Popular Asian Memoir Books
Find memoir books written by authors from Asia for the next part of the Read Around The World Challenge. (132)
81.
Rebel : My Escape from Saudi Arabia to Freedom by Rahaf Mohammed EN
Country: Asia / 
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
Description:
A gripping memoir of bravery and sacrifice by a young woman whose escape from her abusive family and an oppressive culture in Saudi Arabia captivated the world
In early 2019, after three years of careful planning, Rahaf Mohammed finally escaped her abusive family in Saudi Arabia—but made it only to Bangkok before being stripped of her passport. If forced to return home, she was sure she would be killed, like other rebel women in her country. As men pounded at the door of her barricaded hotel room, she opened a Twitter account. The teenager reached out to the world, and the world answ... continue
82.
ChinaDescription:
A revelatory and disturbing portrait of China, this is Anchee Min’s celebrated memoir of growing up in the last years of Mao’s China. As a child, Min was asked to publicly humiliate a teacher; at seventeen, she was sent to work at a labor collective. Forbidden to speak, dress, read, write, or love as she pleased, she found a lifeline in a secret love affair with another woman. Miraculously selected for the film version of one of Madame Mao’s political operas, Min’s life changed overnight. Then Chairman Mao suddenly died, taking with him an entire world. This national bestseller and New York Ti... continue
83.
Red Roulette: An Insider's Story of Wealth, Power, Corruption and Vengeance in Today's China by Shum, Desmond EN
Description:
"THE BOOK CHINA DOESN'T WANT YOU TO READ."--CNN A riveting insider's story of how the Party and big money work in China today, by a man who, with his wife, Whitney Duan, rose to the zenith of power and wealth--and then fell out of favor. She was disappeared four years ago. News of this book led to a phone call from Whitney, proof that she's alive. As Desmond Shum was growing up impoverished in China, he vowed his life would be different. Through hard work and sheer tenacity he earned an American college degree and returned to his native country to establish himself in business. There, he met ... continue
84.
Red Scarf Girl : A Memoir of the Cultural Revolution by Ji-li Jiang EN
Description:
In 1966 Ji-li Jiang turned twelve. An outstanding student and leader, she had everything: brains, the admiration of her peers, and a bright future in China′s Communist Party. But that year China′s leader, Mao Ze-dong, launched the Cultural Revolution, and everything changed. Over the next few years Ji-li and her family were humiliated and scorned by former friends, neighbors, and co-workers. They lived in constant terror of arrest. Finally, with the detention of her father, Ji-li faced the most difficult choice of her life. Told with simplicity and grace, this is the true story of one family′s... continue
85.
Reflections from Prison: 20 Years and 20 Days by Shin Young-bok EN
Country: Asia / 
South Korea
South Korea
Description:
Reflections from Prison is the collected letters and essays written by renowned Korean thinker Shin Young-Bok during his 20 years and 20 days as a political prisoner on a life tariff under Korea's military dictatorships. The letters range from postcards, to tiny characters squeezed onto his daily ration of two sheets of toilet paper. The writings themselves are not overtly political since all the letters went through censorships Yet he does not hide the harshness of prison life at the rock bottom of society. They provide a window onto his personal suffering during imprisonment a life sentence,... continue
86.
Revolution in World Missions : One Man's Journey to Change a Generation by K. P. Yohannan EN
IndiaDescription:
Step into the story of missionary statesman K.P. Yohannan and experience the world through his eyes. You will hang on every word - from the villages of India to the shores of Europe and North America. Watch out: His passion is contagious!
87.
Running in the Family by Michael Ondaatje EN
Sri LankaDescription:
In the late 1970s Ondaatje returned to his native island of Sri Lanka. As he records his journey through the drug-like heat and intoxicating fragrances of that "pendant off the ear of India, " Ondaatje simultaneously retraces the baroque mythology of his Dutch-Ceylonese family. An inspired travel narrative and family memoir by an exceptional writer.
88.
Samurai! by Saburo Sakai, Martin Caidin, Fred Saito EN
JapanDescription:
Saburo Sakai was Japan's greatest fighter pilot to survive World War II. A veteran of more than two hundred dogfights, Sakai reportedly shot down sixty-four Allied planes, but he is best known for flying his crippled Zero nearly 600 miles to safety while partially paralyzed and nearly blind from multiple wounds.
89.
Sigh, Gone : A Misfit's Memoir of Great Books, Punk Rock, and the Fight to Fit In by Phuc Tran EN
VietnamDescription:
For anyone who has ever felt like they don't belong, Sigh, Gone shares an irreverent, funny, and moving tale of displacement and assimilation woven together with poignant themes from beloved works of classic literature. In 1975, during the fall of Saigon, Phuc Tran immigrates to America along with his family. By sheer chance they land in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, a small town where the Trans struggle to assimilate into their new life. In this coming-of-age memoir told through the themes of great books such as The Metamorphosis, The Scarlet Letter, The Iliad, and more, Tran navigates the push and... continue
90.
Stars Between the Sun and Moon : One Woman's Life in North Korea and Escape to Freedom by Lucia Jang, Susan McClelland EN
Country: Asia / 
North Korea
North Korea
Description:
An extraordinary memoir by a North Korean woman who defied the government to keep her family alive.