hello hello!! for those of you who don’t know, may is asian american pacific islander heritage month and my asian-american self is thriving. there are a few read-a-thons happening in the book universe that focus on asian literature and i’m HYPED.
there’s asian readathon, which… is what it is. an asian themed readathon throughout the month of may. and there’s also YARC (year of the asian), which is a year long asian readathon. YAY. i’ve been trying to keep up with YARC for the past few months, but so far have only read 5/12 books that feature asian character and/or are by an asian author. hopefully this month will be better!!
SO. the books i’m hoping to read this month:
pachinko, by min jin lee
book depository • amazon • goodreads
i’ve already started Pachinko and i am LOVING IT so far. i purchased the audiobook sometime last year but never got around to it, so i’m glad to use the asian readathon as an excuse to finally read/listen to it. i’m only ~20% in, but i really like the narrator, characters, and culture. since it’s set in 1900s korea, there’s a lot of conflict between koreans and japanese. i love the insight and history we get along with relatable characters and !!!!! relationships.
permanent record, by mary h.k. choi
book depository • amazon • goodreads
another book i already started!!! i was very fortunate to get an early copy when i went to yallwest earlier this month and immediately began reading the next day. mary h.k. choi’s debut novel, Emergency Contact, was one of my favorites of last year (and possibly of all-time) so Permanent Record was high on my radar.
i’m only a few chapters in and i already love it. (i know, i know, i say that all the time but for real!!) i was listening to a panel with mary and i love listening to her ideas. she puts her thoughts together is so eloquently; i’m in awe.
descendant of the crane, by joan he
book depository • amazon • goodreads
Descendant of the Crane was one of my most-anticipated releases of 2019 aaaaaand i still haven’t read it. (i hate myself uGh) i was lucky enough to receive an early copy and i still haven’t read this yet!!!! why am i like this!!!! but then again, i only read like 3 physical books this year so…. *shrug* i’m hoping to read it!! i will try my best to read it!!
if i have not read it by the end of summer, you are allowed to yell and virtually attack me. you have full permission to invade my dms telling me to read this book. (but seriously, i feel like so many bloggers talk about how wonderful this is so i’m equally excited and scared.)
ruse, by cindy pon
book depository • amazon • goodreads
i listened to the audiobook of Want a few months ago and loved it!! imagine an AI, futuristic version of Legend set in hong kong. but different, obviously. i try not to compare books with other books but i love Legend. and this is great.
since i’m planning on reading the physical copy of this, i’m wondering how the reading experience will be. WE SHALL SEE.
i love you so mochi, by sarah kuhn
book depository • amazon • goodreads
in all honesty, i don’t know much about I Love You So Mochi. something about japan and cuteness. either way, i’m sold. i know i’m going to read (and likely love) this book. and do you see the cover??? THE COVER??! is the absolute cutest. i’m so hyped for this one!!!
this doesn’t release until the end of may, but i’m supposed to receive an early copy so hope it works out!!
the downstairs girl, by stacey lee
book depository • amazon • goodreads
stacey lee’s books are always so solid!! and this cover is glorious!!!! i was lucky to get a copy while a yallwest; i think i was in the wrong room at the wrong time BUT i saw a table with these arcs and managed to snag a copy and wanted to scream.
this book doesn’t release until september but since i’m very hyped about it, i’ll probably read it soon.
natalie tan’s book of luck and fortune, by roselle lim
book depository • amazon • goodreads
soooo this is also a book i don’t know much about but was very excited for!! aka all the books in my “highly anticipated of 2019 and beyond” list. honestly. i know it’s something about immigrants, food, and san fransisco so I’M SOLD. and because i’m a shallow instagram human, the cover is pretty. i’ll probably walk to my own murderer because it looked instagramable. OOF.
the bride test, by helen hoang
book depository • amazon • goodreads
spontaneous add!! technically the last five books were all spontaneous adds but this one is really. i completely forget this released this past week, but i just received it in the mail because i pre-ordered it. i loved The Kiss Quotient so i was super hyped for this.
The Kiss Quotient was the first audiobook i could not put down, and i heard The Bride Test is a similar experience. although i wonder how it’ll be if i have the paperback vs the audiobook…
i know this is very ambitious list considering where i’m at right now. i haven’t finished a physical book in like, two months; my schedule is super busy in may; and i don’t know if i’m at the right place – mentally – to read a lot. but it’s the thought that counts! so even though i probably won’t finish all of these in may, i’ll likely continue to read these titles throughout june/relatively soon.
I’ve recently read ‘The Poppy War’ by Rebecca Kuang who’s a Chinese-American fantasy writer and writes amazing books (/currently book singular) despite being only 22. She’s a first generation immigrant herself as she was born in China and TPW draws on a lot of Chinese myths and history – especially around the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945) and it inspired me to look into my heritage a lot more so I’d definitely add it to your TBR!
ahh the poppy war was one of my favorites of last year!! i loved it so so much and i can’t wait for the sequel :))