Check out these Great Reads for Asian Pacific American Heritage Month
It’s Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month! Observed annually in May, it’s a month-long celebration of the contributions that generations of AAPIs have made to American history, society, and culture in the United States. Here at The Reading Lists, we’re talking up some of the wonderful literature by and about AAPIs. These are some of our favorites to add to your TBR list:
Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan (Anchor, Available Now)
Spending the summer in Singapore with the man she hopes to marry, Rachel Chu’s expectations of a humble family are sorely misled. Her boyfriend, Nicholas Young, forgot to mention he comes from money — old money — and his family home is basically a palace. Trying to navigate the societal expectations that come with a family like this, nosy family members, and one hard-to-please mother, Rachel will do whatever it takes to keep the man of her dreams.
VERDICT: Immerse yourself in the opulent world of the crazy rich Asians, and don’t stop there — watch the equally wonderful film adaptation.
To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han (Simon & Schuster, Available Now)
Lara Jean Covey is your average teenager who keeps her love letters in a hatbox her mother gave her instead of mailing them out. These letters are just for her; they’re not meant to be seen by anyone else. But what happens when these letters mysteriously get mailed to their intended recipients? Suddenly, Lara Jean’s love life no longer belongs within the ink of her letters — it’s becoming real. But will it last?
VERDICT: Fall in love with this tender-hearted story of teenage first loves and then watch it play out in the Netflix adaptation.
Amazon: To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before
Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng (Penguin Books, Available Now)
In a progressive suburb of Cleveland, two families from very different backgrounds are brought together by their children. Elena Richardson, resident play-by-the-rules mother, rents a house to newcomers Mia Warren and her teenage daughter. Elena’s four children are drawn to Mia, but her mysterious past looms and her blatant disregard for status quo threatens everything Elena stands for. Tensions rise when an adoption case for a Chinese-American baby in town pits Elena and Mia on opposite sides and Elena becomes suspicious of Mia’s motives. Long-buried secrets are threatened, and Elena’s obsession with uncovering the truth will come at disastrous costs.
VERDICT: Become engrossed in this deeply pointed, witty social critique of the American Dream with the complexities of the mother-daughter relationship at its core, and watch the fires burn in the Hulu series.
Amazon: Little Fires Everywhere
Patron Saints of Nothing by Randy Ribay (Kokila, Available Now)
Before heading off to the University of Michigan in the fall, Jay Reguero planned to spend his last summer getting lost in video games. Those plans go awry when Jay’s Filipino cousin, Jun, was murdered for allegedly being part of President Duterte’s war on drugs. When no one in his family wants to discuss his death, Jay decides to take things into his own hands and travel to the Philippines to uncover the truth.
VERDICT: Get lost in this gripping and painfully honest portrayal of coming to terms with faith, family, and immigrant identity.
Amazon: Patron Saints of Nothing
Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning by Cathy Park Hong (One World, Available Now)
In this collection of essays, Cathy Park Hong bravely blends memoir, cultural criticism, and history to show the truth about racial consciousness in America today. Bringing these essays together is Hong’s theory of “minor feelings” which she identified growing up with Korean immigrant parents and her feelings of shame, suspicion, and melancholy. Later, Hong would come to realize that these “minor feelings” were due to believing the lies someone else tells you about your racial identity. Minor Feelings forms a portrait of one Asian American psyche — and of a writer’s search to both uncover and speak the truth.
VERDICT: A very poignant and relevant read for today’s America.
Lies We Bury by Elle Marr (Thomas & Mercer, Available Now)
Unspooling in two timelines, past and present, the story reveals the unspeakably dark childhood Marissa Mo spent being held as a captive in a basement prison over two decades ago, and the ever-lasting scars Marissa has to deal with today. Determined to suppress her memories and the constant shadow of the press following her and her sisters after their escape, Marissa has a new identity and a promising career as a photographer in Portland. At her new job, she’s tasked to cover the string of gruesome murders and she can’t deny that everything is eerily familiar. The tight spaces, the used toys that remind Marissa of the ones she had as a child in the dank prison basement. But when a message appears just for her — See you soon, Missy — Marissa knows she’s inextricably connected to the murderer and must face the horrifying truth of her past.
VERDICT: A deep, thrilling dive into the painful memories that haunt us and the fight between moving on or digging in and seeking revenge.
At the End of the Matinee by Keiichiro Hirano (Amazon Crossing, Available Now)
As a classical guitarist, Satoshi Makino has toured all over the world, and while his career is on the incline, he meets journalist Yoko Komine at his concert in Tokyo. After their initial meeting, they embark on a years-long conversation, the time occasionally filled with long spells of silence, but their connection no less powerful. Yoko is drawn to the tenderness of Satoshi’s music, while he’s intrigued by her intellect. However, neither has the confidence to make the first move on their blooming attraction. Will music be able to bring them together in a chorus of a symphony, or will their shyness keep them apart?
VERDICT: In this timeless ode to love’s resilience, the harrowing experience of two people in love is a global phenomenon.
Amazon: At the End of the Matinee
Crying in H Mart: A Memoir by Michelle Zauner (Knopf, Available Now)
Based on her essay in The New Yorker, Michelle Zauner reflects with humor and heart on how she grew up as one of the only Asian American kids in Eugene, Oregon as well as struggling with her mother’s high expectations of her. She found solace in her grandmother’s tiny Seoul apartment and holds close to her heart the late nights she bonded with her mother over piles of food. As she grew up, started working in the restaurant business, began performing with her novice band, and met the man who would one day become her husband, Michelle’s Korean-ness began to feel distant and it wasn’t until her mother was diagnosed with terminal cancer that she was forced to reconcile her true identity with who she was turning into.
VERDICT: A lyrical and honest portrayal of life as a Korean American.
All Kinds of Other by James Sie (Quill Tree Books, May 4, 2021)
Two teenage boys — one who is cis, and one who is trans — have spent their lives protecting themselves from opening up to the ruination of love. That all changes when they meet and give each other a reason to open their hearts. Jules and Jack have both left behind their old lives to make fresh starts at a new school in Los Angeles. They meet, and there is an instant, unmistakable attraction. But of course, being a teenager in high school is difficult enough without adding viral videos, exposed secrets, and facing your own fears and insecurities. Jack and Jules have a choice: play it safe and stay unseen or claim their spot in the world with each other.
VERDICT: Hopeful and warmly real, this novel is an open-hearted journey of finding one’s authentic self.
Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala (Berkley, May 4, 2021)
To recover from a horrendous breakup, Lila Macapagal moves back home and her life seems to take on the role of a rom-com movie. Her Tita Rosie’s restaurant is failing and she must come up with a plan to save it. Her matchmaking aunties judge her but shower her with love at the same time. But when her ex-boyfriend, now a notoriously nasty food critic, drops dead after a little spat with Lila, her rom-com life is over and enters the land of an Agatha Christie mystery. Being treated like the only suspect, Lila decides to take her fate into her own hands and starts conducting her own investigation. However, she soon finds the investigation taking a twisted turn, leaving her own life in the hot seat.
VERDICT: A hilarious and delicious mystery that is bound to leave you laughing and wanting more.
Sunny Song Will Never Be Famous by Suzanne Park (Sourcebooks Fire, June 1, 2021)
Sunny has a few goals for the summer and one of them is to hit 100K followers on her social media. But when she is shipped off to a digital detox summer camp, her plans fall to the wayside. She’s stuck in Iowa at camp for a whole month, and with no WiFi connection, she’ll never grow her social media platform. Despite not being connected, Sunny will be surprised at just how connected she becomes as she navigates her way through possibly the best summer ever.
VERDICT: Charming and funny, Sunny Song Will Never Be Famous is timely and completely relatable.
