She is still working in a low-paying job as a caretaker at a nursing home looking after a dementia patient, Jen. At 70 years old, all she can claim control and exercise ownership over is an old, decaying home left behind by her deceased husband. But as the story goes on, readers will understand why she is concerned about her daughter’s life choices, thus making it quite impossible to hate her. It is easy to brand the mother as traditional or homophobic. After accusing Lane of ruining her daughter, she tells her to leave Green so the latter can “blend in” and live an “ordinary life”. She is also the one who gave Green her nickname, which annoys the mother even further. Conflicts arise when mum learns that they are more than just friends - Lane is Green’s long-term girlfriend. Mother, however, gets another unpleasant surprise when Green brings a woman, Lane to live together. After some thought, her mother invites her to move in. Green works as an itinerant university lecturer and is not eligible for loans or public housing because of her non-permanent job status. Feeling lost and confused, she seeks help from her mother - our unnamed narrator - asking whether the latter can get a loan on her behalf. Green, a 30-something-year-old woman, is threatened by the increase of rent prices. The author spotlights issues such as cost of living, discrimination against LGBTQ communities, generational differences, ageing and loneliness in South Korean society.
Translated from the Korean by Jamie Chang, Concerning My Daughter is the first book by Kim Hye-Jin available in English.
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