I'm Waiting for You and Other Stories by Kim Bo-youngMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
I'm Waiting For You and other stories, is a translated collection of four science fiction short stories that explore what it means to be human. The collection has a bookend feel with I'm Waiting For You and On My Way, two connected stories that have main characters tethered by love but separated by space and time. The middle two stories, The Prophet of Corruption and That One Life, blend Korean mythology, science, and science fiction. The latter half of the book gives us author, translator, and original reader's notes and a glossary. I would suggest reading the glossary before The Prophet of Corruption to familiarize yourself with the terms used in the story to get a stronger foothold in the world. However, I think the author and original reader's notes should be read after all the stories are read because of the different impact they will have and how it will make you want to go back and read two of the stories again.
I'm Waiting For You
Someone once said that space and time are actually the same thing.
The first story and my favorite, introduces us to a man traveling in the universe to get back to earth for his wedding. It's told in loose letter form, he's sending letters to his fiancée and the reader gets the essence and sometimes wording of those letters but also observations of what is happening to him. The short story gives us 15 letters but also centuries as mistakes, mishaps, and a mixture of good and bad luck keep the groom from, sometimes when and sometimes where, he needs to be. You'll feel his loneliness, frustration, and will as you'll question along with him what it means to survive.
The Prophet of Corruption and That One Life
“You'll know you're corrupt the moment you want to put clothes on.”
The middle two are the longest and shortest of the collection and probably the two that would give book clubs the most and varied discussions. The blend of mythology with theoretical framework like superstring theory, had this at times confusing and profound to me. As the reader follows along with the character of Naban, they'll question the 'corruption of man' and creation to be human.
They who were oblivious to the greatness of survival and scorned life's battles, who failed to see the sacredness of one person's individuality.
On My Way To You
They say that we're taking up food and clothing that should rightfully be theirs to enjoy. They even say that we'll endanger the lives of the women and children. A funny thing to say, really. Half of us are women and children, too.
While we started with the groom, this last story gives us the bride and her journey through her letters. She goes through the same give and take of good and bad luck. Having read the groom's story, this one has moments that hit even deeper as you'll see missed opportunities and how close and far away they were from each other.
Told through a science fiction lens, this collection was at turns bleak, hopeful, and questioning. The first story will have you thinking that hell is solitude, the middle two will have you thinking that hell is only our own creation, and the last will have you thinking hell is other people. The hopefulness comes from the author's ability to shine through the emotions of love and will. Don't skip the author and original reader's notes as they added an impactful layer to the first and second stories and like I said, will have you going back and reading them again. This is a collection that will have you debating and questioning, lingering in your thoughts, and revisiting, not to be missed even for the causal science fiction reader.
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