Offerings- A Novel by Michael ByungJu Kim

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Web ID: 16778603

The national bestseller that Gary Shteyngart has called, "A potent combination of a financial thriller and a coming-of-age immigrant tale. . . . Offerings is a great book. " With the rapidly cascading Asian Financial Crisis threatening to go global and Korea in imminent meltdown, investment banker Dae Joon finds himself back in his native Seoul as part of an international team brought in to rescue the country from sovereign default. For Dae Joonalso known by his American name of Shane, after the cowboy movie his father so lovedthe stakes are personal. Raised in the US and Harvard Business School educated, Dae Joon is a jangnam, a firstborn son, bound by tradition to follow in the footsteps of his forebears. But rather than pursue the path his scholar-father wanted, he has sought a career on Wall Street, at the epicenter of power in the American empire. Now, as he and his fellow bankers work feverishly with Korean officials to execute a sovereign bond offering to raise badly needed capital, he knows that his own father is living on borrowed time, in the last stages of a disease that is the family curse. A young woman he has met is quietly showing the way to a different future. And when his closest friend from business school, a scion of one of Korea's biggest chaebol, asks his help in a sale that may save the conglomerate but also salvage a legacy of corruption.

  • Product Features

    • Suggested age range- Adult
    • Format- Paperback
    • Dimensions- 5.5" W x 8.2" H x 1" D
    • Genre- Fiction
    • Publisher- Arcade, Publication date- 05-03-2022
    • Page count- 288
    • ISBN- 9781956763140
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3 years ago
from New York, NY

A view from 30,000 feet

I read Offerings on the plane from Seoul to NYC. I finished it three hours before landing—I couldn’t put it down. From the vantage point of 30,000 feet, I realized that this book offered insights into both the place I had just left and the country to which I was returning. A compelling account of a young man’s journey of self-discovery, Offerings provides insights into what it means to grow up as an immigrant in America and a stranger in one’s country of origin. The narrative introduces readers to the intricate world of Korean family relations, the burden of being the first son, and the value of group harmony over individual liberty. While Americans celebrate diversity as a sign of cosmopolitanism, the appeal of a homogeneous society is often compelling. Yet this story makes it clear that homogeneity is an illusion. Inequalities in education and wealth can be as pernicious as differences in race and religion. Shifting gears, the protagonist, fresh out of Harvard Business School, is plunged into financial negotiations as the Korean government faces bankruptcy and default. Courage and honesty are also required to navigate the insular world of chaebol conglomerates and, even more, romance. Commerce, common sense, and candor ultimately find a way to resolve or accept differences. A guide to the possibility of building bridges between individuals and ultimately cultures—Korean and American—this story radiates a powerful sense of optimism and pride in becoming a citizen of both.

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