Many fantastic novels and books with Asian American protagonists have been published, especially in the last few years. It’s been a noticeable trend since before, when it came to Asian representation, there were largely only historical fiction and books with Asian characters set in Asia (as least for books with decent marketing budgets).
I think it’s so exciting that publishing is making strides in better representation, and I thought Chinese Year Year would be the perfect time to celebrate these novels and books!
Crazy Rich Asians was a particularly notable release for me. I remember reading this with my book club and then later going with some of my childhood friends to see the adaptation in theaters. It’s crazy that it was probably the first time any of us had ever seen a movie with an Asian American main character in theaters, ever.
Also, for more Chinese New Year festivity, here’s my dog Peanut in her Chinese Lion Dance outfit!
You have a couple of my favorites here, and I’d like to read a couple of the others. Thanks for posting them! I’d add The Astonishing Color of After, by Emily X.R. Pan to the list too. I found it remarkable.
In “books with Asian American protagonists,” I am currently anticipating Take No Names by Daniel Nieh (sequel to Beijing Payback) coming out next week.
You have a couple of my favorites here, and I’d like to read a couple of the others. Thanks for posting them! I’d add The Astonishing Color of After, by Emily X.R. Pan to the list too. I found it remarkable.
Thanks for this list! I see several I want to read. I would include Ruth Ozeki on this list — any book she has written is stellar.
What about The Island of Sea Women?
In “books with Asian American protagonists,” I am currently anticipating Take No Names by Daniel Nieh (sequel to Beijing Payback) coming out next week.