BookDragon Adult Readers

Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister by Gregory Maguire

23 Dec, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Audio, European, Fiction, Nonethnic-specific, Young Adult Readers

If Gregory Maguire is not exactly a household name, his signature work, Wicked, certainly is known throughout the world, living an everlasting life on stages everywhere in its Tony...

Death Note (vol. 1) by Tsugumi Ohba, art by Takeshi Obata, translated by Tetsuichiro Miyaki

21 Dec, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Translation, Young Adult Readers

As my children get more tech-savvy which means I become more of a Luddite, their favorite exasperated phrase seems to be "Maaaah-ahm, you just do this!" So in one of my son's 'just' moments, I...

However Tall the Mountain: A Dream, Eight Girls, and a Journey Home by Awista Ayub

17 Dec, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Afghan, Afghan American, Memoir, Nonfiction, Young Adult Readers

"However tall the mountain, there's always a road," so goes the Afghan proverb that opens Awista Ayub's inspiring memoir. Thank goodness for the energy of youth to actually find the...

Please Look After Mom by Kyung-sook Shin, translated by Chi-Young Kim [in Library Journal]

15 Dec, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Absolute Favorites, Adult Readers, Fiction, Korean, Repost, Translation

*STARRED REVIEW The Korean title of this indelible novel, Omma rul put’ak hae, contains a sense of commanding trust that is missing in its English translation: “I entrust Mommy [to you].” That trust...

The Angel of Galilea by Laura Restrepo, translated by Dolores Koch

12 Dec, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Fiction, South American, Translation

A magazine reporter, referred to as "La Monita, Blondie" – because of her "mass of blond hair" thanks to her Belgian grandfather – is sent to cover an angel sighting in the Bogotá...

Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok

06 Dec, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Audio, Chinese American, Fiction, Hong Kongese

I didn't actually read most of Jean Kwok's debut novel, but Grayce Wey who read it to me made it un-put-downable. Wey's gentle, lilting accent which fades in and out depending on...

Buddha’s Orphans by Samrat Upadhyay

05 Dec, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Fiction, Nepali, Nepali American

First off, Samrat Upadhyay is one of my favorite short story-tellers. His debut Arresting God in Kathmandu remains one of the most memorable collections I've ever read, and a quote from the review I...

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne

02 Dec, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Audio, European, Fiction, Jewish, Middle Grade Readers, Young Adult Readers

Given the somber subject matter of this title, I realize this probably verges on sacrilegious, but no disrespect is intended in any way ...

Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World by Jack Weatherford

29 Nov, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Audio, Biography, Mongolian, Nonfiction

Hurray (itself a word of Mongol origin) for cultural anthropologist and Macalester College professor Jack Weatherford who reclaims Genghis Khan from a much maligned history that defines him as "the quintessential barbarian," leading an...

The Playwright by Daren White, art by Eddie Campbell

28 Nov, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Australian, Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha

The unnamed playwright here is one lonely man. He "lodges" in Uncle Ernie's spare room as his own family stopped talking to him in 1978 when his screenplay "based upon his older, retarded brother" aired...

Of Thee I Sing: A Letter to My Daughters by Barack Obama, illustrated by Loren Long

24 Nov, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Biography, Children/Picture Books, Middle Grade Readers, Nonfiction, Young Adult Readers

Yes, President Obama's first picture book is, of course, a gorgeous gift to his two young daughters. But it's also quite a legacy for every child anywhere as it reminds us that...

How to Understand Israel in 60 Days or Less by Sarah Glidden

16 Nov, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Israeli, Jewish, Memoir, Nonfiction, Young Adult Readers

Having grown up Catholic (I'm still in recovery), nothing works better than leftover Catholic guilt to get me to do something I'm whinge-ing about. The supreme irony about my former Catholicism is...

At Home with Madhur Jaffrey: Simple, Delectable Dishes from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka by Madhur Jaffrey

14 Nov, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Bangladeshi, Indian, Indian American, Nonfiction, Pakistani, Sri Lankan

What perfect timing! Madhur Jaffrey's newest cookbook makes for a toothsome companion to one of last week's posts, Indivisible, the first anthology that brings together contemporary American poets...

Mirror by Jeannie Baker

12 Nov, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Absolute Favorites, Adult Readers, Australian, Bilingual, Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Middle Grade Readers, Moroccan, Young Adult Readers

The simplicity of Australian author/artist Jeannie Baker's latest title makes it simply stupendous. Open the book and you have two halves on either side, the left which begins in English, and right which...

Indivisible: An Anthology of Contemporary South Asian American Poetry edited by Neelajana Banerjee, Summi Kaipa, and Pireeni Sundaralingam

11 Nov, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Bangladeshi American, Indian American, Nepali American, Pakistani American, Poetry, South Asian American, Sri Lankan American, Young Adult Readers

The title – Indivisible – the editors explain, is "a word taken from the U.S. Pledge of Allegiance." Through the 49 diverse American voices represented here with roots in Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and...

Tears in the Darkness: The Story of the Bataan Death March and Its Aftermath by Michael Norman and Elizabeth Norman

08 Nov, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Audio, Filipina/o, Japanese, Nonethnic-specific, Nonfiction, Southeast Asian

In the book’s opening pages, the “Authors’ Note,” explains the title – ‘tears in the darkness’ is a literal translation of the Japanese kanji for anrui, “the kind of pain and sorrow...

The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives by Lola Shoneyin

04 Nov, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, African, Fiction

Bolanle is the only one of Baba Segi's four wives who is literate, has a college education, and retains her own name. When she becomes the prized final wife of...

Author Interview: Audrey Niffenegger [in Bookslut]

03 Nov, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Author Interview/Profile, British, Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Nonethnic-specific, Repost

Sometimes jet lag has its advantages. Amazingly enough, I caught Audrey Niffenegger soon after her London arrival, when she wasn’t sleeping – “I am very bad at jet lag,” she confesses....

It’s a Book by Lane Smith

01 Nov, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Absolute Favorites, Adult Readers, Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Middle Grade Readers, Nonethnic-specific, Young Adult Readers

Delighted guffawing is inevitable as soon as you open the pages. And most especially fitting if you are a proud, obstinate Luddite like me! Move over Kindles, Nooks, iPads, Vooks, and whatever other...

The Lucky Ones: One Family and the Extraordinary Invention of Chinese America by Mae Ngai

28 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Biography, Chinese American, Nonfiction

When the local San Francisco public school denied Mamie Tape admission solely based on her Chinese heritage, her parents sued the city's Board of Education in what became the landmark 1885 case, Tape vs. Hurley. Mamie was seven years old, the American-born child of middle-class Chinese...