Between 1392 and 1592 — a period bounded by Japanese pirate raids along the Korean coast and Japan’s invasion of Chosŏn Korea — more than 4,600 Japanese trade missions were recorded by the Chosŏn government. In response to these missions, the famous official Sin Sukchu compiled regulations, detailed information about Japanese contacts, and other material, … [Read More]
Archives: Books (page 11)
The Minjung Art Movement: Decolonization and Democracy in South Korea
Emerging as multifaceted cultural activism, the minjung (people’s) art movement defined the aesthetics of the pro-democracy movements in the 1970s and 1980s in South Korea. Tracing minjung art’s history and legacy, Sohl Lee explores how artists associated with the movement mobilized images, print, and performance to build movement publics and reimagine sovereignty. Hundreds of artists questioned the … [Read More]
Korean Messiah: Kim Il Sung and the Christian Roots of North Korea’s Personality Cult
A landmark history of North Korea, told through the rise of the Kim dynasty and its surprising ties to American Christianity—a spectacular, penetrating account of a world like no other North Korea. The Hermit Kingdom. For nearly eight decades, it has marched defiantly to its own beat, shaking off its Soviet and Chinese sponsors to … [Read More]
One Meal, One Memory: The Taste of Survival in North Korean Cuisine
One Meal, One Memory: The Taste of Survival in North Korean Cuisine. In North Korea, food is complicated. For Ae Ran Lee, it’s life and death, pain and comfort, guilt and hope. Born into privilege in Pyongyang, Lee’s idyllic childhood ended abruptly when her family was exiled to a remote village, plunging them into unimaginable … [Read More]
Triangle Republics: Cross-Border Literary Transits Between the Cold War Koreas and Japan
In Korea, the end of the Second World War in 1945 brought both liberation from Japanese colonial rule and the division of the nation by the triumphant Allies. The peninsula was not only decoupled from its former colonial metropole but also carved up into two halves that were subsequently incorporated into the rival blocs of … [Read More]
Imperial Entertainers: Korean Women Performers from Military to Global Stages, 1937–75
The book uncovers the untold stories of Korean women performers who navigated successive waves of conflict as cultural laborers in military entertainment, offering insight into the intersection of war, gender, and culture in East Asia. Imperial Entertainers: Korean Women Performers from Military to Global Stages, 1937-1975 uncovers the untold stories of Korean women performers who navigated … [Read More]
The Identity and Emergence of K-pop
By analyzing the various factors contributing to K-pop’s unprecedented global rise, this book delves into key elements such as cultural hybridity, digital connectivity, and the role of fan engagement, while also interrogating the ways these factors have shaped K-pop’s unique position within the global music industry. In addition to exploring K-pop’s identity, the book addresses … [Read More]
City of Night Birds
‘A novel that will be read and loved for the next one hundred years, and essential reading for right now. I could not have loved it more.’ Coco Mellors, author of Blue Sisters ‘This story left me thinking about the ways we overcome setbacks and redefine what truly matters.’ Reese Witherspoon A REESE’S BOOK CLUB PICK … [Read More]
Jaded
For fans of The List, Prima Facie, Queenie and I May Destroy You, discover the debut novel that readers describe as a timely, must-read novel. ‘Jade isn’t even my real name. Jade began as my Starbucks name, because all children of immigrants have a Starbucks name.’ Jade has become everything she ever wanted to be. Successful lawyer. Dutiful daughter. Beloved … [Read More]
Break Room
A gripping and incisive psychological drama from the internationally bestselling author of DallerGut Dream Department Store. Eight unsuspecting people receive an invitation to participate in a mysterious new reality show called Break Room. But what starts as an opportunity to find fame is quickly revealed to be something far more unsettling when they learn how … [Read More]
The Crustacean
The year’s most spiky and powerful novella “When I was 13 I knew nothing about anything. I only cared about love. And the older man, who I thought I fell in love with, never told me he was divorced. I made that up on my own.” Chichirim is a plain 13-year-old girl. An ordinary, misunderstood, … [Read More]
Blood for the Undying Throne
Nothing can stop the Empire’s insatiable conquest. Not gods, not dragons, not armies. But heroes still rise. The Empire continues to enforce its so-called peace with massive war machines that destroy anything that opposes their might. Though the conquered are wholly at the mercy of the Empire, desperate odds such as these can be fertile … [Read More]
The Self-Esteem Class: Simple Lessons for a Lifetime of Contentment
The Self-Esteem Class teaches us about the influence of self-esteem on our lives and provides practical guidance for building the strongest image of yourself. This book will help anyone who would like to attain higher self-esteem but doesn’t know how to overcome the obstacles they face, as well as help recover the self-esteem of people who … [Read More]
Simple Heart
In this moving exploration of dual identities reminiscent of Past Lives, a Korean writer’s pregnancy raises questions about her own childhood abandonment. Nana, a Korean playwright, was adopted as a child by a French couple. Before she was Nana, she was Esther Pak, a girl growing up in a Korean orphanage. And before she was Esther … [Read More]
Counsel Culture
From prize-winning Korean author Kim Hye-jin comes the contemplative, superbly-crafted story of a woman scapegoated by sudden tragedy, and the unexpected paths she must wander in search of redemption. Haesoo is a successful therapist and regular guest on a popular TV program. But when she makes a scripted negative comment about a public figure who … [Read More]
Clay Walls
Clay Walls tells the story of Haesu and Chun, immigrants who fled Japanese-occupied Korea for Los Angeles in the decade prior to World War II, and their American-born children. First published in 1986, it offers a portrait of what being Korean in the USA meant in the first half of the twentieth century, exploring themes of … [Read More]