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Summer Escape: Best Books Set in Asia
Take an incredible trip (or three) this summer without leaving your couch.
Published on August 7, 2020
The Night Tiger: A Novel
Yangsze ChooMALAYSIA: Set in the 1930s, this sophomore novel from Yangsze Choo has generated a lot of buzz and was selected for Reese Witherspoon’s book club. There’s something here for everyone: A little bit of mystery and a touch of magic as the destinies of two characters collide.
Loveboat, Taipei
Abigail Hing WenTAIPEI, TAIWAN: An #OwnVoices romantic comedy about Ever Wong, who has steeled herself for a summer of Mandarin lessons at a rigorous foreign exchange program, but ends up with plenty of freedom to party it up and find herself. “Loveboat, Taipei” is based on the author’s experiences doing the program, and the book is scheduled to get a movie adaptation from the team behind Netflix’s “To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before.” This is the wild summer vacation you truly deserve.
Convenience Store Woman: A Novel
Sayaka MurataTOKYO, JAPAN: A delightfully odd book, this slim Japanese novel follows a woman who feels out of place everywhere, except when behind the counter of her convenience store. (Convenience stores in Japan are truly magical places, unlike the sad 7/11s found in the US.) A surprisingly sweet read about someone who’s probably a sociopath.
Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea
Barbara DemickNORTH KOREA: Most stories of life in North Korea come from those who escape the country, but journalist Barbara Demick manages to chronicle the lives of six North Koreans over a tumultuous 15-year period. Find out how North Koreans survived a devastating famine and what they do for fun. A rare glimpse into a country where travel is restricted even in the best of times.
The Island of Sea Women: A Novel
Lisa SeeJEJU, SOUTH KOREA: A story of female friendship that spans from the late 1930s to 2008 and tells a fictionalized account of a little-known history. Young-sook and Mi-ja, two female divers from the Korean island Jeju, have their relationship and much more torn apart by multiple wars, and they struggle to heal through the decades. Meticulously researched.
Run Me to Earth
Paul YoonLAOS: Paul Yoon tells a story of war-torn Laos; his descriptions of bombed-out buildings and landscapes, his clarity around absence, makes readers feel the characters’ acute sense of being unmoored, of the destruction of time and space, safety and self. It’s an enlightening and enthralling tale.
Catfish and Mandala: A Two-Wheeled Voyage Through the Landscape and Memory of Vietnam
Andrew X. PhamVIETNAM AND USA: Andrew X. Pham’s first book tells of his adventures cycling through Vietnam, the homeland that he has trouble connecting to after living in America since the Vietnam War. After quitting his engineering job with a soul full of discontent, Pham makes a cathartic journey to find himself, and has plenty of enlightening and quirky encounters along the way. A great supplement to your daily quarantine bike rides.
Smaller and Smaller Circles
F.H. BatacanPAYATAS, PHILIPPINES: “Smaller and Smaller Circles,” initially released in 1999, is hailed as the first Filipino crime novel. Two priests turn into amateur detectives trying to stop a serial killer on the loose in the slums, revealing gross inefficiency in governmental and religious systems.
The White Tiger: A Novel
Aravind AdigaDELHI TO BANGALORE, INDIA: This Man Booker Prize winning novel captures the duality of India: A beautiful and plentiful country with seemingly insurmountable income inequality and corruption. The main character, Balram Halwai, is a hard-working and charming man trying to build a better life for himself. He’s also a murderer.
A Girl Like That
Tanaz BhathenaJEDDAH, SAUDI ARABIA: A diverse cast of characters in the Middle East have to confront the patriarchy in this YA novel that starts with two teens, Zarin and Porus, dying in a car crash. Only they know the truth of what happened, and their ghosts insist on setting the record straight as their families and community come to errant conclusions.
An Unnecessary Woman: A Novel
Rabih AlameddineBEIRUT, LEBANON: Aaliya, who used to run a bookstore, now spends her days mostly in isolation (relatable!), translating great works of literature into Arabic and making wry observations about her neighbors. Of Lebanon’s capital, she says: “Beirut is the Elizabeth Taylor of cities: insane, beautiful, tacky, falling apart, aging, and forever drama laden. She'll also marry any infatuated suitor who promises to make her life more comfortable, no matter how inappropriate he is.” A must-read after the recent explosion that rocked the city.
In Other Rooms, Other Wonders
Daniyal MuyeenuddinPAKISTAN: A collection of eight interconnected stories that has been recognized by a slew of major literary awards, winning The Story Prize and the Commonwealth Writers' Prize. The stories feature the rich Harouni family and those who serve them. “In this labyrinth of power games and exploits, [Daniyal] Mueenuddin inserts luminous glimmers of longing, loss and, most movingly, unfettered love,” wrote Dalia Sofer for The New York Times.