The Mookse and the Gripes discussion

Mater 2-10 by Hwang Sok-yong translated by Sora Kim-Russell and Youngjae Josephine Bae (Scribe), Korean/South Korea

One one Korean author I dread seeing on these lists. And I've read 7 of his books.

To me he writes dreary books the gist of which seems to be how much better life would be if the North Korean regime had taken over the entire peninsula (except of course it would apparently have been an idealistic regime not like the actual regime in any country that has implemented that form of politics)

Though I wasn't sure if this was supposed to be satirical given passages like this:

He also discussed with Miyake the general direction of Joseons anti-imperialist activities, which had been put off due to the arrest of himself and others. Together, they reviewed the movement's policies, which had remained in draft form since the tense serial strikes, critiqued past activities, and considered the movement's future. They earnestly discussed what the general approach for activists in Joseon should be and which theory had been dictating the affiliations of the Pacific. Labour Union in Wonsan and the rest of Hamgyeong Province, since they reportedly received instructions from the Profintern's Far Eastern Bureau. Meanwhile, through Jeong's introduction, Miyake also held discussions about policy with a Gyeongseong communist group affiliated with Kim Hyeongseon. He tried to form a connection between that group and Jaeyu's organisation. For these pur-poses, Miyake reviewed with Jaeyu an unauthorised copy of the Theses of the Comintern's Thirteenth Plenum, a publication called Proletariat, and the May Day Manifesto.

This book certainly has its flaws: 'raw' history dumps, characters who are more names and functions than psychological beings - but I'd say that fits with the intention of writing a story of industrial protest and labour politics across about a century of Korean history. It's a topic not often tackled in fiction of any nationality - I found the quiet doggedness of the struggle moving.

Roman Clodia wrote: "This book certainly has its flaws: 'raw' history dumps, characters who are more names and functions than psychological beings - but I'd say that fits with the intention of writing a story of indust..."

Wholeheartedly agree!

I thought it was a struggle to get through this one, but worth it. Those info dumps created pacing issues and sometimes interrupted the story when I was enjoying reading about the characters.

It wouldn't completely surprise me if this one wins.

I’m reading this now. I appreciate what it’s doing, and still think it might win, but it’s hard not to compare it with other books in the same vein. There’s no panache, for example, that a writer like Kevin Lambert might bring to it.