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Set during the Korean War in 1951, The Naked Tree is a stunning work of graphic fiction adapted from the acclaimed Korean novel of the same name by Park Wan-suh. The adaptation by Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, published just last year, is known for its harrowing depictions of a desolate land and a destructive war that tore the Korean peninsula — and its people — in two.
Gendry-Kim was born in Goheung in Jeolla Province, South Korea. She studied Western painting at Sejong University and in 1998 graduated in arts, specializing in sculpture and installation at the Strasbourg School of Decorative Arts. Most notably, she received the Harvey Award for Best International Book and the Krause Essay Prize in 2020.
In the following excerpt, twenty-year-old Lee Kyeonga prepares to return home from her job at the Post Exchange (PX), in the heart of Seoul, where she sells hand-painted portraits on silk handkerchiefs to American soldiers. As the landscape shifts, from the brightly lit streets surrounding the PX to the dark lanes, even the seemingly harmless banging of spoons against metal becomes a fearful reminder of the violence that surrounds her.
Excerpted from The Naked Tree by Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, published by Drawn & Quarterly, 2023. Copyright © 2023 by Keum Suk Gendry-Kim. Used with permission. All rights reserved.
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