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111 New Books to Read for Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month
In the U.S., May is the month when we shine a particular spotlight on the heritage, history, and contributions of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.
Of course, there’s no reason to limit yourself to only one month when reading books by AAPI writers, and with this list of more than 100 new books all published or upcoming in 2022, you won’t run out of great fiction and thought-provoking nonfiction for a very long time. We’ve cast a rather broad net this year, including works by authors from the Asian diaspora around the world as well as freshly translated titles. This isn't meant to be a comprehensive list but a sampling of books to discover across genres.
As you’ll see, there’s plenty to choose from. Sci-fi fans will want to flag How High We Go in the Dark, the very buzzy debut from author Sequoia Nagamatsu. For a fascinating spin on historical fiction, check out Jamie Ford’s The Many Daughters of Afong Moy. If you like scary stories, try The Fervor from Alma Katsu, author of The Hunger.
Scroll over the covers to learn more about each book, and be sure to add the books that pique your interest to your Want to Read shelf!
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Do you have a great recommendation for AAPI Heritage Month reading? Tell us all about it in the comments below!
Check out more recent articles:
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Check out more recent articles:
30 Recent 4-Star Fiction Books That Fellow Readers Love
Get Inspired by These Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks
40 Alternate History Fiction Books from the Past Six Years
Comments Showing 1-50 of 139 (139 new)
message 1:
by
[deleted user]
(new)
Apr 28, 2022 12:21AM
I read quite a few of these, and quite a few are on my list. ( All wonderful reads!) Any chance you guys can do Jewish reads? May is also Jewish-American month too...
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WOW!!! So many gorgeous covers! I'm saving the page for later because it's going to take me a while to read all the storylines, although I have some books on my TBR already.
Amazing! Wish there are more Asian British writers too.
Can I self-rec? I'm a Fijian author and would love it if some of my books could make this list. Great selection, by the way. Glad to know so many AAPI authors are out there. :)
Will you be having an non-American Asian/Pacific Islander month?
Aurora wrote: "I read quite a few of these, and quite a few are on my list. ( All wonderful reads!) Any chance you guys can do Jewish reads? May is also Jewish-American month too..."I second this!
I really need to read more! So many good books! Adding some of this to my growing TBR! : )
Jazzy wrote: "Will you be having an non-American Asian/Pacific Islander month?"Isnt that every other month?
Chiknz_8 wrote: "Jazzy wrote: "Will you be having an non-American Asian/Pacific Islander month?"Isnt that every other month?"
LOL. I took it to mean Asian/Pacific Islander month that is not American centric!
Some good suggestions, though I’m sure I’m not alone in wishing you had separate lists for the AA and PI authors. Those doing the Popsugar Challenge very specifically need a book by a PI author.
And more Asian Diaspora authors;Romance Sonali Dev, Ruby Lang, Nalini Singh, Jackie Lau, Helen Hoang, Alisha Rai, Amalie Howard, Sajni Patel, Jayci Lee, Courtney Milan, Jeannie Lin, Preslaysa Williams, and Sapna Bhoag.
SFF/Spec fic Kazuo Ishiguro, Maggie Shen King, Ashok K. Bankar, Mike Chen, Omar El Akkad, Amal El-Mohtar, Zen Cho, Saad Z. Hossain, Neon Yang, Adi Tantimedh
Mystery/thriller Jennifer Hillier, Nalini Singh, Tosca Lee, Mona Awad
I do wish that there were 3 separate lists for adult, YA and children's books, and that they were separated by genre as is normally done.
I have an ARC from NetGalley for Babel! I hope to read it soon.
Aurora wrote: "I read quite a few of these, and quite a few are on my list. ( All wonderful reads!) Any chance you guys can do Jewish reads? May is also Jewish-American month too..."I love this idea!!!
Jazzy wrote: "Will you be having an non-American Asian/Pacific Islander month?"Its a national month thing, like Black History Month. I'm sure GR will do related lists for other national recognition months as well.
Jazzy wrote: "Will you be having an non-American Asian/Pacific Islander month?"That's every month...
Heather L wrote: "Some good suggestions, though I’m sure I’m not alone in wishing you had separate lists for the AA and PI authors. Those doing the Popsugar Challenge very specifically need a book by a PI author."I second this! I've been going through the list, checking surnames, looking up authors. I haven't found ANY.
What a great list. I added several to my TBR, not having heard of them before.
Some interesting Asian American books, but not very many Pacific Islander books! List is too Amerian centric for my taste. Though no problem as list is as advertised.
I suggest the book While I Was Away, it was super good!!
Which 'While I Was Away'? Is it a Pacific Islander book?
There are some Hawaiian authors who I'd recommend:Fiction: Kristiana Kahakauwila (Book Recommendation : This is Paradise: Stories)
-Kiana Davenport (Book Recommendation: The Shark Dialogues)
Nonfiction: Lopaka Kapanui (Book Recommendation: The Legend of Morgan's Corner and Other Ghost Stories of Hawai'i).
-Kanalu Young (Book Recommendation: Rethinking the Native Hawaiian Past
-Brandy Nālani McDougall (Book Recommendation: Finding Meaning: Kaona and Contemporary Hawaiian Literature)
-Davianna Pomaika'i McGregor (Book Recommendation: Na Kua'aina: Living Hawaiian Culture)
I would also recommend Lois-Ann Yamanaka, who grew up in Hawai'i and has written some great novels and poetry. My favorites are Saturday Night at the Pahala Theater, Wild Meat and the Bully Burgers, and Blu's Hanging but her catalog has so much more!
Many of these titles are on Goodreads and I hope they'll find some interested readers :)
totally agree about lack of Pacific Islander authors here. I would add that even the ethnic East Asian American representation is limited here. I weigh that against the scale of overall titles here that I've not seen before.
yes, Asian American month was established by Americans...so it's American focused (perhaps learning about Asian American history month would be helpful). Granted America is an entire continent as is Asia so there is a lot of diversity...potentially.
I don't see this thread as a wish list. There are other resources; and GR is not the end-all.
Great literary recs and good to see some memoirs in here.More poetry and non-fiction/essays, please!!
Ming wrote: "totally agree about lack of Pacific Islander authors here. I would add that even the ethnic East Asian American representation is limited here. I weigh that against the scale of overall titles he..."
I agree there are resources other than GR, which I will be focussing on now. I would prefer to read books by authors from Asian and Pacific Island countries, or at least books by Asian or Pacific Islander Australian authors.
Well, not Asian American, but I am reading a book by an Asian author: "The Three-Body Problem" by Chinese science-fiction writer Liu Cixin. Very good so far, thinking of buying the sequels (even though my book budget is tight right now).
Heather L wrote: "Some good suggestions, though I’m sure I’m not alone in wishing you had separate lists for the AA and PI authors. Those doing the Popsugar Challenge very specifically need a book by a PI author."I agree! As a PI myself, it is extremely hard to find books by PI authors!
This list is so inspiring. I'd also recommend the upcoming new book for any woman in the workplace - Take Back Your Power by Deb Liu, CEO of Ancestry: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5...
For those looking for more Pacific Islander reads and on Instagram, I recommend following @blackfulla_bookclub and @ns510reads for reading ideas from some folks who are based in the Pacific.
Is Kyung sook shin Asian American? I know she is Korean and lives in South Korea, but does she have American citizenship?
How dare you show me all these amazing looking books when I have barely enough time to read the ones I currently own. Let alone the money I'd need to buy all of these!!But in all seriousness: Thank you for creating this long list of novels by AAIP authors. Quite a few of them are definitely going on my TBR. Many of these covers are absolutely gorgeous and I'm excited to look further into them.
Jen wrote: "Aurora wrote: "I read quite a few of these, and quite a few are on my list. ( All wonderful reads!) Any chance you guys can do Jewish reads? May is also Jewish-American month too..."I love this ..."
Yes! Bonus if not EVERY book is about the Holocaust... or one where it's the eighth night of Chanukah... :)
Jennifer wrote: "There are some Hawaiian authors who I'd recommend:Fiction: Kristiana Kahakauwila (Book Recommendation : This is Paradise: Stories)
-Kiana Davenport (Book Recommendation: The Shark Dialogues)
No..."
Thank you for this!
I'm always asking this but does anyone know if any of these books have Cambodian characters? I'm constantly searching for Cambodians, lol, even in Asian lists they have rare representation.
Why does GR always say to celebrate something before it's even started and why does it only highlight US dates...
So to everyone wondering why the list is so American centric, it makes sense we're being suggested reading of Asian Americans in America because the US is the only country that routinely spotlights and celebrates different cultures. I could be mistaken but AAPI Month is not a thing in other countries. "The effort to officially recognize Asian American and Pacific Islander contributions to the United States began in the late 1970s...May was annually designated as Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month in 1992 under the George H. W. Bush administration with the passing of Public Law 102-540. Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month was renamed as AAPI Heritage Month in 2009." (This is from history.com, I just wasn't allowed to share the link).
And afterall, this is Goodreads and we're all intelligent here. If we want some Asian reading from another country, we can certainly search for it :)
Arslan wrote: "No Jade Trilogy? No Poppy War?"
It's 111 NEW books. As in, books released in 2022?
Pacific Islanders and Asian "Americans"? This is odd because Pacific Island is a group of nations in the Pacific so it is not America, but suddenly for Asian writers it is "America" only. Goodreads is pitching itself as a global platform, so why does it only go international for Pacific Island and not for Asians? Why Asian "American" writers and not just Asian writers? This feels really political. Someone suggested the US is the "only" country that appreciates and celebrate other cultures, so it is appropriate to call it AAPI. But that is so untrue! If that is what you believe then please get out of America and live in other countries for a while and see for yourself that other countries (especially Asian countries) probably know more (and integrated more) about the US and the western culture than the US and the west know about them.
Daniel wrote: "Pacific Islanders and Asian "Americans"? This is odd because Pacific Island is a group of nations in the Pacific so it is not America, but suddenly for Asian writers it is "America" only. Goodreads..."Asian Americans and Pacific Islander Americans; which means people who have immigrated and have those cultural and ancestral backgrounds living in the US. I don't think anyone is implying that other countries don't celebrate and recognize these cultures. The US has deemed May to celebrate these Americans pertaining to these cultural backgrounds.
Other governments from other countries can do the same as well if they'd like. Even though Goodreads is a global website, it's still an American based company.
Aurora wrote: "I read quite a few of these, and quite a few are on my list. ( All wonderful reads!) Any chance you guys can do Jewish reads? May is also Jewish-American month too..."I was going to say that too! I don't feel that Jewish-American Heritage Month gets recognized as much as it should...
Monica wrote: "Daniel wrote: "Pacific Islanders and Asian "Americans"? This is odd because Pacific Island is a group of nations in the Pacific so it is not America, but suddenly for Asian writers it is "America" ..."Exactly what I wanted to say but didn't trust myself to respond so well. Thanks Monica.
Monica wrote: "Asian Americans and Pacific Islander Americans; which means people who have immigrated and have those cultural and ancestral backgrounds living in the US.".... Other governments from other countries can do the same as well if they'd like. Even though Goodreads is a global website, it's still an American based company.Reading the title of the list again, it doesn't say "Asian American and Pacific Islander American month". It says "Asian American and Pacific Islander Month". So for Asian writers it is "American" only, but suddenly for Pacific Islanders it is international and not just America.
Also, as far as I am aware of, Goodreads is a private, commercial company. It is not a state enterprise funded by the American government (well I hope not). Therefore I am not sure why a global social website such as Goodreads (or any global social media enterprise) should be influenced by the government policy, in this case, the American government policy.
Chantaal wrote: "Arslan wrote: "No Jade Trilogy? No Poppy War?"
It's 111 NEW books. As in, books released in 2022?"
The irony of not comprehending what you're reading on a reading website.
Aurora wrote: "I read quite a few of these, and quite a few are on my list. ( All wonderful reads!) Any chance you guys can do Jewish reads? May is also Jewish-American month too..."Omg! They should have a list for all of the months! Representation is super important, I’m feeling this as an Indian/Pakistani Muslim. It’s helped me with my own mental health feel like I had characters I could relate to and who went through challenges I was going through as well!
If I find any lists I’ll try and post them here! But goodreads should do a highlight for it too! <333 happy Jewish heritage month!
Mary wrote: "I'm always asking this but does anyone know if any of these books have Cambodian characters? I'm constantly searching for Cambodians, lol, even in Asian lists they have rare representation."AFTERPARTIES by Anthony Veasna So is a great one; focused on Cambodian American characters and the author himself was ethnically Cambodian as well.
Monica wrote: "Daniel wrote: "Pacific Islanders and Asian "Americans"? This is odd because Pacific Island is a group of nations in the Pacific so it is not America, but suddenly for Asian writers it is "America" ..."I've gone through the whole list at least 20 of the 'Asian American' authors arent American and have never lived in America, there's also a lot who I cant find any info about where they're from/live/have lived
Very typical Americans assuming only whatever bastardised version of an actual identity they've latched onto is somehow valid or the true voice. I'd rather read actual Asian or Pacific Islander voices, even throwing those two together is weird, than someone who's whole identity is the worst stereotype of a country because their fifth cousin's great grandmother's twice removed hamster's groomer visited it once
Nichola wrote: "Very typical Americans assuming only whatever bastardised version of an actual identity they've latched onto is somehow valid or the true voice. I'd rather read actual Asian or Pacific Islander voi..."I'm sorry, but I don't quite understand what you mean by "actual Asian or Pacific Islander voices." Are you saying that writers from the Asian & Pacific Islander diaspora are not legitimate?
