Banned Book Club

Kim Hyun Sook was a college freshmen in 1983. That was South Korea's Fifth Republic, a military regime that had come to power in a coup d'etat. After the protest-motivated violence against students on other campuses, her parents warned her to stay out of politics. So, she joined the Traditional Mask Dance club. But at a time of such danger, even an ancient art form was a political act. The satire of long-dead politicians had as many parallels to the politics of the day as Shakespeare does now. And the troupe found themselves performing at protests, and using their drums to stir up the crowds. And that was not the end. It was at one of these protests that the handsome young editor of the school newspaper invited her to a book club that he leads. As a student of Western Literature, she expected to pop into the cafeteria to talk about Moby Dick, Hamlet, and The Scarlet Letter. But instead, she found herself hiding in a basement as the youngest member of an underground, illegal, banned book club. It's the 100% true, autobiographical story of a time of authoritarianism, turmoil, torture, and defiance in last century's South Korea.