BOOK CLUB REPORT - July 2025
By Casey Eckersley
KCCNYC Dosan Hakdang June Meeting
On June 5, the Dosan Hakdang book club was joined by author Bora Chung to discuss Your Utopia, a series of short stories depicting worlds ranging from fully dystopian to slightly surreal. We were joined by several faces new to the Korean Culture Center, and the excitement to talk with Bora was evident from the onset.
We opened our meeting with an opportunity for everyone in the group to name a word that they felt captures the feeling of Bora’s stories. I personally liked Colin’s choice of ‘cathartic’, noting that her stories act as a mirror that allows us to see how strange the real world has become (with just enough humor scattered throughout to stomach the view).
A few group favorites were “A Song for Sleep”, in which a futuristic automated elevator forms a connection with an elderly resident in the building. More than a few tears were shed on the subway while reading it. Another favorite was “The Center for Immortality Research”, a story close to reality in which a hapless graphic designer suffers a fate painfully relatable to many of the attendees. Almost every story in the book was mentioned at least once; it is a testament to Bora’s writing that so many of us connected to so many aspects of her stories.
Author Bora Chung
The primary story we met to discuss, “To Meet Her”, is a beautiful imagining of a dystopian future in which a woman finally gets to attend a fan meeting of a long idolized celebrity. No spoilers here, but the group discussed at length Byun Hui-Su, the transgender soldier whose death in 2021 and posthumous military reinstatement showed progress for LGBTQ rights in a country that has struggled to protect diversity of gender and sexual orientation. Bora was inspired to write “To Meet Her” because she wanted to imagine a world where Byun Hui-Su lives and thrives. Bora told the group that she feels her writing is not powerful enough to change the world, so for her it is more important to be out protesting than to simply imagine how the world could be different through fiction. I believe I can speak for the group when I say that we have all been genuinely moved by her work, and we are so appreciative for both her words and her actions.
When asked about the title, Bora mentioned that it’s easier to publish dystopian stories than utopian ones because nothing ever happens in a utopian world. It was interesting that several in the group described her works as optimistic, hopeful and humane when she stated definitively that she is a pessimist without much hope for the world. However she copes with this dichotomy herself, she has inspired us to never surrender to apathy or indifference. To quote her directly - “We’re all going to die and it may all be meaningless, but if that’s the case what reason is there not to try?”
JULY BOOK CLUB
For our July meeting, the Dosan Hakdang book club is reading Yeonnam-Dong’s Smiley Laundromat by Kim Jiyun. A lovely and breezy summer read - there’s still time to grab your copy and join us for the next meet on July 20th at 2 PM Eastern time.
RSVP for the July book club meeting here
August Book Announcement for DOSAN HAKDANG: poetry of resistance
Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet, is a great movie to watch in preparation for next book club!
In August, we will be exploring the poetry of resistance - works that sustained Koreans during the occupation and helped people reflect on the difficult period afterwards. We have selected specific poems snd will be providing background material about the poets. We look forward to you joining us.
Dosan Hakdang is gathering the readings for the next month, please stay tuned!