G663 Book Review of The House with a sunken courtyard by Kim Won-Il
Name of Book: Madang kipup chin/ The House with a Sunken Courtyard Author: Kim Won-Il, translated by Sun Ji-Moon ISBN: 9781564789136 Publisher: Dalkey Archive Press Type of book: South Korea, post Korean war, 1954-1955, daily life, survival, relationships, family, friendships, neighbors, work, selling newspapers, hard-scrabble existence Year it was published: 1988 (translated in 2013) Summary: An occasionally terrifying and always vivid portrayal of what it was like to live as a refugee immediately after the end of the Korean War. An occasionally terrifying and always vivid portrayal of what it was like to live as a refugee immediately after the end of the Korean War. This novel is based on the author’s own experience in his early teens in Daegu, in 1954, and depicts six families that survive the hard times together in the same house, weathering the tiny conflicts of interest and rivalries that spring up in such close quarters, but nonetheless offering one ano...