Hi there Disco Dancers!

Thanks so much for supporting me, I really appreciate it.

For ESEA/AAPI month, I’ve been mostly focusing on fantasy and sci fi, but some of my absolute favourite books by Asian authors are literary fiction novellas. Here are five short books I highly recommend.

Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto

This is a novella with two beautiful stories. The first focuses on a woman who meets and man and his transgender mother, and becomes part of their small but loving family. It’s a beautiful, emotional piece that has long stayed with me, especially as it’s hard to find books about trans parents.

The second story is about family, grief and human connection, it’s just as beautiful.

Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-Joo

This incredible novella charts the life of a young Korean woman as she navigates poverty, generational trauma, societal pressure and misogyny, and the psychological impact it has. It’s a window into Korean society that’s illuminating, infuriating and utterly engaging.

Convenience Store Woman by Sayuka Murata

This popular absurdist novella follows a woman in her 30s who adores her convenience store job, despite society telling her she should aspire to more, get married, be ‘normal’. When she does attempt to conform, things go very awry.

This is funny, unsettling and very hard to describe, but it’s brilliant.

100 Queer Poems, edited by Mary Jean Chan and Andrew McMillan

I’m not 100% sure poetry anthologies are for me because there were styles in this book that I really didn’t vibe with, but there were also a bunch of poems that made me feel very seen. Definitely for more varied poetry fans! The ESEA heritage month connection is more slight, editor Mary Jean Chan is a queer Hong Kong-Chinese poet. The selection of poets was super diverse, with many Asian contributors, including Chen Chen’s I Invite My Parents to a Dinner Party, my favourite poem in the collection.

Wandering Souls by Cecile Pin

This is more of a short novel, following three Vietnamese siblings from the 1970s onwards, as they flee Vietnam in a boat, become refugees a China, and end up in the UK. It’s a heartbreaking, educational and emotional story that shines a light on the experiences of Vietnamese Boat People. One of the best things I read last year

That’s all folks!

Disco