The Wanderer's Curse x Gentle Foods

Book Launch & Reception

Thursday, May 22, 2025

Philbrook Museum of Art

2727 S. Rockford Rd, Tulsa, OK 74114

7:00 - 8:00 PM

Doors Open at 6:30 PM

Tulsa Artist Fellowship and Magic City Books present a free book launch with Jennifer Hope Choi, celebrating her debut The Wanderer’s Curse. Held at Philbrook Museum of Art, the evening features a conversation between Choi and chef/writer Christina Chaey (Gentle Foods), plus inspired bites by Chaey reflecting themes from the book.

The Wanderer’s Curse will be published by W. W. Norton & Company on May 6, 2025 and will be available for sale at Magic City Books. You can pre-order a copy online at: https://magiccitybooks.square.site/product/the-wanderer-s-curse-jennifer-hope-choi/3373

ABOUT THE WANDERER'S CURSE

When Jennifer Hope Choi first stumbled upon the “curse” known as yeokmasal—an allegedly inheritable affliction causing one to roam farther and farther from home—she immediately consulted her mother. “Oh yeah,” Umma quipped. “I have that.” Technically this wasn’t a revelation. Since 2007, the no-nonsense open-heart surgery nurse had moved suddenly from the Golden State to the Last Frontier, shuttling over the next decade through seven states.

For much of her adulthood, Choi had fancied herself nothing like her immigrant mother, late-blooming vagabond spirit and all—until life in Brooklyn imploded, spurring her to relocate to South Carolina and reckon with startling truths. Artmaking had left her in debt, single, and jobless. Questions hovered, gathering ragged like fractus clouds: Was it time to give up writing? Would she ever have a place of her own to call home? Or was she doomed to bunk up with Umma in the Deep South indefinitely?

This probing memoir follows Choi through her many former homes, from a crumbling Chinatown tenement to a haunted museum in Georgia. Connections emerge, between her curious trajectory and idiosyncratic Korean identity narratives: a mystical Korean dog breed, pro golfers, modern Korean cults, the four pillars of destiny, and Korean American art. One question lingers throughout her search: What might be gained from living in residence with uncertainty?

Told with whip-smart sensibility, The Wanderer’s Curse is an electric mother-daughter story, exploring ideas of belonging, self-determination, and possibility, leaving readers to wonder what we take with us generation to generation, what we wish we could leave behind, and how we move on.

PRESENTED BY

is an independent bookstore owned by the nonprofit Tulsa Literary Coalition. We specialize in literary and popular fiction and narrative nonfiction for adults. We also offer carefully curated sections for children and teens. We want Magic City Books to be your “third place,” the place besides home and work where you feel most comfortable. Come visit us, attend a literary program or author event, and get to know our knowledgeable and well-read staff.

Established in 2015, the was created as a place-based initiative by the George Kaiser Family Foundation (GKFF) to address pressing challenges faced by contemporary artists and arts workers living in and joining Tulsa, Oklahoma. Tulsa Artist Fellowship believes the arts are critical to advancing cultural citizenship and supports community-invested practitioners who intentionally engage with our city.

VISITOR EXPERIENCE

Accessible parking is available in the upper-level lot at ; the lower-level lot connects to the entrance by stairs. For garden-level access or additional assistance, please visit the admissions desk upon arrival or call 918-748-5300. Personal wheelchairs and mobility devices, including motorized devices, are welcome. A limited number of wheelchairs and walkers are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Most museum spaces, gardens, and grounds are wheelchair accessible, though some outdoor paths may be steep or uneven. The Great Hall and Terrace entrances include short stairways. Wheelchair and family-accessible restrooms are located on the museum’s upper level and near the Film Lawn. Trained service animals are welcome; pets, therapy animals, and emotional support animals are not permitted. A downloadable map showing accessible routes is available through Philbrook Museum.

Tulsa Artist Fellowship's exhibitions and events are free, documented, and archived.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

 is the recipient of the 2020-2022 Tulsa Artist Fellowship, the Carson McCullers Center’s Marguerite and Lamar Smith Fellowship, the BuzzFeed Emerging Writer Fellowship, and the AHL Foundation’s inaugural Wolhee Choe Art Writers Grant. She is also a Bread Loaf and Sewanee Writers’ Conference scholar and an Aspen Words fellow. She has been anthologized in Best American Travel Writing and A Measure of Belonging: Twenty-One Writers of Color on the New American South. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, Virginia Quarterly Review, Guernica, The American Scholar, Lucky Peach, BuzzFeed, and elsewhere. Her debut, THE WANDERER’S CURSE, will be published by W. W. Norton & Company. She is a National Magazine Award-nominated Senior Editor at Bon Appétit.

ABOUT THE CHEF

is a Brooklyn-based recipe developer, writer, and former senior food editor at Bon Appétit, where she worked for seven years across the editorial and food teams. Her writing has appeared in Forbes, Serious Eats, Fast Company, and Cup of Jo, and her work has been nominated for a National Magazine Award. Christina currently authors Gentle Foods, a newsletter exploring the intersection of cooking and mental health, reaching over 11,000 subscribers. A former line cook under chef Suzanne Cupps at Untitled at the Whitney Museum of American Art, she brings a deep appreciation for seasonal ingredients and home cooking. Christina holds a B.S. in Journalism from Northwestern University and is at work on her first cookbook, forthcoming in spring 2026.

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