Contemporary fiction books set in South Korea (11)


Find more books set in South Korea by genre:
1.

The White Book by Han Kang EN

Rating: 4 (6 votes)
Country: Asia / South Korea flag South Korea
Description:
Shortlisted for the 2018 Man Booker International Prize From Booker Prize-winner and literary phenomenon Han Kang, a lyrical and disquieting exploration of personal grief, written through the prism of the color white While on a writer's residency, a nameless narrator wanders the twin white worlds of the blank page and snowy Warsaw. THE WHITE BOOK becomes a meditation on the color white, as well as a fictional journey inspired by an older sister who died in her mother's arms, a few hours old. The narrator grapples with the tragedy that has haunted her family, an event she colors in stark white-... continue

2.

Shoko's Smile : Stories by Choi Eunyoung EN

Rating: 5 (1 vote)
Country: Asia / South Korea flag South Korea
Description:
A bestselling and award-winning debut collection from one of South Korea's most prominent young writers. In crisp, unembellished prose, Eun-young Choi paints intimate portraits of the lives of young women in South Korea, balancing the personal with the political. In the title story, a fraught friendship between an exchange student and her host sister follows them from adolescence to adulthood. In "A Song from Afar," a young woman grapples with the death of her lover, traveling to Russia to search for information about the deceased. In "Secret," the parents of a teacher killed in the Sewol ferr... continue

3.

Please Look After Mom by Kyŏng-suk Sin EN

Rating: 4 (5 votes)
Country: Asia / South Korea flag South Korea
Description:
Follows the efforts of a family to find the mother who went missing from Seoul Station and their sobering realizations when they recall memories that suggest she may not have been happy.

4.

Flowers of Mold : Stories by Ha Seong-nan EN

0 Ratings
Country: Asia / South Korea flag South Korea
Description:
Unsettling, haunting short stories in the vein of Yoko Ogawa and Brian Evenson.

5.

La Clase de Griego / Greek Lessons by Han Kang ES

Rating: 4 (2 votes)
Country: Asia / South Korea flag South Korea
Description:
En Seúl, una mujer asiste a clases de griego antiguo. Su profesor le pide que lea en voz alta pero ella permanece en silencio; ha perdido la capacidad del lenguaje, así como a su madre y la custodia de un hijo de ocho años. Su única esperanza de recuperar el habla es mediante el aprendizaje de una lengua muerta. El profesor, que acaba de regresar a Corea después de pasar media vida en Alemania, se encuentra dividido entre dos culturas y dos lenguas. También él afronta pérdidas: su vista empeora irreversiblemente a cada día que pas... continue

6.

I'll Go On by Hwang Jungeun EN

0 Ratings
Country: Asia / South Korea flag South Korea
Description:
From one of South Korea’s most acclaimed young authors comes the story of two sisters, Sora and Nana. When Sora was ten years old, and Nana was nine, their father died in a freak accident at the factory where he worked, his body sucked under a huge cogwheel, crushed beyond recognition. Their mother Aeja, numb with grief, gives in to torpor, developing an unhealthy obsession with the paradoxical violence implicit in life.

7.

Nowhere to Be Found by Bae Suah EN

0 Ratings
Country: Asia / South Korea flag South Korea
Description:
A nameless narrator passes through her life, searching for meaning and connection in experiences she barely feels. For her, time and identity blur, and all action is reaction. She can’t quite understand what motivates others to take life seriously enough to focus on anything—for her existence is a loosely woven tapestry of fleeting concepts. From losing her virginity to mindless jobs and a splintered, unsupportive family, the lessons learned have less to do with the reality we all share and more to do with the truth of the imagination, which is where the narrator focuses to discover herself.... continue

8.

Amêndoas by Won-pyung Sohn PT

Rating: 5 (1 vote)
Country: Asia / South Korea flag South Korea
Description:
Esta história é, em resumo, sobre um monstro encontrando outro monstro. Um dos monstros sou eu. Yunjae nasceu com uma condição neurológica chamada alexitimia, ou a incapacidade de identificar e expressar sentimentos, como medo, tristeza, desejo ou raiva. Ele não tem amigos — as duas estruturas em forma de amêndoas localizadas no fundo de seu cérebro causaram isso —, mas a mãe e a avó lhe proporcionam uma vida segura e tranquila. O pequeno apartamento em que moram, acima do sebo da mãe, é decorado com cartazes coloridos com lembretes de quando sorrir, quando agradecer e quando demonstrar preocu... continue

9.

Counterattacks at Thirty by Won-Pyung Sohn, Sean Lin Halbert translator EN

Rating: 4 (1 vote)
Country: Asia / South Korea flag South Korea
Description:
From the bestselling author of ALMOND, The Devil Wears Prada meets The Office in this witty, humane, and ultimately transformative story of a group of young workers who rebel against the status quo. Jihye is an ordinary woman who has never been extraordinary. In her administrative job at the Academy, she silently tolerates office politics and the absurdities of Korean bureaucracy. Forever only one misplaced email away from career catastrophe, she effectively becomes a master of the silent eye-roll and the tactical coffee run. But all her efforts to endure her superiors and the semi-hostile wor... continue

10.

Violets by Kyung-Sook Shin EN

0 Ratings
Country: Asia / South Korea flag South Korea
Description:
Terlahir sebagai anak yang tak diinginkan, Oh San-yi sudah merasakan penolakan dan kehilangan sejak kecil, yang—walaupun tak kasatmata—tetap meninggalkan jejak yang mengikutinya sampai ia tumbuh dewasa. Kini Oh San-yi yang berusia 23 tahun bekerja di toko bunga dan menjalani kehidupan sepi di tengah hiruk-pikuk pusat kota Seoul. Pada suatu hari di musim panas, ia bertemu dengan seorang fotografer yang datang ke toko bunga untuk memotret bunga violet. Pertemuan itu menjungkirbalikkan hidupnya yang monoton dan abu-abu, menariknya ke dalam pusaran gairah, dan memerangkapnya dalam obsesi yang meng... continue

11.

The Second Chance Convenience Store by Ho-Yeon Kim EN

0 Ratings
Country: Asia / South Korea flag South Korea
Description:
In this million-copy international bestseller from Korea, the owner of a corner store takes in an unhoused man who does a good deed, a kind soul whose presence will transform the whole neighborhood--a heartwarming tale of community and redemption reminiscent of the bestselling novels of Matt Haig and Gabrielle Zevin. Dok-go lives in Seoul Station. He can't remember his past, and the only thing he knows for certain is that he could really use a drink. When he finds a lost wallet filled with documents, his life is drastically changed. Mrs. Yeom, a retired history teacher and current owner of her... continue