Popular Asian Philosophical Books
Find philosophical books written by authors from Asia for the next part of the Read Around The World Challenge. (13)
1.
Dream of the Red Chamber by Cao Xueqin EN
ChinaDescription:
The Chia family experiences a decline in fortune during the Ch'ing dynasty.
2.
Homo Deus : by Yuval Noah Harari EN
IsraelDescription:
THE MILLION COPY BESTSELLERSapiensshows us where we came from. Homo Deusshows us where we?re going.Yuval Noah Hararienvisions a near future in which we face a new set of challenges. Homo Deusexplores the projects, dreams and nightmares that will shape the twenty-first century and beyond - from overcoming death to creating artificial life.It asks the fundamental questions- how can we protect this fragile world from our own destructive power? And what does our future hold?'Homo Deuswill shock you. It will entertain you. It will make you think in ways you had not thought before? Daniel Kahneman
3.
How Do You Live? by Genzaburo Yoshino EN
JapanDescription:
The first English translation of the classic Japanese novel that has sold over 2 million copies—a childhood favorite of anime master Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro, Howl’s Moving Castle), with an introduction by Neil Gaiman. First published in 1937, Genzaburō Yoshino’s How Do You Live? has long been acknowledged in Japan as a crossover classic for young readers. Academy Award–winning animator Hayao Miyazaki has called it his favorite childhood book and announced plans to emerge from retirement to make it the basis of his final film. How Do You Live? is narrated in two voices... continue
4.
In Praise of Shadows by Junichiro Tanizaki EN
Description:
A fully illustrated, beautifully produced edition of Junichiro Tanizaki's wise and evocative essay on Japanese culture. 'We find beauty not in the thing itself but in the patterns of shadows, the light and the darkness, that one thing against another creates... Were it not for shadows, there would be no beauty.' The slim book you are holding is in fact a portal. Opening it, you will be led by Junichiro Tanizaki's light touch into a mysterious and tranquil world of darkness and shadows, where gold flashes in the gloom and a deep stillness reigns. If you are accustomed to equate light with clari... continue
5.
No Exit and Three Other Plays by Jean-Paul Sartre EN
FranceDescription:
Four seminal plays by one of the greatest philosophers of the twentieth century. An existential portrayal of Hell in Sartre's best-known play, as well as three other brilliant, thought-provoking works: the reworking of the Electra-Orestes story, the conflict of a young intellectual torn between theory and conflict, and an arresting attack on American racism.
6.
Rental Person Who Does Nothing : A Memoir by Shoji Morimoto EN
Description:
Profiled in The Times, The Independent and by BBC Reels I’m starting a service . . . available for any situation in which all you want is a person to be there. Maybe there’s a restaurant you want to go to, but you feel awkward going on your own. Maybe a game you want to play, but you’re one person short. Or perhaps you’d like someone to keep a space in the park for your cherry blossom viewing party . . . Shoji Morimoto was constantly being told by his boss that he contributed nothing to the company he worked for and that it made no difference whether he showed up or not. He began to wonder whe... continue
7.
Description:
Sun Tzu said: The art of war is of vital importance to the State. It is a matter of life and death, a road either to safety or to ruin. Hence it is a subject of inquiry which can on no account be neglected. The art of war, then, is governed by five constant factors, to be taken into account in one's deliberations, when seeking to determine the conditions obtaining in the field. These are: (1) The Moral Law; (2) Heaven; (3) Earth; (4) The Commander; (5) Method and discipline.
8.
The Book of Joy : Lasting Happiness in a Changing World by Dalai Lama, Desmond Tutu, Douglas Carlton Abrams EN
Description:
An instant New York Times bestseller Two spiritual giants. Five days. One timeless question. Nobel Peace Prize Laureates His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu have survived more than fifty years of exile and the soul-crushing violence of oppression. Despite their hardships—or, as they would say, because of them—they are two of the most joyful people on the planet. In April 2015, Archbishop Tutu traveled to the Dalai Lama's home in Dharamsala, India, to celebrate His Holiness's eightieth birthday and to create what they hoped would be a gift for others. They looked back on the... continue
9.
The Day Lasts More Than a Hundred Years by Chingiz Aitmatov EN
Country: Asia / 
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan
Description:
" . . . a rewarding book." —Times Literary Supplement Set in the vast windswept Central Asian steppes and the infinite reaches of galactic space, this powerful novel offers a vivid view of the culture and values of the Soviet Union's Central Asian peoples.
10.
The Disconnected by Oguz Atay EN
TurkeyDescription:
“My life was a game, but I wanted it to be taken seriously,” says Selim, the anti-hero of the novel. But the game has a terrible end with his suicide, and his friend Turgut’s quest to understand this is the story of the book. He meets friends whom Selim had kept separate from each other, he finds documents in a kaleidoscopic variety of styles, sometimes hugely funny, sometimes very moving, as Selim rails against the ugliness of his world whether in satire or in a howl of anguish, taking refuge in words and loneliness.
Under layers of fantasy is the central concept of the D... continue