The Children's House
novel · First published 2025
Author guide
Bora Chung Books in Order
Bora Chung (born 1976) is a South Korean novelist, short-story writer, essayist, translator, and activist. She studied at Yonsei University, Yale University, and Indiana University, where she earned a doctorate in Slavic literatures. Her fiction combines horror, science fiction, fantasy, folklore, and political commentary, often focusing on marginalized people, violence, care, labor, and resistance. Her short-story collection Cursed Bunny was shortlisted for the International Booker Prize and the National Book Award for Translated Literature in English translation.
literary fictionhorrorscience fictionfantasyspeculative fictionessays
Catalog record updated .
Bora Chung's Newest Book
Not sure where to begin?
Start with one of these
Cursed Bunny
Best introduction to Chung's distinctive blend of horror, fantasy, science fiction, folklore, and social critique.
The Door Opened
Chronological starting point for reading her novels.
Outside the series
Bibliography by category
Novels (8)
- The Door Opened
novel · 2010
- Dreams of the Dead
novel · 2012
- Red Sword
novel · 2019
Amid a literal fog of war on a disputed planet, a woman is thrust into battle, forced to fight in her captors' war. With an empire at her back, ready to kill her at the slightest hesitation, this slaveturned- reluctant hero must battle…
- Fox
novella · 2023
- On Suffering
novel · 2023
- Earth Creatures, Surrender
novel · 2024
- When Night Comes, We
novel · 2025
- The Children's House
novel · 2025
Short fiction (8)
- The King's Prostitute
short-story-collection · 2013
- Seed
short-story-collection · 2013
- Cursed Bunny
short-story-collection · 2017
A wildly original debut from a rising star of Korean literature—surreal, chilling fables that take on the patriarchy, capitalism, and the reign of big tech with absurdist humor and a (sometimes literal) bite. Pre-order YOUR UTOPIA, the…
- Meet Her
short-story-collection · 2021
- The King of Women
short-story-collection · 2022
- Death Is Always With You
short-story-collection · 2023
- The Midnight Timetable
short-story-collection · 2023
Equal parts bone-chilling, wryly funny and deeply political, The Midnight Timetable is a masterful work of literary horror from one of our time's greatest imaginations. 'I inhaled Bora Chung's book of ghost stories and then slept with the…
- Small Apocalypse
short-story-collection · 2024
Essays and speeches (1)
- Anyway, Protest
essay · 2020
Frequently asked questions about Bora Chung
Who is Bora Chung, and where is she from?
Bora Chung is a South Korean writer and translator who was born in Seoul in 1976. She is known internationally for fiction that crosses horror, fantasy, science fiction, and the surreal.
Sources: thebookerprizes.com (opens in a new tab)koreana.or.kr (opens in a new tab)
What did Bora Chung study, and what has she done besides writing?
She earned an MA in Russian and East European studies from Yale University and a PhD in Slavic literature from Indiana University. She has taught Russian language and literature and science-fiction studies at Yonsei University, and translates Russian and Polish literature into Korean.
What themes and genres define Bora Chung’s writing?
Her fiction blends magical realism, horror, fantasy, folklore, and science fiction, using the fantastic and surreal to explore everyday fears and social pressures. Her work notably critiques patriarchy, capitalism, and big tech.
Sources: nationalbook.org (opens in a new tab)thebookerprizes.com (opens in a new tab)
What influenced Bora Chung’s imagination as a writer?
She has said that childhood exposure to Korean ghost-story television and her grandmother’s love of detective novels influenced her imagination. She also draws inspiration from early-20th-century Slavic literature and connects her uncanny stories to anger at social injustice.
What awards and international recognition has Bora Chung received?
Her English-translated collection Cursed Bunny was shortlisted for the 2022 International Booker Prize and became a finalist for the 2023 National Book Award for Translated Literature.
Sources: thebookerprizes.com (opens in a new tab)nationalbook.org (opens in a new tab)