Today, the Redwall Wiki is reviewing Korean translations of the Redwall series! The first novel, Redwall, was translated, as well as the two picture books, The Great Redwall Feast and A Redwall Winter's Tale. The latter pair of companion stories have not been translated that frequently, which makes these editions quite interesting.
Depicted above is the Korean version of The Great Redwall Feast, which is a hardcover. It was published by YoungKyo Publishing on December 31, 2001, and was the first Redwall book of any kind to be published in Korea.
The work features a translation from Kim Kyong-jong. Notable about all of the Korean translations is that they each contain a brief biography and/or note from or about the translator, which hasn't occurred in other translations. It's really nice to see this and learn a bit about the person behind the text, as translation is an art form in and of itself.
Kyong-jong's background is seemingly unusual for a children's book translator - his bio observes that he studied economics at various Korean educational institutions as well as at Syracuse University in the U.S., and, at the time of the book's publication, was employed by Korean's Ministry of Commerce, Industry, and Energy.
The title The Great Redwall Feast (레드월 축제날 무슨 일이 일어났을까 : 엄마와 함께 읽는 동화 브라이언 자크) appears to translate into "What Happened at the Redwall Festival?" The Korean language looks really nice with Christopher Denise's artwork. To read the Korean Great Redwall Feast, one has to flip it upside-down and turn the pages from the back cover - which I'm informed is not normal for Korean books. Indeed, the other editions do not operate this way.
The Korean edition of A Redwall Winter's Tale was published on May 5, 2005, by Dasan Education, a different publisher, in paperback. Translator Chan-seok Park studied creative writing at Chung-Ang University, as well as English in England, and worked in children's publishing.
Like The Great Redwall Feast, the Korean language works so well with Denise's art. The title translates into "Little Mole Bingo and Snow Badger" (꼬마 두더지 빙고와 눈오소리 (다산어린이문고1)).
Brian Jacques' Redwall (레드월) was strangely divided into two paperbacks for Korean readers. All of the interior Gary Chalk artwork is contained within. The first book concludes with the end of Chapter 14, halfway through Book 2 - the introduction of King Bull Sparra and Matthias' capture and imprisonment at the Sparra loft. Honestly, a fairly solid cliffhanger moment.
The second book picks right back up with Book 2's Chapter 15. Both "halves" of Korean Redwall were published on July 20, 2002, by Moonhak Soochup Little Books Co. and translated by Jeong Seong-ho, who graduated from the Catholic University of Korea in 1975 with a theology degree and worked as a high school English teacher and "translation specialist" with more than 700 translations to his credit.
What makes this translation different than any other I've encountered is that each chapter is provided with a title, as well as an accompanying page number at the beginning of the book (in both halves).
Seong-ho provides a lengthy page-and-a-half note at the end of Part Two, in which he comments on the story and explains his rationale.
Describing Redwall as having "a magic that makes it impossible to put it down once you pick it up until you finish it," he observes the "really funny" character names and that the diversity of the animals "adds to the fun of [the] book."
Regarding the chapter titles, Seong-ho says "Although the original book does not have chapter titles, the translator has done his best to create chapter titles to help readers read," which is an intriguing perspective.
Of course, this review would be incomplete if we didn't provide those chapter titles (translated with Google) so that you can decide for yourself. Below, check out the Seong-ho's chapter titles for Redwall. What do you think? Let us know in the comments, and thanks for reading.
Korean Redwall Chapter Titles[]
Redwall: Book One[]
Part 1: Monastery Redwall[]
- Matthias' Day
- God of War, Cluny
- Champion Chef
- Red Fog of Death
- Summer When Late Roses Bloom
- Arrival of Villain Cluny
- General Meeting
- A Ghost Appears
- Joseph's Servant's Voice
- Surrender Clause
- Ambrose Rescue Operation
- The Most Precious Symbol
- Winged Rat
- Stolen Tapestry
- The Way to Become a Wise Leader
- Battle Ready
- Rescue the Rat Family
- The Last of the Rag Rat
- Spring Cleaning
- The Real Battle Begins
Part 2: Strategy[]
- Baby Squirrel
- Cluny's Miserable Defeat
- Blood Price
- Discover Martin's Message
- Double Spy
- Shield with Letter 'M'
- Thirteen Smiling Faces
- Leakage of the Operation Plan
- Mrs. Jess' Climb
- Steal the Operation Plan
- Where is The Warrior's Sword?
- Taffy Apple
- The Captive Sparrow
- The Ox Sparrow King
Redwall: Book Two[]
Part 3: The Trial[]
- The Last of Sela
- Become a Prisoner
- Reclaim the Tapestry
- Escape Operation
- Chicken Hunter
- The Monastery in Sorrow
- The Resurrection of Matthias
- Pointed Shrew
- Cluny's Attack
Part 4: The Final Battle[]
- Operation Wasp
- Julian and Captain Snow
- The Assassination Ended in Failure
- Find Asmodeus
- Cornflower Becomes a Hero
- Find Martin's Sword
- Operation Boiling Water in the Tunnel
- The Last of the Viper
- The Lessons of Lord Julian
- Spy Plumpen
- Providing Information on Fighting
- Redwall is Conquered
- Warriors of Redwall
- The Final Battle
- The Redwall Chronicles
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