All works and contents of Nobel Prize in Literature winner Han Kang

Introduction

Han Kang (b. 1970) is a South Korean author whose intense, poetic prose confronts historical traumas and the fragility of human life. In 2024, she became the first South Korean—and first Asian woman—to win the Nobel Prize in Literature
Below is a comprehensive overview of her oeuvre, from her major novels to her poetry, essays, and short fiction collections, with summaries of each work’s main content.

Novels
The Vegetarian (2007)
Original title: 채식주의자
Based on her own 1997 short story “The Fruit of My Woman,” this three-part novel is set in modern-day Seoul and follows Yeong-hye, a graphic artist who suddenly resolves to stop eating meat after a nightmare about human cruelty. Her family’s desperate attempts to control her choice lead to profound alienation and psychological unraveling.

Greek Lessons (2011)
Original title:희랍어 시간
A mute woman enrolls in an evening class to learn Ancient Greek, hoping to reclaim language. Her teacher, once an orthopedist, is gradually losing his sight. Through their wordless lessons, they form an intimate bond that probes the limits and power of language, exploring themes of loss, silence, and human connection.

Human Acts (2014)
Original title: 소년이 온다
Drawing on the 18 May 1980 Gwangju Uprising, this novel unfolds across seven chapters and an epilogue, each narrated by a different character connected to the event. Beginning with the death of a young boy, Kang Dong-ho, it moves through survivors’ testimonies to bear witness to state violence and its enduring scars on individual lives.

The White Book (2016)
Original title: 흰
An autobiographical meditation, The White Book is structured around 65 short vignettes—each focused on a white object (from rice to snow to breast milk)—to process the death of the narrator’s baby sister, who died two hours after birth in post-World War II Warsaw. Its fragmented form mirrors the shattered grief and delicate beauty of life.

We Do Not Part (2021)
Original title: 작별하지 않는다
Writer Kyungha is summoned by her hospitalized friend Inseon to travel to Jeju Island and care for Inseon’s pet bird during a winter storm. As she battles the elements, Kyungha uncovers the tragic legacy of the 1948–49 Jeju massacre, weaving personal devotion with a shamanistic reckoning of collective trauma.

Short Fiction Collections

Han Kang’s short story collections are united by their poetic, often surreal, explorations of isolation, transformation, and the body’s vulnerability:

• My Name Is Sunflower (내 이름은 태양꽃), 2002
• The Red Flower Story (붉은 꽃 이야기), 2003
• Thunder Little Fairy, Lightning Little Fairy (천둥 꼬마 선녀 번개 꼬마 선녀), 2007
• Tear Box (눈물상자), 2008

Across these volumes, characters confront existential loneliness, the pain of loss, and the uncanny intersections between humans and nature, rendered in crisp, haunting prose

Selected Short Stories

• “The Middle Voice” (2023)
  Published in The New Yorker, this story—an excerpt from Greek Lessons—uses shifting perspectives to probe the silent interior life of its protagonist. (Han Kang – Wikipedia)
• “Heavy Snow” (2024)
  Also in The New Yorker, this excerpt from We Do Not Part captures the protagonist’s isolation amidst a snowstorm, echoing themes of memory, silence, and survival. (Han Kang – Wikipedia)

Poetry

• I Put Dinner in the Drawer (서랍에 저녁을 넣어 두었다), 2013
  A lyrical collection of poems that blend domestic and natural imagery with themes of solitude and the passage of time, showcasing Kang’s gift for delicate, evocative language.

Essays

• Love and Things Surrounding Love (사랑과, 사랑을 둘러싼 것들), 2003
• A Song to Sing Calmly (가만가만 부르는 노래), 2007

These essay collections interweave personal reflection, cultural commentary, and creative experimentation—A Song to Sing Calmly even includes an accompanying music album—offering insights into Kang’s artistic vision and recurring motifs of love, violence, and healing