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Asian American, Native Hawaiian & Pacific Islander Stories and Voices April 2025 |
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The great reclamation
by Rachel Heng
With the future of their fishing village in jeopardy after the Japanese army invades Singapore, Ah Boon, gifted with the unique ability to locate bountiful, movable islands that no one else can find, and Siok Mei, the spirited girl he has come to love, must decide who they want to be.
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Koreatown dreaming : stories & portraits of Korean immigrant life
by Emanuel Hahn
"A successful self-published project, now in a new and expanded trade package, Koreatown Dreaming offers readers an intimate look into the lives of shopkeepers and small business owners in Los Angeles Koreatown. A touching homage to Korean immigrants everywhere, this book will resonate with the growing audience of people interested in Korean culture"
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Portrait of a thief : a novel
by Grace D. Li
"Ocean's Eleven meets The Farewell in Portrait of a Thief, a lush, lyrical heist novel inspired by the true story of Chinese art vanishing from Western museums, about diaspora, the colonization of art, and the complexity of the Chinese American identity"
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Indian cuisine : authentic flavors from the land of spice.
by Vivek Singh
"Top chefs and cooks known for their expertise in the curries of India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Thailand, the Caribbean - and anywhere with a curry tradition - share their recipes with you. Try Thai jungle curry, chicken adobo, or South African bunny chow. All 200 recipes are authentic and written for the modern cook. Features add a further dimension, introducing you to the key spice combinations and ingredients that define each local cuisine. Break out and explore new boundaries. Or rely on this authentic resource for old favorites. Red-hot results are guaranteed every time!"
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They called us enemy
by George Takei
The iconic actor and activist presents a graphic memoir detailing his experiences as a child prisoner in the Japanese-American internment camps of World War II, reflecting on the hard choices his family made in the face of legalized racism. Original. Gr 10+
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The storm we made : a novel
by Vanessa Chan
In 1945 Malaya, when her family is in terrible danger due to a choice she made 10 years earlier, Cecily Alcantara, who was lured into a life of espionage for the invading Japanese forces during World War II, finds her actions catching up with her and will do anything to save those she loves.
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Playing for freedom : the journey of a young Afghan girl
by Zarifa Adiba
"As an Afghan girl, Zarifa Adiba has big, unfathomable dreams. Her family is poor, her country mired in conflict. Walking to school in Kabul, Zarifa has to navigate suicide bombers. But Zarifa perseveres, nurturing her passion for music despite its "sinful" nature under Taliban law. At sixteen she gains admission to the Afghanistan National Institute of Music, and at eighteen she becomes the lead violist, co-conductor, and spokesperson for Zohra, the first all-female orchestra in the Muslim world. Despite Zarifa's accomplishments--which include a stunning performance at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland--her future in music demands a reckoning with her life back home. Many of the girls in Zohra are forced to marry, but Zarifa yearns to study, travel, and explore her independence. Her so-called "bad girl" identity puts her at odds with her culture and her family"
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We have always been here : a queer Muslim memoir
by Samra Habib
In this stunning memoir of forgiveness and family, both chosen and not, the writer, photographer, and activist shares her exploration of faith, art, love and queer sexuality—a journey that led her to the far reaches of the world to uncover a truth that was within her all along. Original.
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Dust child : a novel
by Phan Quâãe Mai Nguyäãen
The abandoned son of a Black American soldier and a Vietnamese woman during the war dreams of finding his family and a better life in the new novel, from the internationally best-selling author of The Mountains Sing. 60,000 first printing.
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Homeseeking
by Karissa Chen
Separated by war and reunited after 60 years, Haiwen and Suchi navigate decades of love, loss and survival across continents, as their shared past clashes with their hopes for a second chance at life.
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Tehrangeles
by Porochista Khakpour
On the verge of landing their own reality show, Iranian American multimillionaires and L.A. royalty Ali and Homa Milani, owners of a microwaveable snack empire, and their four daughters realize their deepest secrets are about to be dragged out into the open before the cameras even roll.
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Vera Wong's guide to snooping (on a dead man)
by Jesse Q Sutanto
"Vera Wong is back and as meddling as ever in this follow-up to the hit Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers.... Ever since a man was found dead in Vera's teahouse, life has been good. For Vera, that is. She's surrounded by loved ones, her shop is bustling, and best of all, her son, Tilly, has a girlfriend! All thanks to Vera, because Tilly's girlfriend is none other than Officer Selena Gray. The very same Officer Gray she had harassed while investigating the teahouse murder. Still, Vera wishes more dead bodies would pop up in her shop, but one mustn't be ungrateful, even if one is slightly . . . bored. Then Vera comes across a distressed young woman who is obviously in need of her kindly guidance. The young woman is looking for a missing friend.Fortunately, while cat-sitting at Tilly and Selena's, Vera finds a treasure trove: Selena's briefcase. Inside is a file about the death of an enigmatic influencer-who also happens to be the friend that the young woman was looking for. Online, Xander had it all: a parade of private jets, fabulous parties with socialites, and a burgeoning career as a social media influencer. The only problem is, after his body is fished out of the water at Mile Rock Beach, the police can't seem to actually identify him. Who was Xander Lin? Nobody knows. Every contact is a dead end. Everybody claims not to have known him, even his parents. Vera is determined to solve Xander's murder. After all, doing so would surely be a big favor to Selena, and there is nothing she wouldn't do for her future daughter-in-law"
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Becoming Nisei : Japanese American urban lives in prewar Tacoma
by Lisa M. Hoffman
"As a key West Coast destination for Japanese immigration to the U.S., Tacoma's vibrant nihonmachi had a significant population of Issei and Nisei by the 1920s and 1930s. Prior to World War II, the Tacoma Japanese Language School served as a community hub for the Japanese American community in the city. Based on interviews with over 40 Nisei former students of the school, Lisa Hoffman and Mary Hanneman develop an interdisciplinary analysis of identity construction and negotiations over belonging by second generation Japanese Americans in pre-World War II urban America. With an approach both transnational in perspective and focused on urban space, the book explores the everyday lives of Japanese American children prior to incarceration, including the impact of their daily study at and participation in community events associated with the school. Drawing from interviews and archival sources, the authors illuminate the rich prewar cultural experiences of Japanese Americans in the city, a distinct social history often eclipsed by a focus on wartime incarceration. Additionally, the book underscores the role of the Japanese government and imperial Japanese educational traditions in shaping Tacoma's JLS, as Japan sought to emerge as an equal member of the international community."
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Sharks in the time of saviors
by Kawai Strong Washburn
When a child falls overboard and is returned safely to his mother by a shark, his miraculous rescue is hailed as a sign from ancient Hawaiian gods, complicating his family's troubles amid a collapsing sugarcane industry. A first novel.
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The house of doors : a novel
by Twan Eng Tan
In 1921 Penang, when Willie, a famed writer and old friend of her husband's, arrives for an extended stay, Lesley, as her friendship with Willie grows, makes a dangerous decision to confide in him about life in the Straits, including her relationship with a charismatic Chinese revolutionary—a confession that has devastating consequences.
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Hula : a novel
by Jasmin 'Iolani Hakes
A young daughter of the legendary Hawaiian Naupaka dynasty dreams of healing the rift in her family by competing in and winning the next Miss Aloha Hula contest and proving herself worthy of carrying on her family's name.
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Dear America : notes of an undocumented citizen
by Jose Antonio Vargas
The Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, filmmaker and immigration-rights activist presents a debut memoir about how he unknowingly entered the United States with false documents as a child. 150,000 first printing.
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Threading my prayer rug : one woman's journey from Pakistani Muslim to American Muslim
by Sabeeha Rehman
"This enthralling story of the making of an American is also a timely meditation on religion and culture. Threading My Prayer Rug is a richly textured reflection on what it is to be a Muslim in America today. It is also the luminous story of many journeys: from Pakistan to the United States in an arranged marriage that becomes a love match lasting forty years; from secular Muslim in an Islamic society to devout Muslim in a society ignorant of Islam, and from liberal to conservative to American Muslim; from master's candidate to bride and mother; and from an immigrant intending to stay two years to an American citizen, business executive, grandmother, and tireless advocate for interfaith understanding. Beginning with a sweetly funny, moving account of herarranged marriage, the author undercuts stereotypes and offers the refreshing view of an American life through Muslim eyes. In chapters leavened with humor, hope, and insight, she recounts an immigrant's daily struggles balancing assimilation with preserving heritage, overcoming religious barriers from within and distortions of Islam from without, and confronting issues of raising her children as Muslims--while they lobby for a Christmas tree! Sabeeha Rehman was doing interfaith work for Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, the driving force behind the Muslim community center at Ground Zero, when the backlash began. She discusses what that experience revealed about American society"
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No country for eight-spot butterflies : a lyric essay
by Julian Aguon
Weaving together childhood stories in the villages of Guam with searing political commentary about current events, a Chamorro climate activist, in this part memoir, part manifesto, is a new voice writing at the intersection of Indigenous rights and environmental justice.
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Jeremy Pang's simple family feasts.
by Jeremy Pang
The award-winning founder of School of Wok and star of the hit show Jeremy Pang's Asian Kitchen brings together Asian flavors from across the continent through 80+ recipes, making Asian cooking quick and accessible—and perfect for the whole family. Illustrations.
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Concepcion : an immigrant family's fortunes
by Albert Samaha
An investigative journalist presents the history of his sprawling Filipinx-American family and how his personal experience was informed by the forces of Spanish colonialism, Japanese occupation, and American intervention unique to Southeast Asia.
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Local : a memoir
by Jessica Machado
"Born and raised in Hawai'i by a father whose ancestors are indigenous to the land and a mother from the American South, Jessica Machado wrestles with what it means to be "local." Feeling separate from the history and tenets of Hawaiian culture that havebeen buried under the continental imports of malls and MTV, Jessica often sees her homeland reflected back to her from the tourist perspective--as an uncomplicated paradise. Her existence, however, feels far from that ideal. Balancing her parents' divorce, an ailing mother, and growing anxiety, Jessica rebels. She moves to Los Angeles, convinced she'll leave her complicated family behind and define herself. Instead, her isolation only becomes more severe, and her dying mother follows her to California. For Jessica, the only way to escape is a reckless downward spiral. Interwoven with a rich and nuanced exploration of Hawaiian history and traditions, Local is a personal and moving narrative about family, grief, and reconnecting to the land she tried to leave behind."--Provided by publisher
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Martyr!
by Kaveh Akbar
An alcoholic, addict and poet, Cyrus Shams, the orphaned son of Iranian immigrants, finds his obsession with martyrs leading him to examine the mysteries of his past and to a terminally ill painter living out her final days in the Brooklyn Museum.
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Nuclear family : a novel
by Joseph Han
Set in the months leading up to the 2018 nuclear missile false alarm, the members of a Korean family living in Hawai'i, when their son tries—and fails—to cross the Korean demilitarized zone, find themselves under suspicion, while their daughter gets constantly high as she witnesses her family's undoing.
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Nisei radicals : the feminist poetics and transformative ministry of Mitsuye Yamada and Michael Yasutake
by Diane Carol Fujino
"Demanding liberation, advocating for the oppressed, and organizing for justice, siblings Mitsuye Yamada (1923-) and Michael Yasutake (1920-2001) rebelled against respectability and assimilation, charting their own paths for what it means to be Nisei. Raised in Seattle and then forcibly removed and detained in the Minidoka concentration camp, their early lives mirrored those of many Japanese Americans. Yasutake's pacifism endured even with immense pressure to enlist during his confinement and the years following World War II. His faith-based activism guided him in condemning imperialism and inequality, and he worked tirelessly to free political prisoners and defend human rights. Yamada became an internationally acclaimed feminist poet and professor who continues to speak out against racism and patriarchy. Weaving together the stories of two distinct but intrinsically connected political lives, Nisei Radicals examines the siblings' half century of dedication to global movements, including multicultural feminism, Puerto Rican independence, Japanese American redress, Indigenous sovereignty, and more. From displacement and invisibility to insurgent mobilization, Yamada and Yasutake rejected the "quiet American" stereotype and fought to dismantle systems of injustice."
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Late bloomers : a novel
by Deepa Varadarajan
Thirty-six years into their dutiful but unhappy arranged marriage, an Indian couple decide to get a divorce and start new paths in life, leaving their adult children unmoored, confused and hiding secrets about their own lives.
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Kalaya's Southern Thai kitchen
by Nok Suntaranon
"Bring the bold, spicy, beautiful world of Southern Thai cooking to your kitchen through 100 recipes and stories from the James Beard Award-nominated chef and celebrated ambassador of Thai food in the U.S. Growing up in the tropical region of Southern Thailand, Nok Suntaranon helped her mother make the fresh curry pastes she would sell at their local market. But decades later she returned home and saw that the food had become sweeter and watered down, victim to shortcuts and appealing to tourists. So, her life mission became clear: to find and preserve the old flavors of Thai food and to show home cooks how delicious and intricately flavored Thai cooking is. Kalaya's Southern Thai Kitchen is organized so home cooks can master this food with confidence and ease. With suggested recipe pairings featured on each recipe, traditional and modern recipe names, and beginner materials such as the Sauce and Paste or the Foundations of Southern Thai food chapters-Nok is there with you every step of the way in mastering Thai cooking at home. Nok dispels the stereotypes that Thai food is hard to make, or that it is synonymous with cheap takeout. From fragrant lemongrass and pungent shrimp paste to simple curry pastes, this is the fiery, refined cuisine of her homeland. Through over 100 recipes, you'll find new favorites such as Som Tom (Papaya Salad with Tamarind Paste and Dry Chili), Gaeng Ghai (Southern Style Chicken Curry), Nua Yang (Grilled Beef with Thai Chili Dipping Sauce), and Khao Niew Ma Muang (Mango Sticky Rice). With easy-to-follow visuals, beginner-friendly tips, and stunning on location photography, Kalaya's Southern Thai Kitchen allows cooks of all experience to bring a piece of Thailand into their homes and kitchens"
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Lies and weddings : a novel
by Kevin Kwan
Forced to attend his sister's wedding to seduce a woman with money and get his family out of debt, Rufus, the future Earl of Greshambury, finds their plans—and their reputation—going up in flames when a secret tryst and tragedy become known, revealing a shocking twist.
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The woman who climbed trees : a novel
by Smriti Ravindra
Weaving together ghost stories, myths and song, this haunting novel follows a young bride as she leaves her life in India behind to move to Nepal with her new husband and his family, examining the loss she experiences as she gives up one home to become part of another. 30,000 first printing.
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Every drop is a man's nightmare : stories
by Megan Kamalei Kakimoto
A short story collection follows contemporary native Hawaiian and Japanese women through tales including an encounter with a wild pig on a haunted highway and an elderly widow who sees her dead lover in a giant flower. 100,000 first printing.
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Savor : a chef's hunger for more
by Fatima Ali
In this triumphant memoir, a young, boundary-breaking culinary star, diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer, spends her final year savoring the world, delicious food and her loved ones, as she reflects on her life and her identity as a chef, a daughter and a queer woman butting up against traditional views.
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Beasts of a little land : a novel
by Juhea Kim
After her desperate family sells her to a courtesan school, Jade befriends JungHo, an orphan boy begging on the streets of Seoul, and must decide to pursue her dreams or risk everything in the fight for independence. 100,000 first printing.
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White Mulberry
by Rosa Kwon Easton
In 1928, 11-year-old Miyoung leaves her Korean village for Japan to pursue her dreams, but as anti-Korean sentiment rises, she assumes a new identity as Miyoko, eventually finding love and purpose, only to face a life-altering decision as war looms and her dual identity frays. Original.
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Brotherless night : a novel
by V. V. Ganeshananthan
A 16-year-old Sri Lankan woman, Sashi, is hoping to become a doctor but instead watches her four beloved brothers get caught up in violent political ideologies that result in a devastating civil war. 50,000 first printing.
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Arsenic and adobo
by Mia P. Manansala
Returning home to help save her Tita Rosie's failing restaurant, Lila Macapagal is shocked when her ex-boyfriend, a notoriously nasty food critic, dies suddenly, moments after they had a confrontation, leaving her the only suspect. Original.
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Jang : the soul of Korean cooking
by Mingoo Kang
Showing readers how to cook with Jangs—umami sauces found in every meal—and one of the culinary world's best-hidden secrets, South Korea's best chef, in his first cookbook, weaves Jangs' history and methods into 60 accessible recipes to bring the sauces to life. Illustrations.
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Afterparties : stories
by Anthony So
Short stories that portray of the lives of Cambodian-Americans still dealing with the inherited weight of the Khmer Rouge genocide including a young, disillusioned teacher obsessed with Moby-Dick and a child whose mother survived a school shooting. 100,000 first printing.
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Kaikeyi : a novel
by Vaishnavi Patel
The only princess of the kingdom of Kekaya discovers she possesses magic when she revisits the ancient texts she used to read with her banished mother and transforms herself into a warrior to make a better world for other women.
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The making of Asian America : a history
by Erika Lee
Describes the lasting impact and contributions Asian immigrants have had on America, beginning with sailors who crossed the Pacific in the 16th century, through the ordeal of internment during World War II and to their current status as“model minorities.”
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Midnight's borders : a people's history of modern India
by Suchitra Vijayan
"The first true people's history of modern India, told through a seven year, 9,000 mile journey across its many contested borders. Sharing borders with six countries and spanning a geography that extends from Pakistan to Myanmar, India is the world's largest democracy and second most populous country. Yet most of us don't understand it, or the violent history still playing out there. In fact, India as we know it didn't exist until the map of the subcontinent was redrawn in the middle of the 20th century--the powerful repercussions of which are still being felt across South Asia. To tell the story of political borders in the subcontinent, Suchitra Vijayan spent seven years travelling India's 9,000-mile land border. Now, in this stunning work of narrative reportage, she shares what she learned on that groundbreaking journey. With profound empathy and a novelistic eye for detail, Vijayan shows us the forgotten people and places in the borderlands and brings us face-to-face with the legacy of colonialism andthe stain of extreme violence and corruption. The result is the ground-level portrait of modern India we've been missing."--Publisher's description
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The swimmers
by Julie Otsuka
When a crack appears in the pool, a fellowship of swimmers who take comfort in their laps are cast out, including Alice, who, slowly losing her memory, is reunited too late with her estranged daughter, in this intimate story of mothers and daughters, and the sorrows of implacable loss.
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On earth we're briefly gorgeous : a novel
by Ocean Vuong
A first novel by the award-winning author of Night Sky with Exit Wounds is written in the form of a letter from a son to a mother who cannot read about the impact of the Vietnam war on their family.
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Biting the hand : growing up Asian in Black and White America
by Julia Lee
"A passionate, no-holds-barred memoir about the Asian American experience in a nation defined by racial stratification When Julia Lee was fifteen, her hometown went up in smoke during the 1992 Los Angeles riots. The daughter of Korean immigrant store owners in a predominantly Black neighborhood, Julia was taught to be grateful for the privilege afforded to her. However, the acquittal of four white police officers in the beating of Rodney King, following the murder of Latasha Harlins by a Korean shopkeeper, forced Julia to question her racial identity and complicity. She was neither Black nor white. So who was she? This question would follow Julia for years to come, resurfacing as she traded in her tumultuous childhood for the white upper echelon of eliteacademia. It was only when she began a PhD in English that she found answers--not in the Brontèes or Austen, as Julia had planned, but rather in the brilliant prose of writers like James Baldwin and Toni Morrison. Their works gave Julia the vocabulary and, more important, the permission to critically examine her own tortured position as an Asian American, setting off a powerful journey of racial reckoning, atonement, and self-discovery that has shaped her adult life. With prose by turns scathing and heart-wrenching, Julia Lee lays bare the complex disorientation and shame that stems from this country's imposed racial hierarchy to argue that Asian Americans must leverage their liminality for lasting social change alongside Black and brown communities"
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Love Japan : recipes from our Japanese American kitchen
by Sawako Okuchi
Chefs Sawako Okochi and Aaron Israel, the owners of the innovative Brooklyn restaurant Shalom Japan, share user-friendly recipes, combining Japanese-inspired dishes with influences from Aaron's Jewish heritage, for satisfying dishes that open up a world of possibilities in your cooking routine. Illustrations.
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Pierce County Library System
3005 112th St. E, Tacoma, Washington 98446
253-548-3300mypcls.org |
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