Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “Some books leave us free, and some books make us free.”
Personally, I love getting lost in a good book. It has the power to change your way of thinking, distract you from school, and allow you to slip into a world and life you never imagined you could. Whether I am procrastinating, putting away my laundry, or cramming for a physics test, I turn to a book to captivate my mind.
Books written by authors of different ethnicities and cultures help us as readers expand our horizons and understand the various nuances in the lives of Asians. Reading books by Asian authors is not limited to a well-written story. It supports inclusivity and embracing the world’s different cultures to challenge Western literature’s dominance.
Here are some fantastic works of literature by different Asian authors to expand your literary horizons!
- Yellowface by R.F. Kuang
“Reading lets us live in someone else’s shoes. Literature builds bridges; it makes our world larger, not smaller.”
Jane Hayward and Athena Liu are two authors hoping to make it in the publishing world. When Athena has an accident, Jane steals her last work about the contribution of Chinese laborers during World War I. Jane lies about her identity and takes on the alias Juniper Song to cover up her ethnicity and come across as Asian. The book discusses diversity, racism, cultural appropriation, and social media alienation.
This book caught my eye mainly because of the title. I’ve heard of “blackface” and being “whitewashed,” but I have not heard of the term “yellowface,” which is why this book intrigued me. It seems truly enticing with the interesting situation of a Caucasian girl trying to be Asian.
- Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng
“Before that she hadn’t realized how fragile happiness was, how if you were careless, you could knock it over and shatter it.”
Lydia is an Asian American teenager who grew up in a small town in Ohio in the 1970s. She is the golden child who tries to do everything to appease her parents. One day, Lydia is found dead, and her whole family spirals into a search for what happened.
I started reading this book a couple of days ago and am hooked! It is such a fantastic book that plays with the different expectations that Chinese immigrant parents have for their children. Celeste Ng’s writing is gorgeous, with amazing diction and the suspense she interweaves with the pages.
- On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong
“They say nothing lasts forever but they’re just scared it will last longer than they can love it.”
This novel is a letter written by the son, Little Dog, to his mother. He discusses their family history in Vietnam from before he was born, which his mother never knew. The undeniable love between mother and son is evident through discovering the challenges of race, class, single parenting, and masculinity. It delves into the power of telling your story, learning to speak your truth, and obliterating the silence.
My TBR is ever-growing from this article! This book invokes such deep emotion in the reader by ripping them apart and building them back up by the end. The heartbreaking story is widely recommended by readers everywhere. If you want to feel every emotion, read On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous!
- Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford
“The hardest choices in life aren’t between what’s right and wrong but between what’s right and what’s best.”
It is set in both 1986 and the 1940s, right after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. An unlikely friendship sprouts between Henry, a Chinese American, and Keiko, a Japanese American. Still, their time is cut short when Keiko and her family get sent to internment camps during World War II. In 1986, a new family takes over the Panama Hotel, previously belonging to Keiko’s family. There, they find mementos from Japanese families who were taken from their homes during the War; Henry sees a long-lost object, a piece of his past that he ran away from.
I read this book during my freshman year of high school, and since then, it has been one of my favorites. As an Asian Canadian at the ripe age of 13, I didn’t understand the extent to which the Japanese were wrongly discriminated against in the tense aftermath of Pearl Harbour. This book opened my eyes to the rich yet devastating histories of Asian Americans while telling a heartbreaking story that made me ball my eyes out. I can not recommend this book enough!
- The Three-Body Problem by Liu Cixin and
“No, emptiness is not nothingness. Emptiness is a type of existence. You must use this existential emptiness to fill yourself.”
This science fiction book is set during the Chinese Cultural Revolution when a secret letter is sent to contact aliens. An alien civilization plans on attacking Earth when they intercept this letter, while the humans have to set up camps to get ready to defend their home or welcome the aliens to it.
I have not read this book, but my brother loved it! He thought it was so well thought out and gripping! It is on my TBR, and I am excited to start it so I can watch the show!
- The Kite Runner by Khaled Hossein
“For you, a thousand times over”
The Kite Runner is a tragic, heartbreaking story about the friendship of a wealthy boy and the son of his father’s servant. Amir, the wealthy boy, is from Kabul, and it follows him growing up in Afghanistan during the fall of the monarchy and the rise of the Taliban regime.
The Kite Runner will forever be one of my favorite books. I have no words for this book, as it is indescribable. Witnessing the life of Amir and his character growth makes for a powerful story. The book captures the essence of betrayal, repetition, the consequences of your actions, the complexity of love and family, and sacrifices.
- A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
“Wasn’t friendship its own miracle, the finding of another person who made the entire lonely world seem somehow less lonely?”
A Little Life follows four friends from a small college in Massachusetts who head over to the Big Apple. As life does, they drift apart, tangled with the struggles of addiction, pride, and ambition. Jude, one of the friends, finds himself struggling from a traumatic past and haunted by what that might mean for the future.
The writing of this book is gorgeous, making it even more enticing for me to read. I know this is a terribly sad book that I am again avoiding! This book is infamous for making every reader sob by the end because of Jude’s trauma.
- Pachinko by Min Jee Lee
“Living every day in the presence of those who refuse to acknowledge your humanity takes great courage.”
Pachinko is a national bestseller and a national book award finalist. The story follows teenager Sunja in the early 1900s in Korea. Sunjua falls for a wealthy stranger who is unfortunately married as she is pregnant with his child. During this time, Korea is slowly being taken over by Japan, and Sunja decides to marry an old Japanese minister. The story follows Sunja throughout the street markets, prestigious universities, and the criminal underworld.
This book is also on my TBR!! I am so interested in this story primarily because it follows a Korean girl. Following themes of love, sacrifice, ambition, and sacrifice, I can’t help but find myself hoping for a happy ending for Sunja and her child without even reading the book!
- Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner
“In fact, she was both my first and second words: Umma, then Mom. I called to her in two languages. Even then I must have known that no one would ever love me as much as she would.”
Crying in H Mart is a memoir about the struggles of growing up as a mixed Asian American growing up in a white town. It discusses the relationship with her mother and the expectations of her throughout her childhood and adulthood. Living in America, she feels detached from her Korean heritage, and it takes her mother dying to help her reconnect with that side of her.
I have yet to read this book because I know it is going to make me feel all the feels. My mother listened to this as an audiobook, and I remember seeing my mom sitting in her bed crying her eyes out at the relatability of the story.
- Shatter Me Series by Tahereh Mafi
“All I ever wanted was to reach out and touch another human being not just with my hands but with my heart.”
Shatter Me is a dystopian, romatasy, young adult series that comprises my favorite fantasy books. It starts with Juliette Ferrars, a 17-year-old girl, in an asylum because her touch and skin are lethal. Although this is a fantasy book, it is filled with rich culture from various characters of different ethnicities. I personally love Tahereh Mafi’s writing style and how it evolves throughout the books because it is supposed to represent Julieette’s mind. In Shatter Me (the first book), the writing is choppy, with a lot of crossed-out words. But in Ignite Me (the third book), her writing is strong and powerful, with a determination unknown to the reader. I have no critiques for this series; I love everything about it!
Asian authors like Celeste Ng have been gaining popularity in the media, and I am so happy about their success. Whether you’re in the mood for heartwarming fiction, enticing sci-fi, or an emotion-provoking memoir, there’s a book for everyone on this list! As someone who loves getting lost in a good book, reading these books truly changed my way of thinking, and I hope you pick up one of these the next time you read!
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