WINNER OF THE MAN ASIAN LITERARY PRIZE
'An authentic, moving story that brings to vivid life the deep family connections that lie at the core of Korean culture'
Gary Shteyngart
'Kyung-Sook Shin's tale... has hit a nerve'
Guardian
'A raw tribute to the mysteries of motherhood'
New York Times
'The most moving and accomplished, and often startling, novel'
Wall Street Journal
When sixty-nine-year-old So-nyo is separated from her husband among the crowds of the Seoul subway station, her family begins a desperate search to find her. Yet as long-held secrets and private sorrows begin to reveal themselves, they are forced to wonder: how well did they actually know the woman they called Mother?
Told through the piercing voices and urgent perspectives of a daughter, son, husband, and mother, PLEASE LOOK AFTER MOTHER is at once an authentic picture of contemporary life in Korea and a universal story of family love.
With an introduction by Banana Yoshimoto
A W&N Essential
Autorentext
Kyung-Sook Shin
Klappentext
'An authentic, moving story that brings to vivid life the deep family connections that lie at the core of Korean culture ... This is a tapestry of family life that will be read all over the world. I loved this book' Gary Shytengart
Combining a unique setting with universal themes, PLEASE LOOK AFTER MOTHER is a beautifully rendered novel about sacrifice, guilt, and the ties of family love.
PLEASE LOOK AFTER MOTHER is the story of So-nyo, a wife and mother, who has lived a life of sacrifice and compromise. In the past she suffered a stroke, leaving her vulnerable and often confused. Now, travelling from the Korean countryside to the Seoul of her grown-up children, So-nyo is separated from her husband when the doors close on a packed train.
As her children and husband search the streets, they recall So-nyo's life, and all they have left unsaid. Through their piercing voices, we begin to discover the desires, heartaches, and secrets she harboured within. And as the mystery of her disappearance unravels, we uncover a larger mystery, that of all mothers and children: how affection, exasperation, hope and guilt add up to love. Compassionate, redemptive and beautifully written, PLEASE LOOK AFTER MOTHER will reconnect you to the story of your own family, and to the forgotten sacrifices that lie at its heart.