Reading the World – The List

Last updated July 27.  Looking for help for books available in English from these 11 remaining countries:

• Kiribati
• Liechtenstein
• Luxembourg
• Palau
• Panama
• San Marino
• Sao Tome and Principe
• Togo 
• Tajikistan
• Vanuatu
• Solomon Islands

Afghanistan:  Three by Atiq Rahimi | Atiq Rahimi

• Why I chose it: I first learned about Atiq Rahimi through Ann Morgan’s blog. Then a brief web search told me about Rahimi’s reputation, including winning the Prix Goncourt. Given the recent war in Afghanistan, I was intrigued to learn more about this country and its people.
• My thoughts: This book is actually a collection of three short novels: Earth and Ashes, A Thousand Rooms of Dream and Fear, and The Patience Stone. While each novel is very distinct, they work well in a collection. Earth and Ashes is a sparse, bleak fable that speaks to the impact of war as a father tries to reach his son. It resonates very much today with the situation in Syria. A Thousand Rooms of Dream and Fear was favourite novel in the collection, a compelling and nuanced view of living through the social and political upheavals of 1979 – upheavals that continue to reverberate to this day. The Patience Stone is an angry polemic against the violence against women living in Islamic fundamentalist society that at the same time speaks to the violence perpetrated against women everywhere.
• More info: Guardian review.

Albania: Chronicle in Stone | Ismail Kadare 

• Why I chose it: Kadare is the most renowned novelist in Albania, and often cited as a Nobel Prize candidate. I had first become aware of Kadare when he won the first Man Booker International Prize in 2005, and had read his novel The Siege.
• My thoughts: Based on Kadare’s boyhood experiences in World War II, this is a wry, humane, subtly subversive novel. By using a child’s perspective, Kadare manages to capture the confusion and absurdity of war and the communist dictatorship that would follow. This book also points to the challenge of translations – while this novel was written in 1971 it was only available in English in 1987. I  am looking forward to exploring more of Kadare’s work.
• More info: New Yorker

Algeria: Abduction | Anouar Benmalek 

• Why I chose it: I sent out a request on Twitter for recommendations, and one person who I follow (@msentropy) suggested this book. Of course if you’ve never read Albert Camus, you should read him too.
• My thoughts: This grimly compelling thriller explores the complex legacy of colonialism and war. This is a harrowing read from start to finish. It made me read up a bit on the history of Algeria including the Algerian War of Independence from 1956 to 1962.

Andorra: Teacher of Cheops | Albert Salvadó

• Why I chose it:  There are very limited books available in English from tiny Andorra, as I confirmed when I checked Ann Morgan’s blog. So I went with her pick.
• My thoughts: This is a meticulously researched, highly readable historical novel set in ancient Egypt. Not great literature, but I enjoyed it.

Angola: A General Theory of Oblivion | José Eduardo Agualusa

• Why I chose it: This book was already on my reading list, having been shortlisted  the Man Booker International Prize this year (2016).
• My thoughts: This is a truly beautiful and humane book. Like several of the books I’ve read so far, it speaks to the long impact of colonialism and war, and does so with warmth, humour and empathy. It made me realize I know nothing about Angola. I have added Agualusa’s A Book of Chameleons to my future reading list.
• More info: Man Booker International, Independent

Antigua and Barbuda: Unburnable | Marie-Elena John 

• Why I chose it: Ann Morgan mentions this book on her blog.
• My thoughts: I did not particularly enjoy this book, and was disappointed by its ending. Nevertheless, I appreciated that it gave me a window into a country and a culture I simply know nothing about.

Argentina: Ghosts | César Aira

• Why I chose it: Argentina of course has a rich literary tradition, and a large body of work in English. César Aira is one of the most renowned and prolific contemporary writers in Argentina, and I had never read this work. Time to start.
• My thoughts: This short novel is both playful and profoundly sad. This is the most avant-garde and stylistically challenging novel I’ve read on my quest so far. I plan to read more of Aira’s books in the future.

Australia: A Narrow Road to the Deep North | Richard Flanagan

• Why I chose it: Flanagan is one of Australia’s leading contemporary writers, and this novel won the Man Booker Prize in 2014.
• My thoughts: While I found the early part of the novel somewhat tedious, the book evolves into a powerful meditation on  war and the cruelty of human beings towards each other, and the ways we cope. The book is strongest in its sections set in the Japanese POW camp in WWII. It lead me reading a bit on the Thailand-Burma Death Railway.

Austria: A Whole Life | Robert Seethaler

• Why I chose it: This book was already on my list, having been shortlisted for the Man Booker International Prize this year (2016).
• My thoughts: This short novel is an deceptively quiet and simple. As with many books I’ve read so far, war provides the backdrop for a beautiful meditation on life, and living. I need to read Seethaler’s book The Tobacconist soon.
• More info: Globe & Mail Review

Azerbaijan:  Ali and Nino | Kurban Said

• Why I chose it: Given very limited availability of books from Azerbaijan in English, I was grateful for the recommendation by Ann Morgan on her blog for this one.
• My thoughts: While I found the book’s style overwrought at times, I appreciated the perspective it provides on a part of the world I know very little about, the cultural tensions between East and West, and the competing influences of Russia and Iran.

Bahamas: Pepperpot (story collection)

• Why I chose it: Ann Morgan wrote about this pan-Caribbean story collection, and it was one of the few works I could find from the Bahamas. I also looked forward to taking a break from novels to read a few short stories. .
• My thoughts: The story ‘Mango Summer’ by Janice-Lynn Mather is haunting.

Bahrain: Chronicles of Majnun Layla and Selected Poems | Qassim Haddid

• Why I chose it: This was a recommendation via Twitter by M. Lynx  Qualey (@arablit).
• My thoughts: This was a challenging read for me, as the main poem builds on a legend that I’m not familiar with. Nevertheless, these highly narrative poems are often arrestingly beautiful in their language. It made apparent how difficult it can be to bridge the cultural gap between Easter and Western traditions. I’m glad I made the attempt, and grateful for the work of translators everywhere.
• More info: Check out https://arablit.org/

Bangladesh: The Good Muslim | Tahmima Anam 

• Why I chose it: I’ve meant to read Anam ever since her first book, The Golden Age, was published to excellent reviews and won the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize. This book is the second in a trilogy of sorts. The final book, The Bones of Grace, was just published.
• My thoughts: I loved this book. Set in the aftermath of Bangladesh’s war of independence in 1971, it depicts the competing forces – both religious and political -of a nation in turmoil through the lives of two siblings. It is exquisitely written, its characters are interesting and nuanced, and the plot picks up momentum towards a thrilling conclusion. Highly recommended.
• More info: Guardian review

Barbados: Pepperpot (story collection)

• Why I chose it: Ann Morgan wrote about this pan-Caribbean story collection, and it was one of the few works I could find from Barbados.
• My thoughts: The story ‘And the Virgin’s Name was Leah’ by Heather Barker is devastating.

Belarus: Wave of Terror | Theodore Odrach

• Why I chose it: In searching for novels from Belarus, I uncovered this book, which was published in 2008 thanks to the translation work of the author’s daughter, Erma Odrach. There is a Canadian connection as Theodore Odrach emigrated to Canada and lived in Toronto. I was intrigued by the reviews of the book that indicated it was based on first-hand accounts of living through Soviet occupation in World War II.  As an aside, It is ironic that I chose this book for Belarus – the book makes fun of the fact that Russia chooses arbitrarily to make the town part of the republic of Belarus, even though it is culturally tied to Ukraine, and people only speak Ukrainian.
• My thoughts: This book, while somewhat uneven, is fascinating as it looks at the very beginning of Soviet totalitarian state, and the impact on the lives of ordinary people. The novel has many farcical scenes as people learn how to adapt to new Soviet occupation, yet there is an underlying feeling of dread given what we know about Stalin and the rise of the USSR. The book also feel topical given the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine and the conflict there.

Belgium: Fear and Trembling | Amélie Nothomb

• Why I chose it: I had heard about Nothomb and was intrigued by her work. This book won the Grand Prix du roman de l’Académie française so it seemed like a good place to start. Although Nothomb was born in Belgium, she grew up in Japan, and the book is set in Japan. So perhaps this wasn’t the best choice for Belgium, but on the other hand this just reflects the global movement of people between countries and cultures that is so interesting
• My thoughts: The book is tautly written, and is both wryly funny and disturbing. While the book is very much about the cultural challenges of a European navigating Japanese corporate culture, it seems to me that it also speaks to the sexism that women face in the workplace, and the way that bureaucracies that become both absurd and soul-destroying. Highly recommend this one.

Belize:  On Heroes, Lizards and Passion  Zoila Ellis

The short stories here provide a diverse picture of Belizean society, from rural life to the diaspora in New York City. Read Ann Morgan’s summary.

Also read Pepperpot (story collection): Ann Morgan wrote about this pan-Caribbean story collection, and it was one of the few works I could find from Barbados. The story ‘And the Virgin’s Name was Leah’ by Heather Barker is devastating.

Benin: As She Was Discovering Tigony | Olympe Bhely-Quenum

I was looking forward to reading this one. I had read about Bhely-Quenum being one of the foremost 20th-century authors from Benin, and back in January learned that this book, first published in French in 2000, would be available soon in May in English from Michigan University Press. Waterloo Library ordered it.

In the end though, I was disappointed. Whether due to original writing or the translation, the language is stilted, the dialogue unnatural. It feels like the author has a specific point to make – the exploitation of post-colonial Africa by multinational corporations – and so puts together a story to make this point. The book never came alive for me. I am nevertheless grateful for translators and publishers for making books available in English, and libraries for adding them to their collection.

Bhutan: Tales in Colour | Kunzang Choden

• Why I chose it: Choden is apparently the first person from Bhutanto write in English. Her first novel, The Circle of Karma, is probably her best known book but I decided to read her most recent one.
• My thoughts: This is a wonderful book of connected short stories that reveal the lives of women in a changing world and modern civilization and urbanization encroach on rural Bhutan. This is part of the world I know nothing about, and I enjoyed the gentle, empathetic approach that Choden takes to her characters.

Bolivia:  Turing’s Delirium | Edmundo Paz Soldán 

• Why I chose it: A cursory search on Bolivian literature surfaced Soldán as one of the leading modern writers. I was intrigued by this book in particular as it was described as sci-fi thriller.
• My thoughts: Given that this book was written in 2002, it is astonishing how contemporary it feels.  The book has the pacing of a thriller, while looking dictatorship and its consequences, the impact of globalization and the anti-globalization movement, virtual reality, cyber terrorism (and counter-terrorism), anti-government hackers, not to mention a lot of cryptography history folded in as well. Astonishing that this book was written so many years before wikileaks. Just a joy to read.  Highly recommend this one. I will be reading many more of Soldán’s books in the future.

Bosnia & Herzogivina: The Lazarus Project | Aleksandar Hemon

• Why I chose it: I somehow missed this book when it was published in 2008, despite reviews in the NY Times Book Review and The Guardian. Its subject seemed intriguing.
• My thoughts: The book is interesting when it explores the anarchist movement and anti-Semitism in early 20th-century America. I wish the book had spent more time on that story. Instead, the novel feels largely like a failure as it attempts to intertwine that story with a present-day story of a writer retracing that history and his own roots in Bosnia. Often it feels like Hemon is trying too hard to pull the strands of the story together. Ultimately an interesting disappointment.

Botswana: Far and Beyon’ | Unity Dow

• Why I chose it: There are not that many Botswana books available in English, and I had no interest in rereading the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series. I was intrigued by the biography of Unity Dow, who is not only an author but has been a human rights activist, first female High Court judge, and now a government minister.
• My thoughts: This is Unity Dow’s first novel but what it lacks in literary sophistication, it makes up for in heartfelt exploration of women’s rights, AIDS, and human rights activism in Botswana.

Brazil: Crow Blue | Adriana Lisboa

• Why I chose it: I found Lisboa on a list of top contemporary writers in Brazil, and this was one of her few books to be available in English. A  brief review on The Guardian made me want to read the book anymore.
• My thoughts: This is one of my favourite books so far. The main character, a 13-year old girl, is exceptionally well drawn and her narration is pitch-perfect. I loved how it deftly explores the experience of people moving between cultures and languages, trying to find family and and develop their own sense of identity. In addition the main story of a girl trying to find her father in the US, there is a compelling back story set in the Communist revolution in Brazil in the 1970s. Highly recommended!

Brunei Darussalam: Eventually | Amir Falique

• Why I chose it: Honestly, there just are not many books from Brunei available in English.
• My thoughts: This is a fun, quick read. No real literary value.

Bulgaria: East of the West | Miroslav Penkov 

• Why I chose it: A quick search uncovered this book, which was the first by Penkov, and largely positive reviews.
• My thoughts: I really enjoyed this collection of short stories, which explore Bulgaria in various time periods and the impact of political changes on ordinary people, both in Bulgaria and among those who have left for the US. My favourites are ‘East of the West’, ‘Buying Lenin’, and ‘A Picture with Yuki’. Highly recommended.

Burkina Faso: The Parachute Drop| Norbert Zongo 

This is a fierce book that looks at tyranny and corruption in a fictional West African nation. It is made all the more powerful by its backstory — the author was a respected journalist and outspoken critic of corruption in Burkina Faso, and was killed in a car bombing in 1998 that almost certainly carried out by the Burkina Faso government. Recommended. Read Ann Morgan’s blog entry on this book here. And buy it from Africa World Press.

Burundi: Weep Not, Refugee | Marie-Therese Toyi

I discovered this one on Ann Morgan’s list, and given the current refugee crisis, it felt very timely. In many ways this feels more like a polemic than a literary novel. I found the episodic narrative sometimes a bit hard to follow. Nevertheless, it shows a world that many of us cannot even imagine through the eyes of people struggling to survive and build a future for themselves.

Cabo Verde: The Last Will & Testament of Senor da Silva | Germano Almeida

This is one of the few books available in English from Cabo Verde, suggested by Ann Morgan on her blog). This is a charming, funny, and poignant story of a man who is both more and less than he seems. The conceit is clever – the story unfolds through the will that the man leaves and is read out after his death, slowly working backwards to reveal himself.

Cambodia: In the Shadow of the Banyan Tree | Vaddey Ratner

• Why I chose it: This novel received excellent reviews from the The Guardian and The NY Times.
• My thoughts: It is impressive that this beautifully written novel is Ratner’s first. It tells the story from a child’s perspective of the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia in the 1970s. The book provides a clear window into the horrors of that time, offset by a hopeful view on the resilience of human beings to survive. At the heart of the novel is the narrator’s relationship with her father, a poet, and the power of stories to heal and sustain. I highly recommend this book!

Cameroon: How To Cook Your Husband the African Way | Calixthe Beyala

• Why I chose it: Beyala, a Cameroonian-French writer, has won several prestigious awards. This particular novel was available in translation on my Kindle.
• My thoughts: This is a comical, irreverent novel that explores the experience of an African woman living in France.

Canada: Indian Horse | Richard Wagamese

• Why I chose it: Of course being Canadian I’ve read many, many books by Canadian authors. But I’m ashamed that I’ve read very few recently by indigenous Canadians aside from The Orenda (which I highly recommend). I tweeted CBC Books for help, and the pointed me to this excellent list of books from Indigenous Book Club Month.
• My thoughts: I loved this book. An Ojibway man, Indian Horse, tells his life story – and through it, we learn of the horrors of the residential school system, the systemic and casual racism facing indigenous peoples in Canada, the courage required to overcome. The voice of Indian Horse rings true throughout the book to the point where you really feel like he is sitting across from you as he tells his story. This should be required reading for every Canadian.

Central African Republic: Daba’s Travels from Ouadda to Bangui | Pierre Makombo Bamoté

First published in 1966 and translated into English in 1970, this remains one of the very few books from Central African Republic available in English. I discovered it through Ann Morgan’s blog. It provides a fascinating glimpse into life in CAR shortly after it gained independence from France in 1960, through the eyes of a young boy.

As Ann Morgan points out, the book has a distinctly nostalgic feel. This nostalgia rings somewhat false to me – it seems to gloss over both the hardship of traditional life and the impact of colonialism. It is certainly sad knowing what we know now about the history of CAR in the past several decades to the present day.

Chad: Told by Starlight in Chad | Joseph Brahim Seid

Romanticized series of short stories that ultimately fall flat. Ann Morgan writes a good review here.

Chile: Seeing Red | Lina Meruane

• Why I chose it: This web site listed Meruane on a list of contemporary authors.
• My thoughts: Intriguing, stylistically inventive autobiographical novel. Good reviews at World Literature Today and LA Times.

China: Four Books |  Yian Lianke

• Why I chose it: Shortlisted for Man Booker International Prize
• My thoughts: A subversive masterpiece of brilliant, scathing satire.

Colombia: Sound of Things Falling | Juan Gabriel Vásquez 

My thoughts: A compelling page-turner that is also a fascinating look at the legacy of Pablo Escobar and the drug trade, and a ‘deep meditation on fate and death’ (Edmund White in NY Times Book Review, Aug 1 2013).

Congo: Johnny Mad Dog  | Emmanuel Dongala

My thoughts: Bleak, terrifying look at the aftermath of a coup in a West African country. What sets the book apart is its dual narration, alternating between two 16 year-olds, one boy and one girl, in very distinct voices. Scenes of Western embassies closing their gates struck a chord in the current political debate in US and Europe on refugees. See this excellent review in NY Times.

Comoros: The Kafir of Karthala | Mohammed Toihiri 

Ann Morgan (whose own blog has been an inspiration throughout my reading journey) graciously sent me a PDF of this unpublished translation with permission from the translator. A funny, interesting book that I feel grateful to have been able to read. Read Ann Morgan’s review.

Cote d’Ivoire: Allah is not Obliged | Ahmadou Kourouma

This book is narrated by a 10-year old child soldier during the civil wars of Liberia and Sierra Leone in the 1990s. Unlike a book like Johnny Mad Dog (see listing for Congo above), the outlook of the book is fundamentally bleak, almost nihilistic. There is no hopeful ending here. Everyone is power-hungry, selfish and exploitative. Read this review at the excellent site Words Without Borders.

Croatia: Girl At War | Sara Novic 

A harrowing, yet hopeful look at the Yugoslavian civil war in the early 1990s and its last effect on children. The first section, narrated by a 10 year-old girl watching her world fall apart, is particularly compelling. War seems to be most clearly viewed through the eyes of children.

Cuba: Dancing to ‘Almendra’ | Mayra Montero

This novel has a great historical setting, Havana in pre-revolutionary Cuba. Despite this, and some excellent writing in the noir vein, I couldn’t really get into this novel. The gangster intrigue seemed stale and unoriginal.

Cyprus: Gregory And Other Stories | Panos Ioannides

An interesting collection of stories and novellas that cover a wide range of time periods and subjects. Some stories, like Gregory and The Suitcase, feel like classics. Others I didn’t enjoy at all. Nevertheless, a compelling literary tour of Cyprus.

Czech Republic: Judge on Trial | Ivan Klima

Ashamed to say I had not heard of Klima until researching Czech authors. I’ve read Milan Kundera. Klima, who won the Franz Kafka prize, is an equally gifted writer with a very different style.

This book is a long, powerful meditation on the meaning of freedom. It deftly intersects the personal crises of the middle-aged central character with the political crises of the Czech Republic after the Prague Spring of 1968. It is a fascinating look behind the Iron Curtain at those who lived and worked in the Communist regime.

Check out this review.

Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea): The Accusation | ‘Bandi’

The book, recently published by Anansi Press, has a backstory almost as compelling as the stories themselves. It was written primarily in the early 1990s by a writer in North Korea only under the pseudonym ‘Bandi’. Only in 2017 was the book smuggled out of the country for publication, and great personal risk not only to the author but to several others as well. It is apparently the only book to have come out of North Korea from a writer still living there.

The stories themselves offer a fascinating window into life under Kim Il-sung’s secretive totalitarian regime. It is harshly critical of the regime and its cruel (and often absurd) impact on the lives of citizens. In this translation by  Deborah Smith (who also translated The Vegetarian), the writing is clear and precise.

Read this one!

Democratic Republic of the Congo: Tram 83 | Fiston Mwanza Mujila

This book, translated by Roland Glasser and published by Deep Vellum Press, is a crazy, beautiful view into urban life in the Congo. Set in a mining town, it follows the lives of  writers, prostitutes, drug dealers struggling to survive. It manages to find a riotous beauty in these characters and their escapades, while offering a harsh critique of the exploitation of resources and people. It was longlisted for the Man Booker International Prize in 2016.

You can read an excerpt here.

Denmark: Of Darkness | Josefine Klougart

Recently published by the stellar Deep Vellum Press, this is the latest book by Klougart who is a young postmodern writer. It is completely different from any book I’ve read. As the publisher says:”Klougart mixes prose, lyric essay, drama, poetry, and images to meditate on death and loss through breathtaking, moving, apocalyptic writing”. It is a very challenging read, especially for someone more used to linear narrative novels.I sometimes struggled to understand it. Nevertheless, this translation by Martin Aitken has contains moments of beautiful and astonishing writing. It left my head spinning. It is a book I want to return to and reread (something I almost never do).

You can read excerpts here.

Djibouti: Passage of Tears |Abdourahman Waberi

This is fascinating book blends multiple genres: political thriller, spy novel, travelogue.

Dominica: Wide Sargasso Sea | Jean Rhys

Normally I’ve been trying to read contemporary fiction. In this case however, I decided to read this classic novel which for some reason I had never read before. Both a prequel and a rewriting of Jane Eyre, the book tells the back story of Bertha Mason, the ‘madwoman in the attic’. This is a brilliant novel. Its shifting narrations, changes in tense, and foreboding tone speak to the oppression of people by others throughout history — slavery, colonialism, racism, patriarchy. If you haven’t read this book, you should.

Dominican Republic: This is How You Lose Her | Junot Díaz

This is a book of connected short stories by the author most famous for his Pulitzer-prize winning novel The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. The stories, set mostly in the US, revolve around the romantic and familial relationships of the main character, ‘Yunior’. While there’s no way for me to say for sure, the narrator’s voice feels authentic. It is certainly highly readable, funny, and heart-wrenching. Highly recommended.

Ecuador: Contemporary Ecuadorian Short Stories | Vladimiro Rivas, editor

As far as I can recall, I’ve never read anything by an Ecuadorian writer. So this book provides a perfect introduction to a whole range of authors writing in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Each of the 27 stories in the collection is preceded by a brief introduction covering the author’s biography and works. This is an eclectic collection of stories covering a broad range of styles. Recommended.

Ecuatorial Guinea: Shadows of your Black Memory | Donato Ndongo

Set during the final years of Spanish colonial rule, this book looks at the conflict between traditional and colonial culture and religion and how it affects families and individuals.

Egypt: The Queue| Basma Aziz

I was put onto this book through the magic of Twitter, as I asked M. Lynx Qualey (@arablit) for recommendations, who then connected me to translator Lissie Jaquette (@lissiejaquette). Sometimes the Internet works for good!

This debut novel by Basma Abdel Aziz is published by Melville House. It is both a dystopian surrealist novel and a very real (and critical) look at life in the aftermath of Arab Spring and the rise of  authoritarianism. This is writing as political protest, and deserves wide readership.

Read this review from the Globe & Mail.

El Salvador: Senselessness | Horacio Castellanos Moya

• This is a stylistically inventive novel that explores the terrible violence of El Salvador in the 1980s through the eyes of a sex-obsessed, paranoid, alcoholic anti-hero. Highly recommended.

Eritrea: The Consequences of Love | Sulaiman Addonia 

I read about this book on Ann Morgan’s blog. Happily, it was available at my local library so picked it up. This is the first novel by Addonia, and you can tell. It is an earnest love story, with some arresting scenes marred by overwrought language. Nevertheless, it sheds a light into life in Saudi Arabia from the perspective of Eritrean refugees who fled there during Eritrea-Ethiopia war. Worth reading.

Estonia – The Beauty of History | Viivi Luik 

This book, written in the early 1990s as the Iron Curtain fell and Estonia regained independence, is set a generation earlier in 1968 as change sweeps Eastern Europe with the Prague Spring and its repression by the Soviet Union. Unsettled by the events happening around her, the heroine grapples with past, present and future to make sense of things. The novel is written in a poetic, surrealist style that I often found difficult to follow. Nevertheless, it provides a harrowing  impression of life under occupation, during a time of political uncertainty and upheaval. See also Ann Morgan’s blog entry on this book.

Ethiopia: All Our Names | Dinaw Mengestu 

I had heard about Mengestu as a young up-and-coming writer, but had not yet read him. I was not disappointed. This novel, Mengestu’s third, brilliantly intertwines the stories, told by different narrators, of two friends caught in start of civil war in Uganda with a love story in the US.  Together these stories tell of devotion and deception, love and loss. The writing is exceptional – understated and powerful. It is a bit of a stretch perhaps to have read this book for Ethiopia – the book alternates between US and Uganda, and Mengestu came from Ethiopia as a child to the US. Nevertheless, this is an excellent book that I highly recommended.

Fiji – Tales of the Tikongs | Epeli Hau’ofa 

This short collection of tales provides a small window into life in the South Pacific in the early days of independence. While the over tone is light-hearted, the stories are often also quite biting, even bitter, towards the loss of culture and self-determination in the pursuit of wealth.

Finland:  The Healer | Antti Tuomainen

This is an excellent mystery-thriller, made more interesting by being set in a near-future world beset by environmental apocalypse. Recommended!

France: Eyes Full of Empty | Jeremie Guez 

This is an excellent addition to contemporary noir. Like the best noir, it uses a standard mystery plot to take a critical look at society – in this case France divided by race and class. The main character, Idir, is both flawed and likeable. Loved this book. It is the first by Guez to be translated into English. Can’t wait for more!

Gabon: The Moonlight Tales | Edna Merey Apinda

This is a charming collection of fables that I discovered thanks to the Map World Literature blog. While ostensibly written for children, the inclusion of concepts like infidelity and war hints at further depths.

The Gambia: Reading the Ceiling | Dayo Forster

This is an interesting book that explores three very different paths that one woman’s life can take. While the conceit is over-used – think the movie Sliding Doors – it allows Forster to explore the choices that face a girl in a girl in this part of the world, and consider what it means to live a good life.

Georgia: Adibas | Zaza Burchuladze

This is a deeply cynical novel about life in consumerist society. While Russia invades Georgia and war rages, the narrator is mostly concerned with sex, drugs, and buying knock-off stuff at a good price. While the book is often quite inventive and sometimes funny, I ultimately found the whole thing a bit tedious. This short novel was still too long for me.

Germany: The City of Dreaming Books | Walter Moers

This is a very bookish fantasy about the power of books and creativity. I’m not a fan of the fantasy genre, and while I tried to keep an open mind, I found its style cloying. I’m sure others would find it fun and inventive – and maybe I would too at a different time.

Ghana: Ghana Must Go | Taiye Selasi

This book selection stretches my criteria past the breaking point: although the book is partly set in Ghana, the author was born in London, England from Nigerian and Ghanaian parents. But rules are made to be broken right? I’m glad I did this in this case.

It is hard to believe that this is Selasi’s first novel. Much more experienced authors would have trouble delivering on a story this ambitious. The novel starts at the end – with the death of a father – and then traces the lives of his Ghanaian family as his children gather for the funeral. Interestingly, while this NY Times review calls the first section ‘slow’ it was my favourite of the three as the most focused and compelling. This is a worthy addition to many other ‘immigrant’ stories that have been written over the past several years. Highly recommended. Read this excellent review in The Guardian.

Greece: Ersi Sotiropoulos  Landscape with Dog 

This is an exceptional collection of short stories. With precise, poetic language the stories explore the many ways in which people misunderstand and hurt one another. Every moment feels fraught with the tension, and the threat of violence or danger lurks just beneath the surface. Highly recommended.

Grenada: Merle Collins The Ladies are Upstairs

A strong collection of linked short stories following the life of Doux on the fictional Caribbean island of Paz (presumably a stand-in for Grenada). Most of the stories are quite short and simple but taken together provide a fascinating view into a certain time and place with concerns that echo in the present.

Guatemala: The Polish Boxer | Eduardo Halfon

A beautiful short novel – almost a set of connected stories – that offer encounters and observations that explore how people search to make sense of their lives, the ways in which literature and reality intersect and inform each other, and the mystery of the human experience. Highly recommended.

Guinea: The Radiance of the King | Camara Laye 

A literary classic from colonial period of Africa. The novel, which follows the journey of a white man who arrives alone and penniless in an unnamed African country, cleverly turns the stereotypes of the ‘white man in Africa’ inside out. Absurd, funny, and angry. High recommended.

Guinea Bissau: The Ultimate Tragedy | Abdulai Sila 

This novel, the first to be translated into English from Guinea Bissau, provides a fascinating window into the period towards the end of Portuguese colonial rule.

Guyana: Suspended Sentences | Mark McWatt 

This is an interesting collection of short stories. I found the premise – a supposedly ‘found’ collection of stories by various writers who used to be friends – unnecessary. The stories are excellent in their own right. Standouts for me are “Uncle Umberto’s Slippers”, “Two Boys Names Basil”, and the gothic “Alma Fordyce and the Bakoo”. Recommended.

Haiti: The Return | Dany Laferrière

This autobiographical novel, in a mix of poetry and prose, traces return of the author from Canada to Haiti on the death of his father. This is a compelling meditation on relationships between fathers and sons, relationships between people and their countries, life in exile.

Honduras: Never Through Miami | Roberto Quesada 

A short, comic novel about new immigrants in New York. Irreverent and funny.

Hungary: War and War | László Krasznahorkai

A very challenging novel, often frustratingly so. Sentences go on for pages and pages, in loops that somehow mirror human consciousness. The whole book invokes a feeling of mounting anxiety and disorientation. Not for the faint of heart.

Iceland: Heaven and Hell | Jón Kalman Stefánsoon

I discovered this author thanks to his more recent book, Fish Have No Feet, being longlisted for the Man Booker International Prize in 2017. Heaven and Hell is a beautifully written novel set in mid 19th-century Iceland. It follows the life of a character known only as The Boy. This is an adventure story, a coming-of-age story, and a meditation on life. It has as very unique style, reminiscent of Icelandic sagas, told from the perspective of a god-like narrator. Its highly poetic language creates an intense, haunting effect. This is the first book in a trilogy and I’ll be sure to read the others. Highly recommended

India:  Selection Day | Aravind Adiga 

This is most recent novel from the author most known for The White Tiger, which won the Man Booker Prize in 2008. This is an incisive look at contemporary India and the class divide. While I know nothing about cricket, as someone living in hockey-obsessed Canada, I had no problem understanding a father obsessively pinning all his hopes for his sons’ future on sport. While the plot fell apart for me a bit towards the end, overall I enjoyed the book.

Indonesia: Vengeance is Mine, All Others Pay Cash | Eda Kurniawan

Despite the bad title, this book is a fierce, rollicking, fun book. It reads in part like a script for an action movie, with car chases, fights, and sex. It is often very funny. And yet underlying everything is an angry commentary on misogyny and sexual violence. Recommended.

Iran: The Colonel | Mahmoud Dowlatabadi

This fascinating, complex novel looks at contemporary Iran through the eyes of a former soldier and his children, who are all involved in various sides of the political struggles. It is a biting commentary on the failures and cynical compromises of the political left since the Iranian Revolution. The book make me realize how little I understand about the recent political history of Iran, and how much is lost in the simplified news bites we get in Western media. Highly recommended.

Iraq: 100+ Hassan Blasim (editor)

This is a short story collection with an interesting premise: writers were asked to imagine Iraq 100 years after the US invasion in 2003. The result is an eclectic mix of stories covering multiple genres, from science fiction to magic realism, from dystopian hell to something more hopeful. Not all of the stories quite work, and some of them are hard to follow for someone not familiar with the country. Nevertheless, this is a fascinating collection by many writers who deserve a wider audience. Recommended.

Ireland: The Trespasser | Tana French 

This is one of the best mysteries I’ve read in a long time. It is exquisitely written, and its characters – especially the main character – are perfectly drawn. If you like well-written, character-driven mysteries, I highly recommend this one!

Israel: A Horse Walks Into a Bar | David Grossman 

This book was the winner of the Man Booker Prize International in 2017. In it, a comic delivers a stand-up routine to an audience that includes several people he new in childhood. What starts as a fairly typical, funny comedy routine turns into something else. A brilliant tour-de-force. Highly recommended.

Italy: Carte Blanche | Carlo Lucarelli

Like all great crime novels, this book uses a crime mystery to explore complex themes of society, politics, and relationships. This is given extra weight here as the novel is set in Italy in 1943, in the dying days of the Fascist government. Thanks to the site Three Monkeys Online for pointing me to this one. Read their review here. I’ve read many international crime novels, and this ranks as one of the best. Highly recommended.

Jamaica: Augustown | Kei Miller 

This short novel contains so much. Through the history of one community in Jamaica (Augustown, based on the real town of August Town), Kei Miller explores race, class, and the power of myth and storytelling to bind us together – or pull us apart. Exceptional writing and characterization make this book, while harrowing, also a pure joy to read. Most highly recommended.

Japan: A Midsummer’s Equation | Keigo Higashino

An excellent psychological mystery from one of Japan’s best-selling writers. Fantastic work by the translator (Alexander O. Smith) – it reads as though written in English. If you enjoy well-written, complex mysteries with lots of plot twists and interesting characters, you’ll like this one. Highly recommended.

Jordan: All the Battles | Ma’n Abu Taleb 

This is a highly readable and enjoyable book. Powered by lean and muscular prose, this novel tells the story of a man in his late 20s who discovers boxing and searches for a meaningful life. Highly recommended!

Kazakhstan: Abai (Book 2) | Mukhtar Auezov

This four-book epic, written in mid-20th century, tells the biography of the famous Kazakh poet and composer. While a bit difficult to read for someone unfamiliar with the country or the time period, it shows interesting aspects of this nation during the time of the tsars.

Kenya: Some Day I Will Write About This Place | Binyavanga Wainaina

An interesting, loosely structured coming-of-age story that gets stronger as it goes along. It ends with incisive commentary on increasing tribalism as elections approach. Fascinating.

Kuwait: The Bamboo Stalk | Saud Alsanousi

Winner of the International Prize for Arabic Fiction, this is a highly readable novel that explores one man’s search for identity and belonging. The narrator is born in Kuwait to a Filipino mother (who is working as a maid) and a wealthy Kuwaiti. He grows up in the Philippines, always dreaming of renewing his ties to his father in Kuwait. When he finally returns he finds that things are more complicated than he expected. Sometimes this novel is a bit obvious in its focus on dual identities, and the narrator’s self-pity is grating at times. Nevertheless, an engaging an interesting novel. Recommended.

Kyrgyzstan: The Day Lasts More Than a Hundred Years | Chingiz Aitmatov

This is a really interesting and surprising book. Written at the height of the cold war in 1980, it weaves together historical and science fiction to take a critical look at the  boundaries between East and West, tradition  and progress. In the main plot line, a Kazakh man is traveling to bury an old friend following Muslim traditions. Along the way, he reminisces about folk tales from the region and so widens the historical perspective. And then there is a strange science fiction tale of humanity making extraterrestrial contact for the first time.

Laos: Mother’s Beloved: Stories from Laos |Outhine Bounyavong

An interesting collection of stories, apparently the first published in English, that explores a country undergoing rapid modernization.

Latvia: Life Stories | Nora Ikstena

A wonderful collection of contemporary short stories, crackling with understated intensity. Favourites are “Still Life with Death”, “Nage”, “The White Handkerchief”.

Lebanon: The American Quarter | Jabbour Douaihy 

This is a nuanced and deeply affecting novel that explores several lives that intertwine in this declining neighbourhood of Tripoli. Ably translated by Paula Haydar. Highly recommended.

Lesotho: Basali!: Stories by and about women in Lesotho | K Limakatso Kendall, editor

An interesting collection of stories that explore the lives of women in this small landlocked country. Some of the stories were written by women in Lesotho, and others were written down from oral tellings.

Liberia: This Child Will Be Great| Ellen Johnson Sirleaf 

A fascinating political memoir by the woman who became president of Liberia.

Lithuania: Breathing Into Marble | Laura Sintija Černiauskaitė

A very cool short novel. Dense, sensual prose builds a feeling of menace that ends in a devastating conclusion. Not an easy read but worth the effort. Highly recommended. Read this review from the fine web site World Literature Today.

Lybia: The Return | Hisham Matar 

A brilliant memoir that feels like many books in one: political polemic, travelogue, family history. The author explores the recent history of Libya through his tireless search for the fate of his father. This thoughtful, beautifully written book is by turns angry, sad, and hopeful. Destined to be a classic. Highly, highly recommended. Thanks to M Lynx Qualey for pointing me to this one. Follow her blog Arabic Literature in English.

Macedonia: Homunculus | Alexsandar Prokopiev

As the publisher Istros Books says, these are ‘fairy tales for adults’. Intriguing and magical stories.

Madagascar: Voices from Madagascar (Bourgeacq & Ramorasoa, editors)

An interesting anthology of short stories (and poetry) from Madagascar, in both English and French. A good example of how hard it is for writers to get their work published – much less translated into English – and the importance of efforts like this to make work available more widely.

Malawi: Imagine Africa 500 | Anthology

This is an interesting anthology of sci-fi stories that explore different possible futures for Africa. Five hundred years is a bit too far on the horizon in my view, but nevertheless there are many interesting stories here. Scenarios range from the dystopian – a contintent riven by war and climate change – to the optimistic – a contintent that has come into its own to lead the world. Worth reading!

Maldives: Folk Tales of the Maldives

A fascinating collection of folk tales from the Maldives, recorded from oral tellings over many years. A critical record of a way of life quickly disappearing.

Malaysia: The Garden of Evening Mists | Tan Twan Eng 

This finely written, elegant book takes place in the aftermath of Japanese invasion of Malaysia in World War II. Highly recommended.

Mali: The Fortunes of Wangrin | Amadou Hampâté Bâ

This is a fascinating book that follows the life of Wangrin as he learns to scheme his way within the colonial structures. I found the style somewhat challenging – it is written in a declarative style of an elder in an oral tradition, rather than a typical Western novel. Read this excellent review by Caryl Phillips in the New York Times.

Malta:  The Misfit | Oliver Friggieri

This is a highly unlikable book. It tells the story of a young man struggling with his homosexuality and loneliness. With its detached tone, it seems to want to emulate the existentialist writing of Camus. But the writer fails to develop our empathy for the main character, and at the end even seems to take a critical, snide approach to him. Not recommended.

Marshall Islands: Marshall Islands Legends and Stories | Daniel A. Kelin II 

What a wonderful book. Kelin records fifty stories from storytellers across the islands, along with brief biographies. The stories include a range of legends and magical tales and are often hilarious. Beyond the stories, what comes through this book is the respect that Kelin has for the storytellers and the culture of the Marshall Islands.

Mauritius: Eve Out of Her Ruins | Ananda Devi 

A highly readable book about a group of teenagers living in poverty in the shadow of Mauritian tourism. Dynamic language in translation, mixing Creole with French. Highly recommend this one.

Mauritania: The Desert And The Drum | Mbarek Ould Beyrouk  

Fascinating view into Bedouin culture through the eyes of a girl who feels from her camp. Read Ann Morgan’s review here.

Mexico: Before | Carmen Boullosa 

Another interesting read from Texas publisher Deep Vellum Press. This is an early novella by someone who has since (I understand) become one of Mexico’s leading writers. This is a difficult book to follow – it often feels more like a series of loosely connected vignettes than a complete story. Nevertheless, it is stylistically interesting enough for me to want to read more of Boullosa’s work.

Micronesia: Melal: A Novel of the Pacific | Robert Barclay

An interesting, if ultimately unsatisfying, novel that explores the lives of Marshallese living under US occupation. The story is told in two parallel narratives: one follows two boys and their  father  as they struggle in their own ways against American authority while the other weaves in mythological characters. Recommended.

Moldova: The Good Life Elsewhere | Valadimir Lorchenkov 

A hilarious, absurd tale of citizens of the small, poor country of Moldova yearning for a chance at a new life in Italy. While funny, it is also dark and deeply cynical. I recommend it – but read at your own risk! Impressed with the books coming out of New Vessel Press – see also The Year of the Comet and Oblivion.

Monaco: Loser Takes All | Graham Greene 

This feels like cheating, but I could not find any books written by authors in Monaco available in English. This is of course a comic masterpiece.

Mongolia: The Blue Sky | Galsan Tschinag  

This autobiography, the first in a trilogy, tells the story of the author’s childhood  living with this nomadic shepherd family in western Mongolia in the 1940s. Its depiction of the difficult but beautiful life in nature, with hints of looming modernity, is deeply affecting. Simply wonderful storytelling. Highly recommended.

Montenegro:  The Coming | Andrej Nikolaidis

This is a gripping novel that is at once a hardboiled detective fiction, apocalyptic science fiction, and historical fiction. An interesting read, full of complexity. Also led me to discover publisher Istros Books – check them out!

Morocco: Another Morocco | Abdellah Taïa 

This is an exceptional collection of short stories that collects stories from the writer’s first two books. As this LitHub review says: “These are stories of life in a working-class Moroccan family, of a writer’s affair with language, & much more.” Highly recommended.

Mozambique: The Tuner of Silences | Mia Couto 

This brilliant novel follows the story of a boy trying to reconstruct his family history after being closed off in a former big-game park with his father, brother, uncle and a servant for most of his life. This is a strange, beautiful book written in poetic sometimes hypnotic language. It reminds me a bit of Cormac McCarthy with its bleak portrayal of a kind of post-apocalyptic world. Buy this book from Biblioasis. Highly, highly recommended.

Myanmar: Smile as they Bow | Myanmar: Nu Yi Inwa 

Set in the Taungbyon Festival in Myanmar, the book tells the story of spirit mediums who claim to communicate with nats (spirits). Daisy Bond is a larger-than-life character whose relationship with a much younger man is put to the test.  Read Ann Morgan’s excellent description on her blog. The author, renowned in her own country, was the first to be translated into English. This is a funny, touching book. Highly recommended.

Namibia: Mukwahepo Women Soldier Mother | Ellen Ndeshi Namhila. 

The powerful life story of an ordinary woman who lived and survived the Namibian struggle for independence, and the poverty and isolation she faced after her return to her country. Vital reporting by author Namhila.

Nauru: I Have Seen the Moon: Reflections on Nauru | Bron Williams

In this autobiography, the author reflects on her time working in the Australian off-shore refugee center on the tiny Pacific island of Nauru. This is a fairly unpolished, sometimes disjointed, work that is sometimes thoughtful and other times cringingly naive.

Nepal: Arresting God in Kathmandu | Samrat Upadhyay

This is an interesting, if uneven, collection of short stories. The writer grew up in Nepal and moved to the US when he was 21, where he has lived ever since. He writes in English. This is first published book.  My favourite stories here are ‘The Cooking Poet’ and ‘This World’. I’d like to read Upadhyay’s more recent work to see how his writing has matured.

Netherlands: Tench | Inge Schilperoord

Well. What to say about this book? I was expecting a crime novel, but this is really more of a psychological thriller that explores the internal struggle of a pedophile. The tension increases inexorably as the novel progresses to an almost unbearable point. Exceptionally well executed. Not recommended for parents with young kids.

New  Zealand: Collected Stories | Patricia Grace

Grace, the first Maori woman to publish fiction, and should be mandatory reading for everyone. This book brings together her first three short story collections. These highly readable stories drop you right into Maori culture and a society in transition. The gentle prose belies and and underlying fierceness.

Nicaragua: The Country Under My Skin | Gioconda Belli

A fascinating memoir by a woman who helped the Sandinistas in the Nicaraguan revolution of the late 1970s and early 1980s. It provides a glimpse into the world of citizens as they choose to oppose a dictatorship and the implications of that choice. It also tells a highly personal story a woman trying to find lasting happiness and meaning in her life. Recommended.

Niger: The Epic of Askia Mohammed

This is a fascinating piece of oral history: an epic recorded and translated word-for-word from the narration of Nouhou Malio, a griot (West African storyteller), that tells the story of the Songhay Empire in late 15th-century. Editor Thomas Hale does an admirable job at providing context and guide for the plot.

Nigeria: Americanah | Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Finally reading this acclaimed book. Like so many of the books I’ve read on this quest, it looks at the life between and across cultures. The story starts and ends in Nigeria, but the bulk of the book takes place in the United States. Through a fairly simple but powerful love story, it explores contemporary Nigeria and the rise of a new middle class, race relations (and racism) in the United States, the tensions that exist as people make their way between and across cultures.

Adichie writes with a sharp eye for detail that brings the story to life. I often forgot I was reading fiction – the characters just seemed completely real. An absorbing, educational, and powerful book.

Norway: Knots | Gunnhild Øyehaug 

What a find! This is an exceptional collection of (very) short stories. read several of them twice in the same sitting. There is a lot going on in these stories, and small details connect in unexpected ways. Read them slowly. While there are some magical elements here, mostly the stories delve into individuals’ emotional struggles, with themselves and with those closest to them. Highly recommended. Read this excellent New Yorker review.

Oman: Earth Weeps, Saturn Laughs | Al Farsi

I found this book difficult to follow and ultimately unsatisfying. Perhaps just requires more patience that I had this time!

Pakistan: The Golden Legend | Nadeem Aslam 

This book explores the forces of religious and political extremism in contemporary Pakistan, and the struggle of ordinary people to lead their lives. The characters are well drawn and sustain the book even as the narrative drags a bit towards the end. Recommended.

Papua New Guinea: Maiba | Russell Soaba 

This novel, one of the few available in English from a Papuan, tells the story of modernization coming to a village through a young girl. I found it very difficult to follow, with jarring plot twists. Disappointing.

Paraguay: I The Supreme | Augusto Roa Bastos

This is a historical novel about 19th-century dictator José Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia, who called himself ‘El Surpremo’. Written in 1974 at the time when Paraguay was ruled by another dictator, it is an interesting look at how authoritarian rulers try to use language to shape history, even as language can also be used to undermine their authority. It provides interesting perspective at a time when ‘fake news’ poisons the political discourse.

Peru: War by Candlelight | Danial Alarcón

Yes, I know I’m skipping ahead! I picked this book up on a whim from a used book store (Old Goat Books here in Waterloo, Ontario) before going on vacation. Published back in 2005, this is a wonderful collection of short stories. Alarcón was born in Peru but raised in Alabama before returning on his own to Lima as a young adult. The stories are set in either Lima or New York and reflect a really interesting movement between cultures and places, often driven by violence. The stories have a journalistic style that is very accessible.

I’ll probably read another book for Peru by a contemporary Peruvian author, but for now I’m glad I found this book. A great reminder to me of how used book stores keep books alive. Sharing is one of many advantages that printed books have over digital versions.

Philippines: Smaller and Smaller Circles | F.H. Batacan

An excellent detective novel with interesting characters, driven by angry commentary on social justice in the Philippines. Feels like it should be the start of a great series, but as far as I can this is the only book. Highly recommended.

Poland: Swallowing Mercury |Wioletta Greg

Longlisted for the Man Booker International Prize in 2017, this wonderful collection of linked coming-of-age stories follows the life of a girl growing up in Poland in the 1980s. The writing, at least in translation, is beautifully understated and precise. Read this excellent review from The Guardian. Highly recommended.

Portugal: The Piano Cemetery | José Luís Peixoto

This novel, based on the life Portuguese runner Francisco Lázaro, the first Olympian athlete to die during an event, delves into the complex relationships in a family. The story is sometimes difficult to follow, as it shifts between narration of father (now dead) and son, both with the same name. But it is worth the effort. Highly recommended.

Qatar: The Girl Who Fell to Earth | Sophia Al Maria

A fascinating coming-of-age memoir from a young woman growing up in split lives between Washington State and Qatar, with interesting insights into the changing lives of once nomadic tribes of Qatar. Recommended!

Republic of Korea: The Impossible Fairy Tale | Han Yujoo

This strange novel is a horrifying exploration of the violence that adults do to children through neglect. The book is divided into two parts, and the first part is one of the most brilliant pieces of writing I’ve read in a long time. Highly recommended.

Romania:  The Hunger Angel or Land of Green Plums | Herta Müller

This is a stark, haunting book that evokes the terror of living in the Romania of Nicolae Ceaușescu. (As an aside, I remember vividly as a 17 year-old living in France watching TV coverage as Ceaușescu was overthrown and executed.) This semi-autobiographical novel tells the story of a girl and two friends, vaguely dissident, who make their way through a society devastated by totalitarian rule. The prose is spare but forceful, and powers a story filled with bitter rage. Müller won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2009.

Russia: Year of the Comet | Sergei Lebedev

A fascinating coming-of-age story that explores the disintegration of the Soviet Union through the eyes of a child. Included on World Literature Today’s 75 Notable Translations of 2017.

Rwanda Baking Cakes in Kigali | Gaile Parkin

Reminiscent of Alexander McCall Smith, this warm and charming novel provides an outsider’s perspective on society rebuilding in the aftermath of genocide.  It also  packs a punch, interweaving stories of often hilarious domestic intrigue with stories of profound horror and loss. Recommended.

Serbia: The Papyrus Trilogy | Zoran Živković 

I read the first book in this trilogy, The Last Book.  It starts off as an intriguing combination of fantasy and mystery but in the end I found it repetitive and tedious to get through. Not my thing.

Saint Kitts and Nevis:  Crossing the River | Caryl Phillips

This is a brilliant novel that reaches across centuries and continents to tell the story of slavery through four narratives: a freed slave in Liberia in the early 1840s, an elderly black woman in the US west in the late 1800s, the captain of an English slave ship in the  early 1800s, and a working-class English woman in WWII. Read this NY Times review.  The scope and ambition of this book are astonishing. Highly recommended.

Saint Lucia: Neg Maron: Freedom Fighter | Michael Aubertin

This historical novel tells the story of escaped slaves who fought British occupying forces and achieved (albeit short-lived) independence. While sometimes unpolished and melodramatic, the novel is interesting in shedding  light on a little-known country and period in history.

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines: The Moon is Following Me | Cecil Browne

This is an enjoyable collection of stories about village life in the 1970s. These charming, often funny stories are told with a light touch. An enjoyable read.

Samoa: They Who Do Not Grieve | Sia Figiel

This novel weaves together the stories of three generations of women in Samoa and New Zealand and their struggle for self-determination. The book is sometimes a bit disjointed, but there are sections that are brilliant. I particularly liked the observations of the girl who is working as a servant for a wealthy diplomatic couple. Recommended.

Saudi Arabia: Wolves of the Crescent Moon | Yousef al-Mohaieed 

This novel, set in contemporary Riyadh, is a bit too obvious in its goal to probe at the underbelly of Saudi society. Highly readable, it is has interesting characters and a cynical perspective that I quite enjoy. But ultimately it falters under the weight of its allegorical ambition.

Senegal: Abandoned Baobab | Ken Bugul

This is a seminal feminist and post-colonial novel that tells the semi-autobiographical story of Ken Bugul (a pseudonym for Mariètou Mbaye Biléoma) and she struggles to find her identity and place in the world in the face of family abandonment and cultural alienation.

Seychelles:  Voices | Glynn Burridge

This is an interesting collection of stories from Burridge, an English citizen who grew up in Iran and then migrated to the Seychelles during the Iranian revolution. In some ways this book feels like a vanity project. The writing is sometimes turgid, and there are a few stories here (like the 2-part Sea Dogs novella) that likely should have been excluded. Nevertheless, this is an interesting and diverse collection of very funny or poignant stories by a writer who clearly loves his adopted home.

Sierra Leone:  The Hired Man | Aminatta Forna 

I’m not sure that this book really qualifies as my pick for Sierra Leone, since the author, while she grew up there, was apparently born and now lives in the UK. But whatever. This book is so breathtakingly good and I couldn’t put it down. Set in Croatia, it explores the long aftermath of war and its betrayals. The understated narration belies the complex story and evokes a simmering tension and threat of violence. Read this one.

Singapore: The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye | Sonny Liew 

Sometimes a book just blows you away with its brilliance and its mastery of craft. This is one of those books.  This graphic novel tells the history of Singapore through the live of a (fictional) comic book artist, and in doing so use a whole range of styles. Educational, fascinating, and poignant. Read this one!

Slovakia: In The Name of The Father | Balla 

This book, containing the title novella and three short stories, is a great find. The novella in particular is darkly absurdist view of profound social and personal confusion and alienation in the modern era. If you like stuff by Kafka and Camus, or weird fiction by writers like Karen Russell, you’ll like this one. Highly recommended. The LA Review of Books has an in-depth review.

Slovenia: Succubus | Vlado Zabot

This gripping novel follows a paranoid retiree who, following news of a gruesome murder in a neighbourhood he frequents, descends into madness. While I found the book somewhat repetitive and uneven towards the end, overall this is great read for fans of psychological horror. Recommended.

Somalia: Links | Nuruddin Farah

A fascinating novel, the first in a trilogy, that looks critically (and sorrowfully) at the Somalia civil war of the 1990s. Embarrassed that I had not heard of Farah, one of the world’s fine writers and winner of the Neustadt Prize in 2008. Highly recommended.

South Africa: Soweto, Under the Apricot Tree | Niq Mhlongo 

A diverse, highly readable collection of short stories that explore contemporary Soweto township of Johannesburg. Recommended.

South Sudan: Making Peace & Nurturing Life | Julia Aker Duany

A memoir that covers the author’s childhood, her exile in the United States, and return to South Sudan in the midst of civil war. Overall I found the book disappointing. The descriptions of her childhood are interesting, but observations about South Sudanese conflict are superficial.

Spain: Such Small Hands |Andrés Barba 

This short book – really a novella – is powerful. The tension builds page by page to a devastating conclusion. Exceptionally well written and translated by Lisa Dillman. Highly recommended.

Sri Lanka: Island of Thousand Mirrors | Nayomi Munaweera 

A compelling epic of two families impacted by a single tragic moment of the Sri Lankan civil war. Beautifully and movingly told.

Sudan: The Kindness of Enemies |Leila Aboulela 

A wonderful book that spans countries (Sudan, Georgia, Scotland) and centuries (roughly present day and mid-19th century). I found the historical chapters – which cover the Caucasian War and the resistance led by Imam Shamil – the most compelling. The chapters set in the present day I found somewhat less interesting – the plot felt forced and even the writing seemed somehow stilted. Regardless, the whole book is an interesting look at identity and culture.  Recommended.

Suriname: The Cost of Sugar | Cynthia Mcleod

Given a dearth of choices, I decided to read this novel which was also Ann Morgan’s pick. A historical novel set in Dutch Suriname in the mid-18th century, its early sections provide an interesting view into a small South American country I knew nothing about. Unfortunately, it is overlong, with jarring shifts between different characters that make it tedious to finish.

Swaziland: Weeding the Flowerbeds| Sarah Mkhonza 

A memoir of teen years spent at a boarding school in the 1970s. The schooling seems quite conventional, but there is little insight provided into the political events happening at the time in neighbouring South Africa and Rhodesia. I found the book quite boring. Not recommended.

Sweden: Quicksand | Malin Persson Giolito

This is a riveting thriller that is at once a courtroom drama, a psychological crime thriller, and a devastating social commentary. Brilliantly translated by Rachel Willson-Broyles. Highly recommended.

Switzerland: The Sky is Changing | Zoë Jenny

This is a slight novel that feels like more like a first draft – or notes towards an eventual novel – than a complete work. She sketches the concerns of a young couple who are struggling to conceive. Jenny is widely known for her first novel, The Pollen Room. I should have read that book. I would take a pass on this one.

Syrian Arab Republic: The Teeth of the Comb | Osama Alomar

This is a strange collection of very short parables, with almost a feel of a notebook of ideas.  Some of the conceits are clever but overall I didn’t enjoy this book.

Thailand: The Sad Part Was | Prabda Yoon

This are such excellent stories, brilliantly translated. Funny and inventive. Highly recommended. Check out this review from World Literature  Today (and consider supporting their web site at the same time!)

Timor-Leste: Beloved Land | Gordon Peake

Engaging non-fiction book, part reportage and part memoir, about this small, troubled country.

Tonga: Tales of the Tikongs | Epeli Hau’ofa

Gently satiric short stories, full of life and good humour. Worth a read! Also check out this review.

Trinidad and Tobago: A Bend in the River  | V.S. Naipaul

Since I had (embarrassingly) never read Naipaul, I took the opportunity to make this novel my pick for Trinidad and Tobago. In large part I selected this particular novel because it showed up in The Guardian Top 100 Best Novels list. It was a pleasure to read a novel so precisely written and so full of ideas. Overall however I found it somewhat dated both in substance (vaguely racist, misogynistic) and style (prone to having characters articulate mini-essays).

Tunisia: The Tunisian Tale | Hassouna Mosbahi

A noirish thriller that has echoes of Camus in its nihilist anti-hero. Recommended. Read this  review from M. Lynx Qualey here.

Turkey: My Name is  Red | Orhan Pamuk

Embarrassingly, I had never read anything by this Nobel-prize winning writer. This is a brilliant novel set in late sixteenth-century Istanbul. Each chapter is like a piece in a gigantic puzzle, told from the perspectives of  multiple (often unreliable) narrators. At once a murder mystery, a love story, and a meditation on art and religion, this book is also compulsively readable. Highly recommended.

Turkmenistan: Death of the Snake Catcher | Ak Welsapar

An eclectic collection of stories by an author, now exiled, from one of the most restricted nations in the world. I found the collection somewhat uneven, perhaps because the stories were written over the course of decades and have a wide range of styles. Nevertheless, very interesting to get even a small window into life in this little-known country.

Tuvalu: Tuvalu: A History

I was unable to find any fiction from Tuvalu available in English, so instead I read this non-fiction collection, published shortly after Tuvalu gained its independence in 1978.  Fascinating to get a glimpse into life in this small nation (less than 12,000 inhabitants) spread across nine islands n the middle of the Pacific ocean, under existential threat from climate change.

Uganda: Kintu | Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi

I loved this book. While staying true to Ugandan history and culture, it is also highly readable and relatable. It traces the history of Uganda through a family bound by an 18th-century curse. This is a masterpiece that deserved wide readership. Most highly recommended. Check out this excellent Guardian review.

Ukraine: Mesopotamia | Serhiy Zhadan

This is an exceptional book, both gritty and lyrical, bitter and funny. In nine vignettes, tells the story of Kharkiv, a city in Eastern Ukraine. Not for the faint of heart, but highly recommended.

United Arab Emirates: Banipal Issue 42 (Magazine of Modern Arab Literature)

On the recommendation of M. Lynx Qualey (Arabic Literature in English), I picked up this back issue of Banipal which had a special section on emerging fiction from UAE. A lot of poetry here, which isn’t my thing, but also some interesting short stories. The magazine is certainly worth checking out for anyone interested in Arab fiction.

United Kingdom: Snap | Belinda Bauer

Long-listed for the Man Booker Prize 2018, this is the best crime novel I’ve read in a long time. Expertly crafted, with pitch-perfect characterization and pacing, this book winds the tension tighter and tighter until you’re sure it is going to…. snap. Highly recommended.

United Republic of Tanzania: Desertion | Abdulrazak Gurnah

I found this novel, which tells the story of two doomed love affairs, This Guardian review provides a different perspective.

United States: Lincoln in the Bardo | George Saunders 

Like many readers, I had a deep appreciation of Saunders’ short stories, and looked forward to his first novel, even more so after it won the Man Booker Prize in 2017. I was not disappointed. Part ghost story, part historical novel, this is a stylistically inventive work of great imagination and deep empathy. People either love or hate this book. I loved it. Highly recommended.

Uruguay: The Decapitated Chicken | Horacio Quiroga

Brilliant short stories by an exceptional writer I had never heard of. Quiorga wrote in the early 20th century, and this book was first published in 1925. The stories cover  a range of themes and styles, including horror reminiscent of Edgar Allan Poe. My favourite stories here were the title story, “Sunstroke”, and “The Son”. Highly recommended.

Uzbekistan: Devil’s Dance | Hamid Ismailov

Another fascinating book from Tilted Axis Press. This is really two books in one: it is the story of real-life Uzbek author Abdulla Qodiriy, who was imprisoned during The Terrors of Josef Stalin in 1938, and also a re-imagining of a lost novel of Qodiriy’s about a 19th-century slave girl. I found parts of the novel hard to follow given my ignorance of Uzbek history, but it is worth the effort. Read this short review in The Guardian.

Venezuala: The Sickness | Alberto Barrera Tyska

A powerful short novel, written in direct and compelling prose, that explores people dealing with illness and mortality. A father-son relationship is that its heart. Most highly recommended.

Vietnam: Paradise of the Blind |Duong Thu Huong

This fascinating novel sheds light on Vietnam as it modernizes, through the intersection of three women: a young woman, Hang, her mother, and her wealthy aunt. Through their stories, Huong conveys the complexity of Vietnamese life and the contrasts and its political, social, and generational divides. Highly recommended.

Yemen: Hurma | Ali al-Muqri 

I really, really disliked this book. It is a sort of coming-of-age novel of an unnamed girl that tries (and, in my view, fails) to tackle themes of sex, religion, and politics. As the book shifts from the girl’s early education to marriage, to going to Afghanistan, it becomes more and more disjointed. The abrupt changes in the girl’s perspective are not adequately explained, and so the narrative feels false. I would like to hear from female writers about what is is liking growing up as a girl in the Middle East – I’m tired of female voices being filtered through male writers.

Zambia: Patchwork | Ellen Banda-Aaku

This novel follows the life of a girl, ‘Pumpkin’ coming of age in Zambia during its struggle for indepndence and war with Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). The book is divided in two parts: in the first, Pumpkin is a girl of 9 growing up in poverty and estranged from her wealthy and powerful father; in the second, she is a woman of 31. I found the first part much more successful, and the final section of the book felt like a letdown. Nevertheless, a compelling story. Recommended.

Zimbabwe: This Mournable Body | Tsitsi Dagaremba 

This often grim novel follows a woman (not quite middle-aged) trying to extract herself from poverty. A found the use of 2nd-person narration quite jarring, and just could not engage with this book.