Hyo-eun wins at World Illustration Awards

Korean author Kim Hyo-eun has won the Professional Children’s Publishing category of the World Illustration Awards 2021, with her book I Am the Subway, translated by Deborah Smith and published in the UK by Scribble.

The awards are a global annual programme delivered by the Association of Illustrators in partnership with the Directory of Illustration.

Publishing in the UK in January 2022, I Am the Subway takes its readers on a "cinematic journey" through the Seoul subway. Scribble publisher Miriam Rosenbloom acquired world English rights in the title and commissioned the translation into English.

Rosenbloom said of the win: "We're absolutely thrilled that I Am the Subway has been awarded this incredible international recognition from the Association of Illustrators. I first came across the original Korean edition of this book in late-2019 at the Shanghai Book Fair and immediately fell in love with Kim Hyo-eun's stunning visual narrative. We are so proud to bring this wonder to an English-speaking audience. Kim Hyo-eun's win is a wonderful celebration for us to share in for our fifth birthday."

Hyo-eun studied textile design at college and illustration at the Ibpil Future Illustration Research Institute.

Smith is an internationally renowned translator and founder of Tilted Axis Press. In 2016 she was co-winner of the Man Booker International Prize for Literature, alongside author Han Kang, for her translation of The Vegetarian (Portobello Books).