Whale

Whale marks the English-language debut of Myeong-kwan Cheon, one of South Korea’s most beloved storytellers—renowned for his cinematic imagination, dark humor, and wildly original voice.

In a remote South Korean village, the extraordinary unfolds: a woman trades her newborn daughter to a wandering beekeeper for two jars of honey. A baby born in the dead of winter is named "Girl of Spring." A collapsing restaurant roof reveals a hidden treasure. These surreal and startling moments are just the beginning of an epic, richly woven tale.

At the heart of the novel is Geumbok, a fiercely ambitious woman forever chasing the wonder she felt when she first saw a whale breach the ocean’s surface. Her mute daughter, Chunhui, shares a mystical bond with elephants. Nearby, a one-eyed woman charms bees with a whistle. Their stories, and those of the eccentric villagers around them, intertwine in a wild narrative that blends satire, folklore, and the fantastical.

Shortlisted for The International Booker Prize.