Korean Quarterly

Bojagi and Beyond collective to hold workshop and exhibit in Miami
2025-03-06 08:00 - 2025-03-29 17:00 (America/Chicago) | Gato Gordo Gallery, 4600 NW 7th Avenue, Miami, 33127, United States
An exhibit of Korean wrapping cloth (bojagi) with workshops on techniques in the craft, will be part of an event Bojagi and Beyond, to be held in Miami in March. The exhibit will be on display at Gato Gordo Gallery March 6 through 20, with an opening reception to be held March 8, 6 to 9 p.m.
Artist and bojagi master Ilhan Kim will have a solo exhibit of her work at the gallery March 22 through 29.
The exhibits are part of the 2025 Korea Bojagi Forum, a travelling exhibit and educational effort by a global collaboration of bojagi artists. The Korea Bojagi Forum was founded by fiber artist Chunghie Lee in 2012, and she administers and curates the Forum today. This year, the 2025 Korea Bojagi Forum will accompany the XI World Textile Art Biennial.
Team Bojagi Workshop, to be held Sunday, March 9, from 2 to 5 p.m. at the gallery, will include instruction by Keomhwa Koh in how to make a bojagi-style pouch (class $50, and materials kit $40 – kit recommended but not required); and instruction by Ilhan Kim on the hand-stitching technique used in bojagi.
The Gato Gordo Gallery is an artist-created and artist-run Miami art gallery and cultural center dedicated to curating diverse international exhibitions, and highlighting emerging and established artists from around the world. The gallery is located at 4600 NW 7th Avenue, Miami FL 33127, and its website is: www.GatoGordoGallery.art

Minnesota Chinese Music Ensemble concert to be held
2025-03-29 19:00 - 21:00 | Sundin Music Hall, 1531 Hewitt Avenue, St. Paul, MN, 55104, United States
The Minnesota Chinese Music Ensemble (MCME) will hold a concert featuring pieces for the classical Chinese instruments urhu and yangqin on March 29 in St. Paul.
The concert, entitled Soul of Dragon’s Heritage, will spotlight erhu virtuoso JuanJuan Wang and yangqin master WenTing Zhang. Joining them will be soprano QianHui Ma and pianist Yu-Chien Huang. The artists will perform instrumental solos (for erhu, yangqin and piano) and vocal pieces featuring Chinese melodies.
The MCME is led by President Wei Ming Chiang, who has developed musical education in erhu and Chinese music preservation and enjoyment in Minnesota.
The performance will be held at the Sundin Music Hall at Hamline University, at 7 p.m. on March 29. General admission is $30, with a 20 percent discount for tickets purchased before March 13. Discounted tickets for $25 are available for students and seniors (65-plus). Limited quantities of complimentary tickets are available for public assistance recipients. See ticketing and details at: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/mcme
For inquiries or accessibility seating requests, contact MCME at (email) mn************@***il.com or (phone) 612-293-8771.

Adoptee Hub holds Bake 'N Chill fundraiser
2025-04-19 11:00 - 15:00 | Roseville Banquet Hall, 2661 Civic Center Drive, Roseville, MN, 55113, United States
Chili and other fun foods will be the center of a chili cook-off and baking contest to be held by Adoptee Hub on Saturday, April 19.
The Bake ‘N Chill proceeds will benefit the 2025 programming of Adoptee Hub, including social and cultural events by and for adult Korean adoptees, and for its ongoing birth search portal project, the Hope Registry.
The event, to be held 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. will include a bake sale, chili contest, cookie contest and pie contest. Chili makers and bakers can get more info about entering on the website’s entry form and instructions here. Donations for the bake sale also accepted.
Tickets at the door are $10, and include tasting the chili and cookie competition entries, and participating in family-friendly games and events. The event is open to the public.
Location is Roseville Banquet Hall, 2661 Civic Center Drive, Roseville.

Arbeiter Brewery to hold Phoenix Festival
2025-05-10 13:00 - 17:00 | Arbeiter Brewing Co., 3038 Minnehaha Ave., Minneapolis, MN, 55406, United States
The Korean American-owned Arbeiter Brewery in Minneapolis is holding its annual Asian Phoenix Festival, a free event, on May 10 l to lift up AAPI culture through community.
The Asian Phoenix represents resilience, revitalization, and harmony., and has become an important symbol to the South Minneapolis neighborhood as it works to renew and rebuild since the spring 2020 uprising.
The free event will include several Asian food vendors, including Bao Bao Buns, Caphin Vietnamese Coffee, and D’s Bahn Mi. Asian performing artists will include JangmiArts, and special guests Gina Choi and Chansoo Lee, DTG Lions, SeevCev and the DJ Diane Miller.
There will be an Asian craft market, and activities for children include face painting and a bounce house.
The event is sponsored in part by the Lake Street Council and Lake Street Lift.
Arbeiter Brewing Company, located at 3038 Minnehaha Avenue, creates a variety of beer styles, including a Korean rice lager, and a German pilsner. Arbeiter Brewing is one of a very few Asian-owned breweries in the country, since Asian owners represent only two percent of all breweries in the U.S.

AAOP to hold Asian Heritage Month event
2025-05-10 17:00 - 20:00 | DK Training Center, 1821 University Avenue West, St. Paul, MN, 55104, United States
The Asian American Organizing Project will hold an API Heritage Month event on May 15 to honor the history and connections of the diverse Asian American people of the Twin Cities.
The free event will include food, an interactive timeline activity and other conversation-starting activities, and reflections of personal journeys. The intent is to strengthen participants sense of care and support of the community, and to affirm the many identities Asian Minnesotans – ethnic, gender, sexuality and others.
The purpose is also to view the broader community as a strength to resist the current administration’s fascist and authoritarian agenda.
The event will be held 5 to 8 p.m. at DK Training Center, 1821 University Avenue West, Suite 242, St. Paul.

Women's peace walk to be held at a U.S. base in South Korea
2025-05-24 | Naeri 260, Paengseong-eup, Pyeongtaek-si), Naeri 260, Pangseong-eup, Pyeongtaek-si, Korea, Republic of
On May 24, an international delegation from Women Cross DMZ will collaborate with the Gyeonggi Women’s Association in a commemorative peace march at the Camp Humphreys, a U.S. military base at Pyongtaek, South Korea. The special focus of these two groups is on the fact that war and militarism disproportionately harms women.
This free event will be held Saturday, May 24, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. (Korea time), beginning at Naeri Culture Park, Pyeongtaek (Naeri 260, Paengseong-eup, Pyeongtaek-si)
The date, May 24, is International Women’s Day and is also the 10th anniversary of the original crossing of the Demilitarized Zone by an international group of 30 women peace activists under the sponsorship of Women Cross DMZ. The group included Nobel Peace Prize winners Leymah Gbowee and Mairead Maguire.
Every year since the 2015 march that crossed the DMZ, the, Gyeonggi Women’s Association has organized an annual march to coincide with International Women’s Day for Peace and Disarmament.
This transnational act of solidarity is particularly timely as democracy is under attack in the U.S., South Korea is on the cusp of electing a new president, and growing tensions between the U.S. and China raise the risk of war in Northeast Asia.
The walk around Camp Humphries is designed to raise awareness about the need for peace on the Korean Peninsula from the perspective of gender equality.

CAAL to hold free Grant Readiness Workshop
2025-09-03 18:30 - 19:30
A free Grant Readiness Workshop will be held online September 3, 2025, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. (CST) by the Coalition of Asian American Leaders (CAAL).
CAAL is a network of leaders who act collectively to make Minnesota work better for its Asian American community. CAAL’s programs include: network weaving, to allow leaders to meet and network with one another; leadership building outreach and events; and advocating for annual policy priorities in areas like immigration, education, economic development.
The workshop is designed to provide guidance on preparing a strong grant application, give tips for sharpening a proposal, and answer participants’ questions on grant writing. The content is appropriate for prospective applicants who want to build a business and for non-profit leaders who want to expand the community impact of their organization.
CAAL is also launching the second round of its grant fund, CAAL Ignite, with the goal of incentivizing Asian American leadership and prosperity in Minnesota. Applications for the CAAL Ignite grant fund will open later this September.
Learn more and sign up for the workshop, and read about the CAAL Ignite second round fund at: caalmn.org/caal-ignite

Adoptee Hub's annual self-care workshop features kimchi-making, a film, and some drumming
2025-09-27 08:30 - 17:00 | Coffman Memorial Union, 300 Washington Ave. SE, Minneapolis, MN, 55455, United States
Adoptee Hub is holding its Cultural Identity and Self-Care Workshop at the University of Minnesota on September 27.
The day-long workshop is designed to help adult adoptees recharge and build community with fun cultural activities. Participants will choose four of 12 classes to take including: kimchi-making and mandu (dumpling) preparation; a tea ceremony demonstration; massage; Korean language for beginners; empowerment and the “gratitude effect”; a film with discussion; Korean songs with the K-Breeze kids’ choir; and an introduction to Korean drumming with Shinparam Korean Drum Troupe.
Registration is by reservation only, and the workshop, including breakfast and a Korean lunch, is $50. Registration is at the attached link.
The event will be held at Coffman Memorial Union, 300 Washington Avenue SE, Minneapolis.
More about Adoptee Hub is at its website at: www.adopteehub.org.

Korean adoptees discuss records fraud at live radio event
2025-11-11 18:00 - 20:00 | Arbeiter Brewing Co., 3038 Minnehaha Ave., Minneapolis, MN, 55406, United States
A panel of four Korean adoptees will discuss the South Korean governments admission of adoption records fraud and its effect on the local Korean adoptee community in a live event Tuesday, November 11, hosted by Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) and Twin Cities Public Television (TPT).
The event, titled Mistaken: Minnesota’s Korean Adoptees Grapple with Confessed Systemic Corruption, is part of the North Star Journey Live series. It will be held at Arbeiter Brewing Company in South Minneapolis beginning at 6 p.m.
The panelists, who are all Korean adoptees, are: Ami Nafzger, president of AdopteeHub, which reaches out to adult Korean adoptees with social and self-care programming and birth family searches; Cameron Lee Small, a therapist who works in adoption literacy and counsels adoptees and their families; Matt McNiff, director of the Camp Choson summer Korean culture camp; and Mary Niedermeyer, the CEO of the non-profit organization Communities Advancing Prosperity for Immigrants (CAPI).
See feature story at this link.
Tickets are required. See link below for registration information.

Minnesota Han performing and visual arts event set
2025-12-06 17:00 - 19:00 | Queermunity, 3036 Hennepin Avenue, Minneapolis, MN, 55408, United States
A visual and performing arts event, Minnesota Han, will bring four artists and a Korean traditional performing arts group together for an evening of arts, music, and fun activities on Saturday, December 6 in Minneapolis.

Minnesota Han, featuring five local artists, will celebrate the joy and angst of being a Korean American artist in Minnesota. Featured artists are: Su Hwang, Naomi Ko, Sun Yung Shin and May Lee-Yang. Additionally, artist Heather Kim will premiere new work, and JangMi Arts will perform traditional Korean drumming.

The event will include a small holiday market with Asian American vendors. Attendees can also learn how to make a norigae, a traditional Korean accessory.

There will be Korean refreshments, including Korean-inspired brews from Arbeiter Brewery. The event is free, but RSVP is requested.

Adoptee Hub to hold third session on adoptees dealing with ICE
2026-02-01 12:00 - 13:30
Immigration attorney Greg Luce, founder of the Minnesota-based Adoptee Rights Law Center, will be the featured speaker in a zoom event geared for international adoptees, to be held Sunday, February 1, noon to 1:30 p.m.
The session, the third of four planned sessions sponsored by the Twin Cities-based Adoptee Hub, is intended to inform international adoptees, citizens and non-citizens, of their Constitutional rights under the law, particularly in light of the recent immigration crackdown by ICE in the Twin Cities.
Luce’s practice concentrates on helping individual adoptees with citizenship, access to birth records, and other legal issues associated with adult adoptees. He also works to build and join coalitions to reform and standardize adoptees’ rights and to promote citizenship for all adoptees.
The series is designed to inform and educate adoptees and to allow adoptees to access resources they need, and to stand together, especially in Minnesota, during a stressful time.
The event is free; preregistration is needed to get the meeting link. More information will be available at the website: www.adopteehub.org/events.

Lunar New Year event at Arbeiter Brewing
2026-02-07 12:00 - 22:00 | Arbeiter Brewing Co., 3038 Minnehaha Ave., Minneapolis, MN, 55406, United States
A Lunar New Year celebration with a special community focus will be held at Arbeiter Brewing on Saturday, February 7, noon to 10 p.m.
In the Korean calendar, it is the Year of the Fire Horse, representing courage, community resistance, resilience and endurance. The Korean-owned brewery posted on its website noted that the characteristics of the Fire Horse are appropriate due to the ongoing resistance of Twin Citians against the excessive force of federal immigration troops.

The event will include vendors such as artist/activist Sean Lim, Myonghee Kimchi, and Project Huson (a project to support a trip to Korea for children of Korean adoptees, initiated by JangMi Arts)
There will be a Korean drumming performance by JangMi Arts at 3 p.m. and a performance by Conner Lee at 4 p.m., who combines rock, pop and jazz with arrangements of traditional music to explore his heritage.
Arbeiter has produced a few new microbrews in honor of the new year, such as Hibiscus Tokki, a Korean rice lager with hibiscus; and Gochujang Stout, a sweet stout flavored with Korean-style fermented pepper sauce.
Karaoke (known as noraebang in Korean) will be sponsored by AK Connection, an organization of adult adoptees.

Ways to stay safe from ICE for adoptees
2026-02-08 12:00 - 14:00
A free virtual session entitled Ways to Stay Safe and Reduce the Risk of Detainment by ICE will be held Sunday, February 8, noon to 2 p.m.

This is one in a series of zoom sessions, with local expert speakers, intended for Korean and other Asian adoptees to inform them about issues involved in the current Operation Metro Surge, where many legal residents and citizens have been illegally detained by ICE and other Department of Homeland Security troops.

Other upcoming sessions are Navigating Life in Korea (Sunday, February 15, 6 to 7:3o p.m.) and The Korean HANA Center: Resources for U.S. Citizens and Legal Immigrants (Sunday, February 22, noon to 2 p.m.).

The sessions are structured to invite conversation and strengthen community during a stressful time.

The series is sponsored by Adoptee Hub, a Twin Cities resource and service organization for Korean and other international adoptees.
Registration is required on the website in order to receive a link.

New film on adoptees and birth searching to be screened at U of Minnesota
2026-02-10 17:30 - 20:00 | Liberal Arts Engagement Hub, 310 Pillsbury Drive SE, Minneapolis, MN, 55455, United States
The new documentary film K-Number, directed by Seyoung Jo will be screened at a free event open to the public on February 10.
The film describes and follows several Korean adoptees in Korea, zeroing in on one woman who returned to Korea from the U.S. several times to do birth family searching. It examines the adoption process, the lack of post-adoption services for adoptees, and the problems and corruption that persist in the international adoption program. It follows adoptees who have expended time, money and emotional energy in dealing with the dysfunction of the system.
A Q and A session with the director will follow the screening.
The event will be held at the Liberal Arts Engagement Hub, located in Pillsbury Hall (see map link).
It includes a dinner beginning at 5:30 p.m. Registration is appreciated for planning purposes, but walk-ins are also welcome. Parking validation is available for attendees (for University-affiliated parking facilities only). Information on parking and directions to The Hub can be found here. There is also some (city) metered street parking in the neighborhood.
This event is co-sponsored by the Asian American Studies Program, Dr. Rich Lee, the Center for Race, Indigeneity, Disability, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, AK Connection, the Immigration History Research Center, and the Department of German, Nordic, Slavic and Dutch.
For questions on this event, please email: aa**@*mn.edu

Free session on navigating life in Korea
2026-02-15 18:00 - 19:30
A free virtual session entitled Navigating Life in Korea: F4 Visa ( will be held Sunday, February 15, 6 to 7:30 p.m.

This is one in a series of zoom sessions, with local expert speakers, intended for Korean and other Asian adoptees in light of the current Operation Metro Surge, where many legal residents and citizens have been illegally detained by ICE and other Department of Homeland Security troops.

This session in the series will cover issues involved in living and working in a Korea through an F4 visa, which allows anyone born in Korea to return to work or attend college or other training with a special visa.

Other upcoming sessions include The Korean HANA Center: Resources for U.S. Citizens and Legal Immigrants (Sunday, February 22, noon to 2 p.m.

The sessions are structured to invite conversation and strengthen community during a stressful time.

The series is sponsored by Adoptee Hub, a Twin Cities resource and service organization for Korean and other international adoptees.
Reservations are required on the website in order to receive a link.

Free virtual session on resources for citizens and legal immigrants
2026-02-22 12:00 - 14:30
A free virtual session entitled The Korean HANA Center: Resources for U.S. Citizens and Legal Immigrants will be held Sunday, February 22, noon to 2 p.m.

This is one in a series of zoom sessions, with local expert speakers, intended for Korean and other Asian adoptees in light of the current Operation Metro Surge, where many legal residents and citizens have been illegally detained by ICE and other Department of Homeland Security troops.

This session will include staff from the HANA Center of Chicago, which reaches out with resources, language learning, citizenship classes, immigration reform advocacy and many other resources for a wide spectrum of immigrants in Chicago.

The sessions are structured to invite conversation and strengthen community during a stressful time.

The series is sponsored by Adoptee Hub, a Twin Cities resource and service organization for Korean and other international adoptees.
Reservations are required on the website in order to receive a link.

Insun Park and the Generals to perform at Cedar Cultural Center
2026-02-25 19:30 - 21:30 | Cedar Cultural Center, 416 Cedar Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN, 55414, United States
Insun Park and the Generals, a South Korean band that blends rock, Korean traditional music and Korean mask dance (talchum) rhythms, will perform at the Cedar Cultural Center in Minneapolis for one show on Wednesday, February 25.
Insun Park stands out as one of the few women who are masters of the Gangnyeong Mask Dance. The talchum tradition has traditionally been dominated by men, but Park has been designated as an National Intangible Cultural Heritage asset of South Korea (Number 34).
She leads a quartet of musicians who perform a unique blended style of ancient performing art and contemporary sound. They include Donghyuk Seo (composer/guitar), Hyunmo Yang (drums), Johyun Kim (taepyeongseo (Korean folk reed instrument) and flute),and Hahyungki Baek (bass guitar).
The band’s approach offers a fresh perspective on Korea’s musical heritage and makes the traditional mask dance accessible to new audiences. Park is a leading force in shaping the future of Korean traditional performing arts.
Headiners Insun Park and the Generals will be joined by Black Widows, a surf-punk-psyche band from Minneapolis. The Black Widows have toured nationally and internationally, and have a full-length album Creatures of the Night, coming out this spring.
The Korean Institute of Minnesota, a Saturday culture and language school for children and adults, located in Minneapolis, is the cultural partner for this event. The Korean American-owned Minneapolis micro-brew pub Arbeiter Brewing is also a partner.
Doors open at the Cedar Cultural Center at 7 p.m. for the 7:30 p.m. show. Tickets $27.81 for general admission are available at the link.

AK Connection holds Seollal (Lunar New Year) event
2026-02-28 13:00 - 16:00 | Pearl Park Recreation Center, 414 E. Diamond Lake Road, Minneapolis, MN, 55419, United States
AK Connection, a Minnesota-based organization by and for Korean adoptees, will hold a Seollal (Lunar New Year) event to welcome the year of the Fire Horse. The event will be on Saturday, February. 28, 1 to 4 p.m. at the Pearl Park Rec Center in Minneapolis.
The event will include a Korean lunch, Korean-themed activities, crafts, and games, and a drumming workshop at 3 p.m. by members of Shinparam Korean drum troupe.
Registration encouraged, but walk-ins will be admitted. Tickets are available (pay what you can, or $10). For questions, please email: ev****@**********on.org

Immigration and citizenship rights event set
2026-03-14 08:00 - 17:00 | Arbeiter Brewing Co., 3038 Minnehaha Ave., Minneapolis, MN, 55406, United States
A free/pay-what-you-can event, Unite for Adoptees’ Rights with Adoptees United, designed to help adoptees and their families deal with issues of legal documentation and citizenship, will be held Sunday, March 22, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Arbeiter Brewing Company in Minneapolis.
The event will feature a talk by Greg Luce, a lawyer with a specialty in adoptee citizenship rights. He is the executive director of Adoptees’ United, and also founded his own adoptee-driven practice, the Adoptee Rights Law Center, located in Minneapolis.
All intercountry and domestic adoptees, adoptive families, and allies are welcome, with a livestream available on AK Connection’s YouTube channel for those who cannot attend in person. A brunch will be served at the event.
The event is co-sponsored by Adoptees United and AK Connection, an organization of adult Korean adoptees and allies in the Twin Cities.
The attached link is a ticketing site with a description of the event. It includes registration and an opportunity to donate to defray costs.

Sejong Cultural Society free zoom book club
2026-05-14 19:00 - 20:00
The Sejong Book Club is a Zoom-based free series designed for the average adult reader to learn more about Korean literature in translation.
The next meeting will be a discussion of Sky, Wind, Stars, and Poems (by Don-Ju Yun with translation by Jongho Park) on Thursday, May 14, 7 p.m. (Central), moderated by Sarah Petrovic (professor at Emmanuel University, Franklin Springs, Georgia).
Despite the oppressive political climate of his time, Dong-ju Yun fearlessly spoke out against Japanese colonial rule of Korea (which began and 1911 and lasted until the end of World War II in 1945). Yun used his poetry as a powerful tool of resistance. In 1943, he was arrested for his anti-Japanese activities and imprisoned in Fukuoka, Japan. He died at age 27 under mysterious circumstances while in captivity.
Each discussion in the series will include guided reading notes and discussion points. Registration is required to receive the Zoom link and discussion outline. Registration is at this link.
The Sejong Book Club invites readers from around the world to explore Korean literature in English translation. Led by distinguished professors of literature, the online discussions offer a welcoming space to connect through reading, reflection, and cultural exchange.
Each session highlights a major Korean work translated into English, examining its themes, historical background, and artistic vision. Discussions are held several times a year, and all sessions are conducted in English.
The book club is one offering of the Sejong Cultural Society, a Chicago-based non-profit organization that offers annual music and sijo (Korean poetry) competitions for adults and youth, along with other cultural events. Its programs are targeted to a wide audience and designed to teach Korean music, literature and culture through fun and interactive events, workshops and performances.
Future Sejong Book Club meeting dates and titles:
Thursday, July 23 The Plotters by Un-Su Kim
Thursday, September 24 The Vegetarian by Han Kang
Thursday, November 19 Hello Baby by Eui-Kyung Kim
More information on the Sejong Cultural Society is available at the link.

Transnational adoptees' Walk for Health
2026-05-30 10:30 - 13:00 | Long Lake Regional Park, 1500 Old Highway 8, New Brighton, MN, 55112, United States
A Walk for Health will be held for all transnational adoptees on Saturday May 30 at Long Lake Regional Park, New Brighton.
The walk is to raise awareness about the benefits of regular exercise in improving mood, boosting energy, and relieving stress.
The event, which runs from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., will include an Asian lunch and a free t-shirt. Registration is required, and must be submitted on or before May 17.
The walk is a collaboration of AdopteeHub, Korean Adoptee Ministries, and the Minnesota Department of Health.
For registration and further information, see the registration form at the Adoptee Hub website at this link.

Sejong Cultural Society free virtual book club series
2026-07-23 19:00 - 20:00
The Sejong Book Club is a Zoom-based free series designed for the average adult reader to learn more about Korean literature in translation.
The upcoming meeting will be a discussion of Un-Su Kim’s novel The Plotters (translated by Sora Kim-Russell) to be held Thursday, July 23, 7 p.m. (Central). The novel describes a dystopian Seoul where asassination guilds compete for dominance. Kim blends descriptions of the workings of a criminal underworld with dark comedy and psychology in a persuasive alternative reality.
Each session in the series will include guided reading notes and discussion points. Registration is required to receive the Zoom link and discussion outline. Registration is at this link.
The Sejong Book Club invites readers from around the world to explore Korean literature in English translation. Led by distinguished professors of literature, the online discussions offer a welcoming space to connect through reading, reflection, and cultural exchange.
Each session highlights a major Korean work translated into English, examining its themes, historical background, and artistic vision. Discussions are held several times a year, and all sessions are conducted in English.
The book club is one offering of the Sejong Cultural Society, a Chicago-based non-profit organization that offers annual music and sijo (Korean poetry) competitions for adults and youth, along with other cultural events. Its programs are targeted to a wide audience and designed to teach Korean music, literature and culture through fun and interactive events, workshops and performances.
Future Sejong Book Club meeting dates and titles:
Thursday, September 24 The Vegetarian by Han Kang
Thursday, November 19 Hello Baby by Eui-Kyung Kim
More information on the Sejong Cultural Society is available at the link.

Free virtual book club explores Korean fiction in translation
2026-09-24 19:00 - 20:00
The Sejong Book Club is a Zoom-based free series designed for the average adult reader to learn more about Korean literature in translation.
The upcoming meeting will be a discussion of Han Kang’s novel The Vegetarian, to be held Thursday, September 24, 7 p.m. (Central).
Originally published in 2007, The Vegetarian was translated by British translator Deborah Smith in 2015, and then received international acclaim. It won the Man Booker Prize for Literature in 2016. Author Han Kang was conferred the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2024.
The three-part novel tells the story of a young woman, Yeong-hye, who lives in modern day Seoul. After a nightmare about the depths of human cruelty, she decides to stop eating meat, which causes devastating consequences in her personal and professional life. The novel is allegorical, and represents womens’ quest for autonomy, psychologically and bodily, and what happens when those on the margins challenge the power structures of society.
Each session in the series will include guided reading notes and discussion points. Registration is required to receive the Zoom link and discussion outline. Registration is at this link.
The Sejong Book Club invites readers from around the world to explore Korean literature in English translation. Led by distinguished professors of literature, the online discussions offer a welcoming space to connect through reading, reflection, and cultural exchange.
Each session highlights a major Korean work translated into English, examining its themes, historical background, and artistic vision. Discussions are held several times a year, and all sessions are conducted in English.
The book club is one offering of the Sejong Cultural Society, a Chicago-based non-profit organization that offers annual music and sijo (Korean poetry) competitions for adults and youth, along with other cultural events. Its programs are targeted to a wide audience and designed to teach Korean music, literature and culture through fun and interactive events, workshops and performances.
Future Sejong Book Club meeting dates and titles:
Thursday, November 19 Hello Baby by Eui-Kyung Kim
More information on the Sejong Cultural Society is available at the link.
