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Five Preludes & A Fugue

Cheon Heerahn

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Five Preludes & A Fugue

by Cheon Heerahn
Five Preludes & A Fugue
Five Preludes & A Fugue

Epistolary mystery for lovers of psychologically astute fiction

If you enjoy intimate mysteries, this story turns a mother’s death into a searching study of truth and self-deception. Its inventive epistolary form slowly exposes the tensions shaping women’s lives and contemporary Korean society. Beautifully translated and emotionally nuanced, it rewards curious readers who appreciate subtle, unsettling fiction.

Note: While we do our best to ensure the accuracy of cover images, ISBNs may at times be reused for different editions of the same title which may hence appear as a different cover.

Five Preludes & A Fugue

by Cheon Heerahn
Condition guide

Book Condition Guide

Books in Like New Condition

This book may contain very minor cosmetic defects, but it is in pristine condition. There should be no yellowing, no foxing, no water damage, and no annotations of any kind on the cover and the pages. For paperbacks, there should not be any crease marks on the spine. This book is good as new — lucky you!

*Books may be missing bundle media (e.g. CD, e-book code), if included.

Books in Very Good Condition

This book has been used, but it is still in a clean condition. There should be no foxing or annotations of any kind on the inner pages, but a sparse amount may be present on the cover, title pages, or outside edges of the book. There should be no water damage of any kind. For paperbacks, there may be light crease marks on the spine.

*Books may be missing bundle media (e.g. CD, e-book code), if included.

Books in Good Condition

We do our best to ensure the quality of our books, but there is no escaping the wear and tear that comes with time. Slight foxing and some annotations may be present on the pages and the cover. There should be no water damage of any kind. For paperbacks, there may be several crease marks on the spine.

*Books may be missing bundle media (e.g. CD, e-book code), if included.

Books in Well Read Condition

This is a well-read book, which means that the previous owner probably really enjoyed it! The cover and pages may include moderate foxing and annotations, but the text is not obscured and still readable. Moderate cosmetic defects and minor water damage may be present on the edges of the book. For paperbacks, there may be multiple crease marks on the spine.

*Books may be missing bundle media (e.g. CD, e-book code), if included.

 

Find out more about our process here.

ISBN: 9781911343585
Author: Cheon Heerahn
Publisher: Strangers Press
Date of Publication: 2019-06-16
Format: Paperback
Related Collections: Contemporary, Literary Fiction
Related Topics: Literature, Asian Literature, Feminism, LGBTQ+
Goodreads rating: 4.06
(rated by 119 readers)

Description

A young woman delves into the circumstances of her mother’s death ahead of her own marriage, interrogating a woman who witnessed her mother’s death and would later come to play a crucial role in her life. An exploration of the human (in)capacity for (self-)deception and knowledge, the story offers a nuanced portrait of contemporary Korean social mores. As with all Cheon’s work to date, this beautifully crafted story places women at its core and explores form and genre (in this case epistolary) while subtly weaving into the text a deep interrogation of social issues. From the Yeoyu collection, a selection of eight short stories translated from Korean, in collaboration with translator Deborah Smith, and featuring writers such as Han Kang and Bae Suah, among others less familiar to an English-speaking audience. Yeoyu means something like "scope" and/or "relaxed" in English: scope to be yourself, to follow your own interests. In some ways it means the opposite of being constrained by convention, more to be unbounded in such a way. In a sense, it means to be oneself but with enough "left over" — for others, maybe. It is intended to capture the diverse range of themes and styles the series, and Korean literature more broadly, has to offer the curious reader and also to say something figurative and fun about the act and process of translation.
 

Epistolary mystery for lovers of psychologically astute fiction

If you enjoy intimate mysteries, this story turns a mother’s death into a searching study of truth and self-deception. Its inventive epistolary form slowly exposes the tensions shaping women’s lives and contemporary Korean society. Beautifully translated and emotionally nuanced, it rewards curious readers who appreciate subtle, unsettling fiction.

Note: While we do our best to ensure the accuracy of cover images, ISBNs may at times be reused for different editions of the same title which may hence appear as a different cover.

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