[Book Sip] Conspiracy Theories Rampant in the Near Future '...Scroll!'

Some sentences encapsulate the entire content of the book itself, while others instantly reach the reader's heart, creating a point of connection with the book. We present such meaningful sentences excerpted from the book. - Editor's note

The novel is set in the near future, some time after the pandemic outbreak in the early 21st century. It unfolds along two main threads (SE and NE). One thread tells the story of the bookstore clerks at 'MetaBooks,' a bookstore belonging to the complex cultural facility 'Metaplex,' which is based more on augmented and virtual reality than physical reality. The other thread follows the agents of the transnational organization 'Myth Busters,' established to destroy the conspiracy theories rampant worldwide. Each story mixes and omits the flow of time or lists events fragmentarily without causal relationships. Author Jeong Jidon borrowed the 'cut-up' technique to "cut and paste reality and unreality, virtual and real, media and metamedia," completing a single book. This effectively presents a facet of the near future where each individual and their respective realities have become highly diversified.

Can-D, which had entered Lee's bloodstream, was already taking effect. I stole a machine gun last night, but there are no bullets... Can you sell it? I nodded. The wind grew stronger, and raindrops the size of grenades pounded down. The seawater swallowed the yacht, and a stingray with fins spread out flashed green fluorescent material as it flew through the rain. Lee and I slid down the tilted concrete at the pier. Flyers on the utility pole fluttered. They were recruiting Myth Busters. Do you know anything about the Myth Busters? The wind blowing from the Sea of Okhotsk? No... I shouted, spitting out the cold raindrops entering my mouth.

- Pages 12-13

Fran couldn't tell if she truly wanted what she desired. Maybe her thoughts had changed after joining MetaBooks. Fran just wanted to let words drift. She didn't want to create a great work of art, a bestseller, a hit, or an immortal classic, but rather wanted thoughts, ideas, commentaries, dreams, daily life, small stories, and trivial debates to linger around us, brushing past each day joyfully and sadly before disappearing. What is this? What kind of dream is this? Fran couldn't clearly explain it, nor could she make anyone understand. She found it hard to understand herself, sometimes thinking she should write a drama, other times thinking she should act again. But there was nothing miraculous. Nothing was completely satisfying, and only the momentary things pleased her.

- Page 71

Let me give you a simple analogy. If the surface web is a place you can walk to, the deep web is a place you need a car to get to. Or a members-only club versus a public service space. Or a restaurant registered on Google Maps versus one not registered. Which tastes better? You can't know until you try. Which offers more authentic and professional cuisine? You can't know that either. But if you approach the issue with the concept of depth, you conclude before even tasting. The real thing is deeper, hidden. The unknown restaurant is the real gem! The opposite is also true. Famous places are more trustworthy! What I mean is, neither is true. Anyone not understand this so far?

- Page 79

...Scroll! | Written by Jeong Jidon | Minumsa | 204 pages | 14,000 KRW