President Lee Jae-myung praised writer Han Kang on the 27th after she won the National Book Critics Circle Award in the fiction category, saying that, following last year’s Nobel Prize in Literature, she has once again demonstrated the depth and stature of Korean literature to the world.
He wrote on X: “I sincerely congratulate writer Han Kang on winning the National Book Critics Circle Award in the fiction category. It is especially meaningful because this is the first time a Korean work has won the fiction prize.”
He said the winning book, Do Not Say Goodbye, elevates the modern tragedy of the Jeju April 3 incident into a meditation on human dignity, memory, and narrative, offering a poetic and deeply resonant account of a painful chapter in our history.
He thanked Han Kang for lifting the light within us, for reminding people to hold on to one another’s warmth even in the dark, and for giving readers the courage to move forward.
Reporter Bin Jae-wook binjaewook2@viva100.com
