Read Around Asia Challenge

Read at least one book by an author from each country in Asia.

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Best books from Asia (1407)
961.

Bitter Orange Tree by Jokha Alharthi EN

Rating: 5 (1 vote)
Country: Asia / Oman flag Oman
Description:
Translated by Marilyn Booth Longlisted for the 2023 Dublin Literary Award An extraordinary novel from a Man Booker International Prize-winning author that follows one young Omani woman as she builds a life for herself in Britain and reflects on the relationships that have made her from a “remarkable” writer who has “constructed her own novelistic form” (James Wood, The New Yorker). ‘Alharthi makes lyrical shifts between past and present, memory and folklore, oneiric surrealism and grimy realism.’ Guardian [A] stirring tale of a woman who battles every social and religious constraint. The juxta... continue
Genre

962.

Les corps célestes by Jokha Alharthi FR

Rating: 4 (1 vote)
Country: Asia / Oman flag Oman
Description:
Dans le village d'Awafi, à Oman, vivent trois sœurs en âge de se marier. Maya, la couturière, épouse Abdallah, fou d'elle ; la sage Asma s'unit à Khaled par devoir ; Khawla, l'insoumise, attend le retour de Nasser, parti étudier à l'étranger. À travers les amours et les deuils de ces femmes et de leur famille, ce roman évoque les mutations qui transforment la société omanaise.

963.

Exit West by Mohsin Hamid EN

Rating: 3 (10 votes)
Country: Asia / Pakistan flag Pakistan
Description:
FINALIST FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE & WINNER OF THE L.A. TIMES BOOK PRIZE FOR FICTION and THE ASPEN WORDS LITERARY PRIZE “It was as if Hamid knew what was going to happen to America and the world, and gave us a road map to our future… At once terrifying and … oddly hopeful.” —Ayelet Waldman, The New York Times Book Review “Moving, audacious, and indelibly human.” —Entertainment Weekly, “A” rating The New York Times bestselling novel: an astonishingly visionary love story that imagines the forces that drive ordinary people from their homes into the uncertain embrace of new lands, from the author of T... continue
Genre

964.

I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai EN

Rating: 5 (12 votes)
Country: Asia / Pakistan flag Pakistan
Description:
I come from a country which was created at midnight. When I almost died it was just after midday. When the Taliban took control of the Swat Valley, one girl spoke out. Malala Yousafzai refused to be silenced and fought for her right to an education. On Tuesday 9 October 2012, she almost paid the ultimate price. Shot in the head at point blank range while riding the bus home from school, few expected her to survive. Instead, Malala's miraculous recovery has taken her on an extraordinary journey from a remote valley in Northern Pakistan to the halls of the United Nations in New York. At sixteen,... continue

965.

Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie EN

Rating: 4 (5 votes)
Country: Asia / Pakistan flag Pakistan
Description:
"Ingenious... Builds to one of the most memorable final scenes I've read in a novel this century." --The New York Times WINNER OF THE 2018 WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION FINALIST FOR THE 2019 INTERNATIONAL DUBLIN LITERARY AWARD LONGLISTED FOR THE MAN BOOKER PRIZE The suspenseful and heartbreaking story of an immigrant family driven to pit love against loyalty, with devastating consequences Isma is free. After years of watching out for her younger siblings in the wake of their mother's death, she's accepted an invitation from a mentor in America that allows her to resume a dream long deferred. But s... continue
Genre

966.

The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid EN

Rating: 4 (6 votes)
Country: Asia / Pakistan flag Pakistan
Description:
Changez, a young Muslim American, is living the American dream, with a Princeton education and high-paying job, until the events of September 11th force him to confront his personal allegiances.

967.

Defying Jihad : The Dramatic True Story of a Woman Who Volunteered to Kill Infidels - and Then Faced Death for Becoming One by Esther Ahmad EN

0 Ratings
Country: Asia / Pakistan flag Pakistan
Description:
If you truly love Allah, you will die for him. Your death will mean much reward for you and your family in heaven. Only death will prove your love. It was the final test. A chance to win not only the love of Allah, but the love of her father--something she had never been able to earn. Esther took a deep breath and raised her hand in the air. At the age of eighteen, she had just volunteered to become a suicide bomber. Defying Jihad is the true story of a girl growing up under radical Islamic rule, trained to believe her ultimate purpose was to serve Allah by dying as a jihadist. But two nights ... continue

968.

The last white man by Mohsin Hamid EN

Rating: 4 (1 vote)
Country: Asia / Pakistan flag Pakistan
Description:
A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE SUMMER BY TIME, ELLE, USA TODAY, ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY AND MORE “Perhaps Hamid’s most remarkable work yet … an extraordinary vision of human possibility.” –Ayad Akhtar, author of Homeland Elegies “Searing, exhilarating … reimagines Kafka’s iconic The Metamorphosis for our racially charged era.” Hamilton Cain, Oprah Daily From the New York Times-bestselling author of Exit West, a story of love, loss, and rediscovery in a time of unsettling change. One morning, a man wakes up to find himself transformed. Overnight, Anders’s skin has turned dark... continue

969.

A Woman Like Her : The Short Life of Qandeel Baloch by Sanam Maher EN

0 Ratings
Country: Asia / Pakistan flag Pakistan
Description:
A NEW YORK TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR 2020'The powerful story of a woman who was ahead of her time' Mishal Husain, presenter at BBC News'Terrific and necessary' Sonia Faleiro'This book is brilliant and terrifying' Meena Kandasamy_________________________ A beautiful woman in winged eyeliner and a low-cut top lies on a bed urging her favourite cricketer to win the next match. In another post, she pouts at the camera from a hot tub. She posts a selfie with a cleric, wearing his cap at a jaunty angle. Her posts are viewed millions of times and the comments beneath them a... continue

970.

Blasphemy : A Novel by Tehmina Durrani EN

0 Ratings
Country: Asia / Pakistan flag Pakistan
Description:
Set In South Pakistan, This Controversial Novel Is A Searing Study Of Evil. It Is The Tragic And Shocking Story Of The Beautiful Heer, Brutalized And Corrupted By Pir Sain, The So-Called Man Of God Whom She Is Married To At The Age Of Fifteen.