Author(s): Cheon Myeong-kwan

Novel | Translated fiction | Korea | 2023 International Booker Prize long list | 2023 International Booker Prize short list

A sweeping, multi-generational tale blending fable, farce and fantasy.

A woman sells her daughter to a passing beekeeper for two jars of honey. A baby weighing fifteen pounds is born in the depths of winter but named "Girl of Spring". A storm brings down the roof of a ramshackle restaurant to reveal a hidden fortune. These are just some of the events that set Myeong-Kwan Cheong's beautifully crafted, wild world in motion.

Set in a remote village in South Korea, Whale follows the lives of its linked characters: Geumbok, who has been chasing an indescribable thrill ever since she first saw a whale crest in the ocean; her mute daughter, Chunhui, who communicates with elephants; and a one-eyed woman who controls honeybees with a whistle.

Brimming with surprises and wicked humour, Whale is an adventure-satire of epic proportions, by one of international literature's the most original voices.

Review:

" A carnivalesque fairy tale that celebrates independence and enterprise, a picaresque quest through Korea’s landscapes and history, Whale is a riot of a book. Cheon Myeong-Kwan’s vivid characters are foolish but wise, awful but endearing, and always irrepressible. This is a hymn to restlessness and self-transformation." —judges' citation, 2023 International Booker Prize

'A peerless work devoted to telling a powerful story and lauded for expanding Korean literature into new dimensions.' - The Hankyoreh

'A novel that seduces.' - JoongAng Ilbo

'[Whale]redefines what fiction can be. ' - The Kyunghyang Sinmun

'Whaleoverflows with freshness. That's what makes it special. ' - OhmyNews

'Fast-paced and imaginative.'- Dennis Maloney

Author Biography: Myeong-kwan Cheon is a South Korean novelist andscreenwriter. Upon publication of his first story, Frank and I(2003), he received the prestigious Munhakdongne NewWriter Award. His debut novel, Whale, was published thefollowing year, won the 10th Munhakdongne Novel Awardand became one of the most loved novels in South Korea,where it is regarded as a modern classic. His work has beentranslated into eight languages.

Chi-Young Kim is a literary translator and editor. A recipientof the Man Asian Literary Prize for her work on PleaseLook After Mom by Kyung-sook Shin, she has translatedover a dozen books.