BookDragon Fiction

Tegami Bachi: Letter Bee (vol. 1) by Hiroyuki Asada, English adaptation by Rich Amtower, translated by JN Productions

18 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Middle Grade Readers, Translation, Young Adult Readers

In a barren wasteland of "perpetual night" called Amberground where only the capital city has access to light from an artificial sun, 18-year-old Gauche Suede works as a dedicated tegami bachi (literally 'letter bee'), a mail carrier whom people entrust "with their hearts." Living in a...

A Good Fall by Ha Jin [in Library Journal]

15 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Chinese American, Fiction, Repost, Short Stories

With an enviable literary reputation built on award-winning titles set in China, poet/novelist/short story writer Jin recently debuted his first U.S.-based novel, A Free Life, about the Americanization of a Chinese immigrant family. While the 12 stories in his latest release continue to explore familiar...

Rose’s Garden by Peter H. Reynolds

09 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Middle Grade Readers, Nonethnic-specific, Young Adult Readers

Here's a joyful little gift to share with your children over the long weekend ...

Monster (vols. 2-5) by Naoki Urasawa, English adaptation by Agnes Yoshida, translated by Satch Watanabe (vol. 2), Masaru Noma (vol. 3), Hiroki Shirota (vol. 4), and Hirotaka Kakiya (vol. 5)

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

I should have ordered all 18 volumes in one batch, because I really can't stand the thought of waiting to see what happens! I gladly admit I couldn't put down the four volumes that arrived last night (I originally got the first Monster from the...

All That Work and Still No Boys by Kathryn Ma

05 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Chinese American, Fiction, Short Stories

Winner of the 2009 Iowa Short Fiction Award, Ma's debut collection is made up of 10 stories that each explores the nature of power – from subtle to blatant – in various types of relationships. The strongest is undoubtedly the title story, taken from an off-hand...

Shantaram: A Novel by Gregory David Roberts

04 Oct, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Audio, Australian, Fiction, Indian, South Asian

Forty-three (yes, 43!) hours is a major commitment to a single book. And in spite of the most eye-rolling, not-so-nicely-talking back to a continuously babbling (for 43 hours, 3 minutes to be exact!) iPod that I have ever done, I will actually admit that Shantaram is...

So Few of Me by Peter H. Reynolds

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

Certain kiddie authors whose books that my children have outgrown I can't bear to part with – in fact, I keep buying their latest titles anyway, even as my children have moved on to Steinbeck (our now-teenage daughter) and Cisneros (our tween son) to keep...

The Octonauts & the Great Ghost Reef by Meomi

26 Sep, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Canadian Asian Pacific American, Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Nonethnic-specific

First a little note about the creators: Meomi is a dynamic design duo made up of Vicki Wong, based in Vancouver, and Michael Murphy, who calls Los Angeles home. Together, they also happen to write adorable, colorful kiddie books ...

The Calligrapher’s Daughter: A Novel by Eugenia Kim

25 Sep, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Fiction, Korean, Korean American

Historical works about Korea in English – especially during the tragic years of the Japanese occupation (officially 1910-1945) – seem few and far between. So I really wanted to fall madly in love with this debut novel by fellow Korean American Eugenia Kim. While I was grateful for...

Boy Dumplings by Ying Chang Compestine, illustrated by James Yamasaki

23 Sep, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Children/Picture Books, Chinese, Chinese American, Fiction, Japanese American

Missing his usual buckets of left-out food (garbage, unbeknownst to him), a hungry Beijing ghost happens upon a plump little boy out too late with his lantern. The ghost traps his tasty morsel, hurries home, thinking he's going to have a special feast. But the...

Vermonia 1: Quest for the Silver Tiger by YoYo

14 Sep, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Japanese, Middle Grade Readers

"At the center of the universe, at the beginning and end of all creation, sits the planet of Vermonia, ruled by Queen Frasinella." Thus begins the first of a 10-volume series that stars none other than a heroic skateboarding foursome of 12-year-old warriors-in-training. But I...

Border Town by Shen Congwen, translated by Jeffrey C. Kinkley

04 Sep, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Chinese, Fiction, Translation

September 26 through October 3 this year is "Banned Books Week"! Good thing someone one told me! So how fitting that I was lucky enough to receive Border Town, the pre-Communist Revolution masterpiece by Shen Congwen (1902-1988), who although virtually unknown in the West, is...

My Name is Phillis Wheatley: A Story of Slavery and Freedom by Afua Cooper

02 Sep, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Biography, Black/African American, Fiction, Middle Grade Readers, Young Adult Readers

At just age 19, in the year 1773, the American slave Phillis Wheatley made her literary debut to a welcoming London audience waiting to hear from her upcoming poetry collection. Born free in Senegal, the young poet – originally named Penda Wane – was captured...

My Name is Henry Bibb: A Story of Slavery and Freedom by Afua Cooper

02 Sep, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Biography, Black/African American, Fiction, Middle Grade Readers, Young Adult Readers

A fictionalized biography of a heroic young man born into slavery in 1814 and determined against all odds to be free. With the history of slaveowners abusing their women slaves reflected in his pale face, Henry Bibb could pass for white. Raised together with the...

Bobby vs. Girls (Accidentally) by Lisa Yee, illustrated by Dan Santat

27 Aug, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Chinese American, Fiction, Middle Grade Readers, Southeast Asian American, Thai American

Just in time for back-to-school, Lisa Yee (of the fabulous Millicent/Stanford/Emily trilogy) debuts her latest middle grade novel about two best friends who suddenly find each other on opposing sides ...

Moonlight Memoirs: Remembering that Family and Friends are Forever by Maggie Mei Lewis, illustrated by Melody Lea Lamb

26 Aug, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Children/Picture Books, Chinese American, Fiction, Nonethnic-specific

Two young mice, out "on a cold, lonely night," meet a mysterious older mouse who leads them to a magical place where "departed loves ones" appear to remind the two adventurers that they will never be alone. "They're not truly gone, but watch over you...

The Color of Heaven by Kim Dong Hwa, translated by Lauren Na

19 Aug, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Korean, Translation

The final installment in the three-volume manwha that began with The Color of Earth and The Color of Water, follows Ewha, now a lovely young woman, and her still-young mother, as both wait for their respective missing lovers. Ewha's Duksam flees the wrath of his...

Once on a Moonless Night by Dai Sijie [in San Francisco Chronicle]

17 Aug, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Absolute Favorites, Adult Readers, Chinese, Fiction, Repost, Translation

If you see a book cover with the name Dai Sijie on it, read the book. Dai's delightful 2001 debut, Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress, about two young boys who discover a love for literature while sequestered in a re-education camp during Mao's Cultural Revolution,...

The Sound of Water by Sanjay Bahadur

17 Aug, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, Fiction, Indian, South American

Based on actual tragic event in a remote Indian coalmine in 2001, Badahur – an ex-director in the Indian Ministry of Coal until 2006 – makes his literary debut with a scathing insider's look at the tainted coal industry. Badahur recounts the multifaceted layers of the...

North of Beautiful by Justina Chen Headley

14 Aug, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Chinese American, Fiction, Hapa/Mixed-race, Young Adult Readers

I have to confess that had my teenaged daughter not handed me the book and said, "it's great, I loved it," I probably wouldn't have finished this latest title from Justina Chen Headley whose debut, Nothing But the Truth (and a few white lies), remains...