What it reveals is a valley filled with wild flowers and the promise of a scented breeze filling the air with the enchantment of stories. If you do nothing, you will be auto-enrolled in our premium digital monthly subscription plan and retain complete access for 65 € per month. Purslane, thistle, and foot-tall weeds had worked their way up through the hard, trampled earth and grown thick and tangled around the kilns. They chose the longlist from 134 books published between 1 May 2022 and 30 April 2023 and submitted to the prize by publishers. Though sunlight filtered through the gaps in the cratered walls, cool air circulated inside the dark cave of the kiln.

But don't be mistaken, this is a dark book, with disturbing scenes and content that is seriously troubling.

Overall though, I really encourage readers to read this novel, especially those who have an interest in knowing more about the conditions of women who faced poverty in rural cities in Korea. Among them is an old fishmonger with whom she puts her ambitious instincts into action; an extremely strong man whose quiet nature she is attracted to; a man in a cinema who will spark her deep love for American movies. Her ambition and gradual acquisition of material luxury are indicative of Korea’s shift towards capitalism. 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.

Two of the novels explore the nuances and challenges of modern motherhood while confronting patriarchal ideologies. Cheon Myeong-kwan harnesses the ferociously erratic flow of shared narratives, embracing their natural disposition toward salacious detail at every turn. It’s a perspective that gets increasingly complicated through pregnancy, birth, loss, a growing intimacy with the troubled son of a neighbour, unexpected resilience, the “birthing” process of writing a thesis and gradual drifting apart with a mother.Chunhui is the daughter of Geum Setting aside its literary significance, it was because I felt I would be able to bear it all, no matter how difficult, if I could look at the world through Bukowski’s eyes - if I could arm myself with Bukowski’s gaze to stand up against the world - and be accompanied by alcohol, too. Sometimes she fished out salamander eggs floating in the cold water and at others she picked mulberries along the tracks.