Popular Asian Humor Books
Find humor books written by authors from Asia for the next part of the Read Around The World Challenge. (29)
1.
A Horse Walks Into a Bar by David Grossman EN
IsraelDescription:
"A stand-up comedian recalls some of his darkest moments and traumatic memories from childhood on stage in front of a live audience."--
2.
A Zoo in My Luggage by Gerald Durrell EN
IndiaDescription:
Fans of Gerald Durrell’s timeless classic My Family and Other Animals, which was the inspiration for The Durrells in Corfu on Masterpiece PBS, will love this hilarious tale that finds the author as an adult still charmed by his beloved animals. A Zoo in My Luggage begins with an account of Durrell’s third trip to the British Cameroons in West Africa, during which he and his wife capture animals to start their own zoo. Returning to England with a few additions to their family—Cholmondeley the chimpanzee, Bug-eye the bush baby, and others—they have nowhere to put them as they haven’t yet secured... continue
3.
Arzee the Dwarf by Chandrahas Choudhury EN
Description:
Arzee the dwarf's dream has come true. He has been crowned as head projectionist at the Noor, the Bombay cinema where he has been working since his teens. Arzee thinks that the worst of his troubles are behind him, and that he can marry and settle down now. But not for the first time, Arzee has it all wrong! Arzee the Dwarf follows Arzee through day and night, slow time and fast time, agitation and reverie, beautifully setting off the inner world of Arzee's jagged ruminations against the beating and pulsing of the great city around him. The narration vividly brings to life not just the protago... continue
Lebanon5.
Birds, Beasts, and Relatives by Gerald Durrell EN
Description:
Volume two in Gerald Durrell's Corfu Trilogy, which was the inspiration for the Masterpiece PBS series The Durrells in Corfu. Part coming-of-age autobiography and part nature guide, Gerald Durrell’s dazzling sequel to My Family and Other Animals is based on his boyhood on Corfu, from 1933 to 1939. Originally published in 1969 but long out of print, Birds, Beasts, and Relatives is filled with charming observations, amusing anecdotes, boyhood memories, and childlike wonder.
6.
ChinaDescription:
PEN/HEMINGWAY AWARD WINNER • WHITING AWARD WINNER • Smart, moving, and funny, a unique coming-of-age story about a quirky, overworked narrator who seems to be on the cusp of a perfect life but finds herself on a new path of discoveries about everything she thought she knew. "Told in a hilarious deadpan that recalls Gish Jen and Nora Ephron." —O, The Oprah Magazine At first glance, the life of the narrator of Weike Wang’s debut novel seems ideal: she is studying for a prestigious PhD in chemistry that will make her Chinese parents proud (or at least satisfied), and her successful, supportive bo... continue
7.
Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan EN
SingaporeDescription:
Envisioning a summer vacation in the humble Singapore home of a boy she hopes to marry, Chinese American Rachel Chu is unexpectedly introduced to a rich and scheming clan that strongly opposes their son's relationship with an American girl.
8.
Days at the Morisaki Bookshop : A Novel by Satoshi Yagisawa EN
JapanDescription:
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
9.
Embroideries by Marjane Satrapi EN
IranDescription:
From the best–selling author of Persepolis comes this gloriously entertaining and enlightening look into the sex lives of Iranian women. Embroideries gathers together Marjane’s tough–talking grandmother, stoic mother, glamorous and eccentric aunt and their friends and neighbors for an afternoon of tea drinking and talking. Naturally, the subject turns to love, sex and the vagaries of men. As the afternoon progresses, these vibrant women share their secrets, their regrets and their often outrageous stories about, among other things, how to fake one’s virginity, how to escape an arranged marriag... continue
10.
Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows : A Novel by Balli Kaur Jaswal EN
Description:
Reese Witherspoon’s Book Club Pick A lively, sexy, and thought-provoking East-meets-West story about community, friendship, and women’s lives at all ages—a spicy and alluring mix of Together Tea and Calendar Girls. Every woman has a secret life . . . Nikki lives in cosmopolitan West London, where she tends bar at the local pub. The daughter of Indian immigrants, she’s spent most of her twenty-odd years distancing herself from the traditional Sikh community of her childhood, preferring a more independent (that is, Western) life. When her father’s death leaves the family financially strapped, Ni... continue