On Becoming Fearless ... In Love, Work, And Life

Arianna Huffington; Haenam Publishing; 264 pp.; 13,800 won

U.S. author and syndicated columnist Arianna Huffington was not a well-known figure in Korea until last year. She began to catch local media attention when AOL acquired the Huffington Post for $315 million and made Huffington president and editor-in-chief of The Huffington Post Media Group in 2011.

The Korean version of Huffington’s latest book was published last week, reflecting the growing interest among Koreans in one of today's female media leaders.

In this book, Huffington focuses on how women can deal with sources of fear in their professional and personal lives.

In stories drawn from her own experiences and from the lives of other successful women, Huffington shows how women can confront and overcome standard fears that plague them: insecurities about their appearance, keeping a relationship, needing approval from others, the burden of motherhood, among others.

In May 2005, the author rose to fame by launching The Huffington Post, a news and blog site that has quickly become one of the most widely read and frequently cited media platforms on the Internet.

In 2009, Huffington was ranked number 12 in Forbes' list of the "Most Influential Women in Media."



Foundation of Love

Jung Yihyun, Alain de Botton; Toll Publishing: 210pp, 191pp.,11,000 won

Renowned Korean and Swedish authors, Jung Yi-hyun and Alain de Botton, teamed up in 2010 and published two versions of “Foundation of Love” through the concepts of love, marriage and family.

After two years of hard work, Jung came up with “Foundation of Love: A Couple’s Story” which depicts a typical couple in a comparatively conservative Korean society. It covers intimacy and conflict between them as time passes.

“Foundation of Love: A Man’s Story” is Botton’s first book in 17 years. While Jung writes about a young couple’s beautiful yet immature relationship, the Swedish author living in London explores a couple’s everyday life in marriage; upkeep of children, love and sex. Readers will see the harsh truth of the institution of marriage but at the same time, he suggests a husband and wife acknowledge each other’s imperfections as a way to keep their life intact and happy.

Heartbreakingly brutal for some, but we will come to understand the reality.



Birth of the Modern French Novel

Kim Hwa-young; Dolbegae; 400 pp., 15,000 won

This new book is a compilation and edited version of a special month of lectures by translator and professor of French literature Kim Hwa-young of Korea University.

Kim, a translator for over 40 years, called the book a record of his “lifelong dedication in the perusal, analysis and translation of French novels to Korean,” to which the book lives up to some degree.

Quoting Stendhal’s definition of the novel as “a mirror walking along a main road,” the author sets the year 1830 as the beginning of the 19th century and modernity as we understand it, and begins there to trace the life and works of six French novelists that help created the modern French novel.

For Kim, the definition of what constitutes a novel is, as Stendhal’s quote suggests, a continuing process that is still on-going.

Though by its own definition, it is impossible to pinpoint what a novel is, the author at least attempts to offer readers tools to draw an outline of what it may become in the current society dubbed “post modern” by many people.

Though the book is packed with details and hefty at 400 pages, upon reading, Kim’s hope of a wider dissemination of French literature in Korea may well become a reality.



Glamour diet in your room

Jung Areum; Vitaboks; 14,800 won, 247 p.p.

More than 90 percent of Korean women reportedly think they are overweight or obese. Although they try a variety of dieting methods, spending a lot of money and time to shed weight, many fail to attain what they want.

Jung Areum, a popular fitness trainer and power blogger, wrote this book to give ordinary people tips on workouts they can do in their home.

This book guides people with little time to go to gyms into effective methods of eating a healthy diet and exercising.

Jung has posted two articles every day on her blog for more than two years ― one on workouts with video clips and the other on miscellaneous themes.

Jung, also a TV personality and golfer with a Miss Korea title, put her years of experience and knowhow on fitness and diet into this book.

Exercises and diets introduced ― with ample photos ― are relatively simple and easy for readers to follow.