Description

Joy and sorrow sparkle: The arrival of such a refreshing story
A major new talent our literature has been waiting for! A name everyone will remember
Jang Ryu-jin's first collection of short stories, *The Joys and Sorrows of Work*, has been published, creating a sensation by immediately garnering attention from countless readers and the literary community since her debut with the Changbi Novel Award in 2018. Jang Ryu-jin's debut work, "The Joys and Sorrows of Work," received explosive acclaim. After its release on the 'Changjak-gwa-Bipyeong' website, word-of-mouth spread rapidly through social media, causing the server to crash due to the high number of visitors, and accumulating over 400,000 views. Since then, the author's breathless journey, presenting excellent entertainment and individuality with every work published, led to the rare achievement of publishing a short story collection just one year after her debut.
Novelist Jung Yi-hyun praised this book, saying, "If you were to create a time capsule explaining today's Korean society, this is a book you couldn't leave out" (recommendation). The eight stories included here primarily deal with the lives of young office workers in their twenties and thirties. The vivid detail with which each person's work life and its accompanying sorrows are depicted has already been proven by the enthusiastic response from 'current' readers to the title story. The author goes a step further, meticulously portraying the pain of young people burdened by the weight of daily life, while also beautifully capturing the precious moments of our lives that still sparkle. This book permeates with our stories—stories of people who shed tears but do not sink, who struggle but endure wisely in their own ways, and who somehow manage to create joyful moments in life.
This amazing newcomer's work, which is outstanding in terms of entertainment, individuality, and timeliness, will surely be a crucial point that our novels, entering a new decade, must pay attention to.
"Will Unnie still be at the company by then, will I?"
Freely unfolding stories, surprisingly diverse charms
The narrator 'I' in the title story "The Joys and Sorrows of Work" works as "essentially the youngest" at an IT company in Pangyo. 'I' meets 'Turtle Egg,' who constantly posts on the company's used goods app, to uncover her identity and hears her incredible story. Turtle Egg, who was part of a credit card company's performance planning team, secured a famous musician's concert in Korea and was promised a special promotion. However, due to the chairman's pique at not being the first to announce the concert on her personal SNS, she ends up receiving her salary in credit card points. Unbowed by humiliation and despair, Turtle Egg cleverly utilizes the capitalist system to manage her life, while 'I,' amid the pressures of work and relationships, regains her energy by booking a Cho Seong-jin recital and plane tickets to Hong Kong. This novel, which is both understated and deeply impressive, captures the resilient spirit of these characters. They are like a personification of the vitality and confidence of the millennial generation, who, despite external pressures, never let go of their share of freedom and happiness. These characters create the overarching theme and atmosphere of this charming collection, making it a memorable work as a representative of Jang Ryu-jin's distinctive style.
In "I Will Live Well," 'I,' three days before her wedding, receives a call from 'Bitna Unnie,' a former colleague she hadn't communicated with for three years, and they arrange to meet for a wedding invitation. It turns out Bitna Unnie contacted 'I' because she needed information for her own wedding preparations, but Bitna Unnie neither attends 'I's wedding nor offers a congratulatory gift. Then as now, 'I' feels increasingly frustrated with the oblivious Bitna Unnie, thinking, 'I wouldn't do that.' However, after realizing that Bitna Unnie has also been making efforts in her own way, 'I' begins to wish her well. While Bitna Unnie's unique character is interestingly portrayed, the story is a masterpiece that convincingly develops the protagonist's emotional changes as she observes her.
The atmosphere of "Visitors at Dawn" differs from the two previous works. The protagonist performs the unpleasant job of filtering obscene advertisements online all day. Her narrow, messy studio apartment is the only place where she can feel safe, but from one day on, unknown men start showing up every dawn, mistaking it for a prostitution address. After watching the vulgar men pressing her doorbell through the video phone, she finds herself facing an ordinary woman, equally anxious, in a nearby studio apartment which she suspected to be a real prostitution site. This work is one of those that demonstrates considerable skill in storytelling and thematic depth.
The narrator of "A Helping Hand" takes the embarrassing step of hiring a housekeeper to better manage the home she worked so hard to acquire. The housekeeper, who acts like an expert but can't hide her obsequiousness when tips are involved, gradually becomes lazy and torments the narrator in various ways. The novel highlights a subtle suspense that arises from the unique relationship between the narrator and the housekeeper, both laborers themselves, but contrasting in terms of employment, class, generation, and religion.
"Tampere Airport" is the story of a young person who dreamed of becoming a documentary producer for a long time but failed due to uninspiring qualifications. While transiting through Tampere Airport in Finland on the way to Dublin for a working holiday, the protagonist forms a brief but wonderful connection with a Finnish centenarian. Her joy upon receiving a letter from him is short-lived; constantly busy and anxious as she prepares for employment, she no longer has time to reply. The old man's letter soon becomes a burden, making her uncertain future feel even more harsh. This work evokes poignant empathy for the protagonist struggling after giving up her dream, and eventually brings a lump to the throat with its beautifully permitted scene.
Meanwhile, the individuality of the two stories with male protagonists is also excellent. Jang-woo, the protagonist of "Slightly Low," is an unknown musician whose talent is recognized by no one but his long-term girlfriend. He stands on the verge of stardom when a song he playfully created about his old refrigerator becomes a huge hit on YouTube, but due to his old-fashioned ideas about music and his naivety in not understanding trends, he returns to square one. Jang-woo's story, along with the changing YouTube view counts and the scenery of the Hongdae indie scene, unfolds entertainingly like a black comedy. Ji-hoon in "My Fukuoka Guide" unexpectedly travels to Japan to meet Jiyoo, with whom he once had a romantic spark, after she lost her husband and was living alone. Developing special feelings for Jiyoo again after a long time, Ji-hoon uses all his dating experience to try and win her over. This novel, which presents an unexpected twist at a critical moment, captivates with its tremendous pull and humor. This drawing power and humor, one of the great charms of Jang Ryu-jin's novels, is fully displayed in the short story "The 101st Resume and the First Commute," which wittily depicts the time spent 고민ing about 'armpit sweat' and iced Americano on the first day of finally getting a job.
"It feels a bit expensive, but it's payday, so it's okay."
A bold life unburdened, the story we need today
Jang Ryu-jin's novels feature many characters who, with their "unique survival instincts, internalize the system and flexibly bend it to move forward the fastest and most accurately" (Lee A-young, commentary). As such, this author is portraying various facets of society, discovered with keen insight, in diverse ways. With incredibly entertaining and lovable stories. While also affirming and cheering on our current selves.
The diagnosis that the number of readers of Korean literature has significantly decreased continues to surface. In such an atmosphere, the appearance of a new talent, one who truly deserves the title of a major newcomer, is all the more welcome. The literary community also has high expectations. Several senior writers have gladly offered their recommendations after reading *The Joys and Sorrows of Work*.
"Between joy and sorrow, the author keenly and delicately captures the moments when various layers of unspoken emotions subtly waver, hitting the surface of a tough world. If you were to create a time capsule explaining today's Korean society, this is a book you couldn't leave out." (Jung Yi-hyun)
"Intriguing timely motifs, details of modern life, excellent readability, and keen social sensibility. What Jang Ryu-jin's novels possess is almost everything that readers of our time demand from a novel." (Lee Jang-wook)
"I first heard about Jang Ryu-jin through rumors, and the readers' enthusiasm was astonishing. After reading, I was surprised by its precision. The story Jang Ryu-jin captures is precisely the story of our time." (Pyun Hye-young)
"The 'company people' of the neoliberal era, who constantly develop new things and are eventually exploited by their own creations—Jang Ryu-jin is an author who accurately understands their anxieties." (Kang Young-suk)
"Jang Ryu-jin is an author who can capture this very moment with the perfect temperature of reality, neither exaggerating nor lacking. When I turned the last page of the novel, I realized that a cool yet sweet trace had been etched in my heart. Novels that can do that are rare." (Park Sang-young)
Although she is already an author who has made her mark on many, her journey is just beginning. We hope that this author, who has brought joy to our literature, will bring joy to even more people. The novel we need right now has arrived. (*)