The Bird That Drinks Tears
#1804.12 of 664 ranked universes · full ranking
Books 1 book Status Ongoing 2026–present Reading commitment Low Lee Yeongdo Last reviewed 2026-08-29
Overview
A commando sent to recover a lost scientific survey team instead finds them transformed into godlike figures, each shaping a fantastical, medieval-styled world in their own image. Lee Yeongdo's The Bird That Drinks Tears is a landmark Korean epic fantasy, marketed on its long-delayed English release as introducing Lee as "the Korean Tolkien," and shortlisted for France's Grand Prix de l'Imaginaire in translation.
Epic fantasy · For Adult
Core Canon: Reading Order (1 work) counts toward ranking
The Bird That Drinks Tears Lee Yeongdo
| Work | Year | Internal chron. | Canon | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | The Heart of the Nhaga | 2026 | 1 | core | 4.12 (2,723 ratings) |
Originally serialized in Korea in 2002 and published in book form in 2003 as a four-volume epic (marketed on its English release as "Korea's most celebrated fantasy epic"), following a commando sent to recover a lost scientific team who instead find themselves caught between warring godlike figures on a fantastical, medieval-styled world. Its English translation, by Anton Hur for HarperVoyager, began publishing in 2026 as a multi-book series starting with The Heart of the Nhaga; only that first English volume is catalogued as Core Canon here, since later volumes' English titles and release dates are not yet confirmed.
Quick answers
- How many books are in The Bird That Drinks Tears? The Bird That Drinks Tears's Core Canon is 1 book.
- Is The Bird That Drinks Tears finished? Ongoing (2026–present).
- How much reading does The Bird That Drinks Tears take? Low reading commitment (estimated from 1 Core Canon book · ~448 pages).
- How is The Bird That Drinks Tears ranked? #180 of 664 ranked universes on this site, based on 2,723 reader ratings across 1 Core Canon book. See the full ranking for how this is calculated.
Why is it ranked #180?
Ranked #180 of 664 ranked universes.
- Average reader rating of 4.12 across 1 core book.
- A smaller readership (2,723 ratings), so the score carries less weight of numbers.
- Less than 0.01 behind #179, The Spear Cuts Through Water (a finer tie-break level decides the order).
- Below the top-10 average of 4.45.
Why explore this universe?
Highly rated · 1 book · Ongoing · 3k ratings · Ranks #180 overall
Good choice if you want a quick, low-commitment epic fantasy universe that's still ongoing, with new books still coming.
Reading order
A single Core Canon work: no sequencing question to resolve.
Awards (verified)
- Grand Prix de l'Imaginaire (Foreign Novel), 2026: nominated: The Heart of the Nhaga; Shortlisted among 6 finalists for the 2026 Grand Prix de l'Imaginaire's Foreign Novel category, on the strength of its French translation; did not win.
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Official resources
- Wikipedia: The Bird That Drinks Tears
- The Korea Times: Fantasy writer Lee Young-do falls short of French literary award
Research details
Ranking metrics: weighted average 4.12 across 2,723 ratings on 1 Core Canon book. See Why is it ranked here? above for the full breakdown, or the full ranking.
How do we know this?
Admission: The Bird That Drinks Tears admitted; Core Canon = its first English-translated volume only accepted 2026-08-29
Sources: (see source tier definitions)
- Wikipedia: The Bird That Drinks Tears Tier 2
- The Korea Times: Fantasy writer Lee Young-do falls short of French literary award Tier 2
- Amazon: The Heart of the Nhaga (Book One of The Bird That Drinks Tears) Tier 3
Last reviewed: 2026-08-30
Rule: Rule: series, in progress. Core Canon is the first published volume of the new English translation, The Heart of the Nhaga (2026). The original is a continuous four-volume Korean novel, but its English edition is being released as a differently-structured multi-book series; later English volumes will be added once their titles and release dates are confirmed.