In honor of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, we’re highlighting ten books that span genres and styles. From immersive fantasy and heartfelt memoirs to twisty thrillers and lyrical literary fiction, these titles might just include your next favorite book.
Or, if you're feeling lucky, stop by the library this month for a chance to play The Crane Game! Pick your fate from one of the 120+ cranes, each containing three book suggestions inside—then choose your next read from the selection revealed. Or, skip the suspense and choose directly from our featured 1st floor display, available through the end of May.
Here are just a few of the titles you might find…
Kaikeyi by Vaishnavi Patel
Kaikeyi is a formidable retelling of the Indian epic Ramayana that fans of Clytemnestra, Circe, and Medea will find just as captivating. No longer delegated to a 2-dimensional villainous trope, readers will find a different legacy to remember Kaikeyi by.
Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers by Jesse Q. Sutanto
This title is a cozy mystery a la Thursday Murder Club and The Sunset Years of Agnes Sharp. A sixty-year-old mother, likely to be mistaken for a human bulldozer, has her unrelenting focus moved to a new target, the body found in the middle of her tea shop. She is a people pleaser’s power fantasy, and the book is filled to the brim with a lot of fun and heart.
The Emperor of all Maladies by Siddhartha Mukherjee
Cancer sucks. And it has been doing so for as long as history can remember. Muckherjee explores the history and nature of cancer with a higher level of detail and eloquence that makes this one a must-read for nonfiction fans.
The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane by Lisa See
When you first pick up this book, you might not think that it is going to be about pu’er tea. But it absolutely plays a part, and you are going to know so much about it before the book is over. With Lisa See being a seasoned master of her craft, the evolutional journey of this traditional tea beautifully intertwines with the story of two girls a generation and an ocean apart going through their own transformations in identity. A must read for people who enjoy intergenerational tales, and maybe tea, too.
The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories by Ken Liu
The Paper Menagerie is a short story of soft fantasy with the ability to induce real tears. While this short story is known for sweeping all of the Nebula, Hugo, and World Fantasy awards, you are sure to find winners in the rest of his collected short stories as well.
Land of Milk and Honey by C Pam Zhang
The Land of Milk and Honey will call to dystopian fiction fans and foodies as we follow our protagonist chef who is hired to serve the uber-rich in a place seemingly far away from the troubles of a dying world. While the book is dystopian fiction, the lyrical prose and decadent exposition gives it literary fiction cross-over appeal.
The Ghost Bride by Yangze Choo
Set in late 19th century Malaysia, a parallel world of ghosts and the supernatural exists alongside the protagonist’s, and Li Lan must learn to navigate it and uncover hidden truths about her marriage to a wealthy family’s deceased son in order to survive both worlds. This title will appeal to fans of Chinese and Korean dramas and fantasy romance.
Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam
This book may be a “love it or hate it” book, but if you enjoyed the Netflix adaptation, you may want to take this book for a slow-burning spell. Alam explores the dread and terror of the unknown through the lens of two families suddenly cut off from access to the rest of the world via information, learning that ignorance is not always bliss.
The Magical Language of Others by E.J. Koh
Koh explores the quiet pain of absence in her memoir, and readers will resonate with the moments of tenderness shared by Koh as she examines her relationship with her mother and the language that connects them through letters. This book is for the introspects in us all.
Red String Theory by Lauren Kung Jessen
Jessen spins a delightfully wholesome yarn about fate and love as an artist and a scientist find each other twice in this world and the scientist (of course) still decides it is not meant to be. But he’s the yin to her yang, and we get to see how love finds a way in this romantic comedy.
Browse more on display >>
*Please note: what books are featured on display changes on the 1st of each month. To find more tales of revenge after May 31, 2025, please stop by the Library or search our full catalog online.