Korean Job Discussion Forums

Borat · Joined: 18 Feb 2007

I'm coming to Daegu in June to teach, and have been reading everything I possibly can about life in Korea for the last little while. Do any of you guys have suggestions of good books I can read to better prepare myself for life in Korea?

Websites and the like are welcomed too.

Chinqui,

Borat

caniff · Joined: 03 Feb 2004 Location: All over the map

The Two Koreas (I forget the author) was good information from a historical perspective.

chachee99 · Joined: 20 Oct 2004 Location: Seoul Korea

"Making Out in Korean" by Peter Constantine

VanIslander · Posted: Mon Feb 26, 2007 5:16 pm Post subject:

Historical war and politics books haven't helped me at all understand the people. I recommend highly:

Korea Unmasked by Rhie Won-bok

Cultural understanding by a popular Korean professor, told in cartoon format. Very insightful. Amazingly so. A bestseller in Korean and translated into English.

What's So Good about Korea, Maarten? by Maarten Meijer

A European expat with plenty of experience and wisdom to share. Not an apologist, in fact, after reading the book I was asking the question in the title! LOL Very useful to understand HOW things are here, rather than WHY it is so.

Faces of Korea by Richard Harris

An anthology of dozens of first-hand accounts by foreigners in this country: teachers, diplomats, missionaries, travellers, hippies, refugees, small businessmen, you name it. It is great to read people using their natural voices - no high-fallutin' writing here - about their own stories. Certain themes resurface and it'll definitely help you not feel alone.

caniff · Joined: 03 Feb 2004 Location: All over the map

waltjocketty · Joined: 09 Oct 2006

The Living Reed is an award-winning fiction book which will help you understand the way of life here. I definitely recommend it.

poet13 · Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 1:18 am Post subject:

Angry young spaceman.

swetepete · Joined: 01 Nov 2006 Location: a limp little burg

Here's a good one to read before coming here...

http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/korea/viewtopic.php?t=79587

pretty informative, really. It's actually a lot better here than that thread would have you think, but there's a lot of truth underneath all the smartassery...

Sine qua non · Joined: 18 Feb 2007

The personal journal of Heinrich Hamel (it think that's the correct spelling).

He was the keeper of the log on the Der Sperwer, the ship that shipwrecked here in the 1700s.

He and his crew were held as virtual prisoners, weren't allowed to leave for years, etc. because the Korean king (of that era) was just like that (similar to today in several respects).

A great, short read.

The book is sold in stores, but since it was written so long ago, it's probably not copyrighted, so you should be able to download it for free somewhere.

Additionally, I've heard that The Annals of the Chosun Kingdom (or some variation of that title) was worthwhile.

chronicpride · Joined: 16 Jan 2003

Fresh Prince · Joined: 05 Dec 2006 Location: The glorious nation of Korea

I like, "Culture Shock: Korea, a survival guide to customs and etiquette," by Sonja Vegdahl and Ben Seunghwa Hur.

I also recommend bringing a couple different Korean phrase books, a pocket dictionary, and if you think you might end up wanting to learn the language, a book that explains basic grammar.

ella · Joined: 17 Apr 2006

"Learning to Think Korean: A Guide to Living and Working in Korea," by Robert, L. Kohls, and, "Korean Business Etiquette: The Cultural Values And Attitudes That Make Up The Korean Business Personality," by Boye De Mente.

tomato · Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 5:03 am Post subject:

Hello, Borat!

The Geography of Thought by Richard E. Nisbett is a good one.
(Here is a thread started by someone of similar opinion.)

Ugly Koreans Ugly Americans by Min Byoung-chul is an instantaneously gratifying book which you could read in a couple of hours. Here is a sample page, showing the format which every page follows.

Regardless, it contains a lot of information.
(Here is a thread started by someone of differing opinion.)

You might have trouble finding the book, though. The publisher is located in Korea, and the book is not listed on the Amazon site. It wouldn't hurt to contact them, though. Their Website is located right here.

JeJuJitsu · Joined: 11 Sep 2005 Location: McDonald's

You might want to internalize A Confederacy of Dunces before you come.

cruisemonkey · Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2007 4:30 pm Post subject:

I agree with 'Fresh Prince' - Culture Shock: Korea

Parts may be slightly dated, but it's well worth the read for anyone who's never been here before.