Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki
336 Pages, Published In 1997
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Based on Kiyosaki’s personal experiences with his two dads: his biological, educated dad (poor dad) and his best friend’s dad, an entrepreneur (rich dad), the key idea is Do not work for money, make money/assets work for you, by investing on real estates and stocks. Kiyosaki explains financial jargons in simple words that everyone can understand. However, investment is not as simple it sounds. Still an eye-opening, personal finance book.
Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart
430 Pages, Published In 2020
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A debug novel about a young boy growing up with his alcoholic mother in the 1980s Glasgow. The 2020 Booker Prize for Fiction is based on Scottish-American writer’s own childhood experience. It’s horrifying, anguish, sad throughout, and without a real hope. A tiny bit of hope kindled in the middle of the book then was squelched quickly. Stuart stated “It was a difficult process” to write the book. It’s even harder to read but it makes you think!
Babel by R. F. Kuang
544 Pages, Published In 2022
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A perfect blend of historical fiction and fantasy. The story is set in 19th-century England during the global colonization and liberation in all parts of the world. Four foreign students are sent to study in Oxford University’s prestigious Royal Institute of Translation (Babel) and discover the secret ways the British Empire uses the power of silver bars to maintain its supremacy and plots the Opium Wars against China. The book is both epic and magical!
Tom Lake by Ann Patchett
309 Pages, Published In 2023
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It’s a story of a mother telling her secret past to her three grown daughters on a farm. The stories of her “glory” teens into 20s as an actress, dating with a movie star, the trips, her love, loss and drama. The plot is simple; its development is slow; and the writing is beautiful. It reads like a meditation book of love, family and life.
Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi
213 Pages, Published In 2015
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Four light, poignant stories about friendship, family, love and loss, weaved around the time travel trips to the past and future in a cozy cafe.
Hang the Moon by Jeannette Walls
364 Pages, Published In 2023
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One of the best historical fictions I’ve ever read. It’s about a woman’s journey to independence in the Prohibition era of 1920s rural Virginia. The characters will stay with you for a long time. The plot is complex and so is the history. The writing is beautiful. A book I’d recommended for slow reading.
The Henna Artist by Alka Joshi
368 Pages, Published In 2020
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Set in the 1955’s India, a nascent nation of independence, the story is about a girl who chooses her own life path, escaping from her abusive husband and becoming an accomplished henna artist.
Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr
640 Pages, Published In 2021
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The author’s previous novel All the Light We Cannot See is a masterpiece. The high bar has not been reached again. Still a good book, but not great. The plot is intriguing but a little overly complicated and scattered. The ending is a surprise but feels too contrived.
The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner
320 Pages, Published In 2021
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The mystery of a female apothecary in the 18th century London and the murders she committed through her poisons. The victims were always men. Her customers were always women. The only link to the mystery was a vial with an etching of a bear, unearthed from River Thames by a present-day woman. En route to solving the 200-year old mystery, she also resolved her own marriage dilemma. What an intriguing story!
A Spark of Light by Jodi Picoult
384 Pages, Published In 2018
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A suspension (gunshot), buried from the very beginning, unearthed at the very end with multiple surprises. It’s a well-researched book, an outcome of hundreds of interviews with women who sought abortions, medical practitioners, and pro-life & pro-choice activists, and researches by shadowing doctors performing abortions at different stages of pregnancy. I loved the author’s approach to explore this contentious issue by dissecting the arguments, without judgement, layer by layer from each side. Ultimately it is about understanding, not convincing the other side.
The Overstory by Richard Powers
512 Pages, Published In 2019
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A novel about trees. Really, it is a novel about people, and their relationships with trees. The lives of several families, across multiple generations, were woven together by the trees. I am in awe of the author’s broad knowledge of plants, literature, gaming, and technology. I can guarantee you will never look at trees the same way again after reading this book.
Circe by Madeline Miller
393 Pages, Published In 2018
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A plethora of characters (gods and mortals) and stories from Greek mythology, woven together by the Goddess Circe. It was the first book I read about Greek mythology and I loved it. Full of adventures, wonders, and love; also sorrows, pains, and hate. The author accentuates the women’s voice and power with her tender, beautiful writing.