A complex book about racism, Chinese culture, identity, murder and very scary Hungry Ghosts. 

• Social commentary factor: ★★★★★
• Psychological factor: ★★★★★
• Gore factor: ★★★★★
• Chinese culture factor: ★★★★★
• Ghost factor: ★★★★★
• Supernatural factor: ★★★★★

Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng might not be a pleasant read just for entertainment, but it’s an important book that discuss heavy themes that are still relevant. However it’s also a very scary story with creepy ghosts that will keep you up at night, or at least you will keep the light on. Just to be sure. 

It consists of 304 pages. 

Plot

Cora is in her early twenties when COVID hits the world. Because the virus started in China, American Born Chinese people get called names and are treated badly. When Cora and her older sister from another mother Delilah are waiting for the train at the subway station, someone walks past Cora, whispers “bat eater” to her and pushes Delilah right in front of the oncoming train. She dies instantly which leaves Cora devastated. Although the police starts an investigation, they never found who did it. 

A couple of months later Cora is working as a crime cleaner with her colleagues Harvey Chen and Yifei Liu. They start to notice that the victims were all Chinese or Asian and at every crime scene they find maimed bats. Cora thinks there’s a pattern, a serial killer who has it in for Asian people, mostly girls. 

That month is also the Hungry Ghost Festival. The time of the year when ghost come back and if their loved ones don’t perform the proper rituals, like burning joss paper, preparing a meal for the ghosts, and burn candles and pray, the ghosts get too hungry and even dangerous. While Cora doesn’t believe in these rituals, she sees the ghost of Delilah, and she is hungry. 

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Short Review

It’s a story about racism, especially in difficult times, hate crimes, Chinese culture and being an American Chinese Born girl in New York. But it’s also the story of Cora. Cora who has a Chinese father who went back to China and has a new wife. She has an aunt, Auntie Zeng, her father’s sister who wants to teach Cora Chinese culture. And she also has an American aunt, Auntie Lois, her mother’s sister, who wants to take her to church and make her a Good Christian Girl. 

But foremost she has an older sister, Delilah, they share the same father but a different mother. Delilah is everything to Cora. Delilah is her identity. Now without Delilah Cora is nothing. She does dislike things, but she doesn’t like things. She doesn’t have any friends and no life. She suffers from germophobia and the COVID years are especially rough for her. 

After Delilah was murdered she tries to carry on. Strangely enough by seeing a pattern in their crime scenes and the fact that Yifei and Harvey are also Chinese, creates a bond between them. Finally she has people to talk to and when Delilah’s ghost appears she doesn’t know what to, but Harvey and Yifei try to help her. 

While there is a lot of gore, Delilah’s murder is explicitly described and the crime scene are gruesome and disturbing as well, it’s also a ghost story about Chinese culture, about the dead and ghosts. And a very scary ghost story at that. The graphic gore might be disgusting, but the descriptions of the ghosts and their appearances and their behavior is very creepy and will certainly keep you up at night. It creates an atmosphere of dread and terror, while the murders create an atmosphere of horror. This combination of contrast works very well, with the demure Cora at the center of it all. 

You can feel nothing but sympathy for her. Her search for an identity of her own, building a life is painful to read, while the racism will make you angry. It’s horrifying and disgusting to read that people can be so awful to each other, even to the point that they don’t see other are human beings anymore, but things or dolls you can do everything you want with even kill. 

While the whole book can be a depressing read, there are small pinpricks of light that shine through. Cora gets more and more daring, she’s making friends, is feeling comfortable with others, and eventually she even starts thinking and acting for herself. It’s a great growth but at what cost. Cora loses a lot during this Month of the Hungry Ghosts, but she also gains a start of an identity. 

Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng is a complex book, that deals with racism, identity, friendship, ghosts, Chinese culture, COVID, hate crimes but it’s also an important book. Beside these heavy themes it also offers gore and scary creepy scenes that are good for some nightmares.