Paul Yoon (born 1980) is an American fiction writer. In 2010 The National Book Foundation named him a 5 Under 35 honoree.

Early life and education

Yoon's grandfather was a

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...

n refugee who resettled in

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

, where he later founded an orphanage. Yoon graduated from

Phillips Exeter Academy (not for oneself) la, Finis Origine Pendet (The End Depends Upon the Beginning) gr, Χάριτι Θεοῦ (By the Grace of God) , location = 20 Main Street , city = Exeter, New Hampshire , zipcode ...

in 1998 and

Wesleyan University Wesleyan University ( ) is a Private university, private liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut. Founded in 1831 as a Men's colleges in the United States, men's college under the auspices of the Methodist Epis ...

in 2002.

Career

His first book, ''Once the Shore'', was selected as a ''New York Times'' Notable Book; a ''Los Angeles Times'', ''San Francisco Chronicle'', ''Publishers Weekly'', and ''Minneapolis Star Tribune'' Best Book of the Year; and a National Public Radio Best Debut of the Year. His work has appeared in the '' PEN/O. Henry Prize Stories'' collection, and he is the recipient of a 5 under 35 Award from the

National Book Foundation The National Book Foundation (NBF) is an American nonprofit organization established, "to raise the cultural appreciation of great writing in America". Established in 1989 by National Book Awards, Inc.,Edwin McDowell. "Book Notes: 'The Joy Luc ...

. His novel, ''Snow Hunters,'' won the 2014

New York Public Library The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second largest public library in the United States (behind the Library of Congress ...

Young Lions Fiction Award The Young Lions Fiction Award is an annual US literary prize of $10,000, awarded to a writer who is 35 years old or younger for a novel or collection of short stories. The award was established in 2001 by Ethan Hawke, Jennifer Rudolph Walsh, Rick ...

. Recently a part of the faculty of the Bennington Writing Seminars, Yoon is now a Briggs-Copeland lecturer at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

Personal life

Yoon lives in

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most populous city in the state, behind Boston, ...

with his wife, Laura van den Berg.

Bibliography

Novels

* 2013: ''Snow Hunters'' * 2020: '' Run Me to Earth''

Short story collections

* 2009: ''Once the Shore'' * 2017: ''The Mountain''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yoon, Paul 1980 births Living people American people of North Korean descent American short story writers American writers of Korean descent Writers from New York City Phillips Exeter Academy alumni Wesleyan University alumni Harvard University faculty