We, the readers or listeners, would be the poorer for not taking the time to download this volume, listening to each story and letting them fill your imagination, inspire you, fan your own hopes & dreams and learn what touches or has broken the hearts of Koreans in recent years. I won't 'spoiler', in this review, the stories with a summary of each so will just say so many of these characters remain in my heart after listening to their journeys, either in first person or third.

we heard, and welcomed & fell not just a little bit in love with BTS 'teaching' us so much, but especially, so much of their language. I hope we get to hear and see and understand so much more of your incredible culture in all aspects of it, via your amazing language 🙏. I hope, in the future, that the addition of Hangul vocabulary into spoken stories changes. AND, language - above all else - leads the way. you are total 'ROK Stars' in so many areas of your culture. except that the American 'market' might not 'like' it? Here's the other thing: ROK. I really wish the translators would, for example, intersperse Hangul throughout all Korean authors' books & teach spoken 'language' during the process of narration - what's so wrong with saying, for example, 할머니 (halmeoni) instead of 'grandma/granny'. I, for one, really, really wish Korea would not succumb to the notion of having to meet America's standards and approval to feel 'good enough'. Except for the spoken 'Americanisation' in translation in the last story and the slightest tinges of a 'Texas Drawl' (really?) from the narrator (& I haven't read the printed form, so I don't know if this was spoken as it was translated) but here's the thing. I absolutely loved this treasure of short stories and the narrators are second to none in their excellent delivery.

Shoko's Smile by Choi Eunyoung