Gong Ji-young's Novel to Captivate Japanese Readers

"Our Happy Time", a novel by Korea's most celebrated female writer Gong Ji-young, will be published by a Japanese publisher in time for the Japanese premiere of the film that is based on the book.

Gong has already received a positive response in Japan after her book "Things That Come After Love", co-written with renowned Japanese writer Hitonari Tsuji, was introduced in Japan. Hitonari is widely known in Korea for his work, "Between Calm and Passion".

The release of the film "Our Happy Time" will also be helpful in boosting Gong's name recognition in Japan, because the male lead of the film, Gang Dong-won, is a rising star among young Japanese people.

Gong's publisher in Japan said that it is very unusual for the Japanese media to show such keen interest in a Korean writer and added that her novel will benefit from the release of the film in late June or early July.

The publication of Gong's novel in Japan is quite meaningful for the Korean literary circle. It remains to be seen whether the Japanese version of Gong's bestseller can enjoy the same rave reviews that the original Korean version did in Korea, and whether a Korean novel can achieve the same level of success in Japan as Japanese novels in Korea.

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