Author delivers a South Korean education to the West

Cultural exports such as K-pop, kimchi and the Oscar-winning movie "Parasite" (2019) have wedged themselves in Western minds when people first think of South Korea. But providing a more diverse view of the East Asian country's culture is a key driver for Korean American author Frances Cha.

"There's a huge wall ... I feel like only a few things get through, but there's a certain narrative that is really not anywhere near representative of the array of experiences within contemporary Korea," says Cha, speaking from her second-floor home office in the village of Sleepy Hollow in suburban New York.