VOL.77/2024.12

Export Prospects of Korean Books

KPIPA’s Choice for Supporting Abstract · Sample Translation

 

2020.04.06

 

A Sad Goodbye (New Edition)

1. Publication Details

Imprint | NEXUS Co., Ltd.
Title | A Sad Goodbye (New Edition)
Subtitle| Seventeen stories about love and partings
Author | Hwang Kyung Sin
Genre | Literature
Format | 127×188
Binding | Paperback
Pages | 272pages
ISBN | 9791157525201

 

2. Contact

Name | Chung, Hyejin Jinny
Phone | +82-2-330-5529
Email | copyright@nexusbook.com
URL | https://www.nexusbook.com:446/

 

3. Marketing Information

Keyword | Novel; Essay; Love; Parting; Life
Target Readership | Adults

 

4. About the Author

Born in Busan, South Korea, Hwang Kyung Sin graduated from the Department of English Language and Literature at Yonsei University. Hwang is the author of I Started with a Single Lemon, A Picturesque World, A Happy Ending for Everyone, The Chocolate Post Office, Seventeen, Picturesque Mythology, The Thought Occurred to Me,, A Recipe for Comfort, When I Close My Eyes, Eleven at Night, Sparkling Variations, The Bite-Sized Elephant, I Listened to You with Ears Like a Rabbit’s, A Sad Goodbye (New Edition), and more.

 

5. About the Book

“We all want to believe that somewhere out there is a rose-tinted life made just for us.”
In response to the warm reception for The Thought Occurred to Me, which was picked up by over five hundred thousand readers, Hwang Kyung Sin releases a new edition of A Sad Goodbye.
“People think goodbyes happen at the end of a relationship. But that’s not true. It happens when love begins, and builds towards the climax. When love plummets from the climax, and even before it begins. Goodbyes happen in and between each moment. If that parting was something that politely waited its turn and only came to us once love was over, it would never cause us so much pain.”
- Excerpt from “Rehearsal”
The seventeen pieces that make up this anthology include autobiographical essays and short stories. With a distinct style that weaves between fiction and reality, the author’s bittersweet tales of love and parting converge into a singular mosaic.
“Isn’t it strange how endings are so similar to beginnings?”
- Excerpt from “The End of the World and the Last Killer”
For this edition of A Sad Goodbye, Hwang makes extensive edits to the original publication, appending and removing sections to craft an entirely new book. Book’s design has also been updated to suit contemporary tastes.

 

 

The Light’s Past

1. Publication Details

Imprint | Moonji Publishing co.,Ltd.
Title | The Light’s Past
Author | Eun Heekyung
Genre | Literature
Format | 128×188
Binding | Paperback
Pages | 344pages
ISBN | 9788932035635

 

2. Contact

Name | Yun SeoHee
Phone | +82-2-338-7224
Email | copyright@moonji.com

 

3. Marketing Information

Keyword | Women; Feminism; 1970; Neutro; Youth; College life; Seoul; Coming from the provinces; Popular culture; Dictatorship
Target Readership| Adult

 

4. About the Author

Eun Heekyung began her writing career when she won the Donga Daily New Writer’s Award with her novella, The Duet. Her collection of short stories are, Talking to a Stranger, A Happy Person Does Not Look at the Clock, Inheritance, Beauty Looks Down On Me, A Snowflake That Closely Resembles All Other Snowflakes and Chinese Roulette. She published the following novels: The Bird’s Gift, Do the Last Dance with Me, Minor League, Secret and Lie, Comfort the Boy, Composed Life and Was It a Dream? She is the winner of the following literary awards by, Munhakdongne, Dongseo, Yi Sang, The Korean Novel, The Korea Times, Dongin, and Hwang Sunwon prizes.

 

5. About the Book

Eun Heekyung has won many major Korean literary awards, such as those of Munhakdongne, Dongseo, Yi Sang, Korean Novel, The Korea Times, Dongin and Hwangsunwon. She has now written a new novel, The Light’s Past, of which she laboriously worked on it for seven years after completing her last book, Composed Life, which was published in 2012.
The book begins in 2017 with the story of the protagonist, “me,” and her old friend, “her.” The protagonist met “her,” the novelist, forty years ago in 1977 at a dormitory of a woman’s college. The protagonist had always been self-conscious about her stammering, which had shaped her into a non-committal and unassertive personality, while she felt comfortable with her friend’s self-centered, direct, and both inferior and superior attitude. Her friend had published a book, entitled For the Princesses Who Are No Longer There, recounting their dormitory days. Although the protagonist had known her for many years, she did not get to read the book until much later and found out that their memories of the shared time were completely different.
The author delineates the world of “difference” and “integration” that the young women, who have come of age, encounter in a new milieu called the dormitory. The literary critic, Shin Hyeong-cheol, stated in his introduction that Eun Heekyung’s book does not let the readers down—no matter what their expectations were; be it the detailed description of the culture of that era, and fluid and apt writing or her truthful observation of women’s experience that is sharply captured. The author presents a scrupulous visage of Korean culture in 1970s through the female students sharing communal space in a college dormitory. It was during a time when “Virtuosity, Hard Work, and Chastity” were the motto for these women from the provinces who began living in Seoul for the first time.
Above all, what stands out is the straightforward confessions of a person as she comes face to face with her naked self, who has used evasion as a shield against life. She does this by traveling back and forth in time. “A person with a weakness has an extra antenna for the world.” The author’s meticulously crafted writing discloses the universal problematic of an individual in life, which will mirror the reader as well. That is how “the stories of that period” filters through a writer called Eun Heekyung to become “my story” for everyone.

 

 

Aagh! It’s a Monster!

1. Publication Details

Imprint | goraebook library
Title | Aagh! It’s a Monster!
Author| Kim Bo-mi
Genre| Picture book
Format| 220×240
Binding | Hard cover
Pages| 30pages
ISBN | 9791187427001

 

2. Contact

Name | LEE GYU SOO
Phone | +82-31-955-9680
Email | goraebook@naver.com
URL | https://blog.naver.com/goraebook

 

3. Marketing Information

Keyword | Alien; difference; monster
Target Readership | Ages 6-8

 

4. About the Author

Kim enjoys life writing and illustrating picture books. She hopes that with time, the pictures books she has made will be stained from the hands of children and plastered with slimy boogers. She gives glory to God for giving her imagination and support when she works on the books.

 

5. About the Book

As you go through life in this world, you tend to meet many different people. Some look different, and others speak a different language. But just because they are different from you doesn’t mean that they are strange. There is nothing wrong with them, just because they are not like you. The writer wanted to tell children that they were different, not wrong. There’s no need to have stereotypes or prejudices because someone doesn’t look like you or because they look scary or weak. The author wrote this book hoping that children would grow to recognize and respect the differences in the problems of social loners and multicultural families. She also wanted the children to create a world different from the one we have now.
We call life forms outside Earth aliens. The alien in this book is affectionate and looks cute, but in the eyes of humans, it is simply a scary monster. Looking at the frightened faces of the people avoiding the alien, readers will wonder if that’s the look on their own faces. The hero in this story came to Earth from outer space and he happily greets the people upon his arrival. But when he says “Hi!” the people all scream, “Aagh, it’s a monster!” and flee. “No, I’m not. I’m not a monster.” His words are useless. The people all run away calling him a monster, simply because of his appearance. They even ask, “Are you going to eat us with your big mouth and pointy teeth?” He answers, “No! No! I’m going to munch on the delicious chips.” The people ask, “Are you going to destroy our houses with your huge horn?” He says, “No! No! I’m going to shine a bright light on dark places.” When asked, “Are you going to torture us with your sharp nails?” he says, “No! No! I’m going to have fun and play by tickling people.” When the hero makes a friend, he returns home with this new friend. The child warmly greets the people on the new planet, but hears the words, “Aagh, it’s a monster!”

 

 

Go Stoppy-go

1. Publication Details

Imprint | Borim Press
Title | Go Stoppy-go
Author | Sim Mia
Genre | Picture book
Format | 225×225
Binding | Hard cover
Pages | 38pages
ISBN | 9788943312855

 

2. Contact

Name | Park Sunjoo
Phone | +82-31-955-3456
Email | sunjoo@borimpress.com

 

3. Marketing Information

Keyword | cat; vegetables; vegetarian
Target Readership | Children aged 6–8 years

 

4. About the Author

Sim Mia is a writer and illustrator. Her book Kitty Sun won the Commendation Prize at the Borim Picture Book Contest. Sim’s works include A Way Home and A Princess Wearing Boots. She also illustrated the children’s picture books At Seven O’clock on a Sunday Morning and The Sun and the Moon.

 

5. About the Book

Go Stoppy-go is a cat living in a beach village. His last name is Go and first name is Stoppy-go. He’s a wily cat with a weak spot for fish. But one day he begins to act a little strange. He only stares at the fish but won’t eat them. People say that they saw Go eat lettuce and cucumber. Has Go gone vegetarian? What on earth has happened to him?

 

 

The Children of God

1. Publication Details

Imprint | Book in Hand Publishing Company
Title | The Children of God
Author| Choo Jong Nam
Genre | Literature
Format | 145×195
Binding | Paperback
Pages | 400pages
ISBN | 9791186572467

 

2. Contact

Name | Park Kwang Un
Phone | +82-2-325-2375
Email | bookinhand@nate.com
URL | https://cafe.naver.com/bookinhand#

 

3. Marketing Information

Keyword | Mystery; thriller novel; crime novel
Target Readership | Adults

 

4. About the Author

Choo Jong Nam studied literature and film at Seoul Institute of the Arts and Chugye University for the Arts. He started working as a writer when his script In Good Company was made into a part of the omnibus film Family Cinema. Currently, Choo works in various fields. His musical One Day was selected as an awardee in CJ Creative Minds, and Choo also received the second Kyobo Bookstore Story Contest Award for his novel Romantic Boxer Lee Kwonsuk. He is also an award recipient of the Story Contest sponsored by the Korea Creative Content Agency for his novel The Children of God. He wrote the script for the soon-to-be-aired TV animation series Animal Rescue. Choo Jong Nam is his real name, not a pen name.

 

5. About the Book

The Children of God was inspired by real events that took place in October 1992: a group of Christians belonging to a church claimed the rapture would occur on October 28, 1992. An awardee of the Story Contest sponsored by the Korea Creative Content Agency, The Children of God is a story about a cult group, but it is not limited to certain religious teachings or creeds. Told in a mystery-thriller narrative, the novel addresses the universal themes of hope, despair, and redemption. The writer said, “The Children of God is not a story about religion. I did not want to talk about religious redemption or argue about the truth or falsity of a certain religion. Rather, I wanted to talk about people who live without any hope in life, and about us who are indifferent to the pain and suffering of others.” The story is about people who are in despair and people who are using the desperation of others for their own gain. It begins with the suicide of a prophet followed by a mysterious murder case, and it weaves these stories with another story about a father who must get his money back from a cult group to pay for his son’s treatment.

 

 

YOU DON'T HAVE TO GET ALONG WITH EVERYBODY

1. Publication Details

Imprint | Sam & Parkers Co., Ltd.
Title | YOU DON'T HAVE TO GET ALONG WITH EVERYBODY
Subtitle| The Solutions to Various Problems in Life from Self-help YouTuber, Omar.
Author | Omar
Genre | Self-development
Format | 135×200
Binding | Paperback
Pages | 276pages
ISBN | 9788965708629

 

2. Contact

Name | Bae Hyelim
Phone | +82-2-6712-9837
Email | hyelim@smkr.kr

 

3. Marketing Information

Keyword | YouTuber; problems; romantic relationships; human relationships; empathy
Target Readership | Adults

 

4. About the Author

As a prominent YouTuber, Omar sometimes talks on the radio, gives lectures, and writes at home.

 

5. About the Book

This book contains the original contents of “Omar’s Life,” a popular YouTube channel with over 330,000 subscribers. You Don’t Have to Get Along with Everyone is a selection from more than 100 videos that were particularly beloved among viewers. Some additional stories and the contents of Omar's most recent uploads can also be found.
Everybody has some problems, not big enough to destroy one’s life, but little ones that constantly pester and irritate. We live on, trying to suppress or endure or let the anger build up inside. However, if you meet Omar, things will change. His stories will make us consider the various problems that fester inside us insignificant and trifle.

 

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