Nominations:
The Eyes Are the Best Part (Erewhon Books), First Novel, 2024
BIO: Monika Kim is the author of THE EYES ARE THE BEST PART.
Monika graduated from the University of California, Davis, with a B.A. in Communication. Since 2016, she has been working for an environmental agency based in Southern California. In her current role, Monika’s work is focused on environmental justice and assisting underserved communities through outreach and youth education programs. Monika is passionate about the environment and climate justice. Through her books, she seeks to raise awareness of the Asian American experience as well as of feminist issues. In her free time, Monika likes to try new foods, read, play video games, travel, and take pictures.
Monika is a second-generation Korean American living in Los Angeles’s Koreatown, where she resides with her family and her tuxedo cat, Velvet. She learned about eating fish eyes and other Korean superstitions from her mother, who immigrated to California from Seoul in 1985.
