Reading Around the World/ Recomendations

[Ali]

I've decided that as a personal challenge, I want to read a book set in every country and/or specific region in the world. This last semester, I took two classes dealing with the portrayal of cultures by foreign authors, so I thought it would be a bit more compelling to read two books set in each country, one written by a local author and one written by a foreign. I have a long way to go, so I thought it would be really interesting to hear some of your favorite books set around the world.

I've made a Google doc of my currently read list: http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?ke...
The countries in gold are the ones I have finished both, the countries in blue I have read just one, and the countries in white I have yet to start. I would love to begin to fill in some of the blank spaces.

On a smaller scale, I plan on reading a book set in every US state, as well.
http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?ke...

Any recommendations?

[Anna]

wow, what an impressive idea! I am currently reading The House at Sugar Beach which is mostly set in Liberia...I'll see if I can recommend more but currently am just impressed.

[Kayla]

I'll repeat what Annashu said...this is really impressive. Good luck!!

A few recommendations:

-The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle (Japan-local author)--I'd recommend any book by Murakami
-The House of the Spirits, Portrait in Sepia, or Eva Luna (all by Isabel Allende-local author for Chile)
-Princess: A True Story of Life Behind the Veil in Saudi Arabia (Saudi Arabia-foreign author)
-Journey of the Pink Dolphins: An Amazon Quest (Brazil-foreign)
-Veronika Decides to Die (Slovenia-foreign)
-The Story of a Childhood (Iran-local)
-In the Time of the Butterflies (Dominican Republic-foreign)
-Gorillas in the Mist (Rwanda-foreign)
-Smilla's Sense of Snow (Denmark/Greenland-local)
-The Blind Assassin (Canada-local)

I hope some of these interest you.

[Jamie (The Perpetual Page-Turner), The Founding Bookworm]

That's really awesome! I'll take a look when I have a little more time!

[Jen]

I really like your idea Ali! This website might be helpful: http://www.bibliotravel.com/index.php

[Amy]

This is a really cool idea!

I see you've already read a Stieg Larsson book (my recommendation for Sweden). Snow Angels is by James Thompson (an American) who gave up his citizenship to live in Finland. The book takes place in Finland so that may satisfy your "foreign" author category for Finland.

[Silvia]

Hi!!! One of my shelves is actually called around the world. Here are some suggestions. I hope you haven't read them already. The first one, is one of my favourites.

1. Sierra Leone A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier
2. EgyptIris and Ruby
3. China Twenty Fragments of a Ravenous Youth (I really loved this one)
4. Afghanistan A Thousand Splendid Suns (Of the two I like this one better) or The Kite Runner
5. Iran Not Without My Daughter
6. Kenya The White Masai
7. Nigeria Things Fall Apart
8. Morroco Stolen Lives: Twenty Years in a Desert Jail
9. Canada Mercy Among the Children: A Novel This was one of those books that I picked up by chance that surprised me with how much I enjoyed it.

On a side note, I also thing there is a Goodreads Group dedicated to reading books from a different country. I am sure they would have good suggestions! I love your idea! Maybe one day I will do this too! Goodluck and tell us how it goes!

[Ali]

Thanks for adding to the list!

Does anyone know of a good foreign-written book set in Sweden? I was surprised that the only two Swedish books I have read are The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and Pippi Longstocking.

Kayla, I am going to check out Murakami's work. Do you know how much of What I Talk About When I Talk About Running is set in Japan?
Jen, Thanks for the site. It seems very helpful.
Silvia, I love Things Fall Apart. Its probably my favorite book set in Africa (aside from The Poisonwood Bible, of course)

[Anna]

Do you mean foreign to us or foreign to Sweden?
Hanna's Daughters is set in Sweden and written by a Swed
Astrid and Veronika is set in Sweden and written by a native Swed who currently lives in NZ (I think)

[Silvia]

Ali, I've never read The Poisonwood Bible. It has been on my to-read list but I have never gotten around to reading it. I will read it now.

[Kelly A.]

I saw this website and thought of your post! Not sure if it'll help, but here it is: http://bookaroundtheworld.blogspot.com/

[Jess]

Ali wrote: "Thanks for adding to the list!

Does anyone know of a good foreign-written book set in Sweden? I was surprised that the only two Swedish books I have read are [book:The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo..."

Ali, I loved What I Talk About When I Talk About Running It really has nothing to do with Japan, though. It's a great memoir about running and Murakami's life experiences. I'm hoping to reread it soon, since I read it before I began running.

[Jess]

Also, does anyone have any book recommendations for Alaska? I was just thinking that I've never read anything about Alaska, and my only exposure to the area has been the TV shows Northern Exposure and Men in Trees, haha. I know that it's still part of the U.S., but it seems fitting in this thread.

[Tami]

A good friend is from Alaska, I will ask him.

[Natanya]

This is a great idea! For local in South Africa, I'd recommend Disgrace by J.M. Coetzee. It's a disturbing novel, but very good.

[Tami]

He had no recommendations. I don't think he reads that much unless it is a popular book. :) Sorry.

[Jane]

What a great idea for a challenge Ali! Here are a few recommendations to add from my part of the world:
1. A Town Like Alice by Nevil Shute (Australia - local author);
2. The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough (Australia - local author) Note I haven't read this myself yet but have heard good things about it;
3. The Bone People by Keri Hulme (New Zealand - local author);
4. Stonedogs by Craig Marriner (New Zealand - local author);
5. A Dissolving Dream: A New Zealander in Amin's Uganda by Heather Benson (Uganda - foreign author).

[Jessie]

Natanya wrote: "This is a great idea! For local in South Africa, I'd recommend Disgrace by J.M. Coetzee. It's a disturbing novel, but very good."

Disgrace has been on my TBR list for a long time now. I'm glad to hear you would recommend it...even if it is disturbing :P

[Deborah]

I strongly recommend One Hundred Years of Solitude for Colombia. I haven't read Love in the Time of Cholera but I have heard better things about the former. It took some dedication but in the end it has become one of my favorite classics.

Silk is a beautiful and short read set in France and Japan written by an Italian author.

[Kayla]

Just read The Time It Snowed in Puerto Rico which gives a wonderful look at the island from the 1960s. A good summer/beach read. There are a few Spanish words thrown in throughout the book and I thought that gave it a really authentic feel.

[Tami]

My current bunch of giveaways has a book situated in Korea, one in Jamaica, one in Africa and one in Sweden. I will let you all know if I like any of them. They all sound really interesting.

[Tami]

Okay, I received the Jamaica, Africa, Sweden and a Canada one and have read them all.

I really enjoyed the Jamaica one. It is Pao by Kerry Young. It is about a young boy from China that moves to Jamaica with his mother and brother, and the life he leads in Jamaica in Chinatown.
Both the Sweden one and the Canada one are mystery/thriller types and bother were pretty good. Until Thy Wrath Be Past and A Trick of the Light: A Chief Inspector Gamache Novel.
The African one was really pretty political and not really my type of story/book. It was good, but just different. An African Affair: A Novel.
Sadly, I haven't received the Korean one yet, and probably won't. It has almost been two months.

[Sashana]

Tami wrote: "Okay, I received the Jamaica, Africa, Sweden and a Canada one and have read them all.

I really enjoyed the Jamaica one. It is Pao by Kerry Young. It is about a ..."

I really want to read Pao, Tami. Thanks for shining a light on it.