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The Han Kang Effect Continues: Q1 2025 Bestsellers
여전히 이어지는 한강 신드롬, 2025년 1분기 한국문학 베스트셀러
「KLWAVE brings a diverse range of Korean literature to readers worldwide. “Best Sellers” features roundups of best-selling Korean literary works every quarter. Our first-quarter best sellers were selected based on the comprehensive consideration the list of best-selling books from three major Korean bookstore chains—Kyobo Book Centre, Aladin, and Yes24—covering January through March 2025.」
Last year, Korean literature received unprecedented attention both domestically and internationally amid what can only be described as “the Han Kang effect.” Han Kang's literary works have struck a profound chord across borders, achieving the extraordinary feat reaching million-seller status in record time following her Nobel Prize win. During the press conference at the Nobel Prize Museum in Sweden, Han Kang emphasized that "literature is not a luxury, but always a necessity." This was a timely reminder of literature's vital role in both our society and individual lives. Even in our fast-paced world and relentless daily routines, people still make time to read. The best-seller list for the first quarter of 2025 offers a chance to reflect on the "necessity of literature" in these times.
In the first quarter of 2025, Han Kang’s appeal and popularity remains undiminished. Even six months after her Nobel triumph, she remains a powerful presence at the center of Korea’s literary scene, with an astonishing six works—including her poetry collection I Put Dinner in the Drawer—in the top 10. Among them, Human Acts tops the list, powerfully addressing the indelible historical trauma while celebrating the indomitable human spirit. The Man Booker International Prize-winning The Vegetarian ranks second, while We Do Not Part, which explores the Jeju April 3rd Incident, sits at fifth, followed closely by I Put Dinner in the Drawer, The White Book, and Greek Lessons. The Korean literary world is currently experiencing a profound and lingering resonance under Han Kang’s name.
Beyond Han Kang, books addressing life’s meaning and happiness have captured readers’ attention. Taesu 's essay An Adult’s Happiness Is Quiet, which explores resilience in the face of unhappiness and inner contentment, resonated widely enough to secure third place. Yang Gui-ja's Contradiction, with its insight that life is not about exploring while living but living while exploring, ranked fourth. Jung Dae-gun's The Torrent, examining painful love and personal growth, maintained steady popularity at sixth place. Kim Keum-hee's The Grand Greenhouse Renovation Report blends ecological imagination with historical reflection against the backdrop of the Grand Greenhouse at Changgyeong Palace. Kim Kitae's Two People's International tackles contemporary social and ethical issues with depth and wit. Both works placed tenth and eleventh respectively, highlighting readers' unwavering interest in literature.
Bora Chung’s short story collection Your Utopia—a revised version of her 2021 collection To Meet Her—was released in January 2025. Its English translation, Your Utopia, was nominated for the prestigious Philip K. Dick Award, one of the world's three major science fiction literary awards, and the retitled Korean edition placed fourteenth on the best seller list, recapturing the interest of Korean readers after gaining attention overseas. Along with Your Utopia, recent releases in January and February also made strong showings: The essay collection A Suitable Person by Lee Chang-sub of the boy group BTOB reached twelfth place while the poetry collection A Tomato Firmer Than the Heart by Ko Sunkyung , known as a pioneer of the "text-hip" trend with her distinctively witty language, landed at thirteenth. Ye So-yeon’s The Dog and the Revolution, winner of the 48th Yi Sang Literary Award selected by prominent film critic Lee Dong-jin (known as the "idol of film criticism") selected as "the best book of March" ranked eighteenth, while Jae C. Choi's Conscience settled at twentieth place.
Here are the top 20 bestselling works of Korean literature for the first quarter of 2025.
1. Han Kang, Human Acts, Changbi Publishers, Inc.2. Han Kang, The Vegetarian, Changbi Publishers, Inc.3. Taesu, An Adult’s Happiness Is Quiet, Page2books4. Yang Gui-ja, Contradiction, Write Publishing Co.5. Han Kang, We Do Not Part, Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.6. Jung Dae-gun, The Torrent, MINUMSA Publishing Group7. Han Kang, I Put Dinner in the Drawer, Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd.8. Han Kang, The White Book, Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.9. Han Kang, Greek Lessons, Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.10. Kim Keum-hee, The Grand Greenhouse Renovation Report, Changbi Publishers, Inc.11. Kim Kitae, Two People's International, Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.12. Lee Chang-sub, A Suitable Person, 21c Books13. Ko Sunkyung, A Tomato Firmer Than the Heart, Yolimwon Publishing Group14. Bora Chung, Your Utopia, Rabbit Hole15. Jung Haeyeon, The Place of Flamingo, Elixir16. Moon Sang-hoon, To Decide Not to Misunderstand What I’ve Said, Winnersbook17. Yang Gui-ja, I Desire What is Forbidden to Me, Write Publishing Co.18. Ye So-yeon, et al., The Dog and the Revolution (Winning Works of the 48th Yi Sang Literary Award, 2025), Dasanbooks19. Kim Ae-ran, A Lie Among Truths, Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.20. Jae C. Choi, et al., Conscience, The Class
Written by Seojeong Lee(Korean Literature Outreach Team)
Translated by Stella Haena KimStella Kim is the recipient of the 2014 LTI Korea Award for Aspiring Translators and the 2016 Korea Times' Modern Korean Literature Translation Award, as well as multiple LTI translation grants and an Academy of Korean Studies grant. She has translated a number of short stories by authors including Gu Byeong-mo, Kang Hwa-Gil, Lee Kiho, Lee Jangwook, and Kim Seong Joong. Her book-length translations include Launch Something! by Bae Myung-hoon (2022, Honford Star) and Painter of the Wind by Lee Jung-myung (co-translated, 2023, Harriett Press). Her translations have appeared in Asymptote, Asia Literary Review, and Korean Literature Now. She currently works as a freelance translator and interpreter while teaching translation at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies.
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Stories That Bloom in Steadfast Hearts: New Releases from January and February 2025
단단한 마음을 향해 움트기 시작하는 이야기! 1월과 2월의 신간 도서입니다.
Written by Seojeong Lee(Korean Literature Outreach Team)
Translated by Stella Haena KimStella Kim is the recipient of the 2014 LTI Korea Award for Aspiring Translators and the 2016 Korea Times' Modern Korean Literature Translation Award, as well as multiple LTI translation grants and an Academy of Korean Studies grant. She has translated a number of short stories by authors including Gu Byeong-mo, Kang Hwa-Gil, Lee Kiho, Lee Jangwook, and Kim Seong Joong. Her book-length translations include Launch Something! by Bae Myung-hoon (2022, Honford Star) and Painter of the Wind by Lee Jung-myung (co-translated, 2023, Harriett Press). Her translations have appeared in Asymptote, Asia Literary Review, and Korean Literature Now. She currently works as a freelance translator and interpreter while teaching translation at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies.
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Embracing and Looking After Our Wounds: New Book Releases from November and December 2024
상처를 끌어안고 돌보는 우리들, 11-12월 신간 도서입니다.
Translated by Leo-Thomas BrylowskiLeo-Thomas Brylowski is a freelance translator based in Seoul. His translation of a short story by author Lee Kiho earned him the Grand Prize at the 2019 Modern Korean Literature Translation Awards, and he is the recipient of a LTI Korea grant for the translation of a novel by up-and-coming author Park Young which he aims to get published in the near future. His translations have appeared in a number of literary journals and magazines, and a co-translation of a poetry collection by prominent poet Kim Haengsook entitled Human Time is forthcoming at Black Ocean in 2023.
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Korean Literature on the 2025 Screen!
2025 스크린으로 만나볼 수 있는 한국문학
#한국문학 #한국소설 #한국책 #한국영화 #KoreanLiterature
Wirtten by Seul-ki Kim
A journalist with the Culture and Sports Department at Maeil Business Newspaper. Since 2012,she covered literature and publishing, writing book reviews articles and introducing books for over 10years. Currently, she covers the art sector while continuing to write book reviews.
Translated by Kim Soyoung (syserena.kim@gmail.com)
Soyoung is a translator specializing in literature and film. After a decade of corporate life in public relations, she now immerses in translating works that resonate with her.
Her recent translations include stage plays Sunlight Shower and This is Home by Jang Woojae, and she is currently translating a novel for young adults.
Soyoung majored in English interpretation and translation at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and studied business administration at the Graduate School of International Studies at Yonsei University. She completed a two-year government-funded literary translation course at the Literature Translation Institute of Korea (LTI Korea).
Soyoung won Grand Prize in the film category of the Media Translation Contest organized by LTI Korea in 2021.
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Korean literature boom: 2024's best-selling books!
한국문학 열풍과 함께하는 2024년 한국문학 베스트셀러 총 결산
#bestsellers #2024 #Korean #Literature
「KLWAVE features content to introduce a diverse range of Korean literature to overseas readers. This year, we will introduce the best-selling Korean literature every quarter. KLWAVE’s second-quarter best sellers were selected based on the comprehensive consideration of the list of best-selling books provided by three Korean bookstore chains and the list of most borrowed books provided by the Korean Library Association from April to June 2024. 」
The trend of domestic bestsellers in 2024 can be summed up in one phrase: “literary boom.” Ignited by author Han Kang’s Nobel Prize in Literature win in October 2024, the latter half of the year saw readers gravitating toward Korean literature as their main reading choice. This trend was further fueled by a steady stream of news about Korean literary works being shortlisted or winning major international literary awards throughout the year. Moreover, this momentum of “K-literature” has revitalized the domestic publishing market, which had been in a slump for some time. While last year was marked by a self-help craze, this year’s literary wave has extended to related genres such as poetry and essays, showing growth across these areas. Also, as the readership spans a wider range of ages, interests are becoming more diverse as well.
On October 10, 2024, author Han Kang was named the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature. This historic achievement marked the first Nobel Prize in Literature for South Korea and brought renewed attention to Han Kang’s works. Her representative works, The Vegetarian and Human Acts, have risen to the top of bestseller lists, while We Do Not Part, The White Book, and I Put Evening in the Drawer have secured spots on overall bestseller lists, solidifying what has come to be known as the “Han Kang Phenomenon.” Han’s award has led to increased interest in Korean literature, creating a synergy effect that has also benefited other authors. Yang Guija’s Contradictions, Choi Jin-young’s Gu’s Proof and other “classics” have consistently ranked high on this year’s bestseller lists. These two books, praised for their delicate writing style and relatable quotes, gained traction through word of mouth on social media, attracting not only long-time readers but also a younger audience. Jung Haeyeon’s The Place of the Flamingo and Gu Byeongmo’s The Old Woman with the Knife (Pagwa) have also emerged as notable rediscoveries, regaining popularity.
One reason for the continued literary boom is the release of new works by prominent Korean authors with devoted fans. Kim Hoyeon, who sparked a “healing novel” craze with Uncanny Convenience Store, has captivated readers with his latest work, My Don Quixote. Likewise, Kim Aeran’s long-awaited new release, One of These Is a Lie, marking her return after 13 years, and Jeong Youjeong’s Eternal Paradise, the second installment in her “Desire Trilogy,” quickly rose to popularity upon their release.
Buoyed by the awards and accolades received by senior writers, books by younger authors who have captured the attention of both critics, and the public have also demonstrated their potential. Choi Eunyoung’s Even with the Faintest Light remains among the top bestsellers, while Kim Kitae’s Two People’s International and The 2024 15th Young Writers’ Award Anthology have also climbed the ranks. The works of these young authors, with their gripping narratives and trendy writing styles, are paving the way for sustained interest in Korean literature.
This year, the rise of the “text hip” trend, which has made reading a popular cultural activity, has driven a surge in book consumption among people in their teens and twenties, leading to high demand for young adult literature. Notably, works by Lee Kkotnim, widely regarded as a leading figure in the genre, have secured multiple spots on bestseller lists. Her titles, including The Kid I Want to Kill 1 & 2, A Bite of Summer, and I’ll Cross the World to Reach You, have been particularly popular. Additionally, If We Look at the Same Star One Day by Cha Inpyo has also ranked high among bestsellers in the young adult category.
The rise of young readers accustomed to “short form” literature, combined with increasing interest in Korean literature, has spurred growth in the poetry and essay genres. In particular, Korean poetry, known for its concise and evocative language, has gained significant popularity. In addition to Han Kang’s poetry collection, I Put Evening in the Drawer, Lee Byeongryul’s Never Loved Someone This Much, and Cha Jeongeun’s Tomato Cup Noodles—all of which created buzz on social media—have also captured readers’ attention this year.
Written by Lee Seungyeon
Lee Seungyeon is a reporter for City Life, a weekly magazine published by Maeil Business Newspaper. She covers cultural and lifestyle trends, capturing the world in each issue.
Translated by Kim Soyoung
Soyoung is a translator specializing in literature and film. After a decade of corporate life in public relations, she now immerses in translating works that resonate with her.
Her recent translations include stage plays Sunlight Shower and This is Home by Jang Woojae, and she is currently translating a novel for young adults.
Soyoung majored in English interpretation and translation at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and studied business administration at the Graduate School of International Studies at Yonsei University. She completed a two-year government-funded literary translation course at the Literature Translation Institute of Korea (LTI Korea).
Soyoung won Grand Prize in the film category of the Media Translation Contest organized by LTI Korea in 2021.
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The 'Attitude' Embodied and Performed by Literature
문학이 체현하고 수행하는 ‘태도’
Written by Jeon Ki-hwa
Jeon Ki-hwa is an assistant professor in the Department of Korean Language and Literature at Kyonggi University. She specializes in Korean classical literature and critiques contemporary Korean literature. She finds joy in reading texts written in Korean and engaging in conversations about them. Her recent critical essays include How to Embrace Unfinished Time and Rolling the Ball, Adding Light: On Lee Seo-soo.
Translated by Snigdha Gupta / snigdhagupta9@gmail.com
Snigdha is a literary/academic translator residing in Korea. An ex-fellow of KLTI and a Korean Government scholar, Snigdha bridges gaps not only through her Korean to English translations, but also as a full-time communication specialist in the government sector.
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New books published in September and October in time for the season of deep thoughts
사색의 계절에 읽기 좋은 9~10월 신간 도서
Written by LimGeun-ho
Lim is areporter at The Korea Economic Daily. He writes articles about books.
Translated by Joheun Lee
Joheun Lee (Jo) is a literary translator from Korea. She was selected in the 2023 and 2024 Translation Academy Night Courses from LTI Korea, the American Literary Translators Association's inaugural Building Our Future workshop for emerging BIPOC translators, and the 2023-24 National Centre for Writing's Emerging Translator Mentorship for Korean-English translation.
A long-time fan of K-pop and many other subcultures, she finds herself drawn to works on related topics and speculative fiction, especially by women and queer writers. A UX Designer by day, Jo now lives with her partner and three cats in Shanghai, China.
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Rising Above the Scars of History
역사의 상흔을 넘어
Written by Im Intack
Im Intack covers literature at the Hankyoreh. A seasoned journalist, he joined the media company in 2003 and his tenure includes leadership roles in investigative planning and special content. A recipient of the Korea Journalist Award four times and the Kwanhun Club Journalism Award, Im’s contributions extend beyond journalism—he is a co-author of works like A Life Worth 4,000 Won and A Belated Record of Child Abuse. He wrote captions for the photo book MAGNUM KOREA.
Translated by Kim Soyoung
Soyoung is a translator specializing in literature and film. After a decade of corporate life in public relations, she now immerses in translating works that resonate with her.
Her recent translations include stage plays Sunlight Shower and This is Home by Jang Woojae, and she is currently translating a novel for young adults.
Soyoung majored in English interpretation and translation at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and studied business administration at the Graduate School of International Studies at Yonsei University. She completed a two-year government-funded literary translation course at the Literature Translation Institute of Korea (LTI Korea).
Soyoung won Grand Prize in the film category of the Media Translation Contest organized by LTI Korea in 2021.
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Timeless Values and Power of Prose Shine Through in Q3 2024 Bestsellers
시대불문의 가치, 문장의 힘을 보여준 2024년 3분기 베스트셀러
“What comes after YouTube? Could it be paper books again?” This question, posed by author Han Kang during her lecture at the 2019 Seoul International Book Fair, feels more relevant than ever today. Among teens and twentysomethings worldwide, i.e., Gen Z, a new phenomenon termed “text hip” is increasingly taking hold—they share images of themselves reading on YouTube and other social media, and quote favorite books and passages. For this generation of digital natives, print has interestingly become a trendy medium. Indeed, the latter half of this year has truly been about the “power of prose.” When Han Kang was named the 2024 Nobel Literature Prize winner in October, the world buzzed with excitement. People lined up at bookstores to purchase her books and flocked to libraries to read. Sales of literary works by other Korean authors have also risen, signaling a welcome and heartening movement.
Among Q3 bestsellers in Korean literature, several backlist titles that emerged as popular reads last year have maintained their top positions. While such older titles typically see declining sales over time, Contradiction and Gu’s Proof have secured 1st and 6th place respectively, suggesting their staying power on the bestseller list. These “trusted reads,” with their elegant yet delicate prose and timeless, relatable passages, continue to draw new readers regardless of their publication date.
Demand for young adult (YA) literature has also been notably high. Lee Kkotnim, widely recognized as a “leading author in young adult fiction,” has firmly established her unique literary universe through works such as Taking a Bite out of Summer and I Will Cross Time for You. Her latest release, Girl You Want to Kill 2, has reached 4th place on the bestseller list, while several of her earlier works have also ranked among bestsellers. Another YA title, If We Ever Look at the Same Star by Cha In-pyo, has claimed 2nd spot and garnered much attention after being selected as a recommended reading title at the University of Oxford this year. The rapid growth of YA literature can be attributed to its shift from traditional themes like family, friendship, and school life, to more diverse topics that address social issues and evoke empathy across generations. The rise in teen reading rates during the first half of this year has further fueled this trend, with young readers increasingly making independent book purchases based on their interests—whether for academic purposes, self-improvement, or pure enjoyment.
Additionally, the latter half of the year saw the return of major authors. Kim Hoon, “the voice of our times,” Kim Ae-ran, “the young virtuoso of Korean literature,” and Jeong You-jeong, “the queen of thrillers,” all published new books. Kim Hoon’s essay collection, Wasted Years, which is his first release in five years, ranked 3rd on the bestseller list. Kim Ae-ran’s One of These Two is a Lie, published after a 13-year hiatus from full-length novels, reached 12th place, while Jeong You-jeong’s Eternal Heaven, the second installment in her “desire trilogy,” landed at 13th.
Meanwhile, the enduring popularity of Korean-style healing novels, also known as “feel-good” novels, remains strong. My Don Quixote and Uncanny Convenience Store 1, 2, with their fairy-tale-like stories set in everyday life, consistently appear on bestseller lists, reflecting readers’ ongoing interest in comforting stories.
Written by Lee Seung-yeon
Lee Seung-yeon is a reporter for City Life, a weekly magazine published by Maeil Business Newspaper. She explores cultural and lifestyle trends, encapsulating the world within the pages of the magazine each week.
Translated by Soyoung Kim
Soyoung is a translator specializing in literature and film. After a decade of corporate life in public relations, she now immerses in translating works that resonate with her. Her recent translations include stage plays Sunlight Shower and This is Home by Jang Woojae, and she is currently translating a novel for young adults. Soyoung majored in English interpretation and translation at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and studied business administration at the Graduate School of International Studies at Yonsei University. She completed a two-year government-funded literary translation course at the Literature Translation Institute of Korea (LTI Korea). Soyoung won Grand Prize in the film category of the Media Translation Contest organized by LTI Korea in 2021.
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Encounter with Beings from Beyond: Korean Horror Fiction
세계의 경계를 넘어온 존재와의 조우
Horror fiction is fundamentally a literary genre that explores boundaries. Fear arises from the overlapping spaces between light and shadow, life and death, and reason and irrationality. As the midday sun retreats, darkness descends, concealing whatever may lurk within; when the vitality of living things fades, the heavyweight of death takes its place. And just when we grow complacent, believing that everything in our daily lives operates within the realm of scientific logic, supernatural phenomena occur, causing the carefully constructed order of human existence to fall into disarray. To cope with the fear born from these unsettling experiences, people have long gathered around midnight campfires to craft stories.
Koreans who grew up watching 20th century TV programs such as Korean Ghost Stories, which combined horror narratives with folklore and moral lessons,tend to define horror genre as stories about visitors from the afterlife or another world. While contemporary Korean novelists inherit this tradition, they focus more on horror that stems from the malevolence hidden within ordinary life and spreads into supernatural terror. In the 21st century, a time when science reigns and the world never sleeps, the fear of familiar, nearby threats feels more vivid than the distant fear of the unknown.
For this reason, horror literature is also a genre for the marginalized. Minorities who have lived in the shadows of fear—immigrants, people with disabilities, and women—gain the power to fight back beyond the bounds of rational logic in the world of horror. Just as traditional ghost stories featured unjustly murdered women returning as vengeful spirits, today’s horror narratives depict oppressors who turn reality into a living hell while also showcasing courageous underdogs who stand against them. Are ghosts terrifying? No, there are humans far more terrifying. The upheaval of the world is frightening, but there may be souls who find more peace in a world turned upside down.
The Heavens Don’t Listen to Women (by Kim Isak)
This novel,bearing a title that holds a feminist provocation, presents five stories infused with elements of traditional folktales and urban legends. In the first story, “Seongjudanji,” a woman flees to a small provincial city to escape her ex-boyfriend’s stalking. There, in an old traditional house, she encounters a mysterious figure. Caught between real-life danger and supernatural terror, it is the ghost that ultimately provides her with a sense of security. In Korean folk beliefs, deities have traditionally served as upholders of patriarchal systems, but in this novel, the author rejects such traditions and instead portrays various forms of supernatural guardians who stand with oppressed women, children, and the weak.
Designated Driver (by Lee Narae)
As Doyun prepares for his civil service exam, his friend approaches him with a request:to work as a designated driver while pretending to be hearing-impaired. One day, he hears strange noises emanating from the trunk of the car he’s driving. While Doyun is torn between his sense of obligation to save someone and the guilt of working illegally as a designated driver, the tension inside the car continues to escalate. Befitting the work of a writer with a background in writing screenplays, Designated Driver is characterized by the breakneck pace of a thriller and the vivid sensation of being seated in a taxi. The story evokes extreme fear through its chilling depiction of pure evil, without relying on a single supernatural element.
Dark Waters (by Jeon Geonwu)
Korean local legends and ghost stories inherently possess the characteristics of mystery novels because they involve the vengeful spirits of those who died unjustly. In this tale, a broadcast writer with psychometric abilities and a young shaman visit a rural village to film a show about water spirits, only to find themselves embroiled in a murder case. The narrative skillfully merges supernatural fantasy with the eerie atmosphere of Korean folklore and the intrigue of a murder within a closed-off community. What lurks beneath the dark waters? Is it a malevolent spirit waiting for its prey, or a vengeful soul sacrificed to the collective selfishness of the village? Whatever the answer may be, readers need be beware of being dragged into its depths.
Midnight Schedule (by Chung Bora)
Chung Bora,author of Cursed Bunny, showcases her skill in blending the conventions of horror and fantasy with an unexpected imagination. Her creativity often mirrors reality like a reflection in a mirror. Midnight Schedule is a collection of interconnected short stories set in a research institute that stores objects that shouldn’t exist in this world. The novel has the characteristics of a manual ghost story, a sub-category of the horror genre where there are rules or guidelines. For instance, when encountering an ordinary but strange night watchman in front of the underground parking lot, one should not react, or when passing by Room 502 with a strange handkerchief, do not look back, and so on. The research institute, where many implicit rules exist, is a gray space inhabited by animals and objects that don’t belong to this world.The stories in the novel are spooky, but at the same time evoke a sense of warm compassion.
The Ghost of Jeoksangaok (by ChoYeeun)
This novel tells the story of a woman who inherits a jeoksangaok (a house of the enemy)from her great-grandmother. In her dream, she travels back to 1945 and becomes her great-grandmother, witnessing a bleeding boy who shows her a destructive future or a history that has already taken place. The jeoksangaok, which refers to a house left built and left behind by the enemy, serves as the perfect setting for Korean Gothic horror. All Gothic horror stories revolve around a large, oppressive mansion, and in the context of Korean history—interrupted by the Japanese occupation—these Japanese style mansions are naturally jeoksangaok. Cho Yeeun transforms the colonial history of invasion and exploitation into ominous dreams, breaking down the boundary between fantasy and reality while faithfully reviving the Gothic horror tradition. Her novel is rich with a classic Gothic atmosphere, yet it also engages with contemporary social concerns.
Written by Park Hyunjoo
Park is a novelist, essayist, critic, and literary translator. She has written novels such as My Occult Days 1 & 2, At 2 a.m. Laundromat, and Searching for Honey man (Romancing on Jeju), as well as essays like The Romance Pharmacy and The Safe Distance Between You and Me. She has also translated a wide range of works, including those by authors such as Raymond Chandler, Truman Capote, and Charles Bukowski. Park regularly contributes fiction and critical essays to various media outlets. She currently writes the series Park Hyun-joo’s “Genre Fiction Reading” for Hankyoreh newspaper and appears on a TV critic program on MBC.
Translated by Soyoung Kim
Soyoung is a translator specializing in literature and film. After a decade of corporate life in public relations, she now immerses in translating works that resonate with her. Her recent translations include stage plays Sunlight Shower and This is Home by Jang Woojae, and she is currently translating a novel for young adults. Soyoung majored in English interpretation and translation at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and studied business administration at the Graduate School of International Studies at Yonsei University. She completed a two-year government-funded literary translation course at the Literature Translation Institute of Korea (LTI Korea). Soyoung won Grand Prize in the film category of the Media Translation Contest organized by LTI Korea in 2021.
