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61st [Portrait] On a rainy afternoon

By Jesse Chun ICHEON, Gyeonggi Province — Yi Mun-yol sat pensively, looking out the misty window that framed his backyard like a picturesque photograph. His garden was filled with moist shrubs and occasional cosmos blossoms, which blurred into impressionistic dots of greens and pale pinks when the lens focused on the writer’s face. Maybe it was the dabs of pastels or the rain drops that quietly landed on the glass surface — but in the quaint room where Yi writes his novels, his face softened in the window reflection. Yi spoke with enthusiasm through his coarse voice, and his steps were swift and light despite his sturdy frame. With every request during the shoot, he responded with a smile, putting you at ease even when he was cornered into a dirty wall with soil on his feet. The novelist’s hectic schedule had overlapped with a fan club get-together, and the shoot ended on an abrupt note as he hurried away to greet his affectionate readers. The rain continued to fall, this time not so silently, and the regret of not having exchanged proper goodbyes linger

Nov 10, 2011

Recent books

Swedish Paradox Yumoto Kenji and Sato Yoshihiro; translated from Japanese to Korean by Park Sun-young: 284pp., 12,000 won Sweden has always been regarded as the epitome of a welfare state. Policy makers worldwide consider the Swedish welfare system as an unattainable socialist model based exclusively on high tax rates. “Swedish Paradox,” written by two Japanese scholars Yumoto Kenji and Sato Yoshihiro, busts the myths and offers valuable insights for Korean readers. In six chapters, the book unravels Sweden’s success story by exploring its pension, education, and wage systems. Readers may be surprised to learn that Sweden funds its welfare policies with foreign investment and that the country experienced debilitating financial crises in the 1970s. Non-economists need not fear. The authors recap basic economic concepts such as comparative advantages and moral hazards throughout the book. Most importantly, the writers use ample examples from Japan and Korea. Both have been experiencing a sharp decline in birth rate which threatens the stability of the welfare system. Pa

Nov 4, 2011

Insight into public administration

By Lee Tae-hoon One of the most intriguing and inspirational stories about Korea is its successful transformation and development from ruins to a global economic powerhouse with a vibrant democracy in just half a century. What is, however, often overlooked or underappreciated is the role that the country’s public administration and elite bureaucrats contributed to the “Miracle on the Han River.” The book, “Discover Korea in Public Administration,” is a long-awaited guide for scholars and students, as well as the leadership and administrators of development countries who want to identify with the roots and the role of Korean public administration. It sheds new light on the role that public administration played in national development and seeks to answer how its mechanisms worked to make the war-ravaged country the epitome of a rags-to-riches story. “This book is an outstanding and important piece of work, and it’s easily readable,” said Ahn Byeong-man, minister of the presidential advisory council on education, science and technology. “The clean sheet, research appr

Nov 4, 2011

A fluent dialogue between East and West

By Noh Hyun-gi The difference between Eastern and Western art is apparent; the disparity in material, composition, colors, and subject matter is often considered to reflect an innate clash between the two sets of cultures. “Picturesque Life — An Artistic Encounter of East and West,” an essay compilation by Son Chul-ju and Lee Ju-eun, gently disputes this idea by connecting the two worlds effortlessly. The book is almost like a collection of letters. Throughout, Son eleborates a certain emotion, for example happiness, through works of art that best match his feelings. Then, Lee responds with her thoughts on

Nov 4, 2011

How Ticket Monster came to be

By Kim Ji-soo Social commerce here has grown rapidly and in volume, and it’s expected to reach 500 billion won in transactions this year. The ads by some of the the nation’s leaders in this sector — Coupang, Ticket Monster and We Make Price — are ubiquitous that even at this moment, a segment of their ads may be flowing through a person’s brain. A recently published book about one of the leaders, Ticket Monster, is out, providing an interesting inside look into how five 20-somethings started what is now a flourishing business by gathering a multitude of consumers together to offer them products or services at a huge discount. “We are Ticket Monsters” tells how the five — Shin Hyun-sung or Dan Shin, Shin Seong-yoon or Chris Shin, Kim Dong-hyeon or Tom Kim, Kwon Gi-hyeon and Lee Ji-ho — started out in May 2010 with the idea of offering a coupon on one item a day. In just over a year, the firm grew to its current size of 770 employees and has 3 million members. Also during that time, the firm’s revenue grew from zero to $24 million. The five all le

Nov 4, 2011By Kim Ji-soo

Seoul’s haunted past

By Robert Neff An American missionary, George Heber Jones, once described Korea as a land of demons and ghosts. He wrote: “They haunt every umbrageous tree, shady ravine, spring and mountain crest. On green hill slopes, in peaceful agricultural valleys, in grassy dells, on wooded uplands, by lake and stream, by road and river, in north, south, east and west they abound, making malignant sport out of human destinies.” The Seoul metropolis was equally susceptible. In early 1883, the first Western advisor to the Korean government, Paul Georg von Mollendorff, stayed in the home of Min Gyeon-ho — a Korean official slain during the unrest the previous year. Rumors circulated that a ghost haunted the residence and King Gojong was actually concerned that Mollendorff would take offense at being housed in a haunted home but Mollendorff scoffed at such metaphysical ideas and merely complained that the house’s low ceiling made it uncomfortable for his Western guests. But Mollendorff was not the only one to live in a haunted house. According to Horace Allen, an American mis

Oct 28, 2011

Kim tells of bleakness in ’Heuksan’

By Kim Ji-soo Kim Hoon is a celebrated writer, whose new books are eagerly anticipated and once they are out, book signings are immediately scheduled. Much is the same with his new book “Heuksan,” (Black Mountain) which deals with the religious persecution of Catholics in 1801. Kim, who has dealt with significant historical events in his previous books, offers yet another mix of the real and the fictional from early 19th century Joseon Kingdom (1392-1910). The novel starts after the persecution has begun and respective sentences have been handed down to members of the literati family of the Jeong brothers for their beliefs or “dalliance” in Catholicism. The names of the ruling elite that appear as protagonists are real. The Jeong brothers — Yak-hyeon, Yak-jeon, Yak-jong and Yak-yong — and Hwang Sa-young, the son-in-law of the eldest Jeong. Fictional are several low-class protagonists — a groom, a servant, a low-class merchant, a low-level clerical worker and a former court lady. And together, these figures’ lives intertwine to tell a sorrowful t

Oct 28, 2011By Kim Ji-soo

Recent books

Zen Ko Un; Kimyoungsa: 704 pp., 25,000 won After an interval of 16 years, Poet Ko Un, 78, has recently republished his novel “Zen” with stories on China’s Zen (Seon) masters seeking truth. The book contains the history of China’s six famed Buddhist monks including Bodhidharma who first spread Zen thought to China, followed by Dazu Huike and four other masters. Against all odds, Bodhidharma, who was born in southern India, rushed to China eager to convey the Zen thought. His journey to China, which took place around the 470s via both sea and land, was plagued by tremendous hardships but he never gave up as he was full of compassion with a high degree of generosity and flexibility to embrace all people and environments. He suggested a new direction of Buddhism from Hinayana (inferior vehicle) to Mahayana (great vehicle). Regarding the way of practicing Buddhism, he also recommended Zen methods of meditation instead of India’s conventional Vipassana. His practicing focuses on sudden enlightenment rather than the gradual way of reaching nirvana. Bodhidharma’s way of practi

Oct 28, 2011By Kim Ji-soo

Recent books

I, Steve Edited by George Beahm; Sam and Parkers: 252 pp., 14,000 won Steve Jobs is gone, but his legacy including his well-known and oft quoted remarks will last long after his 56 years of life. George Beahm, an American non-fiction author, compiled scores of Jobs’ insights, including the famous Stanford commencement address for a book titled “I, Steve.” “Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition,” says the late IT guru. A 1997 interview with The New York Times magazine explains how Jobs met his wife Lauren and provides his legions of fans with a glimpse of the hidden character of the computer genius. “If this is my last night on Earth, would I rather spend it at a business meeting or with this woman? I ran across the parking lot, asked if she’d have dinner with me. She said yes, we walked into town, and we’ve been together ever since.” The book is worth reading if you are someone who wants to know more deeply about Jobs ― not only about his career, but also his private life and internal world. ― Kim Jae-won

Oct 21, 2011

Economic aide’s story of Park Chung-hee

By Do Je-hae The latest book on the late former President Park Chung-hee (1917-1979) titled “The Park Chung-Hee Paradigm” contains intimate stories about the political leader who virtually built modern Korea. This book is written by one of his close economic aides who served the late President during the height of nation’s economic and industrial transformation in the 1960s-70s. Park rose to power through a military coup on May 16, 1961 and ruled the nation until he was assassinated by the head of the Korean Central Intelligence Agency in 1979. The author Hwang Byung-tai first met Park in 1964, two years after Park launched his first “five-year economic plan.” It was and still is uncustomary for a young bureaucrat in his or her 20s to present a briefing to the President, but this is how Hwang came to work as a close aide to Park for 12 years. Park chaired monthly economic meetings with officials from relevant ministries. It was during one of these meetings that Hwang, then a director at the Economic Planning Board, was instructed by his boss to present the state of fo

Oct 21, 2011By Do Je-hae
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