RECENT BOOKS
Gaepo-dong Kim Gabsoo’s Situation
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The book is the first novel from Heo Ji-woong, a popular film critic, political pundit and television personality.
Using the voice of a narrator, the author tells the story of Kim Gabsoo, a man living in the sleepy southern Seoul neighborhood of Gaepo-dong, spending most of his leisure time hopping from one casual sexual relationship to another.
Kim likes the sex, but not commitment. He feels overwhelmed by the intensity of his female partners when they seek to take their relationships to another level. He always wants the next woman to be the one he manages to love and bring him happiness.
However, as his relationships continue to end badly, Kim begins to question whether he is capable of feeling love or whether love is an emotion that is not always romantic.
Heo has a talent for fast-paced, witty writing, and the book plays to his strengths. It’s not the most thought-provoking of works, but an enjoyable one.
By Jung Sung-eun