Juhea Kim on ballet, art and the duty of an author

In today’s episode, I’m joined by the extraordinary Juhea Kim to discuss her latest novel, City of Night Birds—a haunting and lyrical exploration of artistry, love, and redemption set against the backdrop of the Russian ballet world.

The novel centers on Natalia Leonova, once the most celebrated ballerina of her generation. After a catastrophic accident ends her career, Natalia returns to St. Petersburg in 2019, grappling with addiction and the ghosts of her past. As she navigates the city that shaped her, she confronts memories of her complex relationships: her great love, Alexander, who transformed both her life and art; and Dmitri, a dark and treacherous genius whose actions contributed to her downfall. When Dmitri offers her a chance to return to the stage in her signature role, Natalia must decide whether she can face the people and the world that nearly broke her.

In our conversation, Juhea and I explore themes of forgiveness, identity, and the transformative power of art. Juhea shares insights into her research process, her connection to the world of ballet, and how she crafted a narrative that resonates with both intimacy and grandeur. We talk about the moral responsibilities that authors have, literature as a work of art, the world around us and so much more. 

A bit about Juhea before we begin: she is the author of the acclaimed debut novel Beasts of a Little Land, which was a finalist for the Dayton Literary Peace Prize and the winner of the Society of American Historians Prize for Historical Fiction. Her writing has appeared in Guernica, Catapult, Zyzzyva, and The New York Times Modern Love. Born in South Korea and now based in Portland, Oregon, Juhea is also a passionate advocate for animal rights and environmental justice.

This is a beautiful and deeply human conversation, and I can’t wait for you to hear it.