A Guide To Korean Literature: 8 Must Read Korean Novels
These Korean novels have something that will stay with you long after the last page- a soul
My first brush with Korean literature was Han Kang's The Vegetarian, Translated in English by Deborah Smith. The story of a woman who stops eating meat —unusual for a culture that is pre-dominantly meat-eating and nevertheless eerie, elegant, and still unforgettable. The imagery didn't linger, it embedded itself and opened doors to a world of fiction that was bold, brutal, tender and totally original.
Thanks to the sharp translation, writers like International Booker Prize winner Han Kang, Hwang Sok-Yang, Bora Chung have moved from exclusives of indie shops to regulars on the bestseller list and international bookshelves claiming their much-deserved spot.
Much like Korean celebrities Lee Min-Ho, Lee-Dong Wok, and Bong-Joon-Ho, literary authors from South Korea are no longer a literary secret —they are dominating global literary spaces exploring themes that reflect their cultural , socio-political and historical experiences. Even the poetry for that matter has inherited that complexity exploring generational trauma, gender inequality, rapid modernisation, and effects of colonialism and of course dictatorship.
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What sets the current wave in literature from South Korea is the depictions of surreal horror with politics, intimate family drama infused with magical realism . Rather than fitting the traditional categorisation, these novels defy the staples. These writers along with powerhouse translators like Deborah Smith, Sora Kim-Russell, and Anton Hur are unafraid to blur boundaries, break the language barriers that once kept Korean literature tucked away from the world.
Must Read Korean Novels
That said, if Korean novels are an unexplored territory and you have been intrigued by all the K-dramas and K-films to explore the cultural fabric further, the list below should serve as an entry point to stories that not only refelct Korea, but resonate with all!
Cursed Bunny (2017) by Bora Chung
Translated by Anton Hur
A surreal novel that blends traditional myths and folklore with magical realism, Cursed Bunny is a genre-defying collection comprising 10 stories all intertwined with horror, science, dark fairy tale to critique modern societal issues like patriarchy, capitalism, and environmental degradation.
In the titular story Cursed Bunny, Chung features a cursed lamp that is shaped like a rabbit. Yeah, you read that right! The rabbit is symbolic of revenge, and inherited trauma.
Almond (2017) by Won-Pyung Sohn
Translated by Joosun Lee
The story revolves around a boy, Yunjae, who suffers from brain condition called Alexithymia that makes it hard for him to feel emotions like fear or anger. However, in his grandmother and mother's doting company he grows up content. But when an sudden act of violence on his sixteenth birthday shatters his life, the boy is left alone to deal with the world on his own.
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First bullied in school, surprisingly he manages to strike friendship with his bully- both of whom seem to have things in common, until they are suddenly separated, leaving Yunjae to step out of his comfort zone to face the world again and come out as the most unlikely hero.
A coming-of-age tale, Almond explores adolescence, the meaning of emotions, the diversity of people's lives and journeys, and friendship
Diary Of A Murderer: And Other Stories (2019) by Young Ha-Kim
Translated by Krys Lee
A collection of short stories with a total of 4 short stories, the titular novella Diary of A Murderer describes a former serial killer suffering from memory loss sighting his final target- his daughter's boyfriend who he suspects to be a serial killer, too.
Other stories Origin of Life, Missing Child, and The Writer discuss the themes like limits of loyalty and love; a family’s disintegration after a baby son is kidnapped and recovered years later; and a wild, erotic ride about pursuing creativity at the expense of everything else.
No One Writes Back (2013) by Jang Eun-Jin
Translated by Jung Yewon
Conversation or a lack of it therefore is the main subject of this novel that has its narrator nickname his fellow travellers rather than remember their names. The total numbers? 239. No One Writes Back is a picturesque novel that depicts the life of a young aimless traveller with a blind dog, an MP3 player, and a book meeting people as he moves from one motel to the other.
No One Writes Back has the trappings of the avant garde – the carefully affectless style, the way it is told in numbered paragraphs.
Human Acts by Han Kang
Translated by Deborah Smith
Critiqued as a "thought-provoking" and "compelling" exploration of trauma, horror, and human spirit, the International Booker Prize Winner for The Vegetarian (2017), Han Kang's Human Act is riveting and poetic novel. Reflecting the Korean Soul, the novel revolves around the Gwangju Uprising and its lasting impact.
Han Kang's novels often explore the human endurance and human condition with deep empathy. She is raw with her depictions of trauma, grief, and in Human Act especially political violence that often make the narration powerful and imprint on the mind's eye. Her other works include The Vegetarian, The White Book, Greek Lessons, and We Do Not Part.
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On The Origin Of Species And Other Stories (2021) by Kim- Bo Young
Translated by Jougmin Lee Comfort and Sora Kim-Russell
Longlisted for National Book Award in Translation, 2021, award-winning author Kim Bo- Young's book straddles between sci-fiction, fantasy and myth. It is a thought-provoking work that teems with human and non-human beings, all of whom are striving to survive through evolution, whether biologically, technologically or socially.
Kim Bo-Young is one of the most popular and successful authors of South Korea.
Tower (2009) by Bae Myung-Hoon
Translated by Sung Ryu
A science-fiction that interconnects a series of stories set in Beanstalk, a 674-story skyscraper and sovereign, nation, Tower deals with how citizens living in the hyper-modern high-rise deal with various influences of power in their lives through a dystopian and fantasy lens.
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The Plotters ( 2010) by Un-Su Kim
Translated by Sora Kim-Russell
A crime-thriller, The Plotters, is a novel set in alternate Seoul where a contract killer finds himself at the centre of a conspiracy in a dreamlike alternative Korea. The protagonist of the novel is introduced as part of an assassin's syndicate. We are informed he was born in a garbage can and raised in a library. The novel gives Tarantino film vibe.