Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award 2025 Nominee: Young Adult Novel by Jeong-wook Ko

“You are the tree, and the tree is you.
“If your center is not shaken, you will not fall even if the world shakes.”

《Black Ship》 is a coming-of-age novel based on Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism, about a boy who has been hurt and closed off from the world, and who journeys to recover himself through training and connections.

The main character, Hoon, is a middle school student who lives with his shaman mother and disabled father.
He was neglected and looked down upon by the cold gaze of those who called him a 'good boy', but he begins a new life of brewing medicine and cultivating his energy with a mysterious old junk dealer as his teacher.
A conflict with the school bully, a classmate's secret illness, and even a Dongti incident at the ancestral grave? As the real and unseen worlds intersect, Hoon delves deeper into his inner world.

This novel is a story about finding the unwavering center of oneself amidst the prejudice that shamanism is superstition, the shackles of family, and the anxiety and loneliness of adolescence.

“We must calm the hatred.”
Hoon remembered what Old Man Kang had said today.
I knew what kind of hate you were talking about.
It was the anger toward the world that had settled in a corner of my heart.
Looking out the window at the moon, Hoon finished preparing for bed and sat cross-legged on the floor, falling into deep meditation.
He slowly inhaled and exhaled, following the breathing technique that Old Man Kang had taught him.
--- p.17~18

The moment they faced each other's wounds, they realized for the first time that their pain could be understood by someone else.
The quiet atmosphere of the cafe that day connected the two of them on a very deep level, to the point where they could read each other's minds just by looking at each other without saying a word.
That day, the two children learned for the first time that sharing pain means sharing their hearts.
--- p.38~39

He closed the book and fixed his gaze on Hoon.
“But real strength comes when you don’t use it.
Only those who can win without fighting are truly strong.
The Way of the Immortal is the way to escape all the laws of this world.
It's not a tool to achieve what you want.
“That is greed, that is obsession, and that is poison that will ultimately ruin you.”
And then he paused for a moment.
It was as if he was looking into Hoon's mind.
--- p.50

Someone whispered.
A warm voice blew past Hoon's ears like the wind.
I looked around.
The gods smiled gently and beckoned him.
My steps became lighter.
The ground seemed to push his feet, and his body seemed to skim through the air.
In the center was a lake of crystal-clear water, the water sparkling and singing blue.
A god took his hand and pulled him.
--- p.94

But fear remained in one corner of Hoon's heart.
Because I didn't know what price this drug would cost me.
Jisoo just held Hoon's hand tightly.
“Thank you, Hoon.
I… I think I’ll be okay now.”
Hoon nodded quietly.
However, the two did not know that Woo-seok was looking at them from afar.
There was a mixture of curiosity and jealousy in those eyes.

--- p.103~104