Paintings for Married Women

Kim Jin-hee; Munhakdongne Publishing: 272 pp., 13,800 won

There is a perverse Korean saying that a married woman is no longer a woman. The author of this book hates that saying with passion.

In her collection of illustrations and essays, Kim makes a warm and sophisticated tribute to devoted mothers and self-giving wives.

She draws from her own experience as a working mom and the struggle to maintain a work-life balance in a society that provides little freedom for it.

Kim has a gift for describing the meaning of little moments, such as the time during her post natal period when she developed a new passion for art after looking at postcards she bought for a friend when she visited the National Portrait Gallery in London.

―Baek Byung-yeul