- Overview
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Choi Sieun’s first short story collection delves into times of unspoken anguish in individual lives fraught with violence, wounds, poverty, and pain.
- Book Intro
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This short story collection presents a realistic depiction of such raw materials as a freezer, a mutilated body, a rapist, a dog trader, a female North Korean defector, silkworms, and a blowfish. We are led to trace the faint odors of the complexities of life. A woman sues her second husband for raping her daughter, but ends up helping him lodge an appeal in order to secure a means of living. Then there is another woman who voluntarily approaches him, though gripped by the fear that he may have committed a mutilation murder. Filled with delicate descriptions, Choi Sieun’s Every Room Opens Its Door is collection of suspenseful stories that delve into the rough edges of life.
The seven stories in this collection portray individuals in highly problematic situations: a mother lives with her son who is a sexual offender (“Silkworm”); a woman fights over a man but turns back without a word when she realizes that the other woman is pregnant (“Octopus 3/500”); a woman starts writing novels after undergoing a hysterectomy (“Refund”); and a woman living with her elderly parents runs a study center for children (“That Place”). These characters struggle with all their might to make a living amidst tough circumstances. The detailed, almost journalistic descriptions of the settings and situations create an illusion that these scenarios may really exist somewhere in our society.
- About the Author
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Choi Sieun
Choi Sieun majored in literature and began studying novels again at age 40. She made her literary debut in 2010 by winning the Jinju Autumn Writing Competition. She is a member of the Busan Writers and the Busan Novelist Organization.
- Selection
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Art Council Korea, Busan Metropolitan Government, Busan Cultural Foundation