Kwon Jeon-Hyun

books

Knife and Tongue 

Dasan Books,Korea/Philippe Piquier/France
This is an epic novel set in the Manchukuo. Winner of the 7th Honbul Literary award, and it was the jury's unanimous decision in seven years.

There are three protagonists: Otozō Yamada(a Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese Occupation Army in Manchuria), Chen(a revolutionary Chinese chef following Mao Zedong), and Gilsun(a beautiful Korean woman with a strong mind)

Otozō Yamada is a real person in history. He was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II but It is known that he was a coward who didn't like war.

This novel was inspired by his character and in the novel, he is described as a person evading his responsibility as a general but being obsessive about food.

Chen is a Chinese chef trying to assassinate Yamada, and he saved Gilsun from Japanese army in Guangdong.

Gilsun had been kidnapped and became one of the comfort women on her way to meet her brother who was fighting for national independence in Manchuria.

After Chen saved her, she lived her life as Chen’s wife and she helped Chen and her brother in Manchuria.

But Chen failed to poison Yamada and other Japanese officers, Gilsun was also arrested and became a sexual slavery of Yamada.

Yamada didn’t kill Chen, but he made Chen’s tongue cut off and ordered him to prepare a dish twice a day. Chen exerted all his energies to cook the best meal, and Yamada was getting accustomed to Chen’s cook. And Gilsun was watching for an opportunity to broke Yamada…… What will happen to these three people?