2021/10 At Dusk by Hwang Sok-yong

[Aleksandra]

Hello! This is a thread for our October read, At Dusk by Hwang Sok-yong.

I am curious how you will like the novel. To me, it felt like a good mix of Korean drama typical of television productions and essay writing on social philosophy and gentrification in South Korea.

This being said, I was glad it was a short book. The style of writing which Hwang Sok-yong uses in at least some of his books feels a little heavy at times.

[Liza]

I really liked this novel (I'd give it ten points out of five if I could) – it made me travel through time as the atmosphere of the place in the outskirts of Seoul is described in quite a detailed way – it can be easily imagined. The fact that the book embraces the historic background featuring the authoritarian regime of Park Chunghee, the Gwangjoo Uprising makes it sound like memoirs.
Somehow, I was disappointed in Woohee for her sending Cha Soona diaries without her consent. I got a feeling that they were too intimate. Anyways, they are my favourite part – the feeling of nostalgia can be felt very vividly in them as different from Park Minsoo (at least that is how I felt it).