50 Novelists' Picks for Novel of the Year... Kwon Yeo-seon's 'Gakgak-ui Gyejeol'

2nd Place: Gubyeongmo's "Isseul Beolhan Modeun Geot"
Choe Eunyoung's "Aju Huimihan Bicheurodo"
3rd Place: Kim Yeonsu's "Neomuna Maneun Yeoreumi"
Hernan Diaz's "Trust"
Claire Keegan's "Matgyeojin Sonyeo"

In the "50 Novelists' Choice for Novel of the Year," author Kwon Yeo-seon's short story collection Gakgak-ui Gyejeol (Each Season) ranked first. After receiving recommendations for 100 domestic and international novels published from November 2022 to last October, each novelist recommended 1 to 5 works, and the most recommended work was selected. Gakgak-ui Gyejeol received recommendations from 12 authors.

This collection includes the 2023 Kim Seung-ok Literary Award-winning work Saseumbeolle Sik Mundaap (Beetle-style Q&A), the 2021 Kim Yu-jeong Literary Award-winning work Gieok-ui Waltz (Waltz of Memory), the 2020 Kim Seung-ok Literary Award Excellence Prize-winning work Silbeodeul Cheonmansa (Silver Grass Ten Million Affairs), and the 2019 Excellence Prize-winning work Haneul Nopi Areumdapge (Beautifully High in the Sky), among others.

Author Kwon Yeo-seon [Photo by Kyobo Bookstore]

Author Kwon Yeo-seon shared her thoughts, saying, “Writing novels is truly a lonely task, but receiving encouragement from colleagues in the same profession makes me forget that loneliness. I realize that I belong to such a warm and beautiful community, and I feel a deep sense of solidarity and happiness.”

In second place, tied with five recommendations each, were author Koo Byung-mo's Isseul Beolhan Modeun Geot (Everything That Could Exist) and author Choi Eun-young's Aju Huimihan Bicheurodo (Even with a Very Faint Light). Isseul Beolhan Modeun Geot is a short story collection composed of diverse and exciting stories delivered by Koo Byung-mo, who has a broad spectrum. Choi Eun-young's Aju Huimihan Bicheurodo consists of stories that reveal the pain of relationships in various forms and the light that does not disappear within them.

Third place was shared by Kim Yeon-su's Neomuna Manheun Yeoreumi (Too Many Summers), Hernan Diaz's Trust, and Claire Keegan's Matgyeojin Sonyeo (Foster Girl), each receiving four recommendations. Hernan Diaz's Trust was the most selected book of the year in the United States in 2022 and is also the 2023 Pulitzer Prize winner. It unfolds four different stories about a legendary figure who achieved great success on Wall Street in the 1920s, revealing the myth and illusion of wealth and power. Claire Keegan, a representative author of contemporary Irish literature, wrote Matgyeojin Sonyeo, the original novel for the 2022 film Silent Girl. It tells a clear and beautiful story distilled around a summer a girl spends with distant relatives.

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