Drifting House
Lee’s debut story collection features diverse characters confronting the terms of their distinct situations and misfortunes, exploring the borders between lost homelands and shifting relationships. In “A Temporary Marriage,” Mrs. Shin leaves Seoul for California to find her young daughter, kidnapped three years earlier by her ex-husband. She arranges a sham marriage with Korean emigrate Mr. Rhee, a relationship that becomes more nuanced as Mrs. Shin’s search intensifies. In the devastating title tale, three young siblings have no choice but to flee famine-ravaged North Korea for China, a journey that leads to harrowing decisions. “The Salaryman” follows a South Korean businessman as his life spirals out of control after he is fired from his job. “At the Edge of the World” portrays nine-year-old Mark Lee and his parents as they navigate their new life in Los Angeles, while Mark’s father struggles to come to terms with his past. Varying in settings from North and South Korea to the U.S., from postwar to present age, Lee’s nine tales offer haunting perspectives of dislocation and reconciliation. --Leah Strauss