Counterattacks at Thirty: A Novel

Ji-hye is an ordinary woman who has never been extraordinary in her thirty years of life. Even her name Ji-hye is one of the most ordinary in Korea. And just like every ordinary person, she’s not one to make waves by pointing out the absurdities of Korean bureaucracy or the small acts of injustice around her. Ji hye puts up with her superiors at the Academy where she works who, in big and small ways, create a semi-hostile work environment in the office. She has become the master of tedious tasks, from lining up chairs and distributing lecture materials to photocopying pornographic materials for “presentations.” Inappropriate as some of her tasks might be, Ji-hye has long accepted them as part of ordinary young adult life. But when Kyu-ok Lee, a new intern, joins the Academy, Ji-hye recognizes him as the man who once publicly accused a professor there of plagiarism. But this Kyu-ok seems different from that angry young man Ji-hye once encountered. In the office, he seems to be just another hard-working employee… until he shows his true colors.