A Greater Music
A Greater Music by Bae Suah, published by Open Letter in 2016, is a 128-page novel that explores the intricacies of memory and relationships. The story begins with the narrator, a young Korean writer, who falls into an icy river in the Berlin suburbs while housesitting for her boyfriend, Joachim. This incident triggers a series of reflections that weave between her present experiences and her past three years earlier in Berlin, highlighting her contrasting relationships with Joachim and a former lover, M, a music-loving German teacher.
Readers will find a narrative that blends themes of music, language, and emotional depth, culminating in a poignant conclusion. The novel delves into the psychological aspects of the narrator’s life, offering insights into her friendships and romantic entanglements. A Greater Music presents a unique perspective on the experiences of women in contemporary settings, particularly within the context of LGBTQ+ relationships and the historical backdrop of Korea and Asia.
Official synopsis Publisher
From the author nominated for the Best Translated Book Award and the PEN Translation Prize
“Bae Suah offers the chance to unknow–to see the everyday afresh and be defamiliarized with what we believe we know–which is no small offering.”–Sophie Hughes, Music & Literature
Near the beginning of A Greater Music, the narrator, a young Korean writer, falls into an icy river in the Berlin suburbs, where she’s been housesitting for her on-off boyfriend Joachim. This sets into motion a series of memories that move between the hazily defined present and the period three years ago when she first lived in Berlin. Throughout, the narrator’s relationship with Joachim, a rough-and-ready metalworker, is contrasted with her friendship with a woman called M, an ultra-refined music-loving German teacher who was once her lover.
A novel of memories and wandering, A Greater Music blends riffs on music, language, and literature with a gut-punch of an emotional ending, establishing Bae Suah as one of the most exciting novelists working today.
Bae Suah, one of the most highly acclaimed contemporary Korean authors, has published more than a dozen works and won several prestigious awards. She has also translated several books from the German, including works by W. G. Sebald, Franz Kafka, and Jenny Erpenbeck. Her first book to appear in English, Nowhere to be Found, was longlisted for a PEN Translation Prize.
Deborah Smith‘s literary translations from the Korean include two novels by Han Kang (The Vegetarian and Human Acts), and two by Bae Suah, (A Greater Music and Recitation).
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