Gu Byeong-mo

The award-winning, shocking Korean bestseller, a unique tale where magic comes at a price.''A story of choice and consequence. Unique and unorthodox'' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐''I didn''t want to stop reading, I still don''t want the story to be over'' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐''Don''t we all need a little magic in our lives sometimes?''Open twenty-four hours a day in a quiet Seoul neighbourhood, The Wizard''s Bakery seems like any other where you can buy bread, cakes, and pastries, with a somewhat grumpy man behind the counter.For a desperate runaway teen, it''s a refuge from a fractured home - until he discovers the pastries hold magic: madeleines to fix broken hearts, almond bars to unearth memories buried deep within and cinnamon cookies for your worst enemies.But each of these items come with a warning: the power contained in the treats inevitably alters the order of the world and can produce dramatic consequences for those who consume them, consequences that need to be weighed carefully.Under the stern eye of the bakery''s gruff wizard and his mysterious blue-haired assistant, the boy learns about the responsibility that comes with working in a bakery where every bite comes with a price.READERS ARE COMPLETELY BEWITCHED BY THIS MAGICAL TALE: ''A very profound story with a lot to take away'' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ''Absolutely charming and unexpectedly poignant'' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ''Magic has never been so tempting'' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

''An important literary piece of feminist activism''''Taps into the everyday minutiae of motherhood, baring to all the unspoken labours that women take on both inside and out of parenthood''''Really made me reflect on what it actually means to be a part of a community''''Given recent news stories this feels like an incredibly relevant read''-------------------------------------From the award-winning Korean author Gu Byeong-mo and International Booker-nominated translator Chi-Young Kim, comes a thought-provoking story of community and the cultural expectations of motherhood.What are you willing to sacrifice for a ''better'' life? When Yojin moves with her husband and daughter into the Dream Future Pilot Communal Apartments, she''s ready for a fresh start. Located on the outskirts of Seoul, the experimental community is a government initiative designed to boost the national birth rate. Like her neighbours, Yojin has agreed to have at least two more children over the next ten years.Yet, from the day she arrives, Yojin feels uneasy about the community spirit thrust upon her. Her concerns grow as communal child care begins and the other parents show their true colours. Your Neighbour''s Table traces the lives of four women in the apartments, all with different aspirations and beliefs. Will they find a way to live peacefully? Or are society''s expectations stacked against them from the start?A trenchant social novel from an award-winning author, Your Neighbour''s Table incisively illuminates the unspoken imbalance of women''s parenting labour and the challenges of working towards a better life.[Published in North America with the title APARTMENT WOMEN]