[One Sip of a Book] 42 Short Stories by Novelist Oh Jung-hee

Some sentences encapsulate the entire content of a book, while others instantly resonate with the reader's heart, creating a connection with the book. We introduce such meaningful sentences excerpted from books. - Editor's note

This is a new work by Oh Jung-hee, who won the Yi Sang Literary Award (1979), Dong-in Literary Award (1982), and in 2003 became the first Korean writer to receive an overseas literary award by winning the German Liberatur Prize for her novel "Bird." It collects 42 short stories that have been published in various media. As novelist Jang Jeong-il, who wrote the commentary, said, these stories, the seeds of the narratives, "reveal a secretive individuality and preserve fragments of the worldview built by the author's renowned short stories."

"Don't be stingy, hire someone. For the price of two pounds of meat, you can buy a day's labor. That's economical. What would a plasterer eat if only people like you existed? I've always done everything myself to live frugally, but I'm tired of fighting with my husband because our work doesn't match, so I'm going to reduce the hired labor."

However, it was not only because I was a thrifty housewife who saved the price of two pounds of meat. [...] The rule of never borrowing others' hands for anything inside the fence was upheld because it seemed related to a fundamental honesty in living life, like cooking rice or doing laundry. (From "Couple")

"Seeing one thing, I know ten. I have a rich imagination, so I can clearly see the path you will live ahead from every word and action of yours. Why do you disobey your parents in every little thing when you are about to become a certain kind of person?"

"Do you read novels? Don't worry, I will take care of my own matters."

The son chuckled. No matter how much the wife was once an aspiring novelist in her maiden days and still had reading novels as her only hobby, her imagination and exaggeration were excessive.

"What do you know? No matter how big you act, you are only sixteen. My mind is still clearer and my judgment better than yours, so you should listen to me. When I become senile and lose my discernment in the future, then you can teach me." (From "Wife's Autumn")

Having a son is not a great honor, but perhaps because she was intimidated entering a family that boasted four generations of only sons, Jeong-im's eyes looked miserable when she visited after thirty-seven days of hearing the news of her first daughter. [...]

"Would it be better if it were a son?"

When she was pregnant, Jeong-im was shocked to hear that her mother-in-law had placed holy water and prayed for a son every day for ten months. When she became pregnant a second time, Kyung-ok seemed almost neurotic. (From "Why Sons Are Preferred")

Hwallan | Written by Oh Jung-hee | Sigongsa | 344 pages | 16,000 KRW

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.