Description
Fiction. Young Adult. Translated by Brother Anthony of Taize. The story of LOVING revolves around an unlikely heroine: a fish from a wind chime hanging beneath the eaves of Unjusa Temple's main hall in Hwasun, Jeollanam-do. Named Blue Bubble-Eyes, this fish grows weary of her mundane routine and begins to question the love of her partner Black Bubble-Eyes. While dreaming of escaping both Unjusa Temple and her partner, Blue Bubble-Eyes unexpectedly breaks free of the wire that had kept her attached, becoming a flying fish who soars through the sky in a quest for freedom and true love. Though exciting at first, the adventure proves to be a perilous journey. After several close encounters with death, Blue Bubble-Eyes realizes that love does not come quickly and without pain.
Jeong's tender depiction of Blue Bubble-Eyes infuses the story with a deep warmth. When disheartened by adversity, Blue Bubble-Eyes pours out her heart to Unjusa Temple's recumbent Buddhas in stirring scenes of self-reflection, gaining insight into love and the world. Her fraught process of learning resembles the meditative journey of Zen monks who follow Hua Tou, phrases that rise from encounter-dialogue with Buddhist teachers. The realistic, relatable dialogue between Blue Bubble-Eyes and the recumbent Buddhas lends a compelling touch to the narrative, making the poet's message all the more vivid and memorable.
Author Bio
Born in South Korea, lyric poet Jeong Ho-seung is renowned for touching on themes of loneliness, love, sadness, and joy. His poetry collections have been translated into Japanese, Spanish, Russian, Georgian, and Mongolian. Jeong's accolades include the So-Wol Literary Prize, the Jeong Ji-young Literary Prize, the Pyeonun Literary Prize, the Catholic Literary Award, the Sanghwa Poetry Award, and the Gongcho Literary Prize. He is the author of LONESOME JAR: POETIC FABLES (Seoul Selection, 2020), LOVING (Seoul Selection, 2020), THOUGH FLOWERS FALL I HAVE NEVER FORGOTTEN YOU (Seoul Selection, 2016), and A LETTER NOT SENT (Seoul Selection, 2016).
Author City: SEOUL KOR
Brother Anthony of Taizé (An Sonjae) was born in 1942 in the UK. He studied at Oxford University and in 1969 he joined the Taizé Community in France. He came to Korea in 1980. He is an emeritus professor at Sogang University and a chair-professor at Dankook University. Since 1990 he has published more than sixty volumes of translated works by such esteemed Korean authors as Jeong Ho-seung, Kim Seung-Hee and J. M. Lee. He was President of the Royal Asiatic Society Korea for ten years. In 2015 he was awarded an honorary MBE by Queen Elizabeth for his contributions to Anglo-Korean relations.
Author City: USA