Ideologies and familiesAn Appointment with My BrotherBy Yi Mun-yol(Jimoondang, 5,000 won)Based on author Yi Mun-yol’s personal family history and literary imagination, “An Appointment with My Brother” tells a moving tale of a Korean family separated by the two Koreas’ ideological differences.The narrator, whose father voluntarily defected to North Korea a few years after the Korean War, is a unive

Books Jan. 14, 2011

Rarely does a writer immersed in the world of academia publish a first novel that becomes an international success, but that’s what happened to Kim Edwards.In 2005, the University of Kentucky creative-writing professor followed her award-winning 1997 short-story collection “The Secrets of a Fire King” with “The Memory Keeper’s Daughter,” which enjoyed 122 weeks on the New York Times’ bestseller li

Books Jan. 14, 2011

Seattle-area writer Matt Briggs has published six books. In 1999 his first novel got a half-page review in The New York Times Book Review, the literary equivalent of winning the lottery.That’s the good news. Here’s the rest of the story:―The initial print run of his first book, “The Remains of River Names,” was 600 copies. Because of the national exposure it immediately sold out, but the publisher

Books Jan. 14, 2011

Upo Wetland, a complex of natural wetlands located in Changnyeong County, South Gyeongsang Province, and two specific trees of Rose of Sharon (Mugunghwa), Korea’s national flower, have been added to Korea’s natural monuments list, the Cultural Heritage Administration said Thursday. Known as the largest natural wetland in the country, Upo complex includes Mokpo, Sajipo and Jokjibul wetlands. It is

Social Affairs Jan. 13, 2011

Kang’s new movie ‘Glove’ tells true story of hopeLike many other sports, baseball is a game of communication. Catchers are yelling which base to go, the crowd screams when someone hits a home run, and coaches constantly shout what to do when the players are at their bases. It’s also a sport of accumulated team effort. Having one great pitcher cannot make a strong team.Director Kang Woo-suk’s new f

Film Jan. 13, 2011

From visual voicemail to a portable media player and an Internet client, the iPhone has been serving the international public as a great multi-tasker with its revolutionary, diverse functionalities.The small handheld device has now arguably made another step, as Korea’s highly acclaimed director Park Chan-wook and his brother Park Chan-kyong ― a renowned media artist ― revealed their latest collab

Film Jan. 11, 2011

Movies can mean a lot of things. They can be made, studied, critiqued and simply watched. They can give multiples of meanings and hardships, as well as aspirations and enormous wealth.The 6th Cinematheque Friends Film Festival, however, simply focuses on the joy of cinema this year. Starting on Jan. 18 at Seoul Art Cinema in central Seoul, the one of a kind festival showcases a total of 44 Korean

Film Jan. 7, 2011

 As director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu remembers it, he and Javier Bardem first met at “The Losers Party.”It was Oscar night 2001 and Inarritu had just been overlooked by the academy ― for the first time. The then-38-year-old filmmaker celebrated the defeat of his “Amores Perros” by drinking copious amounts of tequila with Sean Penn and Bardem, two men who would later serve as unlikely muses for

Film Jan. 7, 2011

The national traumaThe WoundedBy Lee Chung-joonTranslated by Jennifer M. Lee(Jimoondang, 5,000 won)The Korean War (1950-1953) left both physical and psychological wounds to its people. Lee Chung-joon’s “The Wounded” explores the national trauma that continues to haunt individuals who suffer from their memories of the war, and other “hidden” existing traumas that cannot be identified.A spritless ar

Books Jan. 7, 2011

This past fall I put out a call to readers: Send me your favorite mysteries set in other countries, written by international (e.g., not American) writers.I’m glad I asked ... I think. Already the most popular literary genre in America, mysteries may be taking over the world. I got more than 70 nominations ― writers and books set in locales from Cuba to China to Iceland to Australia. Wherever crime

Books Jan. 7, 2011

At a garage studio in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Eagle Rock, Lisa Pearson is publishing books with the skill of a craftsman, framing the printed word as a work of art.One volume, “Torture of Women,” features a red cloth cover with an embossed title resembling scar tissue. Inside, images of the female body are overlaid with matter-of-fact accounts of women who have suffered torture. “Fascist p

Books Jan. 7, 2011

Song Yige’s perspective rich, imaginativeShe had a perfect childhood in Harbin, China, and those innocent days made her who she is as an artist today. Song Yige is holding her second solo exhibition at Gallery Hyundai in Gangnam, Seoul, starting Jan. 7. The 30-year-old was discovered by world-renowned Chinese artist Zeng Fanzhi last year. With his support, Song held her first show last year at ART

Performance Jan. 6, 2011

Korea’s oldest wooden structure building located in Bongjeong Temple in Andong, North Gyeongsang Province, is showing cracks and other signs of damage only seven years after it underwent major repairs.The building, Geungnakjeon, meaning “paradise hall” serves as the main building of the historic temple, housing its Buddha statue. The building’s side walls and columns are showing visible cracks, an

Social Affairs Jan. 5, 2011