I'm eager to be like the aunt in "Winter Vacation". She selflessly opened her home to her nine-year-old nephew and showed her life without any showiness. If only I could be like that aunt who was poor yet shone brightly and was able to say, "It would be nice if what you learned from me was not just about poverty." How wonderful it would be if I could have the same aspiration as that aunt. As the years pass by, the season of winter vacation comes again, belonging to both youth and old age.
-----Li Xue'er (Writer, Representative of Heom Publishing House)

Choi Jin-young showed a desolate and pessimistic world in her first novel. In her recent work "To the Place Where the Sun Sets", she searched for desperate yet absolute love in a world that had been turned into hell by an unknown virus. In her second collection of short stories "Winter Vacation", she might be trying to create a chair for herself and the readers. A chair with a soft backrest and armrests that can comfortably embrace the body. For some people, the shape of such a chair might bring them hope.
------Zhao Hai-zhen (Novelist)

This is a book that I have already given as a gift to many acquaintances, and I will continue to give it to others in the future. I will also keep giving it as a gift in the days to come.
------Reader Aladdin, named Ku Yun-byeol

This collection of short stories is like a ray of warm sunshine in winter, gently caressing the souls huddled up in the freezing cold. Its stories lead you out of the memories of lonely times and back into the sunlight to enjoy the warm rays.
------Reader cat*** from YES24

★Won the 13th Baek Shin-ae Literature Award!
★Won the 2020 Kim Yong-ik Literature Award!
★Selected as a "Literature Sharing" book by the Korea Cultural Arts Association!
★It is the award-winning work of Choi Jin-young, a writer who has won the Shin Dong-yeop Literature Award, the Yi Sang Literature Award, the Manhae Literature Award, and the Hankyoreh Literature Award, and occupies an important position in the Korean literary circle. With a unique writing style, this work delicately outlines vivid characters. Their stories involve universal and profound themes such as poverty, hope, love, family and loneliness. These stories not only show the complex emotions of the characters when facing the challenges of life, but also reflect their inner fears and courage.
★Recommended by major South Korean media including The Kookmin Ilbo, The Dong-a Ilbo, The Chosun Ilbo, The Korea Times, and Hankyoreh!
★Strongly recommended by the chief editors of YES24 and Kyobo Book Centre, which are representative bookstores in South Korea!
★This book is a gift for those who feel tired under the heavy pressure of life and are eager to take a breather.

以下是根据韩国人名翻译习惯进行调整后的英文翻译内容，尽量遵循了韩语发音对应的音译方式：

"I will tell my mother that even if I can't be close to her, we are close enough on a cosmic scale. Even if the earth ceases to exist one day, we will be together in some way. Because although space is infinite, it has a beginning and an end. No matter how many cycles of birth, collapse and rebirth the universe repeats, we will always be together." ------ Excerpted from "One Day (feat. Stone)"

In this book, the author focuses on those who are struggling in the long river of time, their subtle words, faltering steps, and their intermittent sleep. With a delicate writing style, she depicts the complex emotions in people's hearts that contain both love and hate, both kindness and hidden malice.

Reading "Winter Vacation" is like squatting on the sandy ground and patiently digging for hidden treasures. Even when night falls and our hands are dirty, among the chaos and filth, we will eventually find those precious things that shine faintly. This collection of short stories is like an adventure deep into the heart, leading us to search for those overlooked and shining moments in every corner of life.
=====================================
"If only you could learn something more than just poverty from me."
The characters in Choi Jin-young's works still fear poverty. They are always worried about the present full of regrets and uneasiness and feel uncertain about the future. However, these characters can move forward through fear. They seem calm but are actually treading on thin ice. Their days seem to be coming to an end, but they continue.

In the short story "Winter Vacation", the nine-year-old nephew innocently said, "Aunt, you are poor, so you live in such a place." The aunt responded to the nephew with an intimate time that erased the traces of poverty. In "Stone Wall", the protagonist "I" worked in a company that was also eroding a person's future and present. The company hired informal employees and sold toys containing toxic substances, and the person in charge just casually said, "This level won't kill people." "I" protested against their actions and refused to be one of them. Although I was afraid of being threatened and that my life would collapse, when I returned to my hometown, I began to think about "what I want to become". Even during the days when I had to hurt my dignity to survive, I didn't want to live without knowing what was precious.

■ "To the universe, you may be just a speck of dust, but to me, you're not."
It's not a helpless optimism, but a hope rising from the bottom. To talk about this, the author uses the metaphor of the universe. To the universe, we are as insignificant as dust. The universe might be wondering why we tiny beings must have such a slim hope, why we should live with these hopes, and why we should love others when we can hardly take care of ourselves.

In "First Love", the protagonist "Hye-ji" loves the stars that can be seen through a telescope and the person "O-mi" who can be seen without a telescope. Hye-ji realizes that the distance between her and O-mi is like the distance between the sun and the earth. Once there is a change, all life on earth will be destroyed, and her world will also fall apart. You see, understanding the logic of the universe means understanding love. The background of "One Day (feat. Stone)" is that a huge rock is flying towards the earth, indicating the "one day" of the end of the world. Although there is no way to stop the end of the world, "I" think about my mother's words: "It would be nice if we died not too far away from each other." No matter how far apart we are, from the perspective of the universe, we are close enough and will always be together. What Choi Jin-young's novel wants to tell us is not to easily say despair or that there is no hope, and to learn to distinguish what is precious.

【Short Story Introduction】
"Stone Wall"
▶ I used to work in a company that produced children's books and toys. By chance, I discovered that the additive used by the company was the prohibited toxic substance "phthalate". After I reported the company, I returned to my hometown. I heard the story of an old man who built a stone wall because of his emptiness. The place where the stone wall is located is the place where I used to play with my best friend, Rose (로즈). Now, it has become a dried-up pond. While thinking about Rose, whom I haven't seen for a long time, I walked towards the stone wall. I believe that when I get there, I will know "what to do next".

"Winter Vacation"
▶ When she was nine years old, Ina (이나)’s mother gave birth to a younger brother, and Ina was sent to her aunt's house during the winter vacation. Ina recalled the moment when her father led her into the place where her aunt lived and what she said to her aunt in her single-room apartment and how her aunt treated her. The adult Ina remembered her aunt's expression and muttering at that time: "If only you could learn something more than just poverty from me." What on earth did my aunt want to teach me? The adult Ina pondered.

"First Love"
▶ On Woo-hyun (우현)’s birthday, Hye-ji (혜지) lost her bracelet, which was given by the person she cherished most. Just when Woo-hyun confessed his love to Hye-ji and they started dating, the bracelet fell in Woo-hyun's room. From that day on, all Hye-ji could think of was "I must find the bracelet". Because it was the bracelet given by O-mi (오미). Hye-ji likes O-mi, but the distance between her and O-mi is like the distance between the sun and the earth. Once there is a change, all life on earth will be destroyed, and her world will also fall apart.

"Family"
▶ Zhou En (주은) and Shu Hao (수호) had been together for three years. Their relationship was stable. Zhou En had a hunch that she would soon meet Shu Hao's parents. However, when she really came to Shu Hao's house, she encountered a situation that was expected but difficult to handle. That was Shu Hao's "family". Shu Hao's father was always complaining. He thought that no matter how much parents gave, they didn't get the respect they deserved. And his mother's words to her son were always vague, making it hard to tell whether it was praise or criticism.

"Chair"
▶ It tells the story of a furniture maker's memories of the past and thoughts about the future during the process of making a chair, reflecting the integration of handicrafts and life philosophy.

"Prisoner"
▶ One day, I realized that I was trapped in the wall. I lay down, slept, woke up, and ate in my room as usual. But when I opened the door, there was a wall outside. My company team leader tried to rescue me. He called me every day to persuade, scold, and give me advice. He always said, if it were a diligent person, what would he do? Hurry up and go out to work, make money, and I'll wait for you. For some reason, after hearing these words, I became even more addicted to this isolated and cut-off state. So in other words, I was imprisoned, but I didn't want to get out. Why is this?

"Last Train"
▶ Zhang (장), Nan (남) and Seung-hee (승희) always took the last train during the week. One day, the bus they were on suddenly braked sharply and then immediately resumed its original speed. Zhang insisted that the bus had hit something alive. Nan ignored Zhang's words and thought it was his hallucination. But Zhang was stubborn, and his claim became more and more specific. He thought that what they hit was not an animal, but a person. Seung-hee listened to their conversation and remembered an incident where a large vehicle was speeding on the road at night, suddenly braked, and killed a person.

"One Day (feat. Stone)"
▶ When I heard the news that a huge rock named in English and numbers was flying towards the earth, I was asking the credit card center to change my bill payment from one-time payment to installment payment. Even if the end of the world was coming, all I could do was apply for installment payment. I received a call from my mother. She wanted to know the exact content of the news. I told her, "Even if we understand the universe and everything, we can do nothing." But my mother kept asking.

"Today's Coffee"
▶ Father was a liar and disappeared after leaving a pile of debts. Zhao (조) had to work non-stop in convenience stores, barbecue restaurants, Internet cafes, factories, etc. And his mother, who had been waiting for his father's return all her life and always believed that his father was a good person, finally got sick and was admitted to a nursing home, which made Zhao even more urgently need to work. In order to get a job in a café that provided food and accommodation, Zhao got on an unfamiliar bus and came to a place he had never been to. Here, for the first time, he met a person who didn't see his disability as an obstacle. That person told Zhao that the café where he was applying for a job was a "waiting place".

"0"
▶ I lost a book. I don't remember whether it was a science fiction novel or just a popular science reading material, nor do I remember whether the title was "The Earth" or "Their Earth", but I must find that book. I asked those who had come to my room if they had seen that book. However, the reactions of my friends who heard that I was worried about losing this book were all to complain to me about the pain each of them was suffering. When I continued to talk with my friends, I remembered my pain. Why am I looking for this book?

■ Author's Words
When gathering my second collection of short stories, I fell into deep thought. Perhaps, I have unconsciously adjusted my course. Looking at each of us who are on our own, I find that I am eager to trust the delicate and real bonds between us. Vulnerability makes us easy to get hurt, but it is also this vulnerability that gives us a deeper mutual dependence and allows us to experience those hidden emotions. (...)
Although I am still unfamiliar with the concept of hope, I can't stop trusting people. After experiencing despair, perhaps I can embrace the ensuing boundless blank in a new posture. I am still wandering on the border between the end and the beginning.

Choi Jin-young
Recognized unanimously by judges such as Park Bum-shin, Gong Ji-young, and Hwang Hyun-san, she was elected as the writer for the 15th Hankyoreh Literature Award.
In 2006, she published her debut work in "Practical Literature" and formally entered the literary world. Her works mostly focus on the psychology of people trapped in setbacks and fears.
Her works include the novels "The Name of the Girl Who Passed You By", "The Unfinished Song", "Why Didn't I Die", "Proof of Nine", "To the Place Where the Sun Sets", "Lee Hee-yeop, No Longer Silent", and the short story collection "Spinning Top". Her works have been authorized for copyrights in Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, English, Russian, Polish and other languages.
Awards: The Yi Sang Literature Award in 2023, the Manhae Literature Award in 2020, the Baek Shin-ae Literature Award in 2020, the Shin Dong-yeop Literature Award in 2014, and the Hankyoreh Literature Award in 2010.