Kim Ki-tae, a rising star in 2020s Korean literature, has garnered critical acclaim and a devoted readership for his debut short story collection, "The Two Internationals." Published by Munhakdongne, the collection features nine stories, including the titular piece and award-winning works such as "All the Seas in the World" and "Common Culture."
Most of the stories center around ordinary people, characters that readers might encounter in their daily lives. As these characters navigate various life events, their struggles, transformations, and growth are depicted with such compelling prose and intricate plotting that readers cannot help but empathize.
The title story, "The Two Internationals," explores how historical events and ideologies, seemingly distant from our present-day lives, can be transformed and transmitted to shape the experiences of ordinary people. Beginning with the iconic line "The history of the two is long," the story traces a path from Marx and Engels' "The Communist Manifesto" to the lives of two young Koreans, Kwon Jin-ju and Kim Nikolai. The novel offers a subtle optimism, inviting readers to imagine possible hopes and futures.
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