Popular Asian Philosophical Books

Find philosophical books written by authors from Asia for the next part of the Read Around The World Challenge. (27)

21.

The Disconnected by Oguz Atay EN

Rating: 5 (1 vote)
Country: Asia / Turkey flag Turkey
Description:
“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

22.

The Prophet by Khalil Gibran EN

Rating: 4 (14 votes)
Country: Asia / Lebanon flag Lebanon
Description:
Kahlil Gibran's masterpiece, The Prophet, is one of the most beloved classics of our time. It has been translated into more than twenty languages, and the American editions alone have sold more than nine million copies. The Prophet is a collection of poetic essays that are philosophical, spiritual, and, above all, inspirational. Gibran's musings are divided into twenty-eight chapters covering such sprawling topics as love, marriage, children, giving, eating and drinking, work, joy and sorrow, housing, clothes, buying and selling, crime and punishment, laws, freedom, reason and passion, pain, s... continue

23.

The Tale of Genji : (Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition) by Murasaki Shikibu EN

Rating: 5 (2 votes)
Country: Asia / Japan flag Japan
Description:
The world’s first novel, in a translation that is “likely to be the definitive edition . . . for many years to come” (The Wall Street Journal) A Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition, with flaps and deckle-edged paper Written in the eleventh century, this exquisite portrait of courtly life in medieval Japan is widely celebrated as the world’s first novel. Genji, the Shining Prince, is the son of an emperor. He is a passionate character whose tempestuous nature, family circumstances, love affairs, alliances, and shifting political fortunes form the core of this magnificent epic. Royall Tyler’s superi... continue

24.

The Woman in the Dunes by Kobo Abe EN

Rating: 4 (3 votes)
Country: Asia / Japan flag Japan
Description:
The Woman in the Dunes, by celebrated writer and thinker Kobo Abe, combines the essence of myth, suspense and the existential novel. After missing the last bus home following a day trip to the seashore, an amateur entomologist is offered lodging for the night at the bottom of a vast sand pit. But when he attempts to leave the next morning, he quickly discovers that the locals have other plans. Held captive with seemingly no chance of escape, he is tasked with shoveling back the ever-advancing sand dunes that threaten to destroy the village. His only companion is an odd young woman. Together th... continue

25.

The World of the End by Ofir Touché Gafla EN

0 Ratings
Country: Asia / Israel flag Israel
Description:
The American debut of a bestselling Israeli novel about a man who crosses into another world for the sake of love.

26.

Two Years Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights by Salman Rushdie EN

Rating: 1 (1 vote)
Country: Asia / India flag India
Description:
"Once upon a time, in a world just like ours, there came "the time of the strangenesses." Reason receded and the loudest, most illiberal voices reigned. A simple gardener began to levitate, and a powerful djinn -- also known as the Princess of Fairyland -- raised an army composed entirely of her semi-magical great-great-great-grandchildren. A baby was born with the ability to see corruption in the faces of others. The ghosts of two philosophers, long dead, began arguing once more. And a battle for the kingdom of Fairyland was waged throughout our world for 1,001 nights -- or, to be more precis... continue