The Booker Prize Podcast

A Halloween Special: Cursed Bunny by Bora Chung

Listen Later

Spooky season is upon us. While the Booker Prizes' archive might not be filled to the rafters with tales of horror, Bora Chung's Cursed Bunny is certainly ghostly and horrifying – a perfect read for this time of year. Shortlisted for the International Booker Prize in 2022, Cursed Bunny, translated from Korean to English by Anton Hur, presents a collection of fantastically surreal stories that address the very real horrors of capitalism and the patriarchy.


In this episode Jo and James talk about:

  • Their own Halloween traditions
  • Bora Chung and her background in writing
  • The unexpected way the book found its way to western readers
  • The stories in this collection, and which are their favourites
  • Their theories on themes throughout the book and what the author is trying to say
  • Whether these tales of terror are going to keep them up at night


    • Reading list:

    • Cursed Bunny by Bora Chung, translated by Anton Hur
    • Tomb of Sand by Geetanjali Shree, translated by Daisy Rockwell
    • The Vegetarian by Han Kang, translated by Deborah Smith
    • Hags by Victoria Smith


      • Further viewing:

      • Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, directed by Park Chan-wook
      • Old Boy, directed by Park Chan-wook
      • Lady Vengeance, directed by Park Chan-wook
      • Parasite, directed by Bong Joon-ho
      • Memories of Murder, directed by Bong Joon-ho


        • A full transcript of the episode is available at our website.


        Follow The Booker Prize Podcast so you never miss an episode. Visit http://thebookerprizes.com/podcast to find out more about us, and follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and Tiktok @thebookerprizes.

        Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

        ...more
        View all episodesView all episodes
        Download on the App Store
        The Booker Prize PodcastBy The Booker Prize
        • 4.4
        • 4.4
        • 4.4
        • 4.4
        • 4.4

        4.4

        61 ratings

        More shows like The Booker Prize Podcast

        View all
        The New Yorker: Fiction by The New Yorker

        The New Yorker: Fiction

        3,351 Listeners

        The Book Review by The New York Times

        The Book Review

        3,931 Listeners

        Ask Penguin by Penguin Books UK

        Ask Penguin

        150 Listeners

        In Our Time by BBC Radio 4

        In Our Time

        5,536 Listeners

        World Book Club by BBC World Service

        World Book Club

        370 Listeners

        Backlisted by Backlisted

        Backlisted

        591 Listeners

        The New Yorker: The Writer's Voice - New Fiction from The New Yorker by The New Yorker

        The New Yorker: The Writer's Voice - New Fiction from The New Yorker

        2,126 Listeners

        Bookclub by BBC Radio 4

        Bookclub

        242 Listeners

        The Paris Review by The Paris Review

        The Paris Review

        806 Listeners

        The Waterstones Podcast by Waterstones

        The Waterstones Podcast

        39 Listeners

        On the Road with Penguin Classics by Penguin Random House UK

        On the Road with Penguin Classics

        28 Listeners

        NPR's Book of the Day by NPR

        NPR's Book of the Day

        680 Listeners

        The Radio 2 Book Club by BBC Radio 2

        The Radio 2 Book Club

        12 Listeners

        Take Four Books by BBC Radio 4

        Take Four Books

        5 Listeners

        A Good Read by BBC Radio 4

        A Good Read

        43 Listeners