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A review by bethniamh
The Korean Book of Happiness: Joy, Resilience and the Art of Giving by Barbara J. ZITWER
3.0
Many thanks to Octopus Publishing and NetGalley for a digital ARC in exchange for a review.
Barbara J. Zitner has done a lot to raise the profile of Korean literature in the English-speaking world, and for that alone she has my admiration. This book caught my eye for that reason and because I lived in Korea for 4 years, and was interested to see how my experiences would be reflected in this book. Obviously, this book focuses on the good things about Korea (of which there are many), brushing over the bad (as exists everywhere). I would have liked to have seen more Hangeul in the text, perhaps to accompany the clumsy romanisations of Korean words; the Korean alphabet in itself is fascinating in its history, and I'm somewhat surprised this wasn't even alluded to in the book.
There were, however, a few sentences or passages which stood out to me as not being particularly accurate, based on my own lived experience in the country. Early on, Zitwer mentions that "most Koreans do not speak English, or any other language for that matter". English language instruction is a core part of Korean schooling, with children beginning learning English in school from Grade 3 and many students going to after-school English hagwons, or academies. My job for 4 years in Korea was as an elementary school English teacher. Additionally, whenever I went anywhere within the country, people there would be very willing to try out the English they knew, whether fluent or just a few words; I never worried about making myself understood or communicating with people, even in my early days in the country when my Korean was particularly limited. This sentence is odd and does a disservice to the people in Korea.
When talking about shopping in Seoul, Zitwer makes the puzzling claim that "Korean women only wear flat shoes - I have never seen them in high heels". To illustrate how untrue this is, I once saw a woman hiking up Geumosan in stilettos.
In the concluding chapter, Zitner seems to imply that "splashing ourselves everywhere on social media" is solely a Western habit, and that Koreans are different. This is clearly inaccurate; you wouldn't have had to have been in Korea longer than a day to observe that this is definitely not the case. Alternatively, search for the hashtags #카페스타그램 or #셀카 on Instagram.
This isn't an academic text, but nor does it claim to be. This was an enjoyable and quick, if occasionally frustrating, read. I'm sure it will find an audience of casual tourists who will find much to take away from this.
Barbara J. Zitner has done a lot to raise the profile of Korean literature in the English-speaking world, and for that alone she has my admiration. This book caught my eye for that reason and because I lived in Korea for 4 years, and was interested to see how my experiences would be reflected in this book. Obviously, this book focuses on the good things about Korea (of which there are many), brushing over the bad (as exists everywhere). I would have liked to have seen more Hangeul in the text, perhaps to accompany the clumsy romanisations of Korean words; the Korean alphabet in itself is fascinating in its history, and I'm somewhat surprised this wasn't even alluded to in the book.
There were, however, a few sentences or passages which stood out to me as not being particularly accurate, based on my own lived experience in the country. Early on, Zitwer mentions that "most Koreans do not speak English, or any other language for that matter". English language instruction is a core part of Korean schooling, with children beginning learning English in school from Grade 3 and many students going to after-school English hagwons, or academies. My job for 4 years in Korea was as an elementary school English teacher. Additionally, whenever I went anywhere within the country, people there would be very willing to try out the English they knew, whether fluent or just a few words; I never worried about making myself understood or communicating with people, even in my early days in the country when my Korean was particularly limited. This sentence is odd and does a disservice to the people in Korea.
When talking about shopping in Seoul, Zitwer makes the puzzling claim that "Korean women only wear flat shoes - I have never seen them in high heels". To illustrate how untrue this is, I once saw a woman hiking up Geumosan in stilettos.
In the concluding chapter, Zitner seems to imply that "splashing ourselves everywhere on social media" is solely a Western habit, and that Koreans are different. This is clearly inaccurate; you wouldn't have had to have been in Korea longer than a day to observe that this is definitely not the case. Alternatively, search for the hashtags #카페스타그램 or #셀카 on Instagram.
This isn't an academic text, but nor does it claim to be. This was an enjoyable and quick, if occasionally frustrating, read. I'm sure it will find an audience of casual tourists who will find much to take away from this.