In this week's edition of Endnotes, we take a look at Che Yeun's Tailbone, about a Korean teenage runaway who tries to reinvent herself during the 2008 recession. In its review PW calls it "incandescent."

Here's how the book came together:

Che Yeun

Author

“Because of my complicated feelings for Korea, for the longest time—about eight years or so—I lacked the courage to tell this story. But the older I got, the more exasperated I grew with myself and my refusal. Even after the initial jump, I still needed four more years to get through the maze of writing and revising. The hardest part was confronting how home is a place that is both sweet and brutal, how it teaches you to survive as much as it teaches you to destruct.”

Samantha Shea

VP, Georges Borchardt

“By the time I read the first draft of Tailbone, I’d already represented Che for a number of years. I knew all I really needed to know about the book at that point: Che had written it, and I think she is a genius. Che and I edited the book together for a couple of years and then, when we thought it was ready, we went out on submission. Amber Oliver at Bloomsbury quickly saw the promise in the manuscript and scooped it up.”

Mo Crist

Editor, Bloomsbury

“I inherited Tailbone from the brilliant editor Amber Oliver. Amber worked incredibly hard on this book through multiple drafts. Having read the original text and the final version, Che’s voice has only been further chiseled into its sharpest form.”

Myunghee Kwon

Senior Designer, Bloomsbury

“I wanted to create a simple but impactful design for Tailbone, because I didn’t want the cover to reveal too much. And I wanted to make a cover that sparks curiosity and makes you look at it again. After reading the manuscript, I was drawn to the different meanings clementines carry throughout the story. I found a photo of a rotten clementine and created a cover with it.”