Science Fiction

To the Warm Horizon

To the Warm Horizon

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  • Create Date：2021-07-01 09:50:58
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
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  • Author：Jin-Young Choi
  • ISBN：1916277144
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Summary

A group of Koreans are making their way across a disease-ravaged landscape—but to what end？ To the Warm Horizon shows how in a post-apocalyptic world， humans will still seek purpose， kinship， and even intimacy。 Focusing on two young women， Jina and Dori， who find love against all odds， Choi Jin-young creates a dystopia where people are trying to find direction after having their worlds turned upside down。

Lucidly translated from the Korean by Soje， this thoughtful yet gripping novel takes the reader on a journey through how people adjust， or fail to adjust， to catastrophe。

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Reviews

Linda Liu ，

There were some good plot points and character building。 The style of the book is very introspective， so I felt like I was seeing everything through a window， rather than being immersed in the action or emotions。

Silvia ，

I genuinely don't know how to rate this， it was the most depressing thing I've ever read and the super-high-mortality virus that brought about this dystopian world was the least depressing part of it。I read this because it was sapphic and i liked that it was a look at a post apocalyptic world through a female lense and it chose to center the love between two women as its only hopeful point。 But that felt so marginal in the face of every single POV woman getting raped and going through the worst I genuinely don't know how to rate this， it was the most depressing thing I've ever read and the super-high-mortality virus that brought about this dystopian world was the least depressing part of it。I read this because it was sapphic and i liked that it was a look at a post apocalyptic world through a female lense and it chose to center the love between two women as its only hopeful point。 But that felt so marginal in the face of every single POV woman getting raped and going through the worst type of violence that i don't know if this left me with any hope。 I feel like i am walking away from this book with an even worse opinion of humanity than i did before reading it， and my opinion of humanity wasn't high to begin with。On the other hand， it was well written （and well translated）， and i can't say that i didn't， if not exactly enjoy it because enjoyment would be the most misplaced word to use here， at the very least like reading this。 I also don't know anything about the fiction situation in Korea and have no means to judge whether this was just another dystopian-novel-but-queer or if this is groundbreaking and the first book of its kind published in Korea， and i feel like that would make it easier to form an opinion on this。TWs: deadly virus pandemic， typical post apocalyptic conditions （violence， gun violence， war）， rape and attempted rape， mention of suicide and suicidal ideations， mention of self harm， concentration camps， and probably a lot more。。。 basically prepare for everything 。。。more

Anamaria Serrano ，

I haven't read a Korean author yet that I didn't like - in translation， of course。 To the Warm Horizon， translated by Soje， is a literary comment on the fragility of our modern world， how dysfunctionally we live， and the consequences of global disaster。 It is told in an elegantly sparse style， touching on the essential without unnecessary flourish。 The kind of writing I like best， so kudos to Soje for conveying this particular tone in the translation。Five characters tell their story in separate I haven't read a Korean author yet that I didn't like - in translation， of course。 To the Warm Horizon， translated by Soje， is a literary comment on the fragility of our modern world， how dysfunctionally we live， and the consequences of global disaster。 It is told in an elegantly sparse style， touching on the essential without unnecessary flourish。 The kind of writing I like best， so kudos to Soje for conveying this particular tone in the translation。Five characters tell their story in separate chapters each bearing his/her name。 They have fled Korea， along with thousands of other refugees， after a virus spread and killed many people。 With the chaos of the virus came a rise in marauding gangs， so life became untenable。 The arduous journeys they make in their small groups and the brutal experiences they endure create a dystopian scene。 Their journeys overlap in good and bad ways。 One of the main encounters is between Jina and Dori， two young women who fall in love。 The novel has been labelled as queer because of this relationship and is the first of its kind in Korean literature， apparently， but that is only one aspect of the novel。 Their relationship is handled delicately， conveying the gentleness and slightly forbidden but very natural wonder the characters feel about each other as they discover their love amid horrific circumstances， rather than focus falling heavily on their sexuality。 In fact， it is their love that keeps them going， even after they have been separated。 Sexuality is something that Choi Jin-Young addresses matter of factly， echoing some of the sexual encounters I've read in the work of other Korean authors， where there is little regard or respect for the woman's pleasure。 One character reminisces on her sexual relationship with her husband when they lived in Korea。 It was perfunctory， at best， the most base kind of gratification for her husband， with no satisfaction for her at all。 As happens with major life upheavals， people think back on the past and reevaluate old beliefs， behaviours， and ways of life。 The skewed aspect of some of our values is highlighted in this novel， pointing out how even when family is considered to be the most important thing in life， we spend much of our time working relentlessly， paradoxically ignoring family members in order to provide for them。 Apart from the physical trials and abuse the characters have to put up with as they make their way towards Russia in the hope that they will find refuge there， the author draws attention to language barriers， symbolic of crossing cultural divides， and how much more complex negotiation and survival becomes。 Ultimately， however， survival is about human connection even in the most barren or hopeless situations。 There is loss， horror， the ravages of war， but the tiniest glimmer of hope in love can help us through。 。。。more

WndyJW ，

I’m not a fan of dystopian novels， so I was surprised that I enjoyed this novel。 Fleeing S。 Korea， after a swift moving pandemic turns civilization into a Mad Max style survival of the fittest and most brutal， are Dori， hardened after losing both parents， and traveling alone with her beloved young sister Joy， stealing， even killing to keep herself and Joy alive; Ryu， a jaded， harried working mother who drives out of Korea with her husband and young son， after burying their daughter; Jina， travel I’m not a fan of dystopian novels， so I was surprised that I enjoyed this novel。 Fleeing S。 Korea， after a swift moving pandemic turns civilization into a Mad Max style survival of the fittest and most brutal， are Dori， hardened after losing both parents， and traveling alone with her beloved young sister Joy， stealing， even killing to keep herself and Joy alive; Ryu， a jaded， harried working mother who drives out of Korea with her husband and young son， after burying their daughter; Jina， traveling with her tyrannical， ruthless father and what remains of their extended family， and Gunji， the bullied boy from school that Jina begs her father to allow in the box trucks loaded with food， water， gasoline and guns as they all travel in search of safety， not knowing if or where they might find it。This is the first LGBTQ novel translated from Korean and the heart of the novel is the love between Jina and Dori。 The story is well written and well paced as the groups each face their own struggles to survive and to find direction， but what drives the stories of each group are not the expected skirmishes for food， fuel， and shelter， but the battles for love: Jina’s fierce battle to maintain her belief in the goodness of people， especially her father， Dori’s struggle to allow herself to love Jina， Gunji’s need to love himself， and Ryu finding that after losing her home， job， security， and daughter， that there is something more important than life and death: it’s making sure her son and husband know that she loves them。It’s probably more of a 3。5 novel， but for me to enjoy a post-apocalyptic， dystopian novel it has to be good， so I rounded up to a 4 and can honestly recommend it。 。。。more

Justin Goodman ，

TL;DR To The Warm Horizon is the kind of novel someone might call "YA" insultingly。 I wouldn't go that far， but I would definitely say it's so far up its own romance that it doesn't really respect the world it put that romance in。 It's bland and unchallenging except in what comes across as torture porn - minus any consequences or second thoughts about the torture。 When it tries to handle themes of survival at any & all costs， the characters simply talk about the morality of their decisions or th TL;DR To The Warm Horizon is the kind of novel someone might call "YA" insultingly。 I wouldn't go that far， but I would definitely say it's so far up its own romance that it doesn't really respect the world it put that romance in。 It's bland and unchallenging except in what comes across as torture porn - minus any consequences or second thoughts about the torture。 When it tries to handle themes of survival at any & all costs， the characters simply talk about the morality of their decisions or the possibility of moral decision-making。 It may be the "first queer novel translated into English" （I assume they mean Korean-to-English）， but that doesn't save it from being uninteresting。 It's sad to me that I'll likely never think about it again。ReviewAfter reading Choi Jin-young's interview in Words Without Borders， I can safely say that something might be lost in translation - culturally， if not linguistically。My most positive perspective on To The Warm Horizon is that it reads like a comic opera。 Emotion is not invested in the conventional tropes of "realism" such as environmental detailing， un（der）stated psychological characteristics， slow & unfolding growth。 Instead， the characters functionally sing arias that explicitly lay out their emotions & actions - one of the main characters even mentions humming "Ma Rendi Pur contento" - as the violence of the broken world washes over them。 This gives the book a "love conquers all" tone， which is very much at odds with the gravity of this dystopia plagued by a virus that has somehow led to the rapid collapse of all human society into its most base & graphic compulsions。 Facially the problem begins at the level of suffering。 It seems to me that to successfully have this uplifting ending， there either has to be a threshold of violence you don't cross or an at least nominal confrontation with the extreme violence。 Choi doesn't seem to do this。 TW （sexual assault）: （view spoiler）[Two of the characters， Dori and Jina， are raped - Jina multiple times while in a labor camp。 I will not police how anyone processes trauma。 My problem with To The Warm Horizon， however， is that there's not even reflection。 If the characters were beaten instead， nothing would change。 It's not that it would have been appropriate had they sat and stewed in suffering， tragically unable to move on。 But， because the story unfolds so quickly over such a nondescript period of time， it feels like Choi added it because it is real and not because it fit into the characters' realities。 （hide spoiler）]Thus， it felt like there were no clear stakes。 The virus is an omnipresent threat - except it never noticeably effects anyone in the present-tense of the story， and is mentioned like a jump scare。 Mad Max-esque bandits appear once in the flesh， and then are quickly replaced by a burgeoning semi-empire - itself quickly vanished in a flash of coincidence as 4 of the 5 narrators meet again at this semi-empire's small labor camp。 The coincidence isn't too outlandish since an integral theme of the story is how， to quote Jeff Goldblum， "life， uh， finds a way。" Without clear stakes though， the coincidence feels hollow。Which brings us to why I think this is the case。 While the influence of Cormac McCarthy's The Road is felt in the grimdark post-apocalypse road trip framework and its story beats， even Choi herself seems to acknowledge it's superficial。 In the above interview， she said she borrowed "what I wanted" and gender-swapping the characters from the novel。 But she gives details of Christophe Bataille's Annam influence on her: the priest and nun who fall in love while missionaries are "beautiful and noble" in how their falling in love is metonymic of their being in "a land completely unfamiliar to them。"Firstly this explains the overabundance of God in To The Warm Horizon。 In a country where 3/4th of the population isn't Christian， it's jarring that all these Korean characters casually speaks of God or the absence of God。 Yet none of them are concretely religious， think about the complexities of faith， or really think about faith except in an abstract Annie "tomorrow tomorrow" kind of way。 It makes obvious McCarthy's absence given how seriously he treats fatality's challenge to the possibility of God & goodness in The Road - he even revives the Christian mystic word "salitter" to invoke it。 Secondly， I'm uncomfortable with the unironic use of a colonialist narrative to talk about queer love。 I say colonialist because， as far as I can find discussion of Bataille's Annam， it's described [PDF] as "ethnographic writing on the Vietnamese mentality by French academics。" This just doesn't have the texture of critique， like with Maryse Conde's Windward Heights or Michael Cunningham's The Hours。 And maybe this is because Choi herself said she felt "ashamed" of writing tragedies， so she wanted to write something happy。 Which， in this case， feels quaint and goofy。Ultimately， all this makes the attempts at ambiguity and complexity in a time of crisis self-destruct。 Which makes me wildly upset because a queer love post-apocalypse sounds great and there's even an amazing analogy that， if it had actually been built on in any way within the story， would have made this flourish for me。 After Jina's childhood friend Gunji is kicked out Jina's family caravan， she starts fearing that she'll become as heartless as her family if she stays among them much longer: "Like a honeybee living among wasps， I'd think I'm a wasp and eventually end up becoming a wasp。 I'd live on as a wasp。 I'd mock flowers and honey and butterflies。" 。。。more

Adam Ferris ，

"There's both responsibility and madness within me。 I can't say the two are mutually exclusive。"To The Warm Horizon by Choi Jin-Young translated by Soje takes us on a journey through the cold barren Russian landscape with various groups trying to outrun a deadly virus。 Told through the points of view of four characters， we see the vastness not only of the setting but also the emotions of the characters。 Many fall evil to the new post-apocalyptic reality while others seek the spirit of connection "There's both responsibility and madness within me。 I can't say the two are mutually exclusive。"To The Warm Horizon by Choi Jin-Young translated by Soje takes us on a journey through the cold barren Russian landscape with various groups trying to outrun a deadly virus。 Told through the points of view of four characters， we see the vastness not only of the setting but also the emotions of the characters。 Many fall evil to the new post-apocalyptic reality while others seek the spirit of connection and kinship at any cost。 Though this is billed as a love story， it is by no means sappy or totally unrealistic。 My favourite read so far from Honford。 。。。more

Tanja ，

3，5

Monana ，

Boring suffer porn。Yes， we got it people are bad， war is bad。

Helen | readwithneleh ，

I， who is in the biggest reading slump， read this in one sitting！To the Warm Horizon is a dystopian， post-apocalyptic novel originally written in Korean and the first queer novel to be translated into English。 A pandemic has erupted overnight。 In Korea， there are 100，000 deaths in one day and 500，000 the next， with the virus mutating with every new vaccine。 The world as we know it has collapsed。 And this new world is dangerous， bleak， and illogical—with some people even believing that eating the I， who is in the biggest reading slump， read this in one sitting！To the Warm Horizon is a dystopian， post-apocalyptic novel originally written in Korean and the first queer novel to be translated into English。 A pandemic has erupted overnight。 In Korea， there are 100，000 deaths in one day and 500，000 the next， with the virus mutating with every new vaccine。 The world as we know it has collapsed。 And this new world is dangerous， bleak， and illogical—with some people even believing that eating the livers of children will provide immunity。 We meet four characters as they make their way across Russia in the winter—Ryu， Dori， Jina， and Gunji。 Told in alternating POVs， as a reader， we are mostly left in the same dilemma as these characters—uniformed and disoriented。 We only see small glimpses into their past lives and left with their present but fragile mindset as they remember， regret， analyze， plan， and live through this nightmare。 We are never given the full picture of how they get to Russia or what their lives were truly like before the pandemic。 We only experience the terror， violence， and grief of their new world。 And while I can see how this may be a bother for some readers， it had the opposite effect on me。 I was both too frightened and captivated to look away。 Frightened by the unknown and ugliness of humanity， but captivated by the grit and love of these characters。 The author’s decision to strip the story of plot explanations felt purposeful and ultimately impactful for me as a reader。 I felt the same foreboding as the characters and therefore wished for Dori and Jina to make it。 Their love story isn’t an epic， but when set against the end of the world we are reminded that love is both delicate and resilient， just like human life。 But more than the love story， this novel introduces marginalized characters in Korean society—queer， mixed-race， and disabled。 Reminiscent of Cormac McCarthy’s The Road， this one is grim and bleak。 But， it reminds us that people， whatever they look like or whoever they are， will find a way to exist and love。CW: gun violence， violence， rape （off page）， misogyny， war， death 。。。more

Henk ，

A truly gorgeous cover encapsulates a quite traditional end of the world story （think of Mad Max in the snowy tundra） that takes long strides to arrive at the conclusion that love can even withstand the end of the worldThe story of To the Warm Horizon is in a way similar to The New Wilderness， The Road， The Stand， More Than This， Station Eleven， Oryx and Crake and many other dystopian/post apocalyptic tales。 A virus leads to the collapse of society （Covid-19 got nothing on this virus， moving fro A truly gorgeous cover encapsulates a quite traditional end of the world story （think of Mad Max in the snowy tundra） that takes long strides to arrive at the conclusion that love can even withstand the end of the worldThe story of To the Warm Horizon is in a way similar to The New Wilderness， The Road， The Stand， More Than This， Station Eleven， Oryx and Crake and many other dystopian/post apocalyptic tales。 A virus leads to the collapse of society （Covid-19 got nothing on this virus， moving from 100。000 to 500。000 deads in a day in South Korea） and a family flees Korea in two trucks （I’m not sure how they’d end up in Russia with the military zone between the South and North）。 How Jina manages to to push her child into Dori in such grim circumstances is also a bit unclear， and them meeting again later while one is on foot and another is traveling per truck （with gasoline not being a major issue after the breakdown of civilization） through giant Russia is a mystery。 The prose in general is light on details of the new world and the sketchy details provided raise a lot of questions how well thought out and realistic Jin-Young Choi tries to be 。Like somewhere 1/3 in， everyone blames Dori， new to a group and it’s just a bit lazy storytelling in my view， unexplained and posited as a fact， and later I was just baffled how does Dori ends up having a gun all of the sudden。There are some claustrophobic scenes at the end that are very like The Testaments stadium scenes， and I feel overal this is the problem with this book: this kind of story has been done before， and it has been done better， and I felt that the characters could and should have been much more fleshed out to have an emotional impact。 。。。more

Paul Fulcher ，

우리는 어디로 가？우리는…… 여름을 찾아서。여름은 어디에 있는데？나는 손가락으로 태양을 가리켰다。저기， 해가 지는 곳에。미소는 혀로 사탕을 굴리며 내 손을 꼭 잡았다。Where are we going？We’re … looking for summerWhere’s summerI pointed to the sunThere， over the horizon。 Where the sun sets。Rolling the candy in her mouth， Joy held my hand。To the Warm Horizon is Soje’s translation of the Korean original 해가 지는 곳으로 by 최진영 （Jin-Young Choi）， with the cover designed by Choi Jaehoon/werkgraphic。com。It is published by Honford Star - see below for more on the publisher。To the Wa 우리는 어디로 가？우리는…… 여름을 찾아서。여름은 어디에 있는데？나는 손가락으로 태양을 가리켰다。저기， 해가 지는 곳에。미소는 혀로 사탕을 굴리며 내 손을 꼭 잡았다。Where are we going？We’re … looking for summerWhere’s summerI pointed to the sunThere， over the horizon。 Where the sun sets。Rolling the candy in her mouth， Joy held my hand。To the Warm Horizon is Soje’s translation of the Korean original 해가 지는 곳으로 by 최진영 （Jin-Young Choi）， with the cover designed by Choi Jaehoon/werkgraphic。com。It is published by Honford Star - see below for more on the publisher。To the Warm Horizon is a post-apocalyptic novel as well as a love story between two women， quite consciously （see the interview below） The Road but with female characters and queer romance at its heart。 Although a more direct influence is Christophe Bataille’s Annam， which is read by two of the characters in this book。In the novel’s prologue - playing the part of a voiceover in a movie - one of the characters， Ryu， writing 40 years later recalls when she first heard on the news that a strange virus was spreading in a different country， that the virus would mutate with every new vaccine。 At first life carries on as normal and people aren’t that concerned。 But this is much worse than Covid-19 （the original novel was written before this in 2017， although after the much-more-deadly but more-controllable MERS outbreak in Korea）。Soon 100，000 people die in Korea in one day， and more the next。 Public order and society largely collapses， causing worse effects than the virus itself， including a strong belief that eating the liver of a young child may provide immunity。The novel’s characters are all from South Korea but have fled the country to Siberia and are now， initially separately， travelling across Russia trying to find shelter and food and supplies that haven’t already been looted。 One recalls that however troubled and basic her life was before:We had a heated floor that kept us warm and a roof that sheltered us from rain and snow。 If I felt scared and repulsed by the world， I could close my bedroom door and hide under my desk and listen to music。 Water and kimchi were in the fridge， rice in the rice cooker， and instant ramen in the cupboard。 I could turn on the light。Dori and Joy are sisters who lost their parents to the virus， and the Dori， in her early twenties is looking after her younger sister， who is deaf and mute。Jina is a young woman travelling with her gradually depleted extended family， of mixed race although this （as well as Joy’s deafness and Dori’s sexuality） isn’t particularly commented on by the characters in the novel， but simply who they are （see the translator interview below）。Gunji is a teenage boy， who was bullied both at home， by his father， and at school。 He lived near Jina in Korea， and has tagged along with her family， although not to all of their liking。Ryu is a middle aged woman， whose school-age daughter was lost to the virus， now travelling with her husband and son。Incidentally Joy is called 미소 in the original which was Romanized as Miso in the first version of the translation， but 미소 literally means Smile， and Joy does seem a better choice （and Miso in English carries some unintended meaning， whereas in Korean the equivalent dish is 된장， doenjang）。 Jina first meets Dori when Jina’s extended family find an abandoned house where the two sisters are already sheltering。 The exchange that follows has the translator （as with Cursed Bunny by the same publisher） doing a great job in rendering Korean-accented English in English:Jina did not put up her guard with me。—You’re from Korea， right？I， on the other hand， did not let my guard down。 Jina scratched her cheek， looking at me as I said nothing in response。—A-im peurom Koria。（*）Out of the blue， she spoke English。—Wheo al yu peurom？ I sensed a slight Gyeongsang dialect。—Naiseu tu mit yu。She took another step toward me and extended her hand。—If it’s not this either 。 。 。 Hajimemashite。After greeting me in Japanese， Jina quietly gazed at me for a moment， fixed her fur hat， and switched back to Korean。—Don’t worry。 We’re not bad people。 No one’s infected， and we don’t eat kid liver。 We’re going to spend the night right out there and leave in the morning 。 。 。 But still， I won’t tell anyone that I saw you here。* I would imagine the original Korean was 아임 프롬 코리아This instead a story for much world building - the characters themselves have little idea what is going on in the wider world - but rather mostly at a personal level。 The experience of the five is brutal - much like war， the virus seems a good ‘excuse’ for widespread rape， and even for the five it can be a kill-or-be-killed world - but also poignant， particularly in the strong relationships between the characters， all of whom narrate chapters in the first person。Overall - a thoughtful novel and one I'd recommend to others， but one that didn’t completely grab me。 3。5 starsNotes and sourcesTranslation pitch from the Smoking Tigers collective:https://smokingtigers。com/to-the-warm。。。An extract from the original translation （as noted the young girl is called Miso here）:https://www。wordswithoutborders。org/a。。。A discussion between author and translator:https://www。wordswithoutborders。org/d。。。 - and the original Korean discussion https://www。wordswithoutborders。org/d。。。 Translator: In past interviews， you’ve cited Christophe Bataille’s Annam and Cormac McCarthy’s The Road as inspirations for Horizon。 Could you give a brief introduction？Author: Annam is about French Dominican missionaries who go to Vietnam。 The novel is fast-paced and very beautiful。 The characters are beautiful and noble， even under miserable circumstances。 As you turn the pages， drunk on the sentences and the story and the vibe， what remains is the love of two people who you didn’t expect to fall in love。 I wanted that love， what you can call the core of that novel， in my novel as well。 With The Road， I borrowed what I wanted in my own apocalyptic narrative。 Since The Road is， after all， about a father and his son， I was curious what would happen if the protagonists were women。。。。Translator: Something I’ve been curious about is that Jina has red hair and gray eyes。 Much later in the novel， Dori wonders why Jina’s hair is red， but it goes unanswered， right？ How did it happen？ Is it dyed？ Is she not Korean？Author: I intended her to be mixed race。 One of Jina’s grandparents or ancestors was a foreigner， but I didn’t explain that [in the novel]。 The reason is 。 。 。 You know， there’s not a single person who thinks it’s weird for Jina and Dori to love each other。 They just accept it。 In the way that I simply presented queerness， I wanted to do the same for mixed-race identity and disability。 I thought that the idea that this requires some kind of explanation was absurd。See here - https://modernpoetryintranslation。com。。。 - for an essay by the translator where they discuss the use of the term 언니。Honford StarHonford Star’s mission is to publish the best literature from East Asia， be it classic or contemporary 。。。 By working with talented translators and exciting local artists， we hope to see more bookshelves containing beautiful editions of the East Asian literature we love。Until this year their Korean literature had been classic literature from the 1st half of the 20th century:Sweet Potato: Collected Short Stories by Kim Tongin， translated by Grace Jung:https://www。goodreads。com/review/show。。。Endless Blue Sky by Lee Hyoseok， translated by Steven Capener: https://www。goodreads。com/review/show。。。The Underground Village by Kang Kyeong-ae， translated by Anton Hurhttps://www。goodreads。com/review/show。。。But for 2021， their K-lit focus turns to the contemporary， in terms of authors， and the future in terms of subject matter。 Tower， translated by Sang Ryu from the original 타워 by 배명훈 （Bae Myung-hoon） - https://www。goodreads。com/review/show。。。Cursed Bunny translated by Anton Hur from 저주토끼 by 정보라 （Bora Chung） - https://www。goodreads。com/review/show。。。And this novel To the Warm Horizon translated by Soje from 해가 지는 곳으로 by 최진영 （Jin-Young Choi） - https://www。goodreads。com/review/show。。。Honford Star’s mission statement refers to talented local artists， and the cover work is alway stunning。 See here for the press's general approach: https://booksandbao。com/asian-cover-a。。。。 It is also great to see the translators named on the front cover， and the Korean title and author’s name， written in 한글 （hangeul） on the flaps。 。。。more

Kimberly Ouwerkerk ，

When strangers meet on the road， on the run from a disease， a lot can happen。 While some are able to salvage what’s left of their humanity， others play the game of survival in hopes of a better future。 The further the story progresses， the more you and some of the characters in the book wonder if there is no other way。 It’s interesting to see what such a harsh situation does to one’s character， morals and dreams。 You can’t follow the transformations in full detail， the book is too short for that When strangers meet on the road， on the run from a disease， a lot can happen。 While some are able to salvage what’s left of their humanity， others play the game of survival in hopes of a better future。 The further the story progresses， the more you and some of the characters in the book wonder if there is no other way。 It’s interesting to see what such a harsh situation does to one’s character， morals and dreams。 You can’t follow the transformations in full detail， the book is too short for that， but you can compare the different outcomes。Most characters mourn their lost lives， but some suddenly feel alive and kicking because they escaped a miserable situation at home。 Those who stick to their dreams draw strength from that and follow their own path。 The newfound simplicity gives them a sense of relief and they find that they are now able to pay attention to their loved ones。 Others are absorbed in the status quo and do what everyone else does to survive。 None of the main characters reaches the end of the book without a scratch。To a Better PlaceThe story is slow-paced。 The characters keep heading for a “better place” during a Russian winter。 No one ages and time does not pass in increments of days and years。 The idea of a dystopian world struck by disease is not a new concept and has been done many times before。 It was up to the characters to make it a gripping story， but it took them quite a while to reach me。 By the time they did， near the epilogue， it was too late。 That epilogue， however， was very good。Prolong their suffering？The middle of the story was weaker。 I liked the voices of Ryu， Joy and Gunji more than Dori and Jina。 When Dori was drawn to Jina at the beginning of the book， it was a bit sudden because you had only just met her without knowing much about her。 Jina’s attraction to Dori was easier to accept because it was stated more explicitly。 I think the book was too short for their story and they needed more words to properly share their feelings with the reader。 Gunji’s account of what happened to Dori should not have hit me harder than Jina’s or Dori’s。To the Warm Horizon is a good example of a book whose ending you don’t really want to get to because the hardships get worse with each page。 But as long as some people have dreams and are able to love， there is hope。 If I ever find myself in a situation like this， I think I’ll just stay home instead of hiking into Russia。ConclusionTo the Warm Horizon was a little disappointing for me。 If Ryu or Joy had been the narrator of the entire book， I would have liked it better because I was more interested in what they had to say。 。。。more

Barry Welsh ，

KBS Korea 24 @KBSKorea24“On #KoreaBookClub， @BarryPWelsh shares #ChoiJinyoung's '#TotheWarmHorizon，' a #queer #lovestory "set against the backdrop of a #dystopian， #postapocalyptic world。" Originally published in 2017， the gripping story takes place after humanity is devastated by a deadly #pandemic。 The English @honfordstar version was translated by #literarytranslator @sojeflux， and Barry also talks about an interview with Choi and Soje that delves into the inspirations behind the #novel。 Tune KBS Korea 24 @KBSKorea24“On #KoreaBookClub， @BarryPWelsh shares #ChoiJinyoung's '#TotheWarmHorizon，' a #queer #lovestory "set against the backdrop of a #dystopian， #postapocalyptic world。" Originally published in 2017， the gripping story takes place after humanity is devastated by a deadly #pandemic。 The English @honfordstar version was translated by #literarytranslator @sojeflux， and Barry also talks about an interview with Choi and Soje that delves into the inspirations behind the #novel。 Tune in”19:10-20:00 KST， Mon-Fri on KBS WORLD Radio。Download the KBS Kong / KBS WORLD Radio Mobile apps or subscribe to the Korea 24 podcast for your daily updates！#KBSWORLDRadio #KBS월드라디오 #Korea24 #코리아24 #책스타그램 #북스타그램 #bookstagram #book #reading #최진영 #해가지는곳으로 #Koreanliterature #queerliterature #KoreanLiterature （http://world。kbs。co。kr/service/progra。。。） 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=To the Warm Horizon

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=To the Warm Horizon&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,To the Warm Horizon&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0