Winter in Korea 7
Strange Nest 19
New Round 33
Don't let your guard down 50
Unplanned Encounter 68
86 people visiting
Mom's Birthday 103
Feeling of being near 116
Secret Revealed 130
Don't cry, please 143
Fight! 161
Ointment for wounds 176
185 per day from today

Epilogue 198
Author's Note 199

I staggered, my body swaying, but I took the steps again.
My round is just beginning

Iraya's full-length novel, "Fight," was published as the 135th issue of Changbi Youth Literature.
This is the story of seventeen-year-old Haram, who grew up in Cambodia with his missionary father, and runs away to the unfamiliar land of Korea to pursue his dream of becoming a martial arts fighter.
Haram, who has endured lonely times between her father who is busy taking care of others and her mother who does not even pay attention to her daughter, is shown to face life in her own way, conveying heartbreaking emotions.


Neighbors do not just pass by Haram, who is enduring the harsh Korean cold without even a coat.
They look at Haram carefully and show affection in their own way.
The feelings conveyed in this way gave Haram the courage to face head-on the long-standing wounds of her family that everyone had been covering up.
Rather than hastily resolving the conflict with reconciliation, the author's meticulousness stands out in the passage where he heals the wounds and opens the way to overcoming the shadow of the family.
The immersive fighting scenes, blending with Haram's desperate inner self, add rhythm and fun.
Haram's unwavering, unwavering steps, even in moments of uncertainty and uncertainty, will resonate with those enduring lonely and confusing times for a long time.

Our lives unfold not on a wide, flat road, but on a combat field of attack and defense, sometimes requiring the skill to endure.
When the protagonist wanted to give up and give up, it was the warm hospitality shown by his friends and neighbors that helped him get up.
A must-read for young readers who want to escape the world of fairy tales.
Oh Se-ran (critic)

★★ Reviews from young readers who have read the work in advance ★★
“As I read, I kept hoping for the main character’s happiness.”
“It’s really so much fun.
“I hope more books like this come out.”
“It was so immersive that I kept getting teary-eyed and angry.”

Unexpected people encountered in unfamiliar and cold Korea
A warm welcome for those playing their respective rounds

Haram, who grew up in Cambodia since he was three, boldly flies about 3,500 kilometers to his unfamiliar hometown of Korea to escape his indifferent and cruel parents.
The airport and train station I encountered with great tension were very cold and desolate, unlike the simulation I had replayed in my head.

Unexpected people reach out to Haram as he searches for his treasure trove bare-handed.
The old lady next door whom I met at the bus stop gave me her padding, and the gym manager accepted it and told me to work hard, despite the fact that there was no registration fee.
Muha and Wonji, who have a common interest in martial arts, readily approach each other and become friends.
Inspector Kwon, the local police officer who was thought to be a 'unlucky rapper', stands by Haram's side whenever he needs to.

“Even the bravest people, the ones who laugh a lot, and the ones who are courageous all have a painful side.
Everyone.
“I lived this long thinking I was the only one who was suffering, but in some corner, everyone was suffering like that.” (p.
193)

Haram, who has struggled to get used to living alone but really needs someone he can rely on, gradually discovers the power of comfort offered by others.
And we also realize that everyone lives with their own pain, and through that pain, they can spread more affection to those around them.
Even for Muha, who gave Haram careful help, for Wonji, who showed her lively and affectionate feelings, and for Inspector Kwon, who willingly became Haram's strong protector, there was a sad time when he could only endure by hitting and beating everything.

“My eyes always look for my mother like this.
“I wish you had just looked at me once.”

Even as Haram experiences various incidents among new environments and people, his mother is always in his sight.
Even though I resent my mother for forgetting how to talk to me, and even though I tell myself every time that I'm tired of unrequited love and want to stop, I can't help but look at my mother.
Towards the end of the story, Haram learns why her mother could not see her properly, and she courageously uncovers the painful secret that her parents had been avoiding and hiding.

“It hurts not to be close to your mother and not to have a loving relationship, but when your mother can’t forgive you, don’t try too hard to forgive her.
(...) Don't forgive, but if you understand even a little, look at your mother's life and say, "That's how it is, it's a shame."
Don't try to get too close and don't get caught up.
Because that's mom's life.
“You live your life.” (Main text, pp. 193-194)

Haram receives a sincere apology from his father, and is able to see his mother more clearly through the cracks in the thick wall of his heart.
But, like Detective Kwon's advice that you don't have to try too hard to forgive your mother, "Fight" doesn't talk about easy forgiveness or reconciliation.
It is carefully pointed out that an apology is not enough to soothe the pain and hurt that Haram has endured throughout his seventeen years.
Instead, Haram decides to simply admire his parents for 'holding on in a woefully inadequate way.'
Haram, who has come to look at his parents from a distance, takes a step toward his own world.


3, 2, 1… Fight!
Towards the world I want to embrace

At first, Haram followed his mother's gaze and found his dream of becoming a martial arts fighter, and the space called Korea gradually became his own unique world.
Haram's earnest desire to not dodge even when a punch comes is reborn as courage, and the punches that were once just hasty gain weight.
Because there were times when he swayed alone and held on firmly, and because there were people who recognized and encouraged those times, Haram's steps, as he broadens his horizons and looks at the world he wants to embrace, are stronger and brighter.
This is a novel that will give courage to everyone who is enduring life on their own ring.

Now I don't crave for my mother to look after me.
I'm past the age where I can hide behind my father's pants.
I don't expect you to embrace me with open arms.
I realized that there was a world I wanted to embrace more than my mom and dad's embrace.
My longing is now directed towards that world.
(P.
196-197)