suki kim book signing

[applehead]

suki kim the author of "the interpreter", her first novel,
will be having a booksigning, reading.. q&a
at barnes and noble on astor place, nyc.
jan 29 at 7:30pm.

please attend and show support for our asian american writers.

[ism]

Sounds good. Send a reminder when the time gets closer please?

[applehead]

oh yeah. sure. :lol:

[amietron]

awwwww. i wanna go toooooooooo!

[tapestrybabe]

Originally posted by applehead@Dec 28 2002, 02:10 PM
suki kim the author of "the interpreter", her first novel,
will be having a booksigning, reading.. q&a
at barnes and noble on astor place, nyc.
jan 29 at 7:30pm.

please attend and show support for our asian american writers.

we could go together!!
Oh man, awesome...
absolutely we can all go together.. :)

[ism]

I'm up for a group thing.

[applehead]

did any of you guys read her book yet?

[ism]

Finished it yesterday. Excellent book, turns the idea of the "happy immigrant" around, quite recommended (as if my recommendation means anything hehehe).

If we meet, should we meet there or someplace beforehand?

[tapestrybabe]

suki kim was born and raised in south korea... and came to the united states when she was 13...
The interpreter is her first book...

here's a link about her novel...
http://btobsearch.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?userid=6U5R269I9O&btob=Y&isbn=0374177139&itm=1

dunno if i can make it yet... but yeah, we can all meet at the book signing event... maybe meet outside or something.. dunno... hold a big yw sign so we can recognize each other... hahah... i dunno...

[Hanuman]

Let me know what's going on for this, I'm interested too. I've got my nametag with a big old smiley and "YW" in great big letters already made :)

[enygma]

jane magazine gave the book a good review. mental note: read the book.

[ism]

Event starts at 7:30, maybe meet beforehand or afterhand, probably beforehand, since afterhand would mean stragglers coming at inconsistent times. Need a location. Not familiar with that B&N. Looks like it has a cafe but would probably be packed... maybe a book section? Or a nearby establishment? Or to make things easier just swap cellphone numbers and meet on the fly?

[tapestrybabe]

Ok, the plan is...
we will all be meeting at Empire Korea
6 E. 32nd St.
212-725-1333
at 6:45pm SHARP-- dont be late... haha... here's the link to the place...
http://digitalcity.com/newyork/dining/venu...e.adp?vid=62789 (http://digitalcity.com/newyork/dining/venue.adp?vid=62789)

its a good meeting place.. cuz its never crowded in the lobby area of the restaurant... anyways, from there... we can take the train to B&N...

so far it seems like ism and me.. and maybe tawee and applehead??
but yeah, just look for me... i'm short 4'10" i'll be wearing a brown winter coat, brown scarf, and green hat :)

[ism]

From Empire Korea it's a moderate walk to the subway station at Park & 33rd., which is a short ride to the Astor Place B&N. Expect to walk 2 crosstown and 1 uptown block, which is little about a mile. Hopefully the weather will be agreeable on Wednesday. Should be fun. =)

[Hanuman]

I can't believe it's here already! Damn, I really want to go, but I don't think I can make it, I'm going to have to work. :(

Have fun there and think of the rest of us!

[ism]

Sorry you can't come Tawee. =/ We'll represent YW! If anyone has any questions for the author, the contingent will attempt to ask Ms. Kim for you. Just post them in here and we'll do our best to get as many (or the good ones) answered.

[tapestrybabe]

i admit, i wish i had read the book before attending... but still the same... i really enjoyed the meet the author, book signing event... the main gist of the book is that the main character-- Suzy Park, her parents got murdered... but it was passed off as being an accident... and the mystery soon unravels throughout the story... when Suzy makes a discovery when translating a court case dealing her parents... the title of the book-- Interpreter has many metaphores to it... while it can mean being a translator... reflecting 2 languages... it can also reflect the duality of being Korean... and Korean American... you know that split identity of 2 different cultures.. and two worlds..

and i thought what was interesting when she was talking about the role of being a translator for a court is that... you have to be neutral... you cant take sides... cuz once you take sides... you're no longer interpreting... but your choosing a team...

anyways, suki kim-- i like her already... asian american reporters were there... her editor, family and friends attended... and all the seats were taken at the event... ppl actually had to stand up... she's a writer... so she says she's obsessed with lonliness...

support your asian american writers...
and i recommend in buying and reading this book...
The Interpreter (http://btobsearch.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?userid=6U5R269I9O&btob=Y&isbn=0374177139&itm=1)

[ism]

It was Suki Kim's first public event and she was visibly excited, a vibe that transferred to the packed room. She read the first chapter of the book, which was interesting because it is written in a very fluid style, and hearing her rendition helped me understand the character's thought process better. She also read a single paragraph -- the last one on page 90 -- which she said best exemplifies the book.

In the ensuing question and answer period, this point was reinforced as she explained that "The Interpreter" functions as a metaphor on several levels. The main character, Suzy Park, interprets at legal depositions. In addition to that, she must bridge gaps in several respects, most notably her "1.5" generation status as an immigrant, but also in her development as a person (sorry I can't be more clear, it would spoil certain surprises). Ms. Kim revealed that she worked several interpreting jobs to research her character's profession, and that language was of large interest to her. She immigrated to the United States at the age of 13 and learned English to the point of being fluently bilingual.

The question of what genre the book belongs to was poised, and Kim replied that she did not think about genre at all. The book was selected as a mystery book club's reading selection of the month, and Ms. Kim appeared humoured by it. While there is an unsolved mystery in the book, which is the main plot device, it is not really the crux of the story.

Other questions probed the biographical nature of the main character. While the author did base the character's age and race on herself, she said that the character is almost the opposite of her in terms of Suzy's darkness, but loneliness is a shared trait -- althought Ms. Kim's loneliness, she explained, is the "author" loneliness. Ms. Kim grew up in New York City, citing a very good familiarity with the East Village, and this is evident in the richness of description of the locale in the text. She received her undergraduate degree at Barnard, which is where the main character's sister went.

The event ended with a book signing (got my copy signed yay). In attendance were Ms. Kim's parents, editor, and several friends, but also some press, both domestic and Korean, and many new fans. The book is an amazing effort from a first-time author and readers will most certainly want to read her next book. As for that, she says she started it but is moving very slowly due to the first book's effect on her life.

[tapestrybabe]

Originally posted by ism@Jan 31 2003, 03:28 AM
It was Suki Kim's first public event and she was visibly excited, a vibe that transferred to the packed room. She read the first chapter of the book, which was interesting because it is written in a very fluid style, and hearing her rendition helped me understand the character's thought process better. She also read a single paragraph -- the last one on page 90 -- which she said best exemplifies the book.

In the ensuing question and answer period, this point was reinforced as she explained that "The Interpreter" functions as a metaphor on several levels. The main character, Suzy Park, interprets at legal depositions. In addition to that, she must bridge gaps in several respects, most notably her "1.5" generation status as an immigrant, but also in her development as a person (sorry I can't be more clear, it would spoil certain surprises). Ms. Kim revealed that she worked several interpreting jobs to research her character's profession, and that language was of large interest to her. She immigrated to the United States at the age of 13 and learned English to the point of being fluently bilingual.

The question of what genre the book belongs to was poised, and Kim replied that she did not think about genre at all. The book was selected as a mystery book club's reading selection of the month, and Ms. Kim appeared humoured by it. While there is an unsolved mystery in the book, which is the main plot device, it is not really the crux of the story.

Other questions probed the biographical nature of the main character. While the author did base the character's age and race on herself, she said that the character is almost the opposite of her in terms of Suzy's darkness, but loneliness is a shared trait -- althought Ms. Kim's loneliness, she explained, is the "author" loneliness. Ms. Kim grew up in New York City, citing a very good familiarity with the East Village, and this is evident in the richness of description of the locale in the text. She received her undergraduate degree at Barnard, which is where the main character's sister went.

The event ended with a book signing (got my copy signed yay). In attendance were Ms. Kim's parents, editor, and several friends, but also some press, both domestic and Korean, and many new fans. The book is an amazing effort from a first-time author and readers will most certainly want to read her next book. As for that, she says she started it but is moving very slowly due to the first book's effect on her life.
Wow...
impressive review...
and yeah, it was nice meeting you that evening...

[ism]

Oh yeah, tapestrybabe is the first YW member I ever met! It was great fun. The East Coast contingent is in the hizouse =)

[applehead]

sorry i couldn't make it guys.
so great you got your book signed jose!!

isn't it cute how even her family was there?
that really surprised me.
how wonderful...

[Hanuman]

Sounds like it was a good time! Awesome review Ism, I'm sorry I missed it, but nice to know you guys were there representin!