Why arn't there that many asian fantasy books?
Read Eon: Dragoneye Reborn and the sequel, Eona: The Last Dragoneye by Alison Goodman. Awesome books! Adventure, romance, dragons! And all of it is set in the "Empire of the Celestial Dragons," a fantasy world based on the ancient cultures of China and Japan. As for why there aren't that many Asian-based fantasy books, I have no idea. But I hate it! I am personally sick of the European setting myself. That's why my own fantasy series has 4 races of people: White, Asian, Black, and Hispanic/Middle Eastern, but I called them by different names. My fantasy world was heavily influenced by Africa, the Sahara, Asia, and just a little European. I love everybody, and every culture and race should have fantasy novels revolving around them. It only makes the world of fantasy even more magical.
Are there any American fairy tale style romance young adult fiction that I can enjoy reading?
On the younger side:Ella Enchanted books by Serena ValentinoEmily Windsnap booksPeter & the Starcatchers booksHalf Upon A Time by James RileyIf you’re into mythology at all, I would also recommend the Percy Jackson books.Older:Liz Brazwell’s fairy tale seriesMarissa Meyer’s Lunar ChroniclesSplintered series by A G HowardKendra Chronicles by Alex Flinn
What is a great novel set in Asia or with predominantly Asian characters?
Multatuli - Max Havelaar (1860)This Dutch novel is set in Java (Indonesia) during the Dutch colonial reign. The poor conditions of the local farmers are criticized. They have to meet severe quota on the sugar and coffee plantations. In the lighter frame story Batavus Droogstoppel, a coffee salesman receives a package containing the manuscript.Hermann Hesse - Siddharta (1922)The place is Kapilvastu, a region in today’s Nepal or India. The time is ca. 500 BC, when Gautama Buddha was alive. The title character leads a life of ascetisism, until he decides to become rich in order to seduce the courtesan Kamala. This is very philosophical, about the contrast between a spiritual and a materialistic lifestyle.Agatha Christie - Murder in Mesopotamia (1936)Agatha Christie’s second marriage was to an archeologist. Her subsequent stay in the Middle East and Egypt inspired her for locations of some of her murder mysteries. This one is set around an archeological site in Iraq. Another one is Appointment with Death, set in Jerusalem and Petra (Jordan).Graham Greene - The Quiet American (1955)This political thriller is set in Vietnam during the First Indochina War, when the communist Viet Minh forces fought against the French. It’s about a British journalist, a Vietnamese beauty and an American idealist. Greene is very critical of the American interventionist attitude in Vietnam. This has suspense, romance, political vision and couleur locale.Orhan Pamuk - Snow [Kar] (2002)A poet returns to Turkey after twelve years of exile in Germany. He arrives in Kars, a city in the Northeast of Turkey. He wants to investigate why women have been committing suicide. Temporarily isolated by heavy snow a theatrical coup takes place. The Nobel Prize winner explores the conflict between secularism and fundamentalism from a Turkish point of view.Arthur Golden - Memoirs of a Geisha (1997)This story follows the life of Chiyo, a poor fisherman’s daughter who is sold to a geisha house in Kyoto at the age of nine. She gets bullied by an older geisha, but she manages to become a popular geisha herself, helped by a few people she meets and by her own determination. This girl from the Far East is easily wins your sympathy.Éliette Abécassis - La Répudiée (2000)This novella is set in Jerusalem. The wife of a Hasidic Jew is repudiated because she cannot bare children. The story follows the difficulties of this woman who has been ostracized by society for something that wasn’t her fault.
In my fantasy novel, I don't want to mention the skin color of my characters, to let the readers imagine them as they like. Will it work? Or will most of the readers assume they are white? And if so, will it be seen as racism on my part?
That will depend on the location they live, and which people you used as inspiration. Names, customs, clothing, festivals… everything matters.For example, if you have a story where people live on a place something like this:And people have names such as: Olav, Sigurd, Torstein, Astrid or Hilde, then of course I’m going to draw a parallel with the vikings, therefore I’ll imagine your fictional people close to the scandinavians.Or, if your setting looks more something like this:And your character names are: Zawadi, Elewisa, Kondo or Tabia, then I’m going to draw a parallel to Kenyan civilizations. Therefore I expect these people to be black, or at least very brown.“But I want more diversity, can I have different races?” - Sure, just provide a good enough reason. Maybe your civilization is a commerce hub, with merchants coming from all over the world to purchase different merchandise. Maybe it’s a religious pilgrimage site.Just don’t expect us readers to believe an isolated civilization, unknown to the rest of the world, can have caucasian, black and asian people coexisting for no apparent reason.
Good Non-American Authors?
For school, I have the summer assignment to read a novel by a non-american author. However, there are so many out there that I do not know what to read. It would be awesome for any recomondations- if possible could you give not just the author but a title of their work?!!
Is Chinese fantasy novel really interesting? Have you ever read it?
I made the graduation from manga to light novels ages ago. It was then I was introduced to Chinese and Korean web novels.If you like action paced novels, humor, and some good all round face slapping, then Chinese novels are the work for you. They tend to relate to the weak becoming strong MC who ends up achieving his world conquering dreams no matter the obstacles.My own web novel The Red Lands is partly influenced by their writing and makes for a light reading.Some of the best I have read are Sovereign of the three Realms, A thought for eternity and Ze Tian Ji. All have chapters that are well translated and make for great binge reading.