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Hong Gildong

Author:
Translated by: ,
Publisher: , 2007
Link to online store *

This book includes two short stories by South Korean writer Seo Hajin: “Hong Gildong” and “The Woodcutter and the Nymph.” In “Hong Gildong,” Seo draws from an early Korean tale to tell the story of a man wading through a midlife crisis. After seeing a psychiatrist, he seeks release from his present condition and wishes that a straw man would come to take his place. “The Woodcutter and the Nymph,” based on a Korean folktale, tells the story of a Korean American woman vacationing in the Northern Mariana Islands. She remembers incidents from her troubled past and feels trapped and alienated from her childhood home.

Read a review by Charles Montgomery here. Entry on Goodreads.com here.

* Where the book is available from a number of sources, they are prioritised as follows: (1) Amazon UK site, or Bookshop.org for the more recent uploads (2) Amazon US site (3) Other sites in US or Europe, including second-hand outlets (4) LTI Korea, where the title is advertised as available from there (5) Onlines stores in Korea. Links to Bookshop.org and Amazon UK site contain an affiliate code which, should you make a purchase, gives a small commission to LKL at no additional cost to you.