OUR TWISTED HERO
by Yi Munyol & translated by Kevin O’Rourke
Similarities to Italian neo-realist fiction, as well as to William Golding's Lord of the Flies, abound in this taut, engrossing 1987 South Korean novel. The story's narrated 30 years after its protagonist Han Pyongt'ae's experiences in a rural elementary school "ruled" by Om Sokdae, a haughty class monitor—a charismatic, confident boy whose power over his supposed peers gradually assumes subtly understated allegorical (political) dimensions, and casts shadows that will darken several lives, not excluding his own. A potent little morality tale, beautifully constructed and shimmering with richly suggestive ironies.