Here are 91 books that Free Food for Millionaires fans have personally recommended if you like
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A Korean American author myself, I published my first book in 2001, and in the ensuing years Iāve been heartened by the number of Korean Americans who have made a splash with their debut novels, as these five writers did. All five have ventured outside of what Iāve called the ethnic literature box, going far beyond the traditional stories expected from Asian Americans. They established a trend that is happily growing.Ā
I feel Chang-Rae Lee broke out of the mold of Asian American books that always dealt with immigration or stories set in Old Asia. A young man, Henry Park, is hired to infiltrate the campaign of a Korean American running for mayor in New York City. Yes, this delves into the issues of assimilation and alienation, but the novel is about so much more. Itās lyrical and poignant and universal in its explorations of familial and marital love.Ā
The debut novel from critically-acclaimed and New York Timesābestselling author of On Such a Full Sea and My Year Abroad.
InĀ Native Speaker, author Chang-rae Lee introduces readers to Henry Park. Park has spent his entire life trying to become a true Americanāa native speaker. But even as the essence of his adopted country continues to elude him, his Korean heritage seems to drift further and further away.
Park's harsh Korean upbringing has taught him to hide his emotions, to remember everything he learns, and most of all to feel an overwhelming sense of alienation. In other words, it hasā¦
Winner of the AWP Prize for the Novel, The Golden Land digs deep into the complexities of family history and relationships.
Etta Montgomery is a Boston-based labor lawyer coming to terms with the love and loss she experienced as a teenager during a 1988 family reunion in Burma. When Ettaāsā¦
A Korean American author myself, I published my first book in 2001, and in the ensuing years Iāve been heartened by the number of Korean Americans who have made a splash with their debut novels, as these five writers did. All five have ventured outside of what Iāve called the ethnic literature box, going far beyond the traditional stories expected from Asian Americans. They established a trend that is happily growing.Ā
In 1950s Sewanee, Chang and Katherine slowly
fall in love and find that the Souths of Korea and Tennessee are not that
different after all, both subject to lingering issues of class, family, race,
and civil war. I love the poetic language in this novel, as well as its
ambitious story and the complexity invested in every relation.
"This wonderful hybrid of a novel--a love story, a war story, a novel of manners--introduces a writer of enchanting gifts, a beautiful heart wedded to a beautiful imagination. How else does Susan Choi so fully inhabit characters from disparate backgrounds, with such brilliant wit and insight? The Foreign Student stirs up great and lovely emotions."Ā āĀ Francisco Goldman, author of The Ordinary Seaman
The Foreign Student is the story of a young Korean man, scarred by war, and the deeply troubled daughter of a wealthy Southern American family. In 1955, a new student arrives at a small college in theā¦
Iām a writer who grew up in Massachusetts and now lives in Austin, Texas. Though I havenāt lived in Massachusetts for over a decade now, I find myself drawn back to the stateās coast in my fiction. My novel, Women and Children First, takes place in a fictional town south of Boston called Nashquitten. Iām obsessed with how where weāre from shapes who we become and the ways we use narrative to try and exert control over our lives.
This is a book about many thingsāguilt, artmaking, and love among themābut when I think of it, I think of a novel that depicts the complexities of making and sustaining a life more deftly than anything else Iāve read. How things like cruelty and beauty, innocence and evil, truth and lies all coexist. How we move forward despite this uneasy balance.
The novel follows Fee, a boy who grows up in Maine and sings in an all-boys choir. The choir director turns out to be an abuser, and his actions haunt Fee and the other boys in the choir into adulthood.
On a prose level alone, Cheeās writing is unparalleled, his sentences sharp enough to cut glass. I donāt see how anyone could read this book and come away unchanged.Ā
A poignant work of mature, haunting artistry, Edinburgh heralds the arrival of a remarkable young writer. Fee, a Korean-American child growing up in Maine, is gifted with a beautiful soprano voice and sings in a professional boys' choir. When the choir director acts out his paedophilic urges on the boys in the choir, Fee is unable to save himself, his first love, Peter, or his friends.
In 1964, the FBI found smoldering remains of the station wagon that James Chaney, Michael Schwerner, and Andrew Goodman were driving before they disappeared at the hands of the Ku Klux Klan. Shortly after, Julie Kabatās beloved brother Luke arrived in Mississippi as a volunteer to assist Black civil rightsā¦
My recommendations are more like a diary of my nascent writing career. I donāt mean to get melodramatic here, but these five Korean-American authors literally (get it?) built me. None of them know this, but they were a quintet of Dr. Frankensteins who created Sung J. Woo, writer. I dared to write my first novel because these authors showed me how, in the best possible way, the only way, really: through their printed words. When I held their books in my hands, I believed a little more that I could do the same. Iāll always be proud to be in their debt.
The year is 2003, and Iām finishing up my first year at NYUās Creative Writing Program.Ā And a colleague of mine tells me a recent Korean-American graduate will be publishing her first novel.Ā He tells me that Carolineās book is a romantic comedy in novel form.Ā And I pause for a moment ā ten years ago I could not name a single Korean American writer, and now we have our own Jennifer Weiner?Ā How cool is that? And how cool is In Full Bloom?Ā You probably have never heard of this novel, and now that you have, you will thank me when you race through these hilarious pages.Ā Ginger Lee is our heroine, and yes, that type of punny humor is de rigueur in this book. I donāt know who I love more, Ginger or her mother.Ā Probably her mother.Ā
In Caroline Hwang's debut novel, In Full Bloom, all Ginger Lee wants is a promotion at the fashion glossy A la Mode magazine. All her mother wants is a nice, professional Korean son-in-law. Unable to keep her mother at bay, Ginger reluctantly agrees to let her play matchmaker.
At work, Ginger's efforts at advancement are thwarted by style fiends better practiced in the art of office warfare. Away from the job, she's surprised that her arranged dates are rejecting her before she gets a chance to reject them.
With wry humor, lively dialogue, and a compassionate take on being aā¦
Like all writers, I am first and foremost a reader, with deep appreciation for a great story. Iām also a veteran book club member who meets with book clubs all over the U.S. and Canada (usually via Zoom) three or four times a week to discuss my own work. They are, as I am, invariably pleased by a plot twist. It All Comes Back to You delivers a big one, along with emotional involvement in two worlds, as itās a dual timeline. I consider myself an expert as a result of hundreds (thousands?) of hours discussing books with groups who are, without exception, smart, fun, funny women who educate me.
Upmarket Womenās Fiction at its finest! Womenās Fiction isnāt, incidentally, fiction written by or necessarily for women.
It comprisesrich storiesĀ in which the plot is driven by the protagonistās emotional journey. Youāll always witness external events creating an interesting and lasting impact from beginning to end, changing our main character inside forever.Ā
In Five Years excels at that, and packs a devastating, shocking, powerful punch in the process. I cried, but experiencing this story was worth it.
'SMART, EMOTIONAL, INTRIGUING AND COMPELLING - I LOVED IT!' JILL MANSELL
'Full of twists and turns, this is a heart-breaking yet uplifting story about love and friendship, and is one of this year's must-reads' Heat magazine *****
Dannie Kohan has held true to her meticulously crafted 5-year plan since she understood the concept. On the day that she nails the most important interview of her career and gets engaged to the perfect man, she's well on her way to fulfilling her life goals.
But that night Dannie falls asleep and dreams of a night five years in the future whereā¦
As someone whoās been born and raised in and around the suburbs of Manhattan, I have a love-hate relationship with the city. I crave the excitement it offers but then gets frustrated by its drawbacks- the crowds, the dirt, the noise, the expense, the pressure. But then you crack open the pages of a romance story, and the allure of Manhattan and the surrounding boroughs is undeniable. Anything is possible in New York City.
The night before September 11, 2001, I was in New York City, and my now-husband proposed to me. We woke up the next morning to a whole new world. Any book set in Manhattan that relates to September 11th instantly speaks to me. This romance story is one you will never see coming, and I canāt recommend it more highly.
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ā¢ In this irresistible novel from the author of All We Ever Wanted and Something Borrowed, a young woman falls hard for an impossibly perfect man before he disappears without a trace. . . .Ā
Itās 2 A.M. on a Saturday night in the spring of 2001, and twenty-eight-year-old Cecily Gardner sits alone in a dive bar in New Yorkās East Village, questioning her life. Feeling lonesome and homesick for the Midwest, she wonders if sheāll ever make it as a reporter in the big cityāand whether she made a terrible mistake in breaking up withā¦
As a writer, Iāve always been drawn to exploring the teenage experience. Maybe thatās because my experiences in high school and college were rife with the highest of highs and the lowest of lowsāeverything was intensely beautiful and painful at once. That tension played a major role in my self-discovery process, and story-wise, it makes for a compelling character. But in a lot of literature, I find the depiction of teenage characters to be either sensationalized or infantilizing, melodramatic, or unconvincingly flat. When writing my own adolescent subjects in The Wayside, I turned often toward the rich, complex characters in the stories here.
I originally read Thayer Hamann when I was in high school and identified so deeply with Evie, the protagonist, and also saw in her the person I yearned to become. Evie shares the intricacies of the teenage girl experience, beginning with her high school career in East Hampton and spanning through her undergraduate years at NYU.
Her perspective is graceful, smart, and deeply feeling, with her heart fully exposed on her sleeveāmuch in the way mine was as a teenager (and still is, in many ways). Thereās an epic love story at the heart of the novel, as well (even though I wrote a thriller, I am a romantic to my core), and Iām not too proud to say that the love interest, Roarke, continues to be one of my favorite ābook boyfriends.ā I reread this every couple of years and can confirm it stands the test of time.Ā Ā
This is what itās like to be a high-school-age girl. To forsake the boyfriend you once adored. To meet the love of your life, who just happens to be your teacher. To discover for the first time the power of your body and mind. Ā This is what itās like to be a college-age woman. To live through heartbreak. To suffer the consequences of your choices. To depend on others for survival but to have no one to trust but yourself. Ā This is Anthropology of an American Girl. A literary sensation, this extraordinarily candid novel about the experience of growing upā¦
I'm a memoir writer whose latest book, Drunk-ish, chronicles my experience getting sober. Before quitting drinking and after, I devoured all the "quit lit" books I could get my hands on despite not being entirely convinced I had an issue. I read to bond and identify with the authors, and the books I'm recommending are a few of my very favorites on the topic of addiction. On my podcast, "For Crying Out Loud," I often share about quitting drinking and addiction in general, and when I do, I find those are some of the most popular episodes. If you're sober, thinking about quitting, or even just like reading books about messed-up boozers, these books are for you.
This is one of my all-time favorite books about alcoholism because itās hilarious.Ā The title has a double meaning because the book is about the authorās attempt to stop drinking but also because Augustenās humor is incredibly dry.
I found this book before I ever even entertained the notion that I, too, might have an issue with alcohol, and yet, I loved it. Iāve probably read this book at least 10 times, and it still makes me laugh despite the fact that itās become all too real for me.Ā
From the New York Times Bestselling author of Running With Scissors comes the story of one man trying to out-drink his memories, outlast his demons, and outrun his past.
āI was addicted to āBewitchedā as a kid. I worshipped Darren Stevens the First. When heād come home from work and Samantha would say, āDarren, would you like me to fix you a drink?ā Heād always rest his briefcase on the table below the mirror in the foyer, wipe his forehead with a monogrammed handkerchief and say, āBetter make it a double.āā (from Chapter Two)
As an author of a trilogy about the Flying Tigers (a group of American pilots who fought the Japanese valiantly in WWII in China), I love reading wartime stories, especially WWII.
I was very shy and fearful when I was young. It was because of my shyness and fearfulness that I fell in love with wartime stories. I looked up to heroes. I admired their courage and spirits. I read books about those extraordinary people so that I could be inspired by them and hopefully learn from them. Where else can you find more heroic stories than in wartime? As a writer, I write what I love to read: heroic tales with touching love stories.
The Lost Girls of Paris is a historical fiction about a group of young British women who make the ultimate sacrifice to help their country in WWII.Ā Fraught with danger and filled with mystery, itās a fascinating tale, and I finished it in two days. I wasnāt aware of the war efforts of these brave women, who went unheralded for many years after the war, and Iām thankful to read this intriguing book of bravery and perseverance.Ā
'A gripping tale' MY WEEKLY 'Thrilling' WOMAN 'A truly gripping read of mystery, love and heroism' FROST MAGAZINE
The Lost Girls of Paris is an emotional story of friendship and betrayal during the second world war, inspired by true events - from the international bestseller Pam Jenoff.
1940s With the world at war, Eleanor Trigg leads a mysterious ring of female secret agents in London. Twelve of these women are sent to aid the resistance.
They never return home.
1946 Passing through Grand Central Station, New York, Grace Healey finds an abandoned suitcase tucked beneath a bench. The case isā¦
Iāve loved biology and medicine since the fifth grade when I learned about white blood cells and their function. For thirty years, I worked in intensive care where adrenaline levels run high. A good thriller does the same. It keeps my heart beating fast and my attention completely focused. Yet also, Iām a mother of three boys, and Iāve always worked in pediatrics and neonatology. I love kids, and I love being a mom. The heart in these books makes them more than simply an adrenaline fix on the page. I find the blend of heart with page-turning intrigue makes for a perfect read.
I tore through this book in a day and a half because it was such a page-turner. It was right up my alley as a neonatal nurse practitioner with newborns as the central theme. Add kidnapping and a black market to the mix, and itās a great medical thriller.
The plot was strong, with some great twists at the end. The male authors tried and mostly succeeded in adding some heart to the story by adding scenes of the protagonist returning to her childhood home in West Virginia to see her ailing mother, father, and drug-addicted brother. Itās heavy in plot and a little light in character development, but for James Patterson, thatās what he does best.
In this psychological thriller, a missing patient raises concerns in a New York hospital, but as others start disappearing every dark possibility becomes more and more likely.
To Senior Midwife Lucy Ryuan, pregnancy is not an unusual conditionāit's her life's work. But when two kidnappings and a vicious stabbing happen on her watch in a university hospital in Manhattan, her focus abruptly changes. Something has to be done, and Lucy is fearless enough to try.
Rumors begin to swirl, blaming everyone from the Russian Mafia to an underground adoption network. Lucy teams up with a skeptical NYPD detective to solveā¦
