What’s On My Bookshelf (or my Kindle)?

Since we’ve moved, I can boast a new interest in Asian studies.  Asian history and Asian culture was not a big focus (or not really any focus at all) in junior and senior high school.  And, up to now, I wasn’t personally drawn to it.  Jamie, however, has had a fascination with the far East and especially with tea ceremonies.

Jamie and I both come from families that bond over books.  Which, sometimes means we are all sitting in the same room, lovingly ignoring each other with our noses in books.

I thought I’d share some of my reads since we’ve moved...just in case you suddenly have an interest in Asian studies!  Some books are adoption related and I’ll share more adoption books in another post.  Not all of them were favorites, but I gained a little something from all of them.  If you click on the book titles, you will be taken to the Amazon page for the book.  If you want to buy the book, be sure to check whether it is the paperback or Kindle edition.

Fiction:

The Bridge by Kay Bratt

Chasing China: A Daughter’s Quest by Kay Bratt

   **This book is set in Suzhou, China where we live currently.  Here is part of my review of the book that I posted on Goodreads, "As a Tai Tai (expat spouse) currently living in Suzhou, China I really enjoyed reading about my favorite places in Suzhou. Kay does a great job describing the sights and sounds of Suzhou, right down to my favorite Chinese restaurant Yang Yang's.  I laughed when she referenced the slow elevators and the blue Buick vans driving the expats around (except now they are all golden Buick vans)."

Shanghai Girls: A Novel by Lisa See 

    **Loved this story and it's sequel (Dreams of Joy).  The essence of Shanghai she describes in the story is still very much alive.  I believe that when she refers to "Soochow", that is the old spelling of Suzhou.  There is a Suzhou waterway in Shanghai.

Dreams of Joy: A Novel by Lisa See

Non-Fiction:

Dreaming in Chinese by Deborah Fallows

   **This is a great book that intertwines a good story along with the pursuit to master the Chinese language.  My favorite part is when the author's Chinese friends ask that she warn them that she is about to start speaking Chinese so that they will know she is making an attempt.  I feel like that all the time!

Silent Tears: A Journey of Hope by Kay Bratt

   **This is book about one woman's experience volunteering in an orphanage.

Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother by Amy Chua

Message from an Unknown Chinese Mother: Stories of the lost daughters of China

by Xinran

   **This is a very well written book and I am looking forward to reading more of her books.

Coming Up:

Redefining Home: Squatty Potties, Split Pants, and Other Things that Divide My World by Carrie Anne Hudson

On Gold Mountain by Lisa See

Chop Suey : A Cultural History of Chinese Food in the United States by Andrew Coe

Mao: The Unknown Story by Jung Chang

Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China by Jung Chang

Chinese Cinderella: The True Story of an Unwanted Daughter by Adeline Yen Mah

If you have any suggestions, I’d love to hear them!