Read Around Asia Challenge
Read at least one book by an author from each country in Asia.
Best books from Asia (1423)
721.
The Great Passage by Shion Miura EN
JapanDescription:
An award-winning story of love, friendship, and the power of human connection. Kohei Araki believes that a dictionary is a boat to carry us across the sea of words. But after thirty-seven years of creating dictionaries, it's time for him to retire and find his replacement. He discovers a kindred spirit in Mitsuya Majime--a young, disheveled square peg with a penchant for collecting antiquarian books and a background in linguistics--whom he swipes from his company's sales department. Along with an energetic, if reluctant, new recruit and an elder linguistics scholar, Majime is tasked with a car... continue
722.
Penguin Highway by Tomihiko Morimi EN
Description:
I may only be in fourth grade, but I know more than most adults. I take notes every day and read all kinds of books, so I have a solid grasp on the world around me. But suddenly, there are penguins in my town! I know it has something to do with the lady at the dentist and her weird powers, and I'm going to get to the bottom of it...
723.
The Tatami Galaxy by Tomihiko Morimi EN
Description:
An unfulfilled college student hurtles through four parallel realities to explore the what-might've-been and the what-should-never-be in this Groundhog Day meets The Midnight Library-esque novel from one of Japan's most popular authors. Our protagonist, an unnamed junior at the prestigious Kyoto University, is on the verge of dropping out. After rebelling against the dictatorial jock president of the film club, he and his worst and only friend, the diabolical creep Ozu, are personas non grata on campus. For three years, our protagonist has made all the wrong decisions, and now he's about to ma... continue
724.
The Tatami Time Machine Blues by Tomihiko Morimi EN
Description:
In the boiling heat of summer, a broken remote control for an air conditioner threatens life as we know it in this reality-bending, time-slipping sequel to The Tatami Galaxy. During a scorching August in Kyoto, our protagonist and his worst friend, Ozu, are locked in a glaring contest in a four-and-a-half-tatami-mat room. Ozu has spilled Coke on the air conditioner's remote control--the only AC in Shimogamo Yusuisuiso, their famously shabby sweatbox of an apartment building. Vengeful and despairing, our protagonist discusses countermeasures with his secret crush, the reliably blunt Akashi, whe... continue
725.
Fox Tales by Tomihiko Morimi EN
Description:
A collection of four spooky tales for the modern era, all tied to a certain Kyoto curio shop. A basket wriggles, a masked man lingers in the dark, and things are offered, lost, and forgotten. What mysteries lie hidden in the city's winding streets? Tomihiko Morimi offers a stylish glimpse into the beguiling and mysterious darkness of the old capital.
726.
Inheritance from Mother by Minae Mizumura EN
Description:
Award-winning novelist Minae Mizumura demystifies the notion of the selfless Japanese mother and the adult daughter honor-bound to care for her. Mitsuki Katsura, a Japanese woman in her mid-fifties, is a French-language instructor at a private university in Tokyo. Her husband, whom she met in Paris, is a professor at another private university. He is having an affair with a much younger woman. In addition to her husband’s infidelity, Mitsuki must deal with her ailing eighty-something mother, a demanding, self-absorbed woman who is far from the image of the patient, self-sacrificing Japanese ma... continue
727.
A True Novel by Minae Mizumura EN
Description:
As an impoverished immigrant with mixed Chinese origins, Taro Azuma has faced prejudice his entire life. Desperately trying to make his fortune, Taro has a secret; he is obsessed with a girl from an aristocratic family. When Taro's ambitious leads him to become one of the wealthiest Japanese men in America, he finally gets close to her. But her relatives are determined to uncover his background. Using the template of Wuthering Heights, A True Novel is an epic love story and an in-depth study of social history after WWII.
728.
An I-Novel by Minae Mizumura EN
Description:
Minae Mizumura's An I-Novel is a semi-autobiographical work that takes place over the course of a single day in the 1980s. This formally daring novel radically broke with Japanese literary tradition and offers a luminous meditation on how a person becomes a writer.
729.
The Fall of Language in the Age of English by Minae Mizumura EN
Description:
Winner of the Kobayashi Hideo Award, this best-selling book by one of JapanÕs most ambitious contemporary fiction writers lays bare the struggle to retain the brilliance of oneÕs own language in an age of English dominance. Born in Tokyo but also raised and educated in the United States, Minae Mizumura acknowledges the value of a universal language in the pursuit of knowledge, yet also appreciates the different ways of seeing offered by the work of multiple tongues. She warns against losing this precious diversity. Universal languages have always played a pivotal role in advancing human societ... continue
730.
Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa EN
Description:
The wise and charming international bestseller and hit Japanese movie about a young woman who loses everything but finds herself--a tale of new beginnings, romantic and family relationships, and the comfort that can be found in books. Translated By Eric Ozawa Twenty-five-year-old Takako has enjoyed a relatively easy existence--until the day her charming boyfriend Kashikoi, the man she expected to wed, casually announces he's been cheating on her and is marrying the other woman. Suddenly, Takako's life is in freefall. She loses her job, her friends, and her acquaintances, and spirals into a dee... continue