The Old Garden

I was recommended this book when I was looking for South Korean literature. It is a beautiful story that is relevant to the times we live in. It is a love story between a political dissident and an artist during the military dictatorship in South Korea in the 1980's. Beautifully written and with a big slice of stone-cold realism, this book is truly a masterpiece of modern literature.

The Old Garden is the story of Oh Hyun-Woo, a political dissident, and Han Yoon-Hee, the woman he loves. The story opens as Hyun-Woo is being released after serving 18 years in prison for his involvement in the Kwangju uprising. Sadly for him he finds out that Yoon-Hee died 3 years earlier. He travels to the small house in an isolated village where he and Yoon-Hee spent an idyllic few months while he hid from the authorities, and there finds notebooks left behind by Yoon-Hee detailing her life while he was imprisoned. In alternating chapters we are treated to Hyun-Woo's memories of his time with Yoon-Hee and his time in prison, and Yoon-Hee's account of her life after Hyun-Woo was caught. Through their eyes we begin to understand the times in which they lived and the oppression against which they fought. Hwang Sok-Yong writes beautifully, bringing the time and place of his story fully to life, and making us care deeply for his characters. The story does drag in places, and the dense prose can feel burdensome at times, but all in all The Old Garden is a wonderful novel, and a must read for anyone interested in modern Korea.