of Korean literature into foreign languages, with the top prize going to Park In-won for her German translation of Kim Young-ha’s 2013 bestselling novel “Diary of a Murderer.” Park, a German literature professor at Ewha Womans University, won the top prize and 20 million won ($16,900) in prize money for her translation of the novella into “Aufzeich

Dec. 7, 2021

Notable Asian writers to speak on literature’s role in tackling pressing issues of the times

With an aim to gather Asian literary writers to discuss current and future agendas, the 2021 Asia Literature Forum is set to kick off Wednesday at the Asia Culture Center in Gwangju. Under the theme “Reading the lives and wounds in Asia,” the six-hour event will be held both at the location and through the ACC’s YouTube channel. Twelve writers from five countries will participate in the forum, with opening remarks by poet Kim Si-jong. Kim will talk about how language plays a

Nov. 22, 2021

Daesan Literary Awards announces four winners

The Daesan Foundation announced the four winners of the 29th annual Daesan Literary Awards on Wednesday. The organization founded by Kyobo Life Insurance awards winners in four categories, recognizing the best poetry, novel, drama or literature review and translated work. The award for best translated work is given to English, French, German and Spain translations, one for each year in sequential order. Poet Kim Eon won the award for “Dear Blank Paper,” which describes the self-con

Nov. 3, 2021