Recent Books

Mt. Namhan Fortress

Kim Hoon; Hakgojae: 384 pp., 11,000 won

Kim Hoon, a journalist-turned-novelist, has been enjoying solid commercial and critical success with his previous work, including the hugely popular ``The Song of the Sword.''

This latest novel has jumped right into the best-selling list this week, too. His trademark is there _ the stoic, short sentences that make him one of the most accomplished stylists in contemporary Korean literature and remind some readers of Hemingway.

But unlike the American writer, Kim has been drawn to historical stories dating back hundreds of years ago, especially those of historic figures facing extreme challenges, such as Admiral Yi Sun-shin in ``Sword.'' The new book is on that thread. This time, the 59-year-old said, he was inspired during his countless bicycle excursions to Mt. Namhan Fortress in Seoul, a historical place where King Injo (1595-1649) sought refugee when the Ching Dynasty invaded the Choson Kingdom.

This book builds on the record of the 47 days the king and his aristocrat subjects spent in poverty and isolation inside the fortress surrounded by the overpowering enemy. In addition to the war of words on justice and noble causes waged in the royal court on whether to surrender to the enemy or not, no less tangibly portrayed are the lives of the ordinary and less-than-ordinary people going through the frustrating times under the incompetent ruling class.

Why Do Men Have Nipples?

Mark Leyner/Billy Goldberg, translated from English by Lee Han-eum; Random House Korea: 264 pp., 9,800 won