Read Around Asia Challenge
Read at least one book by an author from each country in Asia.
Best books from Asia (1979)
1561.
The Betel Nut Tree Mystery by Ovidia Yu EN
SingaporeDescription:
'Great protagonist, great setting - this is a delightful book' Morning Star The second novel in Ovidia Yu's delightfully charming crime series set in 1930s Singapore, featuring amateur sleuth Su Lin. What we came to think of as the betel nut affair began in the middle of a tropical thunderstorm in December 1937 . . . Singapore is agog with the news of King Edward VIII's abdication to marry American heiress Wallis Simpson. Chen Su Lin, now Chief Inspector Le Froy's secretarial assistant in Singapore's newly formed detective unit, still dreams of becoming a journalist and hopes to cover the stor... continue
1562.
Lucie Yi Is Not a Romantic by Lauren Ho EN
Description:
An ambitious career woman signs up for a co-parenting website only to find a match she never expected, in this unflinchingly funny and honest novel from the author of Last Tang Standing. Management consultant Lucie Yi is done waiting for Mr. Right. After a harrowing breakup foiled her plans for children—and drove her to a meltdown in a Tribeca baby store—she’s ready to take matters into her own hands. She signs up for an elective co-parenting website to find a suitable partner with whom to procreate—as platonic as family planning can be. Collin Read checks all of Lucie’s boxes; he shares a sim... continue
1563.
The Kingdom of Women : Life, Love and Death in China's Hidden Mountains by Choo WaiHong EN
Description:
Discover the kingdom where women rule. A truly fascinating account of one of the world's last matrilineal societies, told through the eyes of a woman who left her corporate life in Hong Kong to discover more about their culture.
1564.
Bite Me, Royce Taslim by Lauren Ho EN
Description:
A career-ending injury destroys track star Agnes Chan's hopes of a college scholarship, putting her on a journey through the underbelly of Malaysian stand-up comedy, and directly into the path of her archnemesis, the ridiculously wealthy and disgustingly handsome Royce Taslim.
1565.
Dissolution by Nicholas Binge EN
Description:
NAMED A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF THE YEAR BY ESQUIRE, PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, GOODREADS AND MORE! A woman dives into her husband's memories to uncover a decades-old feud threatening reality itself in this staggering technothriller from the bestselling author of Ascension Maggie Webb has lived the last decade caring for elderly husband, Stanley, as memory loss gradually erases all the beautiful moments they created together. It's the loneliest she's ever felt in her life. When a mysterious stranger named Hassan appears at her door, he reveals a shocking truth: Stanley isn't losing his memories. Some... continue
1566.
Feng Shui Modern by Cliff Tan EN
Description:
The ancient practice of feng shui is uncovered in this simple and practical guide, revealing the tools that will lead to a healthier, happier home for every budget. How do you place a bed in an awkward room? How can your space help you be more focused and more productive? How do you set up your room to make you ready for romantic love? It's simple! In Feng Shui for Modern Living, TikTok influencer Cliff Tan answers these questions and more, explaining the ancient practice of feng shui and how it can be translated to modern homes. Cliff has become an internet sensation with his videos demonstra... continue
1567.
Human Acts by Han Kang EN
Country: Asia / 
South Korea
South Korea
Description:
FROM HAN KANG, WINNER OF THE 2024 NOBEL PRIZE IN LITERATURE “[Han Kang’s] intense poetic prose . . . confronts historical traumas and exposes the fragility of human life.”—The Nobel Committee for Literature, in the citation for the Nobel Prize The internationally bestselling author of The Vegetarian presents a “rare and astonishing” (The Observer) portrait of political unrest and the universal struggle for justice. “Compulsively readable, universally relevant, and deeply resonant . . . in equal parts beautiful and urgent.”—The New York Times Book Review Shortlisted for the International Dublin... continue
1568.
1569.
Country: Asia / South Korea
South Korea
Description:
* The million-copy bestseller* * National Book Award finalist * * An instant New York Times Bestseller and one of their 10 Best Books of 2017 * * Selected for Emma Watson's Our Shared Shelf book club * 'This is a captivating book... Min Jin Lee's novel takes us through four generations and each character's search for identity and success. It's a powerful story about resilience and compassion' BARACK OBAMA. Yeongdo, Korea, 1911. Teenaged Sunja, the adored daughter of a fisherman, falls for a wealthy yakuza. He promises her the world, but when she discovers she is pregnant – and that her lover i... continue
1570.
Lemon by Kwon Yeo-sun EN
Country: Asia / South Korea
South Korea
Description:
This is not a murder story. It is the story of those left behind. Parasite meets The Good Son in this piercing psychological portrait of three women haunted by a brutal, unsolved crime. In the summer of 2002, nineteen-year-old Kim Hae-on was murdered in what became known as the High School Beauty Murder. There were two suspects: Shin Jeongjun, who had a rock-solid alibi, and Han Manu, to whom no evidence could be pinned. The case went cold. Seventeen years pass without justice, and the grief and uncertainty take a cruel toll on her younger sister, Da-on, in particular. Unable to move on with h... continue