The Cabinet is a fictional novel by South Korean author Kim Un-su about time, love, loss, and those who live on the fringes of society. The book is a mix of the story of the cabinet’s caretaker and a collection of short anecdotes about the truly bizarre people who fill up the pages of the files in the cabinet. The Cabinet pulls inspiration from science fiction, fantasy, and horror, and presents it in a satisfying, weird, and fun-to-read package.

The Cabinet tells the story of a series of somewhat unfortunate and fantastical events that befall Mr. Kong, an office worker in his 30’s, bored out of his mind at a dead-end job; until he stumbles upon the mysterious “cabinet 13”. In it, he discovers stories of symptomers, people with strange lives and abilities. Some eat glass instead of real food, others can fall asleep for years, and one even has a lizard take up the place of her tongue. The stories in these files are poorly written, not very engaging, and clearly fake. Or are they?

The Cabinet’s symptomers represent groups in society who go unnoticed, and who live alternative lifestyles. Sure, not everyone who is born different from the normal standard is capable of jumping through time, but the parallels are similar enough for readers to draw lessons from it for their own lives. Many university students crave reliving the past and fear straying from the beaten path, and The Cabinet is a novel that presents another perspective on all of life’s biggest questions.

The real story in the pages of The Cabinet takes a while to figure out. Instead of being handed all the answers through expository writing, readers will be able to piece clues together in order to try and guess what happens next. Full of twists, and turns, this novel has an odd, eerie feeling to it that is hard to replicate. On its surface, the novel is the story of a bored office worker trying to entertain himself, but underneath lies an intriguing commentary on society’s treatment of so-called outsiders.

The writing of the novel itself is special in its own way. The Cabinet’s unique, thought-provoking prose sinks its hooks into the reader and refuses to let go. It is unlike any other book, extremely bizarre and fantastical while tying back to the everyday struggles of living in modern society. Despite the fact that the novel was originally written in 2006, the English translation proves that the questions and anxieties brought up in the story go beyond the boundaries of language. The novel is written from the first-person perspective of the protagonist and interrupted by various allegories, creating an almost diary-like feel within the pages.

Even though the timeline of events is only somewhat linear, and several chapters serve no true purpose for the plot other than standing as their own mini-stories, The Cabinet reads as fast as a book half its length. Through Mr. Kong’s struggle with his eccentric boss, difficult coworkers, and a mysterious organization that consistently tries to contact him, readers will be able to enjoy the confusion and mystery of this strange yet familiar world. The novel keeps its audience wondering right up to the end and stays in their minds long after. Best of all, readers can sift through the files in cabinet 13 along with Mr. Kong, come up with their own thoughts on life and the passage of time, and perhaps even look at those around them through a different lens.

Book information

Title: The Cabinet

Author: Kim Un-su

Publisher: Angry Robot

Publication Year: 2006

Pages: 304