Han Kang was born in 1970 in South Korea. She is the author of The Vegetarian, winner of the International Booker Prize, as well as Human Acts, The White Book, Greek Lessons, and We Do Not Part. In 2024, she was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature “for her intense poetic prose that confronts historical traumas and exposes the fragility of human life.”
It's been a long while since I read a book in Korean, and this book made me fall in love with the language. Han Kang has a beautiful way with language that reflects the depth with which the stories of 여수의 사랑 are written, and I don't think there is an author who portrays the complexities of loneliness as faithfully as she does. I loved how connected the short stories felt in terms of their exploration of this feeling, each of them introducing a story that felt new and familiar all at once. Perhaps the most memorable for me were 여수의 사랑 and 진달래 능선.
I had previously read The Vegetarian - the novel for which she is perhaps most known for - in English and disliked it, finding it to be too Murakami-esque in its grotesqueness. I am thankful that I gave her books another go, and look forward to reading her other novels.
How certain 'loss' we experience at the childhood shapes our lives. Painful stories
2nd read completed on 3/10/25 New addition published post the novel prize announcement Contains 6 short stories- enjoyed the first two best 여수의 사랑, 어둠의 사육제