Books From Around the World (YA): Asia

It’s often interesting to get a different perspective on the world. Here are some books set in some far-flung places – and some places close to home – grouped by continent/large body of water with islands in it. The books on this list are (mostly) written by authors from the countries they are about, and in many cases have been translated into English from their mother tongues (the book we’ve chosen for Madagascar, Return to the enchanted island by Johary Ravaloson, is only the second book to have ever been translated from Malagasy into English!).

Not all of the books are in the Young Adult collection, but we’ve tried to make sure that they all at least feature kids or teens in prominent places in the story. Our eventual goal is to have at least one book for every country in the world! Help us out by sending in recommendations if you’ve found one we’ve missed!

This list contains books written by authors from Asia. Check out our lists for authors from Africa, Europe, North and Central America, Oceania, and South America for even more recommendations!

Updated June 19, 2024
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Wellington City Libraries Youth team at Wellington City Libraries
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Books From Around the World (YA): Asia

It’s often interesting to get a different perspective on the world. Here are some books set in some far-flung places – and some places close to home – grouped by continent/large body of water with islands in it. The books on this list are (mostly) written by authors from the countries they are about, and in many cases have been translated into English from their mother tongues (the book we’ve chosen for Madagascar, Return to the enchanted island by Johary Ravaloson, is only the second book to have ever been translated from Malagasy into English!).

Not all of the books are in the Young Adult collection, but we’ve tried to make sure that they all at least feature kids or teens in prominent places in the story. Our eventual goal is to have at least one book for every country in the world! Help us out by sending in recommendations if you’ve found one we’ve missed!

This list contains books written by authors from Asia. Check out our lists for authors from Africa, Europe, North and Central America, Oceania, and South America for even more recommendations!

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All my rage
Tahir, Sabaa
Paper Book
National Book Award WINNER Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature WINNER An INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER! An INSTANT INDIE BESTSELLER! A Kirkus Reviews Best Young Adult Book of the Century "All My Rage is a love story,...

Pakistan | Pakistani-American author

Patron saints of nothing
Ribay, Randy
Audiobook
A NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST * A powerful coming-of-age story about grief, guilt, and the risks a Filipino-American teenager takes to uncover the truth about his cousin's murder. A Kirkus Reviews Best Young Adult Book of the Century "Brilliant, honest, and...

Philippines | Filipino author

The structure is rotten, comrade
Berberian, Viken
Paper Book
More in love with the alluring properties of cement than he is with his girlfriend, Frunz's overriding ambition is to become the next legendary architect. His father, known as Mr. Cement, is a builder in bed with the autocrats who run Yerevan, the capital of post-Soviet Armenia. As father and son...

Armenia | Armenian-American author

The three-body problem
Liu, Cixin.
Paper Book
The inspiration for the Netflix series 3 Body Problem! WINNER OF THE HUGO AWARD FOR BEST NOVEL Over 1 million copies sold in North America "A mind-bending epic."--The New York Times * "War of the Worlds for...

China | Chinese author

Thirst
Bajaj, Varsha
Paper Book
A New York Times Bestseller The riveting story of a heroic girl who fights for her belief that water should be for everyone. Minni lives in the poorest part of Mumbai, where access to water is limited to a few hours a day and the communal taps have long lines....

India | Indian author

The good Muslim
Anam, Tahmima
Ebook
"Delicate, heart-wrenching and poetic, this is a novel of great poise and power." --Tash Aw, author of  The Harmony Silk Factory The Good Muslim is an epic story about faith, family, the rise of religious fundamentalism, and the long shadow...

Bangladesh | Bangladeshi author

The mountains sing : a novel
Nguye??n, Phan Que?? Mai
Paper Book
The International Bestseller A New York Times Editors' Choice Selection A Winner of the 2020 Lannan Literary Awards Fellowship A Best Book of 2020: NPR's Book Concierge * PopMatters * Washington Independent...

Vietnam | Vietnamese author

First they killed my father : a daughter of Cambodia remembers
Ung, Loung.
Paper Book
From a childhood survivor of the Camdodian genocide under the regime of Pol Pot, this is a riveting narrative of war crimes and desperate actions, the unnerving strength of a small girl and her family, and their triumph of spirit--now a Netflix film by Angelina Jolie. Repackaged in a new...

Cambodia | Khmer-American author

Bad kids
Chen, Zijin
Audiobook

China | Chinese author

Chinese Cinderella : the true story of an unwanted daughter
Mah, Adeline Yen
Paper Book
This powerful memoir about a girl growing up in a wealthy but dysfunctional Chinese family during the 1940s evokes the classic fairy tale, Cinderella.

China | Chinese-American author

Hard by a great forest
Vardiashvili, Leo
Paper Book
ONE OF NPR's "BOOKS WE LOVE" 2024 NAMED ONE OF THE OBSERVER'S 10 BEST NEW NOVELISTS FOR 2024 "The stakes could barely be higher in Leo Vardiashvili's propulsive page-turner...It's a spellbinding achievement."--The Financial Times "Has a...

Georgia | Georgian author

Night of the raven, dawn of the dove
Mehrotra, Rati
Paper Book
In Rati Mehrotra's YA fantasy novel Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove, a young guardswoman struggles with her unwitting role as a major pawn in the deadly games between two kingdoms in a monster-infested alternate medieval India. Bound to the queen of Chandela by a...

India | Indian-Canadian author

Everything sad is untrue : (a true story)
Nayeri, Daniel
Paper Book
Winner of the Michael L. Printz Award Christopher Award Winner Middle East Book Award Winner National Indie Bestseller NPR Best Book of the Year New York Times Best of the Year Amazon Best of the Year Booklist Editors' Choice ...

Iran | Iranian-American author

Well, that was unexpected
Sutanto, Jesse Q
Paper Book
"A delightful, hilarious, captivating love letter to Indonesia, and coming of age in a large meddlesome family, and the thrill of finding your person where you least expect it!"--Ali Hazelwood, New York Times bestselling author of The Love Hypothesis ...

Indonesia | Indonesian author

The enlightenment of the greengage tree
Azar, Shokoofeh
Paper Book
LONGLISTED for the 2021 PEN TRANSLATION PRIZE LONGLISTED for the 2020 NATIONAL BOOK AWARD for Translated Literature FINALIST for the 2020 INTERNATIONAL BOOKER PRIZE From the pen of one of Iran's rising literary stars, The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree is a family story...

Iran | Iranian author

Darius the Great is not okay
Khorram, Adib
Paper Book
Darius doesn't think he'll ever be enough, in America or in Iran. Hilarious and heartbreaking, this unforgettable debut introduces a brilliant new voice in contemporary YA. Winner of the William C. Morris Debut Award "Heartfelt, tender, and so utterly real. I'd live...

Iran | Iranian-American author

The cat who saved books : a novel
Natsukawa, So?suke
Paper Book
AN INDIE NEXT PICK! From the #1 bestselling author in Japan comes a cozy, heartwarming fantasy--a celebration of books, cats, and the people who love them, infused with the spirit of The Guest Cat and The Travelling Cat Chronicles. Bookish high school...

Japan | Japanese author

Lonely castle in the mirror
Tsujimura, Mizuki
Ebook
INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER!  A Studio Ghibli-esque work of Japanese translation "that lays bare the anxieties and desperation--and the small triumphs--of adolescence" (Locus), for fans of Mieko Kawakami's Heaven. Seven students find...

Japan | Japanese author

The cult of romance
Ayoub, Sarah
Ebook

Lebanon | Lebanese-Australian author

Black water sister
Cho, Zen
Paper Book
A finalist for the 2022 World Fantasy Award for Best Novel One of BookPage's Best Science Fiction and Fantasy Books of 2021 One of Tor.com Reviewers' Choice Best Books of 2021 One of Book Riot's Best SFF Standalones of 2021 "Ghosts. Gods....

Malaysia | Malaysian author

The night tiger
Choo, Yangsze
Paper Book
The Reese Witherspoon x Hello Sunshine Book Club Pick INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER "A sumptuous garden maze of a novel that immerses readers in a complex, vanished world." --Kirkus (starred review) An utterly transporting...

Malaysia | Malaysian author

The girl with seven names : a North Korean defector's story
Lee, Hyeonseo
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER An extraordinary insight into life under one of the world's most ruthless and secretive dictatorships - and the story of one woman's terrifying struggle to avoid capture/repatriation and guide her family to freedom. As a child growing up in North Korea,...

North Korea | North Korean author

Every falling star : the true story of how I survived and escaped North Korea
Lee, Sungju
Paper Book
Every Falling Star, the first book to portray contemporary North Korea to a young audience, is the intense memoir of a North Korean boy named Sungju who is forced at age twelve to live on the streets and fend for himself. To survive, Sungju creates a gang and lives by thieving, fighting,...

North Korea | North Korean author

Celestial bodies
Alharthi, Jokha
Ebook
This winner of the 2019 Man Booker International Prize and national bestseller is "an innovative reimagining of the family saga . . . Celestial Bodies is itself a treasure house: an intricately calibrated chaos of familial orbits and conjunctions, of the gravitational pull of...

Oman | Omani author

I am thunder
Khan, Muhammad (Teen fiction writer)
Paper Book
I Am Thunder is the Branford Boase Award-winning debut YA novel which questions how far you'll go to stand up for what you believe. Fifteen-year-old Muzna Saleem is used to being invisible. So no one is more surprised than her when Arif Malik, the hottest boy in...

Pakistan | British-Pakistani author

A little piece of ground
Laird, Elizabeth
Ebook
A Little Piece Of Ground will help young readers understand more about one of the worst conflicts afflicting our world today. Written by Elizabeth Laird, one of Great Britain's best-known young adult authors, A Little Piece Of Ground explores...

Palestine | Co-written with Sonia Nimr, a Palestinian author

My heart underwater
Fantauzzo, Laurel Flores
Ebook
Fans of Adib Khorram and Randy Ribay will love this coming-of-age debut about a Filipina American teen drowning under pressure and learning to trust her heart.  Corazon Tagubio is an outcast at the Catholic school she attends on scholarship. Her crush on her teacher, Ms. Holden...

Philippines | Filipina author

Bone talk
Gourlay, Candy
Paper Book
Shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal (UK)Shortlisted for the Costa Prize (UK)Sunday Times Children's Book of the WeekThe Guardian Book of the MonthThe Times Books of the Year"Hotly Anticipated Historical Fiction for Young Adults" Amazon.co.ukIt is 1899. Ten year old Samkad thinks...

Philippines | Filipina author

The green bicycle
Al-Mansour, Haifaa
Paper Book
In the vein of Year of the Dog and The Higher Power of Lucky, this Middle Eastern coming-of-age story is told with warmth, spirit, and a mischievous sense of humor Spunky eleven-year-old Wadjda lives in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia with her parents. She desperately...

Saudi Arabia | Saudi author

I guess I live here now
Ahn, Claire
Paper Book
Seoul, Korea. In this glittering city where the latest trends are born, Melody finds herself swept away by luxury, romance, and family drama... but is this a place she could ever call home? Thanks to a tiny transgression after school one day, Melody is shocked...

South Korea | South Korean author

Cursed bunny
Chung, Bora
Ebook

South Korea | South Korean author

The Noh family
Shim, Grace
Paper Book
This sparkling K-drama inspired debut novel introduces irrepressibly charming teen Chloe Chang, who is reunited with her deceased father's estranged family via a DNA test, and is soon whisked off to Seoul to join them... When her friends gift her a 23-and-Me test as a gag, high...

South Korea | South Korean-American author

The girl who wrote loneliness
Sin, Kyo?ng-suk
Ebook
The Girl Who Wrote Loneliness is a stark and lyrical work that follows a teen-aged girl who has just arrived in Seoul to work in a factory while struggling to achieve her dream of finishing school and becoming a writer. Shin sets the this complex and nuanced coming of age story against the backdrop...

South Korea | South Korean author

Almond : a novel
Son, Wo?n-p'yo?ng
Ebook
A BTS fan favorite! A WALL STREET JOURNAL STORIES THAT CAN TAKE YOU ANYWHERE PICK * ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY'S STAY HOME AND READ PICK * SALON'S BEST AND BOLDEST * BUSTLE'S MOST ANTICIPATED  The Emissary meets The Curious Incident of the...

South Korea | South Korean author

Untethered
Inoon, Ayesha
Audiobook

Sri Lanka | Sri Lankan-Australian author

The astonishing color of after
Pan, Emily X. R
Paper Book
A Time Magazine 100 Best YA Books of All Time Selection "Emily X.R. Pan's brilliantly crafted, harrowing first novel portrays the vast spectrum of love and grief with heart-wrenching beauty and candor. This is a very special book." -John Green, bestselling author...

Taiwan | Taiwanese-American author

Loveboat, Taipei
Wen, Abigail Hing
Paper Book
An instant New York Times bestseller and Indie bestseller! Now adapted for the screen! Catch Love in Taipei, starring Ashley Liao (Physical, Fresh Off the Boat), Ross Butler (To All the Boys I've Loved Before franchise, Shazam!), Nico Hiraga (Booksmart), and Chelsea Zhang (Daybreak), now...

Taiwan | Chinese-American author

10 minutes 38 seconds in this strange world
Shafak, Elif
Paper Book
Shortlisted for the 2019 Booker Prize Named a Best Book of the Year by Bookpage, NPR, Washington Post, and The Economist A moving novel on the power of friendship in our darkest times, from internationally renowned writer and speaker Elif Shafak.<...

Turkey | Turkish author

The time of mute swans : a novel
Temelkuran, Ece
Ebook
Ankara, the capital city in the heart of Turkey at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, East and West, is a hotspot in the Cold War, torn between communism and conservatism, Western freedoms and traditional ways, with an army fearful of democracy and a government that employs thugs and torture to...

Turkey | Turkish author

Family style : memories of an American from Vietnam
Pham, Thien
Paper Book
YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction Finalist Eisner Award Winner for Best Graphic MemoirAn NPR Best Books of 2023 A moving young adult graphic memoir about a Vietnamese immigrant boy's search for belonging in America, perfect for fans of American...

Vietnam | Vietnamese-American author

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https://librarian.syndetics.com/syndeticsunbound/lp/882.1246/list/3431

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