Best Asia Books | Summaries & Audio

Asia Book Summaries

China's Gilded Age

by Yuen Yuen Ang • 2021

Why did China boom for 40 years amid vast corruption? Because not all graft kills growth.

4.17

309

🏛️ Political Economy 🌏 Comparative Politics 💼 Crony Capitalism 📊 Institutional Economics 🗿 Developmental State

China's Gilded Age

Why did China boom for 40 years amid vast corruption? Because not all graft kills growth.

by Yuen Yuen Ang 2021 274 pages

4.17

309 ratings

🏛️ Political Economy 🌏 Comparative Politics 💼 Crony Capitalism 📊 Institutional Economics 🗿 Developmental State

Comfort Women

by Yoshimi Yoshiaki • 1995

Japan built the comfort stations itself, then spent decades claiming it did not.

3.96

152

🚨 Wartime Sexual Violence 🇯🇵 Imperial Japan ⚖️ State Accountability 📚 Feminist Historiography 🕊️ Transitional Justice

Comfort Women

Japan built the comfort stations itself, then spent decades claiming it did not.

by Yoshimi Yoshiaki 1995 262 pages

3.96

152 ratings

🚨 Wartime Sexual Violence 🇯🇵 Imperial Japan ⚖️ State Accountability 📚 Feminist Historiography 🕊️ Transitional Justice

Little Angels

by Phra Peter Pannapadipo • 2005

Most Thai novice monks did not choose the monastery. Hunger chose for them.

3.94

135

🧘 Thai Buddhism 🏯 Buddhist Monasticism 📿 Monastic Life 🎙️ Oral History ☸️ Theravada Tradition

Little Angels

Most Thai novice monks did not choose the monastery. Hunger chose for them.

by Phra Peter Pannapadipo 2005 320 pages

3.94

135 ratings

🧘 Thai Buddhism 🏯 Buddhist Monasticism 📿 Monastic Life 🎙️ Oral History ☸️ Theravada Tradition

The Accidental Malay

by Karina Robles Bahrin • 2022

A Chinese-Malaysian heiress learns she was born Muslim, and her pork empire hangs in the balance.

3.49

1k+

🧬 Mixed-Race Identity 🏢 Family Business Saga 🔐 Family Secrets 💔 Forbidden Love 💼 Women In Business

The Accidental Malay

A Chinese-Malaysian heiress learns she was born Muslim, and her pork empire hangs in the balance.

by Karina Robles Bahrin 2022 232 pages

3.49

1k+ ratings

🧬 Mixed-Race Identity 🏢 Family Business Saga 🔐 Family Secrets 💔 Forbidden Love 💼 Women In Business

Gladys Aylward

by Gladys Aylward • 1970

A British parlormaid rejected by every missionary society saves her money and walks to China anyway.

4.39

4k+

🎒 Missionary Memoirs 🌏 Cross-Cultural Ministry 🔥 Enduring Persecution 👩‍🦰 Women Missionaries ⚔️ Wartime Faith

Gladys Aylward

A British parlormaid rejected by every missionary society saves her money and walks to China anyway.

by Gladys Aylward 1970 135 pages

4.39

4k+ ratings

🎒 Missionary Memoirs 🌏 Cross-Cultural Ministry 🔥 Enduring Persecution 👩‍🦰 Women Missionaries ⚔️ Wartime Faith

The Elephant, The Tiger, And the Cell Phone

by Shashi Tharoor • 2007

A billion people, 23 languages, one democracy: what holds India together when nothing should.

3.59

1k+

🇮🇳 Indian Democracy 🌏 Postcolonial India 📈 Indian Economic Reform 🌐 Diaspora Studies 📝 Essay Collections

The Elephant, The Tiger, And the Cell Phone

A billion people, 23 languages, one democracy: what holds India together when nothing should.

by Shashi Tharoor 2007 498 pages

3.59

1k+ ratings

🇮🇳 Indian Democracy 🌏 Postcolonial India 📈 Indian Economic Reform 🌐 Diaspora Studies 📝 Essay Collections

The Karate Way

by Dave Lowry • 2009

Black belt is a learner's permit. Real karate is daily, invisible work on who you become.

4.19

124

🥋 Traditional Martial Arts ☯️ Martial Arts Philosophy 🛤️ Lifelong Practice 🧠 Mind-Body Practice 🪷 Zen Buddhism

The Karate Way

Black belt is a learner's permit. Real karate is daily, invisible work on who you become.

by Dave Lowry 2009 194 pages

4.19

124 ratings

🥋 Traditional Martial Arts ☯️ Martial Arts Philosophy 🛤️ Lifelong Practice 🧠 Mind-Body Practice 🪷 Zen Buddhism

Beyond the Sky and the Earth

by Jamie Zeppa • 1999

Teaching in a Himalayan village, she learns Buddhism, political danger, and the slow art of arrival.

4.16

4k+

🏔️ Bhutan 😵‍💫 Culture Shock 🧑‍🏫 Teaching Abroad 🧘 Buddhist Practice 🌄 Himalayan Memoirs

Beyond the Sky and the Earth

Teaching in a Himalayan village, she learns Buddhism, political danger, and the slow art of arrival.

by Jamie Zeppa 1999 321 pages

4.16

4k+ ratings

🏔️ Bhutan 😵‍💫 Culture Shock 🧑‍🏫 Teaching Abroad 🧘 Buddhist Practice 🌄 Himalayan Memoirs

The Third Revolution

by Elizabeth C. Economy • 2018

Deng opened China. Xi reversed it: the party now decides what gets built, read, and believed.

3.75

1k+

🏛️ Chinese Politics ⚡ Authoritarian Governance 🐉 Xi Jinping Era 🏭 State Capitalism 🌐 Internet Censorship

The Third Revolution

Deng opened China. Xi reversed it: the party now decides what gets built, read, and believed.

by Elizabeth C. Economy 2018 359 pages

3.75

1k+ ratings

🏛️ Chinese Politics ⚡ Authoritarian Governance 🐉 Xi Jinping Era 🏭 State Capitalism 🌐 Internet Censorship

The Billionaire Raj

by James Crabtree • 2018

Two decades. Two billionaires became 100. The hidden cost of India's economic miracle.

3.84

2k+

🇮🇳 Indian Economy 💰 Crony Capitalism ⚖️ Economic Inequality 🗳️ Political Corruption 🔍 Investigative Journalism

The Billionaire Raj

Two decades. Two billionaires became 100. The hidden cost of India's economic miracle.

by James Crabtree 2018 416 pages

3.84

2k+ ratings

🇮🇳 Indian Economy 💰 Crony Capitalism ⚖️ Economic Inequality 🗳️ Political Corruption 🔍 Investigative Journalism

India's Wars

by Arjun Subramaniam • 2016

Four wars forged modern India. The military history its own universities still don't teach.

4.19

500+

🇮🇳 Modern Indian History 🕌 South Asian History ⚔️ Military Statecraft 🌍 Postcolonial Conflicts 🗺️ Border Wars

India's Wars

Four wars forged modern India. The military history its own universities still don't teach.

by Arjun Subramaniam 2016 576 pages

4.19

500+ ratings

🇮🇳 Modern Indian History 🕌 South Asian History ⚔️ Military Statecraft 🌍 Postcolonial Conflicts 🗺️ Border Wars

Thailand - Culture Smart!

by Roger Jones • 2003

Navigate Thailand without losing face: the cultural codes that turn visitors into welcome guests.

3.91

287

🏯 Thai Culture 📚 Cultural Guidebooks 🌏 Cross-Cultural Communication 💼 Business Etiquette 🏠 Expatriate Life

Thailand - Culture Smart!

Navigate Thailand without losing face: the cultural codes that turn visitors into welcome guests.

by Roger Jones 2003 168 pages

3.91

287 ratings

🏯 Thai Culture 📚 Cultural Guidebooks 🌏 Cross-Cultural Communication 💼 Business Etiquette 🏠 Expatriate Life

A Beginner's Guide to Japan

by Pico Iyer • 2019

Why 32 years in Japan taught Pico Iyer less than his first week.

3.81

2k+

🗾 Travel Essays 🎭 Japanese Culture 🔬 Cultural Anthropology 🤫 Indirect Communication 👥 Social Conformity

A Beginner's Guide to Japan

Why 32 years in Japan taught Pico Iyer less than his first week.

by Pico Iyer 2019 240 pages

3.81

2k+ ratings

🗾 Travel Essays 🎭 Japanese Culture 🔬 Cultural Anthropology 🤫 Indirect Communication 👥 Social Conformity

Death of a Red Heroine

by Qiu Xiaolong • 2000

A Shanghai poet-detective pursues a model worker's killer while the Party buries the truth.

3.82

6k+

🔍 Literary Mystery ✒️ Poet Detective 🏛️ Political Cover-Up 💰 Corrupt Political Elite 👥 Secret Double Life

Death of a Red Heroine

A Shanghai poet-detective pursues a model worker's killer while the Party buries the truth.

by Qiu Xiaolong 2000 482 pages

3.82

6k+ ratings

🔍 Literary Mystery ✒️ Poet Detective 🏛️ Political Cover-Up 💰 Corrupt Political Elite 👥 Secret Double Life

The Bible of Karate

by Patrick McCarthy • 1995

The secret Chinese manual that taught Okinawa's masters to fight, heal, and know themselves.

4.17

375

🛡️ Martial Arts History 🌊 Okinawan Karate 🌿 Chinese Medicine ⚔️ Combat Strategy 🎯 Vital Point Striking

The Bible of Karate

The secret Chinese manual that taught Okinawa's masters to fight, heal, and know themselves.

by Patrick McCarthy 1995 214 pages

4.17

375 ratings

🛡️ Martial Arts History 🌊 Okinawan Karate 🌿 Chinese Medicine ⚔️ Combat Strategy 🎯 Vital Point Striking

Has the West Lost It?

by Kishore Mahbubani • 2018

China and India ran the global economy for 1,800 years. The West's brief interruption is ending.

3.70

500+

🌍 Global Power Shifts 🇨🇳 China's Rise ♟️ Realpolitik 🕊️ Non-Interventionism 🏛️ Multilateralism

Has the West Lost It?

China and India ran the global economy for 1,800 years. The West's brief interruption is ending.

by Kishore Mahbubani 2018 112 pages

3.70

500+ ratings

🌍 Global Power Shifts 🇨🇳 China's Rise ♟️ Realpolitik 🕊️ Non-Interventionism 🏛️ Multilateralism

Flawless

by Elise Hu • 2023

Korea's beauty industry perfected skincare and the feeling you will never stop fixing yourself.

4.04

2k+

🧴 Korean Beauty Culture 💄 Beauty Standards 👁️ Lookism 🪞 Body Image 🛒 Consumerism Critique

Flawless

Korea's beauty industry perfected skincare and the feeling you will never stop fixing yourself.

by Elise Hu 2023 310 pages

4.04

2k+ ratings

🧴 Korean Beauty Culture 💄 Beauty Standards 👁️ Lookism 🪞 Body Image 🛒 Consumerism Critique

Crouching Tiger

by Peter Navarro • 2015

China's military buildup is a calculated plan to dominate Asia and choke off American power.

4.04

219

🌏 Us-China Relations 🇨🇳 Chinese Military 🏯 Asian Geopolitics ⚓ Naval Strategy ☢️ Deterrence Theory

Crouching Tiger

China's military buildup is a calculated plan to dominate Asia and choke off American power.

by Peter Navarro 2015 336 pages

4.04

219 ratings

🌏 Us-China Relations 🇨🇳 Chinese Military 🏯 Asian Geopolitics ⚓ Naval Strategy ☢️ Deterrence Theory

The Great Wall

by Julia Lovell • 1981

The Great Wall was many walls, built for conquest as much as defense, and it failed.

3.46

344

🏯 Imperial China 🇨🇳 Sinocentrism 📖 Revisionist History 🏰 Fortress Mentality 🗺️ Symbolic Landscapes

The Great Wall

The Great Wall was many walls, built for conquest as much as defense, and it failed.

by Julia Lovell 1981 432 pages

3.46

344 ratings

🏯 Imperial China 🇨🇳 Sinocentrism 📖 Revisionist History 🏰 Fortress Mentality 🗺️ Symbolic Landscapes

Abroad in Japan

by Chris Broad • 2023

He went to rural Japan to teach English. A missile alert at dawn changed everything.

4.11

23k+

🏞️ Rural Japan 📚 Teaching Abroad 🍜 Japanese Food 😳 Culture Shock 🌏 Expat Life

Abroad in Japan

He went to rural Japan to teach English. A missile alert at dawn changed everything.

by Chris Broad 2023 320 pages

4.11

23k+ ratings

🏞️ Rural Japan 📚 Teaching Abroad 🍜 Japanese Food 😳 Culture Shock 🌏 Expat Life

Daughters of the Samurai

by Janice P. Nimura • 2015

Japan sent three girls to America for a decade. They came home unable to speak Japanese.

3.90

2k+

⛩️ Meiji Japan 📚 Women's Education 🔄 Reverse Culture Shock 🌏 Cultural Exchange 👥 Group Biography

Daughters of the Samurai

Japan sent three girls to America for a decade. They came home unable to speak Japanese.

by Janice P. Nimura 2015 336 pages

3.90

2k+ ratings

⛩️ Meiji Japan 📚 Women's Education 🔄 Reverse Culture Shock 🌏 Cultural Exchange 👥 Group Biography

The Ends of the Earth

by Robert D. Kaplan • 1996

Rivers and soil shape nations more than constitutions. A journey to the frontiers where states fail.

4.11

1k+

🗺️ Political Travelogue 🌍 Geopolitical Analysis 🌱 Environmental Determinism 🏚️ Fragile States 🏭 Modernization Critique

The Ends of the Earth

Rivers and soil shape nations more than constitutions. A journey to the frontiers where states fail.

by Robert D. Kaplan 1996 496 pages

4.11

1k+ ratings

🗺️ Political Travelogue 🌍 Geopolitical Analysis 🌱 Environmental Determinism 🏚️ Fragile States 🏭 Modernization Critique

Korean Made Simple

by Billy Go • 2014

Korean isn't English with different words. The verb goes last, and politeness has two settings.

4.42

235

🗣️ Korean Language 🌱 Korean For Beginners 📚 Korean Grammar ✍️ Hangul 🔊 Korean Pronunciation

Korean Made Simple

Korean isn't English with different words. The verb goes last, and politeness has two settings.

by Billy Go 2014 348 pages

4.42

235 ratings

🗣️ Korean Language 🌱 Korean For Beginners 📚 Korean Grammar ✍️ Hangul 🔊 Korean Pronunciation

Invaders and Infidels

by Sandeep Balakrishna • 2020

Islamic armies invaded India for 500 years. Hindu kingdoms fought back hard but never united.

4.39

288

🏰 Medieval India ⚔️ Islamic Invasions 🕌 Delhi Sultanate 🛡️ Hindu Resistance 🔨 Iconoclasm

Invaders and Infidels

Islamic armies invaded India for 500 years. Hindu kingdoms fought back hard but never united.

by Sandeep Balakrishna 2020 224 pages

4.39

288 ratings

🏰 Medieval India ⚔️ Islamic Invasions 🕌 Delhi Sultanate 🛡️ Hindu Resistance 🔨 Iconoclasm

خون و نفت خاطرات یک شاهزاده ایرانی

by Manoucher Farmanfarmaian • 1997

A Qajar prince's childhood in a seven-hundred-person harem. Forty years in oil. Then the revolution.

4.04

185

🇮🇷 Iranian History 👑 Royal Memoir 🛢️ Oil Politics 🌍 Cultural Collision ✈️ Exile Narratives

خون و نفت خاطرات یک شاهزاده ایرانی

A Qajar prince's childhood in a seven-hundred-person harem. Forty years in oil. Then the revolution.

by Manoucher Farmanfarmaian 1997 576 pages

4.04

185 ratings

🇮🇷 Iranian History 👑 Royal Memoir 🛢️ Oil Politics 🌍 Cultural Collision ✈️ Exile Narratives

Supreme Commander

by Seymour Morris Jr. • 2014

Eleven million lives saved, a constitution written in nine days: the occupation that remade Japan.

4.12

224

🏛️ Postwar Occupation 🏗️ Nation Building 🪖 Military Governance 📜 Constitutional Design ❄️ Cold War Strategy

Supreme Commander

Eleven million lives saved, a constitution written in nine days: the occupation that remade Japan.

by Seymour Morris Jr. 2014 384 pages

4.12

224 ratings

🏛️ Postwar Occupation 🏗️ Nation Building 🪖 Military Governance 📜 Constitutional Design ❄️ Cold War Strategy

The Upstairs Wife

by Rafia Zakaria • 2015

A family memoir that is also the history of Pakistan, seen from the women's quarters.

3.78

1k+

🧳 Partition Of India 🧕 Muslim Women 🏡 Family Memoir 🗳️ Women In Politics 🏛️ Pakistani Politics

The Upstairs Wife

A family memoir that is also the history of Pakistan, seen from the women's quarters.

by Rafia Zakaria 2015 264 pages

3.78

1k+ ratings

🧳 Partition Of India 🧕 Muslim Women 🏡 Family Memoir 🗳️ Women In Politics 🏛️ Pakistani Politics

Some Girls

by Jillian Lauren • 2010

At 18, she joined a harem. The pay was lavish; the real cost took years.

3.35

9k+

💋 Sex Work Memoirs 👑 Royal Insider Accounts 🪞 Objectification ✊ Female Agency 🍽️ Body Image

Some Girls

At 18, she joined a harem. The pay was lavish; the real cost took years.

by Jillian Lauren 2010 336 pages

3.35

9k+ ratings

💋 Sex Work Memoirs 👑 Royal Insider Accounts 🪞 Objectification ✊ Female Agency 🍽️ Body Image

Strong Men Armed

by Robert Leckie • 1961

The Marine Corps' Pacific campaign stripped of myth: chaos that no map could prepare them for.

4.38

1k+

🏝️ Pacific Theater 🦅 Marine Corps History ⚓ Amphibious Warfare 🔐 Codebreaking 🎖️ Wartime Leadership

Strong Men Armed

The Marine Corps' Pacific campaign stripped of myth: chaos that no map could prepare them for.

by Robert Leckie 1961 576 pages

4.38

1k+ ratings

🏝️ Pacific Theater 🦅 Marine Corps History ⚓ Amphibious Warfare 🔐 Codebreaking 🎖️ Wartime Leadership

Lo que sabe la señorita Kim

by Cho Nam-Joo • 2021

Korean women push back against the roles that erase them, one small defiance at a time.

3.73

7k+

📚 Interlinked Stories 🇰🇷 Contemporary Korea 👩‍💼 Invisible Labor 🧬 Generational Trauma 🏠 Caregiving Burden

Lo que sabe la señorita Kim

Korean women push back against the roles that erase them, one small defiance at a time.

by Cho Nam-Joo 2021 232 pages

3.73

7k+ ratings

📚 Interlinked Stories 🇰🇷 Contemporary Korea 👩‍💼 Invisible Labor 🧬 Generational Trauma 🏠 Caregiving Burden

Eastward to Tartary

by Robert D. Kaplan • 2001

From Budapest to the Caspian, a journey through lands where history refuses to end.

4.05

1k+

🗺️ Travel Writing 🌍 Geopolitical Analysis 🏚️ Post-Communist States 🕌 Ottoman Legacy ✂️ Artificial Borders

Eastward to Tartary

From Budapest to the Caspian, a journey through lands where history refuses to end.

by Robert D. Kaplan 2001 385 pages

4.05

1k+ ratings

🗺️ Travel Writing 🌍 Geopolitical Analysis 🏚️ Post-Communist States 🕌 Ottoman Legacy ✂️ Artificial Borders

The Orphan Master's Son

by Adam Johnson • 2012

An orphan in North Korea steals a hero's identity and his wife, gambling everything on escape.

4.07

100k+

🏴 Totalitarian State 🎭 Assumed Identity 📢 State Propaganda 💔 Forbidden Love 🌫️ Bleak Atmosphere

The Orphan Master's Son

An orphan in North Korea steals a hero's identity and his wife, gambling everything on escape.

by Adam Johnson 2012 443 pages

4.07

100k+ ratings

🏴 Totalitarian State 🎭 Assumed Identity 📢 State Propaganda 💔 Forbidden Love 🌫️ Bleak Atmosphere

The Man Who Remade India

by Vinay Sitapati • 2016

P.V. Narasimha Rao: a silent, marginal prime minister who dismantled India's closed economy.

4.42

2k+

🇮🇳 Indian Politics 📉 Economic Reform 📜 Political Biographies 🦊 Political Maneuvering 🏭 Economic History

The Man Who Remade India

P.V. Narasimha Rao: a silent, marginal prime minister who dismantled India's closed economy.

by Vinay Sitapati 2016 408 pages

4.42

2k+ ratings

🇮🇳 Indian Politics 📉 Economic Reform 📜 Political Biographies 🦊 Political Maneuvering 🏭 Economic History

The Shadow of the Great Game

by Narendra Singh Sarila • 2006

India's partition was engineered by Britain to secure a Cold War foothold, not just communal strife.

4.16

290

🇮🇳 Partition Of India 🇬🇧 British Imperialism 🗺️ Great Game 📜 Decolonization 🌏 South Asian Geopolitics

The Shadow of the Great Game

India's partition was engineered by Britain to secure a Cold War foothold, not just communal strife.

by Narendra Singh Sarila 2006 320 pages

4.16

290 ratings

🇮🇳 Partition Of India 🇬🇧 British Imperialism 🗺️ Great Game 📜 Decolonization 🌏 South Asian Geopolitics

The Tunnels of Cu Chi

by Tom Mangold • 1985

A hand-dug city beneath the jungle survived the heaviest bombing; the fighting went underground.

4.07

2k+

🇻🇳 Vietnam War 🕳️ Tunnel Warfare 🌿 Guerrilla Warfare ⚙️ Military Engineering ⚔️ Asymmetric Warfare

The Tunnels of Cu Chi

A hand-dug city beneath the jungle survived the heaviest bombing; the fighting went underground.

by Tom Mangold 1985 302 pages

4.07

2k+ ratings

🇻🇳 Vietnam War 🕳️ Tunnel Warfare 🌿 Guerrilla Warfare ⚙️ Military Engineering ⚔️ Asymmetric Warfare

Fire in the Lake

by Frances FitzGerald • 1972

The Vietnam War was lost in the chasm between American optimism and Vietnamese reality.

4.10

2k+

🪖 Vietnam War 🦅 U.S. Foreign Policy 🇻🇳 Vietnamese History 📜 Postcolonialism 🏗️ Nation Building

Fire in the Lake

The Vietnam War was lost in the chasm between American optimism and Vietnamese reality.

by Frances FitzGerald 1972 500 pages

4.10

2k+ ratings

🪖 Vietnam War 🦅 U.S. Foreign Policy 🇻🇳 Vietnamese History 📜 Postcolonialism 🏗️ Nation Building

A History of the Philippines

by Luis H. Francia • 2010

How Spanish friars, American teachers, and Japanese occupiers accidentally created a nation.

3.93

500+

📜 Philippine History 🌏 Southeast Asian History 🏴 Imperialism 🇵🇭 National Identity ✊ Nonviolent Revolution

A History of the Philippines

How Spanish friars, American teachers, and Japanese occupiers accidentally created a nation.

by Luis H. Francia 2010 352 pages

3.93

500+ ratings

📜 Philippine History 🌏 Southeast Asian History 🏴 Imperialism 🇵🇭 National Identity ✊ Nonviolent Revolution

The Bengalis

by Sudeep Chakravarti • 2017

Language bound them; religion and borders broke them: a portrait of 250 million Bengalis.

3.90

215

🐅 Bengali Identity 🗺️ South Asian History ✂️ Partition Of India 🔍 Cultural Ethnography 🗣️ Language Politics

The Bengalis

Language bound them; religion and borders broke them: a portrait of 250 million Bengalis.

by Sudeep Chakravarti 2017 496 pages

3.90

215 ratings

🐅 Bengali Identity 🗺️ South Asian History ✂️ Partition Of India 🔍 Cultural Ethnography 🗣️ Language Politics

Mao Zedong and China in the Twentieth-Century World

by Rebecca E. Karl • 2009

He freed a nation, starved a generation, and the Party still carries his portrait.

3.83

284

🏮 Modern Chinese History 🚩 Maoist China 👤 Political Biography 📢 Revolutionary Ideology 🌾 Peasant Movements

Mao Zedong and China in the Twentieth-Century World

He freed a nation, starved a generation, and the Party still carries his portrait.

by Rebecca E. Karl 2009 216 pages

3.83

284 ratings

🏮 Modern Chinese History 🚩 Maoist China 👤 Political Biography 📢 Revolutionary Ideology 🌾 Peasant Movements

Revolusi

by David Van Reybrouck • 2020

One in 27 humans lives there, yet its revolution launched the Third World.

4.53

4k+

🗺️ Decolonization 🇮🇩 Indonesian History 🇳🇱 Dutch Colonialism 🌿 Guerrilla Warfare 🌏 Cold War In Asia

Revolusi

One in 27 humans lives there, yet its revolution launched the Third World.

by David Van Reybrouck 2020 656 pages

4.53

4k+ ratings

🗺️ Decolonization 🇮🇩 Indonesian History 🇳🇱 Dutch Colonialism 🌿 Guerrilla Warfare 🌏 Cold War In Asia

Japan Story

by Christopher Harding • 2018

Modern Japan was built on a story about itself. Every crisis forced a rewrite.

3.96

500+

🏯 Modern Japanese History 🎌 Japanese Identity 📜 Cultural History 🏗️ Nation Building 🌱 Grassroots Movements

Japan Story

Modern Japan was built on a story about itself. Every crisis forced a rewrite.

by Christopher Harding 2018 504 pages

3.96

500+ ratings

🏯 Modern Japanese History 🎌 Japanese Identity 📜 Cultural History 🏗️ Nation Building 🌱 Grassroots Movements

Becoming Kim Jong Un

by Jung H. Pak • 2020

Why Kim Jong Un won't denuclearize: a CIA officer on his ruthless survival strategy.

3.76

1k+

🔴 North Korean Politics 🏛️ Authoritarian Regimes ☢️ Nuclear Proliferation 💻 Cyber Warfare 👑 Personality Cults

Becoming Kim Jong Un

Why Kim Jong Un won't denuclearize: a CIA officer on his ruthless survival strategy.

by Jung H. Pak 2020 336 pages

3.76

1k+ ratings

🔴 North Korean Politics 🏛️ Authoritarian Regimes ☢️ Nuclear Proliferation 💻 Cyber Warfare 👑 Personality Cults

엄마를 부탁해

by Kyung-Sook Shin • 2008

After a mother disappears at Seoul Station, her family's search uncovers the woman they never knew.

3.92

48k+

📖 Korean Family Drama 👤 Mother's Hidden Life 🔒 Family Secrets 🌸 Sacrificial Mother 👁️ Multiple Perspectives

엄마를 부탁해

After a mother disappears at Seoul Station, her family's search uncovers the woman they never knew.

by Kyung-Sook Shin 2008 320 pages

3.92

48k+ ratings

📖 Korean Family Drama 👤 Mother's Hidden Life 🔒 Family Secrets 🌸 Sacrificial Mother 👁️ Multiple Perspectives

I Stand Corrected

by Eden Collinsworth • 2014

When a Western etiquette expert tried to teach China about manners, China politely corrected her.

3.20

188

🏢 Business Etiquette 🇨🇳 Modern China 📖 China Memoir 🗣️ Cultural Fluency 📜 Confucian Values

I Stand Corrected

When a Western etiquette expert tried to teach China about manners, China politely corrected her.

by Eden Collinsworth 2014 272 pages

3.20

188 ratings

🏢 Business Etiquette 🇨🇳 Modern China 📖 China Memoir 🗣️ Cultural Fluency 📜 Confucian Values

Enemy of All Mankind

by Steven Johnson • 2020

His 1695 heist of a Mughal treasure ship nearly toppled an empire. Then Henry Every disappeared.

3.89

4k+

🚢 Maritime History 🏴‍☠️ Piracy And Empire 🏛️ East India Company 🌏 Early Globalisation 🕌 Mughal Empire

Enemy of All Mankind

His 1695 heist of a Mughal treasure ship nearly toppled an empire. Then Henry Every disappeared.

by Steven Johnson 2020 286 pages

3.89

4k+ ratings

🚢 Maritime History 🏴‍☠️ Piracy And Empire 🏛️ East India Company 🌏 Early Globalisation 🕌 Mughal Empire

Shōgun, Volume 1

by James Clavell • 1975

An English pilot shipwrecked in Japan becomes the ultimate pawn in a clash of ambitious warlords.

4.50

16k+

🏯 Feudal Japan 🐟 Fish Out Of Water ⚔️ Samurai Honor 💕 Cross-Cultural Romance 🏛️ Political Intrigue

Shōgun, Volume 1

An English pilot shipwrecked in Japan becomes the ultimate pawn in a clash of ambitious warlords.

by James Clavell 1975 533 pages

4.50

16k+ ratings

🏯 Feudal Japan 🐟 Fish Out Of Water ⚔️ Samurai Honor 💕 Cross-Cultural Romance 🏛️ Political Intrigue

The Plane That Wasn't There

by Jeff Wise • 2015

No debris. Two conflicting satellite signals. The evidence MH370 went north instead of south.

3.56

1k+

🛩️ Aviation Disasters 🔍 Unsolved Disappearances 📰 Investigative Reporting 🧪 Tampered Evidence 🐻 Russian Active Measures

The Plane That Wasn't There

No debris. Two conflicting satellite signals. The evidence MH370 went north instead of south.

by Jeff Wise 2015 95 pages

3.56

1k+ ratings

🛩️ Aviation Disasters 🔍 Unsolved Disappearances 📰 Investigative Reporting 🧪 Tampered Evidence 🐻 Russian Active Measures

Muay Thai

by Michael Goodison • 2016

Modern life buries truth in comfort. In a Muay Thai ring, pain digs it back up.

4.24

138

🥊 Combat Sports ✈️ Travel Memoir 🥋 Martial Arts Memoir 🌑 Embracing Suffering 🤼 Fighting Philosophy

Muay Thai

Modern life buries truth in comfort. In a Muay Thai ring, pain digs it back up.

by Michael Goodison 2016 274 pages

4.24

138 ratings

🥊 Combat Sports ✈️ Travel Memoir 🥋 Martial Arts Memoir 🌑 Embracing Suffering 🤼 Fighting Philosophy

The Anatomy of Dependence

by Takeo Doi • 1973

Japan named an emotion the West cannot name. That single word unlocks an entire social order.

3.71

319

🔄 Cross-Cultural Psychology 🇯🇵 Japanese Society 🤱 Emotional Dependence 😳 Shame And Guilt 📖 Nihonjinron

The Anatomy of Dependence

Japan named an emotion the West cannot name. That single word unlocks an entire social order.

by Takeo Doi 1973 192 pages

3.71

319 ratings

🔄 Cross-Cultural Psychology 🇯🇵 Japanese Society 🤱 Emotional Dependence 😳 Shame And Guilt 📖 Nihonjinron

The Dark Valley

by Piers Brendon • 2000

The 1930s: a single global story of economic collapse, appeasement, and terror feeding the next war.

4.18

500+

🌍 Interwar Europe 🏛️ Rise Of Totalitarianism 📉 Great Depression 💣 Origins Of World War Ii 📜 Narrative History

The Dark Valley

The 1930s: a single global story of economic collapse, appeasement, and terror feeding the next war.

by Piers Brendon 2000 848 pages

4.18

500+ ratings

🌍 Interwar Europe 🏛️ Rise Of Totalitarianism 📉 Great Depression 💣 Origins Of World War Ii 📜 Narrative History

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