Published in South Korea on November 10, 2011, the book received an English-language release on April 18, 2023 by Hogarth Press.

A young, recently mute woman begins taking a class in Ancient Greek in an effort to reclaim language in some way.

The English-language edition, translated by Deborah Smith and Emily Yae Won, was published by Hogarth Press on April 18, 2023.

[3][4] The San Francisco Chronicle described Han as "one of the most unconventional, perceptive, and truly innovative writers publishing today" in a positive review, while The Los Angeles Times praised her for "writing into discomfort.

[10] A review in The Wall Street Journal concurred, arguing that the novel's existential themes were better handled in her previous book The Vegetarian.