Bestselling author Go Jeong-wook's
A full-fledged Korean novel for teenagers

Kim Seong-un, a Korean language genius who transferred to a new school
Capture the hearts of half the children with just a few words!

Author Goh Jeong-wook says it is unfortunate that many students these days are neglecting reading and are addicted to the internet and cell phones, which is causing their literacy skills to decline.
In the afterword, the author writes, 'Literacy goes beyond the simple ability to read and understand text; it plays an important role in forming thinking, expressive, and logical thinking skills.
If you don't read, your depth of thought will become shallow and your ability to express your emotions will inevitably be limited.
He emphasizes the importance of literacy, saying, "This is a very big problem not only for social life but also for personal growth."


The main characters of “Korean Language by Chance” are children with low literacy skills.
The main characters of "Mathematics I Met by Chance," Gong Jun-pyo, Equation, and Se-in, appear as they are, but Equation, who was a math genius, is helpless in front of the 'Korean language'.
The three children appear on a TV show thanks to their discovery of a lost gilt-bronze Buddha statue from Noksansa Temple, but their poor literacy and speech skills ruin the interview.
In front of these three children, the Korean language genius Kim Seong-un appears like a comet.
Kim Seong-un, a child in need of protection, immediately captures the hearts of children with his wonderful speaking skills, honed through reading, and his upright and confident demeanor.
There, novelist Park Cheong-gang appears and creates a reading group for children.

Through the activities of the four children, we tell them stories from various novels, such as “The Life Before Us,” and instill curiosity about literature. We also allow them to learn pure Korean and idiomatic expressions through Seong-un, who appears in a Korean language quiz to find his lost mother.

“Today, three students with special stories have come to this event.
Gong Jun-pyo, Jeong Sik, and Kang Se-in are famous for finding a gilt-bronze Buddha statue that was washed away by a landslide.
Let's get straight to the question.
“How did you find the Buddha statue?”
Junpyo froze at the announcer's question.
Jeongsik and Sein also made eye contact and looked puzzled.
I couldn't remember a single line of the script I had memorized so diligently.
--- p.10, Children with low literacy skills

“This guy’s name is Kim Seong-woon.
I transferred from Daesan Middle School.
“Make sure you all take good care of yourself.”
Seongwoon hesitated for a moment and then opened his mouth.
"hello.
“This is Kim Seong-un.”
“Please introduce yourself.”
After hearing the homeroom teacher's words, the child looked around the classroom for a moment, exchanged glances, and then continued speaking.
“I grew up in an orphanage from the age of three.
People in the world often look at me with pity when they call the place I live an orphanage and say I'm an orphan.
But I think this way.
As the saying goes, "You carve out your own destiny," where I am doesn't determine my future.
Likewise, I don't think that having my parents or not is a 100 percent variable in my life.”
--- p.22, Transfer Student

Junpyo became a little more interested in Seongwoon.
And without realizing it, Seong-un's empathy for his situation grew.
According to information that Seong-in asked later, Seong-un said that he liked Korean the most.
Jeongsik opened his eyes wide when he heard that.
"What? You say you like Korean the most? Is there really such a person in the world? Korean doesn't have clear answers like math, does it?"
Se-in concluded with a playful smile.
"Jeongsik is a math genius, Seongwoon is a Korean genius! There are two geniuses in our class."
“Genius is a word that is only used for verifiable subjects like mathematics.
“Does a Korean language genius make sense?”
--- p.26, Transfer student

Jeongsik nodded and asked.
“What is a metaphor?”
“A metaphor is a way of expressing something by comparing it to something else.
For example, the sentence 'His laughter is like sunshine' compares laughter to sunshine, giving a bright and warm feeling.
When directly comparing two objects, use words like 'same' or 'like'.
It's a metaphor.
It's a technique of direct analogy.
Make your expression more vivid by making them think about what the subject of the metaphor is.
“Using these techniques can leave a deeper impression on the reader.”
Jeongsik looked at Seongun with respectful eyes.
--- p.40, On the back mountain

Woo-seok clenched his fist again and spoke back.
“Hey, sir, I told you to get out.”
The man took a step closer and spoke quietly.
“Judging by your harsh words and actions, you seem to be a bully.”
The old man's words were logical and powerful.
The group of Woo-seoks around him also gradually became quiet and began to listen attentively.
Woo-seok still looked at the old man with a conflicted expression.
“When you’re a teenager, it seems like power is everything in this world.
True strength comes from mastering anger and resolving problems peacefully.
It's a more difficult path, but a much more worthwhile one.
easy."
The man looked back and forth between the two children for a moment and nodded.
--- p.48, Author Park Cheong-gang

“Korean is difficult.”
Se-in also raised his head and made a loud noise.
“Teacher, no matter how much I study Korean, my grades don’t improve.
“I feel like Sisyphus, constantly pushing a rock up a mountain.”
“Um… Is it because Korean is difficult that my grades aren’t improving?”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
Se-in raised his head and looked into the warm and serious eyes of Professor Park Cheong-gang.
“Korean isn’t just about memorizing grammar, reading, and solving problems.
Literacy, the ability to read and understand text, is also necessary.
“If your literacy skills are poor, all other subjects will be difficult.”
--- p.65, The new Korean teacher

“The Life Before Us” was not just a novel.
It was my life story and a message to children like me.
“In this world where no one loves us, we must not forget that we must live our lives… This work made me realize that fact once again.”
Even after finishing his presentation, Seongwoon couldn't speak for a while.
A tear welled up in Seong-un's eye and ran down his cheek.
The classroom was silent, and several girls looked at Seong-un, wiping away tears.
Se-in muttered while wiping her tears with a tissue.
“This is so sad.
I sprinkled some mala-tang on the writing.
huh."
The eyes of the children in the reading club classroom were filled with empathy for Seong-un's pain.
Teacher Park Cheong-gang also seemed lost in thought after listening to Seong-un's heartfelt presentation.
Of all the presentations I've heard, few have conveyed emotions so deeply.
The teacher took a moment to catch his breath, looked at Seong-un quietly, and began to applaud enthusiastically once again.
One by one, the children began to clap along with their teacher, and the classroom was filled with the sound of applause to cheer on Seong-un.
_Tearful Reading Notes, pp. 77-78

Se-in, Jun-pyo, Jeong-sik, and Seong-un eventually decided to start a YouTube channel together.
The channel name was decided as 'Enjoying Korean Language Life', a parody of the drama title 'Wise ○○ Life', at Se-in's suggestion.
Junpyo brought his dad's old digital camcorder.
It was something I used when filming math online lectures.
“It’s a bit old, but I think this will be enough for filming.”
Once the camera was ready, the rest was a breeze.
We chose a park near the school and a reading club classroom as filming locations.
The problem was the first shoot.
It was a big task just to write the script.
Because I didn't know what to do first.
Following Sungwoon's suggestion, they decided to start by releasing a video of each person introducing themselves in front of the camera.
Se-in decided to talk about her dream of becoming the owner of a beauty shop, and Seong-un decided to talk about how he came to like books and about brain science.
Jeongsik decided to share the secret to his success in math.
--- p.95~96, Adoption documents

“Isn’t that right, Nebula? I’m your mother.”
Seongwoon was momentarily shocked.
“Oh, Mom…?”
The woman looked at Seong-un, who was at a loss for words, and spoke affectionately.
"okay.
“I saw the broadcast and knew you were my son.”
At that moment, a complex emotion surged through Seong-un's mind.
The mother I had been searching for so long had finally appeared.
In a place I never expected, at a time I never expected.
Seong-un, who was dumbfounded, was speechless for a moment.
But I also had doubts, so I asked cautiously.
“Do you remember where you left me?”
The woman hesitated for a moment and then gave an odd answer.
“Throw it away? What do you mean? I lost it.
I lost you near the park.
I left you with the woman next to me to look after and went to the store, but when I came back, both of you were gone.
It was really hard back then.
“Sob sob!”
It was an unbelievable story.
--- p.150, Mom appeared

Before the recording began, Se-in, Jun-pyo, and Jeong-sik, who were heading to the audience, waved their hands one last time to cheer on Seong-un.
Seongwoon smiled at his friends' warm support and entered the performers' waiting room.
Se-in, sitting in the audience, looked at the stage with a pounding heart.
As usual, he was unable to even chat, which was unusual for him.
When Seong-un appeared on stage, the three children held their breath and looked only at Seong-un.
The recording began with a female announcer coming out and greeting people as bright lights came on.
- The pride of the Republic of Korea.
Love for our language is love for our country!
Hello! It's time for 'Our Language' again.
The competition, which began with applause, began with simple basic problems.
The four contestants continued their fiery competition, each showing off their skills.
When Seong-un got the question right, his friends jumped up and down, cheering so loudly that the broadcasting station seemed to have been unified.
On the other hand, if you are wrong, you will sigh so hard that the ground will collapse.
It was so bad that the host even mentioned it.
“Kim Seong-woon’s cheering squad is like a hundred against one.
Hoho!”
--- p.171, Final

The first problem arose.
- Which is the correct spelling, ‘jjoro-ni’ or ‘jjoreuni’?
The moment Seongwoon saw the problem, he felt relieved.
This expression, which refers to relatively small things lined up neatly, was a common saying of my homeroom teacher.
So I can confidently answer
I chose it.
But the rest of the people chose the answer right away without hesitation.
Everyone was correct.
The second problem was a little more difficult.
- Which expression is correct, 'separated party' or 'separated party'?
Seongwoon was confused for a moment.
The one who gave the position was the one who separated it, and the one who took the civil service examination was the one who set it aside.
The official position was decided by cycle.
Moreover, I remembered what Mr. Park Cheong-gang said on the day he came to Noksan Middle School, when he spoke about the importance of reading and habits, saying, “It’s a separate subject.”
I quickly pressed the 'take away' button, thinking that the recipient was not the one who was picking.
Other challengers also chose their answers almost simultaneously.
The correct answer was 'separated party'.
--- p.173~175, Final

The Korean language serves to refine our thoughts and provide direction for our lives.
All the words and writing we use in our daily lives, and the meanings contained within them, make us deeper people.
Studying Korean is not simply a means to do well on exams; it is an essential element for enriching our lives.
Because the power of words has tremendous energy that can transform us and change the world.

--- From the author's note in the main text