bookriot / March 02, 2020

If you loved the critically acclaimed and astonishing film Parasite—directed by Bong Joon-ho, with a screenplay cowritten by Bong Joon-ho and Han Jin-won—and you’re looking for more great Korean artistry to scratch that itch, look no further than the incredible books in translation coming out of South Korea right now. Many of these novels have themes similar to the ones explored in Parasite, some capture the tone and mood of the film, and others feel quite different but have the genius, the same ingenuity of Parasite.

BOOK RIOT / May 12, 2020

The Best Translated Book Award 2020 shortlists for both the fiction and poetry awards have been announced at The Millions. Founded in 2007, the Best Translated Book Award brings attention to the best works of translated literature published in the previous year. The winning author and translator each receive a cash prize for both the fiction and poetry award; over $140,000 has been given to international authors and their translators through the award over the years.

Deutschlandfunk Kultur / June 16, 2020

Ein Totentanz ist ein gemalter Reigen von Menschen aller Stände mit dem Tod. In Lübeck inspirierte Hugo Distler solch eine Abbildung im Jahr 1934. Er konzipierte seinen ganz eigenen Totentanz, den der RIAS Kammerchor in Stahnsdorf für uns aufgeführt hat. Die „Forumkonzerte“ des RIAS Kammerchors bespielen in kammermusikalischen Formationen besondere Orte in Berlin. Anfang Juni war man zu Gast in der Kapelle des Südwestkirchhofs Stahnsdorf. Im Zentrum des Programms: der „Totentanz“ von Hugo Distler.

hyphenmagazine / December 30, 2018

It has been a great year for Asian American poetry. Diana Khoi Nguyen’s Ghost of (Omnidawn) and Jenny Xie’s Eye Level (Graywolf), both gorgeous debuts I’ve been recommending to everyone, were finalists for the National Book Award for Poetry. Many more have been included on the year’s “Best Of” lists. There are so many books I loved that were released this year, but I’ve compiled a handful of my favorites. Happy Reading! Autobiography of Death by Kim Hyesoon (trans. By Don Mee Choi) (New Directions). Kim Hyesoon is a critically acclaimed Korean poet whose work has influenced younger generations of feminist writers in South Korea.The brilliant Don Mee Choi has been translating her work into English for years. In her translator’s note, Choi writes: “Each of the forty-nine poems in Autobiography of Death represents one of the forty-nine days during which the spirit roams about after death, before it enters the cycle of reincarnation.”She also writes that Kim wrote these poems because of the 250 high school students who died unjustly in the 2014 Sewol ferry disaster. These poems are utterly haunting and worth every moment you spend with them.

Magcentre / March 12, 2019

La poétesse coréenne sera samedi 16 mars à la Maison de la poésie à Paris. Elle y dira ses poèmes et dialoguera avec Koo Moduk et Claude Mouchard, professeur émérite orléanais de littérature comparée de l’Université Paris VIII , rédacteur en chef adjoint de la revue Po&sie, écrivain, maître d’œuvre de numéros spéciaux  de la revue consacré à la poésie japonaise contemporaine et à la poésie sud-coréenne. Cet auteur  a notamment traduit aux éditions Circé, avec Ju Hyounjin,  l’ouvrage de Kim Hye-soon, “Ordures de tous les pays unissez-vous” (2016). 

International Examiner / March 07, 2019

Seattle-based poet and translator Don Mee Choi has long been an advocate and translator for Korean poet Kim Hyesoon, and the newly published Autobiography of Death – the sixth book of Kim’s that Choi has translated – represents the height of what Choi and Kim’s collaborations have produced.

BOOK RIOT / April 14, 2019

The Best Translated Book Award 2019 longlists for both the fiction and poetry awards have been announced at The Millions. This is the twelfth year that the Best Translated Book Award has honored and celebrated literature in translation.

Oprah Magazine / April 19, 2019

To celebrate National Poetry Month, we asked some of our favorite poets to tells us which poetry collections, old or new, that they're loving right now.

العربي الجديد / April 12, 2019

في تجربتها، تستكشف هايسوون الوجود المتعدّد والمتزامن للمرأة كجدّات وأمّهات وبنات في سياق المجتمع الأبوي المتعصّب في بلادها، فيما تتجلى شعريتها في محاولتها المستمرة لمقاومة الأشكال الأدبية التقليدية واللغة التي حددها الرجال في كوريا لفترة طويلة. بالنسبة إليها: "النساء الشاعرات يعارضن ويقاومن ظروفهن، مستخدمات أشكالاً غير تقليدية من اللغة، لأن مقاومتهن قادتهن إلى لغة غير حقيقية، سريالية، وحتى خيالية. لغة شعر المرأة هي لغة داخلية، لكنها ثورية وتتّسم بالتحدي".

OurWindsor / May 29, 2019

In a year when women’s rights, the environment and democracy have been increasingly under question an interesting thing has happened: three women poets command the Canadian portion of the Griffin Poetry Prize. Each year, the prize celebrates — and reinforces — the importance of poetry and awards two prizes of $65,000 each to a winner chosen from a Canadian shortlist, and one from an international shortlist. When the books that speak to the judges’ sensibilities and critical eye deal with issues including oppressive political regimes, economic inequality, differences and creativity, it begs a question about the role of the poet. Ahead of the prize ceremony in Toronto next week, we wanted to ask each of this year’s seven finalists: What is a poet’s role in politically turbulent times?And, in terms of creating their art: How do they know when a poem succeeds? Here’s what they had to say.