HWANG BO-REUM studied Computer Science and worked as a software engineer in Seoul, before leaving to become a writer. She is the author of several essay collections; I Read Every Day, I Tried Kickboxing for the First Time and This Distance is Perfect. Welcome to The Hyunam-dong Bookshop is her first novel, and was a bestseller in South Korea. SHANNA TAN is a Singaporean translator working from Korean, Chinese and Japanese into English. She was selected for two emerging literary translator mentorships in 2022, where she was mentored by Anton Hur and Julia Sanches. Her prose translations have appeared in The Southern Review, The Common, Azalea: Journal of Korean Literature & Culture and more.
'An incredibly exciting debut novel. At once gentle and invigorating. I devoured it' * Sarah Crossan * This slice of life novel follows a diverse and lovable cast of characters as they try to find out what it means to be happy and fulfilled in the world today. Hwang Bo-Reum’s belief in the healing power of books shines through as characters recommend books to one another as antidotes to their woes. Shanna Tan’s smooth translation makes this an easy read to fall into while preserving the feel and nuance of the original Korean. This is a warm hug of a novel about taking a deep breath and finding what makes a life well lived. * Kinokuniya Books *