Apartment Women 네 이웃의 식탁: A Gripping Korean Novel by Gu Byeong-mo 구병모

" A new government-owned apartment complex opens up in a village outside Seoul, boasting subsidized rent and newly-built accommodations for struggling families. The catch? Only heterosexual couples with at least one child are eligible to apply, so long as they promise to raise a minimum of three while living as part of this community. The first four families move in, signed agreement in hand, none of them expecting that their intimate struggles would soon become revealed by the thin walls that divide them. In Apartment Women, Gu Byeong-mo has written a thought-provoking commentary on gender roles and parenthood in modern Korea. In this communal apartment complex where the sole purpose is to have more children, the residents come face-to-face with the expectations of a society so focused on the dropping birth rate. One mom struggles with managing a freelance career while grappling with motherhood and a clueless husband. Another mom tries to navigate boundaries with her new carpool partner, who makes increasingly out-of-pocket comments despite being married to another tenant. Another woman tries to remain budget-conscious and portray a perfect image online when her home life is anything but perfect. Still another woman tries to corral the disparate families to set up a communal daycare, to feel useful and connected to her new community. These families deal with their conflicts under a microscope, forced to reckon with their beliefs about the role a woman plays in her household and in her community....."

'네 이웃의 식탁'이라는 한국소설을 영어로 번역한 작품이다. 이분의 이전 작품인 'The Old woman with the knife' 때문에 읽기 시작한 작품인데 예상했던 내용이 많아서 그런지 신선한 느낌은 없었다. 작품이 비교적 단편이라 한국어 하고 비교하면서 읽었는데... 한국적인 내용이고 한국어 하고 비교하면서 읽어서 그런지 이해하는데 큰 문제는 없는 작품이다. 번역이 비교적 잘 되어있는 거 같다. 표현이나 문장의 구조는 난해하지 않다.