Please Look After Mom

Pak Sonye seems to have disappeared into thin air in the middle of the Seoul train station. Her husband let go of his wife’s hand, and the crowd swallowed her. The entire family launches a search for their mother—children post announcements, ask possible witnesses… But it seems Pak Sonye has vanished without a trace. And the more the family gathers information to move the search off a dead center, the more they realize how little they truly knew Sonye—who, in essence, was the most important person for each of them.

Sin Gyeong-suk is one of South Korea’s leading literary figures, the first woman nominated for the Man Asian Literary Prize. The novel “Please Find My Mother” became a landmark literary event not only for Asian countries (the award from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of South Korea), but for the whole world. The novel has been published in 43 countries.

* Republic of Korea Culture and Arts Award
* Man Asian Literary Prize
* Hyundae Literature Award
* 21st Century Literature Award

“Within the shortest time, the novel sold an enormous number of copies and caused the so-called ‘mother syndrome’ in Korean society.” seoul.co.kr

“A touching story of regret and belated wisdom, clearly showing how globalism—at the everyday, ‘human’ level—hurts souls and gives no confidence in one’s actions.” Wall Street Journal

“Sin Gyeong-suk’s novel about a missing elderly woman in Seoul hit readers hard. It reflects a global tendency to take mothers and their selflessness for granted. And it hurts even more in the episode where the missing woman’s children realize they don’t even have a recent photograph of their own mother…” The Guardian

“A beautiful, convincing novel. A very intimate family story searching for the beloved mother, as well as a skillful portrayal of South Korea.” BBC

“A painful hymn to the mystery of motherhood.” The New York Times Book Review

“Loneliness within the family circle, depression, and the secrets of a secluded life.” Publishers Weekly

“In some ways, this is a metaphor about Korean society’s transition from the countryside to cities, and partly an elegy to the importance of family ties sustained mainly by selfless women. This is a restrained, gentle novel that only occasionally slips into sentimentality.” Kirkus