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The Origin - Back to the Beginning: New Releases from January and February 2026 scrap download

The Origin - 다시, 시작으로: 1월과 2월의 신간 도서입니다.

#NewReleases #K-Literature #2026

The season of winter seems to linger quietly, yet it lets us sense the movement of life carefully sprouting somewhere.  As we turn over the cover of a new calendar and catch our breath for a new beginning, we find ourselves relying on the mysteries of the never-ending cycle of seasons: the belief that we will have another opportunity as long as spring arrives, and the courage to start fresh, even as one year gives way to the next. As we prepare for the next season in moving stillness, we ask about the origin of literature. Where does it begin? If life is a sequence of experiences, then it is from these experiences that literature takes root. 

We shall gaze upon the books that have sprung from the pens of countless authors over the years, each written in its own language. The new January and February releases pose questions in their own ways under the umbrella of “The Origin.” Questioning the foundation of a world that we deem familiar, we stand at the crossroads of a new beginning, seeing the present in a different light. We realize once more that returning to the starting line we thought we had already passed is, in fact, the most fundamental act of moving forward.

The winner of the 49th Yi Sang Literary Award—an award that reflects trends in contemporary Korean novel—went to Wi Soo Jung, who won the Hankook Ilbo Literary Award in 2024 for The Night that Never was. The winning novella, Snow and Stone, depicts a journey to the snowy fields of Nagoya in Japan, where the protagonists face a final farewell with a departed friend. The contrasting qualities of snow and stone are clear; while one crumbles and melts easily, the other is solid and unbreakable. Two protagonists decide to carry out their friend’s will without understanding their intention, and their steps lead them to realize how fragile and futile life is. Before life and death—the same, yet different in their beginnings and endings—we will discover the beauty of life that is “mysterious because it is ambiguous.” Furthermore, we can gain a clearer sense of the novella’s context through the runner-up works and interviews of Kim Hye-jin, Seong Hyeryeong, Lee Min-jin, Jeong Yihyeon, and Ham Yoon-I. 

They say classics are timeless. The core themes of human life, unchanged even after thousands of years, are still alive and breathing between the pages of books from long ago. The essay collection The Jokes of an Old World humorously brings out the vitality of the wisdom and the beauty of sharp insights found in classic literature. It is a recipe tailored to contemporary readers: no matter how many times we read it, the flavors of the classics come back to life with new meaning and value each time. At times, aren’t we met with a gift of sudden insight in moments of unexpected empathy or contemplation? You never know, you might find yourself laughing away the fleeting worries of “our unchanged selves” after repeated dialogue with the past. It is hoped that everyone at a turning point in life is gifted the language of the classics and timelessness.

Park Wansuh once confessed, “Literature is proving oneself as a human to the writer as well as the reader,” and we remember her bold conviction. Her humble and simple stories, which are therefore honest and beautiful, resemble the texture of our lives. Grandma Judy is a short story collection published to mark the 15th anniversary of her passing. It comprises ten short stories, selected from a hundred, by 31 novelists who represent Korea. Since her debut in 1970, Park has stayed close to the readers for over half a century, with her novels such as Who Ate Up All the Shinga? and The Man’s House, and prose such as Even the Truth as Much as Grain of Sand and Only Say the Word. To read Park’s works in 2026 is more than a reflection on the past; it is a question of whether we are truly living as humans today.

Kim Jinmyung, known as the master of historical fiction for The Rose of Sharon Blooms Again and Goguryeo, returns after three years with Sejong’s Country. This new release is particularly notable for the contributions of citizens to the process of writing, as part of the “Hangeul Culture Community” project in collaboration with Sejong City, the Hangeul Culture City. Kim’s strong narrative structure and believability stand out even more as he brings to life untold stories behind the creation of hunminjeongeum, moving between fact and fiction. He vividly portrays King Sejong, who fought a lonely battle with determination and tenacity in an era when our language was surppressed by the Ming Dynasty. It is these letters that stood with the people before foreign influence and still remain as our own cultural asset to this day. There is no doubt that hangeul, created to reflect the sounds of speech, was Joseon’s fate and the foundation of the Republic of Korea.

Na Taejoo, the “Wildflower Poet” beloved by Koreans, has released a new poetry collection People and Love and Flowers. The way he captures precious moments in trivial everyday life draws in readers immediately. We soon realize that what connects the three words—people, love, and flowers—is none other than “the beauty of human life that cannot be surrendered.” The readers’ reflections included in this collection make it even more special. Words deeply etched in their hearts, thoughts captured in brief fragments, and questions—both big and small. In this way, Na Taejoo’s poetry expands its potential as a text that is read and written again and again. As his wish to accompany readers through his poetry comes true, we discover why poetry is still needed in this day and age.

Mu Kyoung, the winner of the New Writer Award of The Quarterly Mystery in 2023 and the Golden Pen Award of the Korean Mystery Literary Award 2024, returns with an unfamiliar blend of history and mystery. Have you ever imagined a place of fear in Gyeongseong in the summer of 1939, where the threat of murder lurked? As the investigation of a death during a film shoot unfolds, hidden ambitions and secrets begin to surface. A Korean historical mystery Myeongseong Apartment, 1939 moves between past and present, offering sharp and gratifying play. In addition to its meticulous depiction of the daily life and customs of Gyeongseong during the Japanese colonial era, this novel is clearly imbued with the author’s social awareness of Korea’s turbulent modern and contemporary history. As you turn the pages of the novel, you will find yourself alone on the streets in Joseon, paralyzed with shock by the carefully planned ruse.

Lee Yuri’s novel The Cloud People depicts the complexities of life with fantastical imagination. While her first short story collection Broccoli Punch explored strange realities through supernatural phenomena, in this novel, she captures a sorrow that is both weighty and lucid. The story begins with pink clouds, made of unknown pollutants, hanging in the sky. The divide between the earth people and the cloud people mirrors nothing more than the problem of the rich and the poor. One day, the government announces its plan to show up without warning and tear down the pink clouds, which greatly endangers the homes of the cloud people. The pink clouds, which are beautiful to look at, become a tool to highlight the contradictions and differences of class and contempt. A fundamental unhappiness that is hard to heal comes rushing at us with “poverty” on its back. 

We ask, once again, where literature began. Kim Hyesoon, who gained widespread recognition for her distinct and striking poetic world through works such as Autobiography of Death, Phantom Pain Wings, and Synchronized Sea Anemone, allows us to read her poetics through nineteen key words in her latest work. Let us, with persistence, pursue how poetry came to be from the nascent sensation and physical experience before language. Ventriloquism of the Air – Where Does Literature Begin? is a collection of prose, comprising selections of Kim’s writing from literary magazines, lectures, speeches, and other various mediums. Kim put this book together with readers who are beginning their journey in literary writing in mind. It is hoped that the “speaking” she speaks of, drawn from experience, will reach more people in places around the world where literature is taking shape.





Written by Eugene Ra

Translated by Lisa Kim 


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