What happened to the man stuck in the elevator?
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Description
Book Introduction
In 1999, at the end of the century, Kim Young-ha, a new writer in his fifth year of writing, published a collection of short stories with a title reminiscent of a comic book, “What Happened to the Man Stuck in the Elevator?” through Munhak-kwa-Jiseongsa.
Kim Young-ha, who had already surprised the literary world with his unique and subversive imagination in his first collection of short stories, 『Call』, has further refined his already existing talent as a writer with his flowing narrative techniques in this second collection of short stories.
From “Your Tree,” which was praised as “moistening the reader’s heart with clear and pure water” (Oh Jeong-hee), to the title piece that relentlessly charges with Kafkaesque humor, and “Emergency Exit,” which rawly depicts the lives of young people living rough lives at the bottom of society, the author showcases his blossoming writing skills through unique characters in various situations.
The works included in this collection changed the emotional tone and direction of subsequent Korean literature.
Using characters that were rarely discussed in existing literary genres, such as vampires, invisible men, and swindlers, he depicted the loneliness, impossibility of communication, and hopeless lives of modern people.
Critic Baek Ji-yeon noted the broad spectrum of stories Kim Young-ha covers and their dangerous novelty, writing:
“The stories Kim Young-ha will write in the future are endless, and we may encounter even more subversive forms that overturn the very meaning of literature.”
Kim Young-ha, who had already surprised the literary world with his unique and subversive imagination in his first collection of short stories, 『Call』, has further refined his already existing talent as a writer with his flowing narrative techniques in this second collection of short stories.
From “Your Tree,” which was praised as “moistening the reader’s heart with clear and pure water” (Oh Jeong-hee), to the title piece that relentlessly charges with Kafkaesque humor, and “Emergency Exit,” which rawly depicts the lives of young people living rough lives at the bottom of society, the author showcases his blossoming writing skills through unique characters in various situations.
The works included in this collection changed the emotional tone and direction of subsequent Korean literature.
Using characters that were rarely discussed in existing literary genres, such as vampires, invisible men, and swindlers, he depicted the loneliness, impossibility of communication, and hopeless lives of modern people.
Critic Baek Ji-yeon noted the broad spectrum of stories Kim Young-ha covers and their dangerous novelty, writing:
“The stories Kim Young-ha will write in the future are endless, and we may encounter even more subversive forms that overturn the very meaning of literature.”
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index
vampire
Photo Studio Murder Case
What happened to the man stuck in the elevator?
your tree
lightning rod
emergency exit
high-voltage lines
The wind blows
Commentary | Baek Ji-yeon (literary critic)
Where is the novel's 'emergency exit'?
In the revised edition
Photo Studio Murder Case
What happened to the man stuck in the elevator?
your tree
lightning rod
emergency exit
high-voltage lines
The wind blows
Commentary | Baek Ji-yeon (literary critic)
Where is the novel's 'emergency exit'?
In the revised edition
Into the book
All the vampires in the world were castrated.
The world is full of light.
There is nowhere to hide.
We were given the freedom of vampirism and the talent for rebellion, and in return we were given only the humiliation of survival… …
--- p.34 From "Vampire"
Isn't that the case everywhere in the world?
In the cracks of every thing there are seeds growing that will destroy it.
Now this sight remains only in Ta Prohm Temple, but until just a few decades ago, trees growing out of the jungle covered all the temples in Angkor.
(…) Until then, the tree had done two things.
One is to destroy the statues and temples with the roots, and the other is to support the temples and statues with the roots so that they do not completely collapse.
In this way, the tree and the Buddha were intertwined and endured for nine hundred years.
--- p.122 From "Your Tree"
At that moment, for a brief moment, I see a different world, a different me.
I become the master of my body, the air, and the earth.
wee.
We, or at least I, are one performer.
I will chase the cumulonimbus until I reach that state of perfection, where fear and shock are in sync, transcending the self.
--- p.144 From "Lightning Rod"
No one looked at him or spoke to him.
Days like that continued, continued.
Until today.
The world is full of light.
There is nowhere to hide.
We were given the freedom of vampirism and the talent for rebellion, and in return we were given only the humiliation of survival… …
--- p.34 From "Vampire"
Isn't that the case everywhere in the world?
In the cracks of every thing there are seeds growing that will destroy it.
Now this sight remains only in Ta Prohm Temple, but until just a few decades ago, trees growing out of the jungle covered all the temples in Angkor.
(…) Until then, the tree had done two things.
One is to destroy the statues and temples with the roots, and the other is to support the temples and statues with the roots so that they do not completely collapse.
In this way, the tree and the Buddha were intertwined and endured for nine hundred years.
--- p.122 From "Your Tree"
At that moment, for a brief moment, I see a different world, a different me.
I become the master of my body, the air, and the earth.
wee.
We, or at least I, are one performer.
I will chase the cumulonimbus until I reach that state of perfection, where fear and shock are in sync, transcending the self.
--- p.144 From "Lightning Rod"
No one looked at him or spoke to him.
Days like that continued, continued.
Until today.
--- p.217 From "High-voltage Lines"
Publisher's Review
In search of the origins of author Kim Young-ha
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of Kim Young-ha's debut in 2020, Bokbokseoga will be publishing a new novel and collection of short stories under the name 'Bokbokseoga x Kim Young-ha_Novel'.
After first releasing three volumes, 『Black Flower』, 『What Happened to the Man Stuck in the Elevator』, and 『Why Arang』, we plan to release a total of twelve volumes by 2022.
"What Happened to the Man Stuck in the Elevator?" is Kim Young-ha's second collection of short stories. It was first published by Munhak-kwa-Jiseongsa in 1999 and has been much loved ever since.
In this revised edition, the order of the included works has been adjusted, excluding “Everywhere and Nowhere” according to the author’s judgment.
Critic Baek Ji-yeon's commentary, which was included in the first edition but omitted from the Munhakdongne edition, has been added.
In 1999, at the end of the century, Kim Young-ha, a new writer in his fifth year of writing, published a collection of short stories with a title reminiscent of a comic book, “What Happened to the Man Stuck in the Elevator?” through Munhak-kwa-Jiseongsa.
Kim Young-ha, who had already surprised the literary world with his unique and subversive imagination in his first collection of short stories, 『Call』, has further refined his already existing talent as a writer with his flowing narrative techniques in this second collection of short stories.
From “Your Tree,” which was praised as “moistening the reader’s heart with clear and pure water” (Oh Jeong-hee), to the title piece that relentlessly charges with Kafkaesque humor, and “Emergency Exit,” which rawly depicts the lives of young people living rough lives at the bottom of society, the author showcases his blossoming writing skills through unique characters in various situations.
The works included in this collection changed the emotional tone and direction of subsequent Korean literature.
Using characters that were rarely discussed in existing literary genres, such as vampires, invisible men, and swindlers, he depicted the loneliness, impossibility of communication, and hopeless lives of modern people.
Critic Baek Ji-yeon noted the broad spectrum of stories Kim Young-ha covers and their dangerous novelty, writing:
“The stories Kim Young-ha will write in the future are endless, and we may encounter even more subversive forms that overturn the very meaning of literature.”
Author Kim Young-ha as an explorer,
A genre-bending feast of unconventional music
The works in "What Happened to the Man Stuck in the Elevator" are groundbreaking.
An ending that pursues neither tragedy nor comedy, a bold depiction that is far from 'nobility'.
Even reading it now, it feels fresh, but about 20 years ago when the novels were published, they seemed like the reckless adventures of a bold new writer who suddenly appeared.
The reason why this challenge by the new writer Kim Young-ha is not a simple one is because even when he draws in various entities outside of serious literature and deals with them in a fantasy setting, he succeeds in conveying weighty themes such as the loneliness and disconnection of modern people, the lack of communication, and the impossibility of understanding, with his unique, solid writing style.
The daily life scenes captured by Kim Young-ha are transformed into interesting imaginative stories and presented to readers.
Kim Young-ha, who represented the new wave of Korean literature in the 1990s, has become a representative writer of Korean literature over the past 20 years.
Twenty years later, reading this collection of short stories will be a fascinating exploration into the origins of author Kim Young-ha.
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of Kim Young-ha's debut in 2020, Bokbokseoga will be publishing a new novel and collection of short stories under the name 'Bokbokseoga x Kim Young-ha_Novel'.
After first releasing three volumes, 『Black Flower』, 『What Happened to the Man Stuck in the Elevator』, and 『Why Arang』, we plan to release a total of twelve volumes by 2022.
"What Happened to the Man Stuck in the Elevator?" is Kim Young-ha's second collection of short stories. It was first published by Munhak-kwa-Jiseongsa in 1999 and has been much loved ever since.
In this revised edition, the order of the included works has been adjusted, excluding “Everywhere and Nowhere” according to the author’s judgment.
Critic Baek Ji-yeon's commentary, which was included in the first edition but omitted from the Munhakdongne edition, has been added.
In 1999, at the end of the century, Kim Young-ha, a new writer in his fifth year of writing, published a collection of short stories with a title reminiscent of a comic book, “What Happened to the Man Stuck in the Elevator?” through Munhak-kwa-Jiseongsa.
Kim Young-ha, who had already surprised the literary world with his unique and subversive imagination in his first collection of short stories, 『Call』, has further refined his already existing talent as a writer with his flowing narrative techniques in this second collection of short stories.
From “Your Tree,” which was praised as “moistening the reader’s heart with clear and pure water” (Oh Jeong-hee), to the title piece that relentlessly charges with Kafkaesque humor, and “Emergency Exit,” which rawly depicts the lives of young people living rough lives at the bottom of society, the author showcases his blossoming writing skills through unique characters in various situations.
The works included in this collection changed the emotional tone and direction of subsequent Korean literature.
Using characters that were rarely discussed in existing literary genres, such as vampires, invisible men, and swindlers, he depicted the loneliness, impossibility of communication, and hopeless lives of modern people.
Critic Baek Ji-yeon noted the broad spectrum of stories Kim Young-ha covers and their dangerous novelty, writing:
“The stories Kim Young-ha will write in the future are endless, and we may encounter even more subversive forms that overturn the very meaning of literature.”
Author Kim Young-ha as an explorer,
A genre-bending feast of unconventional music
The works in "What Happened to the Man Stuck in the Elevator" are groundbreaking.
An ending that pursues neither tragedy nor comedy, a bold depiction that is far from 'nobility'.
Even reading it now, it feels fresh, but about 20 years ago when the novels were published, they seemed like the reckless adventures of a bold new writer who suddenly appeared.
The reason why this challenge by the new writer Kim Young-ha is not a simple one is because even when he draws in various entities outside of serious literature and deals with them in a fantasy setting, he succeeds in conveying weighty themes such as the loneliness and disconnection of modern people, the lack of communication, and the impossibility of understanding, with his unique, solid writing style.
The daily life scenes captured by Kim Young-ha are transformed into interesting imaginative stories and presented to readers.
Kim Young-ha, who represented the new wave of Korean literature in the 1990s, has become a representative writer of Korean literature over the past 20 years.
Twenty years later, reading this collection of short stories will be a fascinating exploration into the origins of author Kim Young-ha.
GOODS SPECIFICS
- Date of issue: July 20, 2020
- Page count, weight, size: 276 pages | 304g | 128*198*17mm
- ISBN13: 9791197021640
- ISBN10: 1197021647
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