Waseca library hosts author-illustrator duo

At a virtual event Tuesday evening, the Waseca-LeSueur library system hosted married illustrator/author duo Ryan Estrada and Kim Hyun Sook who are located in Busan, South Korea but, thanks to modern technology, were able to discuss their graphic novel The Banned Book Club and the true story that inspired it with local library patrons.

The pair were interviewed by LeSueur librarian Jessi Zimmerman, who offered questions and thoughtful commentary, while attendees were able to ask questions through Zoom’s chat feature.

 While Estrada has a lengthy resume as a cartoonist, The Banned Book Club was Hyun Sook’s first foray into authoring.

With their graphic novel receiving numerous awards and international press attention, Estrada joked that his wife thinks that “this is what happens when you write a book,” as she was a novice author striking gold with her debut.

The Banned Book Club is based on Hyun Sook’s experiences as a college student in South Korea in the 1980s, when she was part of the titular banned book club. This book club represented resistance during a time of censorship when her country’s government was under the control of dictator Chu Doo-hwan. 

“Nowadays, of course, South Korea is this wonderful democracy,” said Estrada. He went on to explain that after the Korean war, both North and South Korea dealt with controlling dictators whose leadership profoundly affected the everyday lives of their citizens. While South Korea has improved substantially since then, North Korea remains a communist dictatorship veiled from most of the world. 

Before meeting Estrada and talking to him about her time in the banned book club, Hyun Sook thought her story was “not that interesting” or notable. However, it was truly a story worth telling and Hyun Sook said that in addition to being a fun read, it was important to make her story of resistance accessible to those in other countries who may not know about this time in Korean history.

Hyun Sook added that keeping stories like this in circulation encourages the continued improvement of not only her country, but others around the world.

Hyun Sook was initially unaware that the book club was reading banned materials. She was invited to join by some of her friends and she enjoyed reading and discussing the literature; she eventually realized that her participation in the secret group was an act of resistance.

The club never met in open spaces; membership was invitation only; copies of books were acquired clandestinely.

Estrada likened the club to a “nerd-to-freedom-fighter pipeline,” which allowed the readers to examine varied perspectives in a setting which demanded that citizens conform. Their reading led them to realize that the South Korean government was wrongly censoring and controlling the information citizens could access. 

To prepare to write the book, Hyun Sook reunited with her banned book friends, family members, teachers, and more, interviewing them and taking notes. The story found in The Banned Book Club is an amalgamation of real stories and facts, with the identity of the real-life lawbreakers protected. 

While the graphic novel is set in a time when South Korea was under the iron fist of a dictator, the authors said that their goal was not to make a dystopian book, but rather to highlight the ways everyday life is influenced by outside forces. 

“It’s fun to read and know the culture of other countries,” said Hyun Sook.

In an age when books are beginning to be banned once again, even in the United States, The Banned Book Club’s 2020 release was timely. 

Estrada highlighted that in particular, books which feature LGBT characters are regularly challenged.

Zimmerman chimed in saying that “We are feeling the pressure of a small but loud minority,” in the fight for books that represent the varied lived experiences of people all around the world.

Estrada and Hyun Sook’s next semi-autobiographical graphic novel, No Rules Tonight is set to be released next year.