Recent Books
Thousand Days of Deep Blue 1-2
Kenji Maruyama, translated from Japanese by Kim Nan-ju; Munhakdongne: 506 pp., 508 pp. each, 11,000 won each
The popularity of writers like Haruki Murakami or Ryu Murakami in the 1990s may have blurred the border between popular literature and more serious-minded literature in Japan, but there are writers who simply have that distinctive aura of a master. Kenji Maruyama, who is leading a rather isolated life since winning Japan's most prestigious Akutagawa Prize in 1966 with his debut work ``Summer's Passage,'' is certainly one such writer.
Although the 61-year-old's works have not been translated much into English, they have been widely introduced to South Korea, where he has won over readers. This latest book will likely add to the admiration he enjoys, as Maruyama unfolds a story of a connection between a congenitally deformed boy and a blue-and-white flycatcher in a small Japanese village in a truly masterly way. Told from rotating viewpoints of 1,000 people, things, animals, concepts, and even emotions, each of the 1,000-page novel records a day, which presents a fantastic picture of the world as a whole. It is set in 1987-1989, a time in which the Japanese emperor who reigned during World War II died, signaling an end of an era, and showing that confusion in society can prevail in a small village too.
Maruyama's sentences are stoic yet lyric at times, and his views are not sarcastic but poignant. It well suits his serious approach to universal themes like the ironies and absurdity of the human mind and society.
Korea Consumer Report
J. Scott Burgeson, translated from English by Ahn Jong-seol; Galleon: 256 pp., 12,000 won
J. Scott Burgeson is becoming _ if he hasn't already _ a well-known expatriate figure among Koreans and foreigners who live in South Korea and have the slightest interest in learning more about the place they are staying in. The California-native has several books on Korea _ ``Maximum Korea'' in English and ``Nasty Korean Studies'' in Korean, among others _ behind him, while running the magazine ``Bug'' and the Web site www.kingbaeksu.com.
As the title suggests, the book is not a feel-good one for Koreans, unlike, say, the Dutch-American Maarten Meijer's book, ``What's So Good About Korea, Maarten?''(which Burgeson ruthlessly attacks, by the way). The love-hate relationship Burgeson developed toward South Korea over the last decade seemed to have tipped a little more toward ``hate.'' There are many things he can't stand _ from irrational nationalism to the ways Koreans approach the Dokdo issue to the young generation that worships Starbucks and ``Sex and the City,'' wearing ``Von Dutch'' caps.
Some parts may sound like personal rants, perhaps in a little too sincere attempt to be outspoken or provocative. But overall, the virulent attacks and in-depth interviews demonstrate that the intensity of feelings he has for South Korea may be more than that of the average South Korean.
Mr. Scoop
Yun Suk-bong; Noonbit: 160 pp., 35,000 won
Yun Suk-bong is a veteran photojournalist who began working with Dong-a Ilbo newspaper in 1967. In 1975, however, he got sacked from the conservative daily for taking part in the struggle against the authoritarian government's limits on freedom of the press.
He worked with the Reuters Bureau in Seoul beginning 1986 and retiring in 2004. During his career, which spanned more than three decades, he was passionately committed to documenting the volatile moments of Korean history. The black-and-white photographs in this book will tell you that right away, along with the term of endearment given to him by his colleagues, ``Mr. Scoop.''
The native of South Chungchong Province has been a stout Kim Dae-jung loyalist, according to the foreword written by Roger Crabb, former chief of Reuters Seoul bureau. A majority of the photographs in this book are taken from intense moments related to Seoul's democratization, involving students and people of the 1980s. But portraits of people during the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis or North Korean soldiers at the truce village of Panmunjom are also to be found.
Cunning
Don Herzog, translated from English by Lee Kyung-sik; Taurus Books: 408 pp., 23,000 won
In Konglish, ``cunning'' means cheating on exams. Korean readers will be surprised to find out that the word cunning actually was derived from ``can,'' meaning ``knowledge,'' until the word was diverted to its current use of negative implication in late 16th century.
This book takes readers on an entertaining exploration into the history and types of cunning, organized in three parts: Dilemmas, Appearances, and Despair. Don Herzog, professor of law and philosophy at the University of Michigan, with eruditeness and humor, questions the concept of morality throughout.