Fiction Archives - Page 101 of 172

This Is How You Lose Her by Junot Díaz

04 Jan, by SIBookDragon in Adult Readers, Audio, Caribbean American, Fiction, Short Stories

Thus far, mega-award winning Junot Díaz (also recently bestowed the "Genius" moniker by the MacArthur Foundation) hasn't written a book without his sort-of autobiographical stand-in Yunior de las Casas. Díaz's 1996 fiction debut, Drown, introduced Yunior through interlinked short stories; a decade-plus later, Díaz turned over full narrative control to his...

The Book of Jonas by Stephen Dau

03 Jan, by SIBookDragon in Adult Readers, Audio, Fiction, Middle Eastern, Nonethnic-specific, Young Adult Readers

Need the verdict first? READ THIS. Stephen Dau's The Book of Jonas is one of those rare, shattering, lingering, breathtaking-at-unexpected-moments debut novels that arrive so perfectly formed you're left both haunted (wondering what you could possibly read next to dispel the terror) and grateful (utterly so, that...

Little Century by Anna Keesey

31 Dec, by SIBookDragon in Adult Readers, Audio, Fiction, Native American/First Nations/Indigenous Peoples, Nonethnic-specific, Young Adult Readers

On this final day of 2012, this could easily be me (replacing 'Esther' with my name and 'her journey' with this year): "Though she would not have admitted to any fixed expectations, Esther is still confounded by what meets her at the end of her...

Chopsticks by Jessica Anthony and Rodrigo Corral

30 Dec, by SIBookDragon in Fiction, Nonethnic-specific, South American, Young Adult Readers

The words "A Novel" adorn the top of the cover of Chopsticks – but that's definitely a debatable label. No such limits necessary here! A hybrid creation by novelist/short story writer Jessica Anthony and book designer/creative director (for Farrar, Straus, Giroux, who is not Chopsticks' publisher, in case you...

Equal of the Sun by Anita Amirrezvani

27 Dec, by SIBookDragon in Adult Readers, Audio, Fiction, Iranian, Iranian American, Persian, Persian American

"Based on the life of Princess Pari Khan Khanoom" seems to be the dominant short-hand description (even on its own back cover) of Anita Amirrezvani's historical novel set in 16th-century Persia, now modern Iran. Some might find that description misleading, and expect this to be...

The Spy Lover by Kiana Davenport

26 Dec, by SIBookDragon in Adult Readers, Chinese, Chinese American, Fiction, Hapa/Mixed-race, Hawaiian, Native American/First Nations/Indigenous Peoples

The Spy Lover lingered on the top of my must-read pile for months, mainly because I just needed a break from the death and destruction of war (seems to be my reading theme for too much of this year!). I wasn't wrong to be afraid: set during...

Astray by Emma Donoghue

24 Dec, by SIBookDragon in Adult Readers, Audio, Canadian, Fiction, Irish, Nonethnic-specific, Short Stories

Maybe it's the craziness of the season, but I've really been appreciating short story collections. This latest title from Emma Donoghue – the author of the phenomenal Room – is an intriguingly composed compilation: Donoghue presents a story introduced with a specific city and year, then gives the 'ripped-from-the-headlines'...

Distant View of a Minaret by Alifa Rifaat, translated by Denys Johnson-Davis

23 Dec, by SIBookDragon in Adult Readers, Egyptian, Fiction, Short Stories, Translation

Given the monumental (continuous) changes post-Arab Spring, my recent (ongoing) search for women’s voices before and after led me to an unusual writer who defies many expectations of what it means to be internationally literary: Alifa Rifaat lives and works in a traditional Egyptian Muslim...

The Perfect Flower Girl by Taghred Chandab, illustrated by Binny Talib

22 Dec, by SIBookDragon in Australian, Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Lebanese

Awww ...

The Drops of God: New World by Tadashi Agi, illustrated by Shu Okimoto, translated by Vertical, Inc.

21 Dec, by SIBookDragon in Adult Readers, Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Translation

I must confess that I've been loathe to post about this latest volume of The Drops of God – an intoxicating, ongoing race between faux-siblings to identify 13 bottles of phenomenal wines (“The Twelve Apostles,” plus the eponymous “Drops of God”) as chosen by their late legendary...

Suddenly, a Knock on the Door by Etgar Keret, translated by Miriam Shlesinger, Sondra Silverston, and Nathan Englander

20 Dec, by SIBookDragon in Adult Readers, Fiction, Israeli, Short Stories, Translation

In spite of quite the impressive creative output including on the page (books, graphic novels, articles) and on celluloid (as both writer and director), I discovered Etgar Keret because of a house – the narrowest house (four feet at its widest!) in the world, wedged...

Tune | Book 1: Vanishing Point by Derek Kirk Kim

19 Dec, by SIBookDragon in Adult Readers, Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Korean American, Young Adult Readers

At 18, Andy Go "had life all figured out," but then so much for best-laid plans: "None of it came true, of course. Not a single damn thing." One morning he wakes fully clothed on his bed, in his room, in his (parents') house ...

Mimi’s Village: And How Basic Health Care Transformed It by Katie Smith Milway, illustrated by Eugenie Fernandes

18 Dec, by SIBookDragon in African, Canadian, Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Middle Grade Readers, Nonethnic-specific

When Mimi and her little sister Nakkissi go to fetch the family's water from the stream one hot day, Mimi does something she knows she shouldn't: she realizes that tired Nakkissi can't walk all the way home without a drink, so she gives her "two handfuls...

The Round House by Louise Erdrich

17 Dec, by SIBookDragon in Adult Readers, Audio, Fiction, Native American/First Nations/Indigenous Peoples

"Just yesterday a white guy asked me if I was a real Indian. No, I said, Columbus made a mistake. The Indians are in India." Presented as humor during a community festival, the deep irony remains striking throughout Louise Erdrich's award-winning, bestselling books that explore...

The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service (vol. 13) by Eiji Otsuka, art by Housui Yamazaki, translated by Toshifumi Yoshida, edited by Carl Gustav Horn

16 Dec, by SIBookDragon in Adult Readers, Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Translation

For someone who eschews horror films, I sure am addicted to (certain) scary manga. Devoted groupie that I am for the Kurosagi team, I just hope the series isn't ending anytime soon! For anyone new to the series, rather than starting at (unlucky) #13, might...

Count Me In! A Parade of Mexican Folk Art Numbers in English and Spanish by Cynthia Weill, illustrated with ceramics by the Aguilar Sisters: Guillermina, Josefina, Irene, and Concepción

15 Dec, by SIBookDragon in Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Latin American, Latina/o/x, Mexican, Mexican American, Nonethnic-specific

Come one, come all: the Guelaguetza festival is about to begin. Guelaguetza means ‘to share’ in the Zapotec language, and every July, the people of Oaxaca, Mexico gather to ‘guelaguetza’ their dancing, singing, and music. One man with a balloon announces the welcoming parade has...

Paradise Kiss (vols. 1-2) by Ai Yazawa, translated by Vertical, Inc.

14 Dec, by SIBookDragon in Adult Readers, Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Translation, Young Adult Readers

“If I’d known, I wouldn’t have spent all my time studying and done all the things I really wanted to do,” thinks Yukari Hayasaka, dramatically believing she’s about to die. As a diligent 18-year-old preparing for high school final exams, her academic goals have thus...

The Plague of Doves by Louise Erdrich

12 Dec, by SIBookDragon in Adult Readers, Audio, Fiction, Native American/First Nations/Indigenous Peoples

Only when Louise Erdrich won this year's National Book Award for The Round House, did I learn that House is the middle of a planned trilogy that begins with The Plague of Doves which, most serendipitously, was already loaded on my iPod. A bit of...

Sumo by Thien Pham

10 Dec, by SIBookDragon in Adult Readers, Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Vietnamese American, Young Adult Readers

Last seen on bookshelves sharing cover credit with National Book Award-finalist Gene Luen Yang on Yang's latest, Level Up, Thien Pham makes his solo debut with this slim heartbreaking-to-heart-recovering tale across continents and cultures. "What am I doing here," Scott wonders as he wakes to another...

Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn

09 Dec, by SIBookDragon in Adult Readers, Audio, Fiction, Nonethnic-specific

OMG. Think gruesome wreck you can't turn away from and you probably won't even get close to the horrors of Gillian Flynn's debut novel, which pubbed six years before her mega-breakout Gone Girl, which is currently turning up on new major 'best-of' lists daily. So freaked out...

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