Gu Byeong-mo

Gu Byeong-mo (Hangul 구병모; born 1976) is a South Korean writer. She made her literary debut in 2009 when her novel Wizard Bakery (위저드 베이커리 Wizard Bakery) won the 2nd Changbi Prize for Young Adult Fiction. Her 2015 short story collection Geugeosi namaneun anigireul (그것이 나만은 아니기를 I Hope It's Not Just Me) received the Today's Writer Award and Hwang Sun-won New Writers' Award. She penned the novels Pigeumalion aideul (피그말리온 아이들 The Pygmalion Children), Agami (아가미 Gills), and Bangjuro oseyo (방주로 오세요 Come to Bangju) as well as the short story collection Goineun aniyeotjiman (고의는 아니지만 I Didn't Mean to But).[1] Gu's debut novel Wijeodeu Beikeori was translated into Spanish by Minjeong Jeong and Irma Zyanja Gil Yáñez. They received the 24th Daesan Literary Award in 2016 for their translation.[2]

In this Korean name, the family name is Jeong. In the stage name or pen-name, the surname is Gu.
Gu Byeong-mo
Gu Byeong-mo at the Guadalajara International Book Fair
BornJeong Yu-gyeong
OccupationWriter
NationalitySouth Korean
GenreFiction
Korean name
Hangul
Revised RomanizationGu Byeong-mo
McCune–ReischauerKu Pyŏng-mo
Birth name
Hangul
Revised RomanizationJeong Yu-gyeong
McCune–ReischauerChŏng Yu-gyŏng

Life

Gu Byeong-mo was born in Seoul, South Korea in 1976. She read extensively from a young age, reportedly borrowing books from a well-off friend's library as a middle school student and reading cheap pocketbooks her older sister sometimes brought home. She said in an interview that she read Demian by Hermann Hesse until the cover wore off.[3] She decided to become a writer at the age of 12 and submitted a story to a newspaper-run writer's contest in her last year of high school.[4]

Gu studied Korean literature at Kyung Hee University. Upon graduation, she joined a publisher as an editor.[5] She made her literary debut in 2009, and has since focused on writing. When she is not writing, she likes to spend time with her child.[6] She moved to Jinju, South Korea in early 2015. She reads or writes during train rides between Jinju and Seoul when she has to visit the latter to promote her new releases.[7]

Writing

Many of Gu Byeong-mo's works are genre fiction.[8] Her debut novel Wijeodeu beikeori (위저드 베이커리 Wizard Bakery) mixes mystery, horror, and fantasy. It is the first young adult novel in South Korea to employ magic as a major plot device, breaking the convention of the genre to deal with only realistic settings. The judges of the Changbi Prize for Young Adult Fiction chose Wijeodeu as the winner because it is a fantastical allegory that deviates from the standard coming-of-age story set in schools.[9]

Gu's later works are also allegories that use unusual motifs to reveal a dark side of reality. “Hwagapsonyeojeon” (화갑소녀전 Tale of the Match Girl) is a short story based on “The Little Match Girl” by Hans Christian Andersen. But instead of seeing wonderful visions in the glow of her matches, the protagonist only sees scenes of horror and tragedy. The story urges readers to question commonly accepted truths or lessons and to view the world in a new light.[10]

Works
  • 단 하나의 문장 The One Sentence (2019)
  • 버드 스트라이크 Bird Strike (2019)
  • 네 이웃의 식탁 Your Neighbor’s Table (2018)
  • 한 스푼의 시간 A Spoonful of Time (2016)
  • 빨간구두당 The Red Shoes Party (2015)
  • 파과 Damaged Fruit (2013)
  • 파란 아이 Blue Child (2013)
  • 피그말리온 아이들 The Pygmalion Children (2012)
  • 방주로 오세요 Come to Bangju (2012)
  • 고의는 아니지만 I Didn’t Mean to But (2011)
  • 아가미 Gills (2011)
  • 위저드 베이커리 Wizard Bakery (2009)

Works in Translation[11] (partial)

Awards
  • 2016: Daesan Literary Award, translation category
  • 2015: Today's Writer Award
  • 2015: Hwang Sun-won New Writers' Award
  • 2009: Changbi Prize for Young Adult Fiction

References
  1. "구병모 | 창비 – Changbi Publishers". www.changbi.com (in Korean). Retrieved 2017-09-26.
  2. "『위저드 베이커리』 스페인어 번역 제24회 대산문학상 번역 부문 수상 | 창비 – Changbi Publishers". www.changbi.com (in Korean). Retrieved 2017-09-26.
  3. 구병모 "책 읽고 행복했던 적이 있었나? 잘 모르겠어요" | YES24 문화웹진 채널예스.
  4. 구병모 "시집 읽으며 소설의 소재를 떠올린다" | YES24 문화웹진 채널예스.
  5. "한 스푼의 시간" (in Korean). Retrieved 2017-09-26.
  6. 구병모 "시집 읽으며 소설의 소재를 떠올린다" | YES24 문화웹진 채널예스.
  7. Gu, Gyeong-mo (August–September 2016). "맹렬한 몰입에 대하여". Littor.
  8. "빨간구두당 | 창비 – Changbi Publishers". www.changbi.com (in Korean). Retrieved 2017-09-26.
  9. "위저드 베이커리 | 창비 – Changbi Publishers". www.changbi.com (in Korean). Retrieved 2017-09-26.
  10. "빨간구두당 | 창비 – Changbi Publishers". www.changbi.com (in Korean). Retrieved 2017-09-26.
  11. "구병모 | Digital Library of Korean Literature (LTI Korea)". library.klti.or.kr. Retrieved 2017-12-09.
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