Musings of a readding addict

(or: my current existential crisis about how books transform us into unrecognisable humans to our cultures) Keywords: becoming through reading, estrangement, cultural conflicts, finding yourself in reading Genre: personal confession for a cathartic liberation Length: 6 minutes reading time Country: anywhere On relating to characters and stories I still remember the day I decided that I…

Keywords: Second World War, Jewish Family in Romania, Antisemitism in Romania, Jewish deportation in Transnistria Genre: Historical Fiction Length: short medium long Country: Romania Synopsis from Author’s Website Told across braided timelines, In Darkness and Light traces Tina’s life from a fiercely hopeful Jewish girl in Romania to a woman shaped by the horror of war and loss and the…

Keywords: Arts, Small city life, Mystery Genre: Literary Fiction Length: short medium long Country: USA Goodreads Synopsis His name is Theo. And he asks a lot more questions than he answers. Theo visits the local coffeehouse, where ninety-two pencil portraits hang on the walls, portraits of the people of Golden done by a local artist. He begins purchasing them, one at a time, and putting…

Keywords: Family Saga, Japanese Occupation in China, Cultural Revolution, Sino-Japanese War, Poppy addiction, Chinese Folklore, Generational Trauma Genre: Murder Mystery Length: short medium long Country: China Goodreads Synopsis A dark, magical realist debut family saga that moves through the Japanese occupation of Manchuria, the Cultural Revolution, and the present day to explore the…

Keywords: Murder Mystery, Animal Rights, Activism Genre: Murder Mystery Length: short medium long Country: Poland Synopsis In a remote Polish village, Janina devotes the dark winter days to studying astrology, translating the poetry of William Blake, and taking care of the summer homes of wealthy Warsaw residents. Her reputation as a crank and a recluse is amplified by her not-so-secret…

Keywords: Blockchain, Artificial Intelligence, Political Intrigue, Hong Kong, Surveillance Technology Genre: Science Fiction, Thriller Length: short medium long Country: China Synopsis When Terry is promoted to VP of Engineering, he decides to quit rather than partake in his company’s capitalistic data mining practices to boost ad revenues. Determined to create a more ethical platform, he…

Keywords: Second World War, Families during war, Auschwitz, Sisters story Genre: Historical Fiction Length: short medium long Country: France Synopsis Set in France during World War II, The Nightingale follows two sisters, Vianne and Isabelle, whose lives take very different paths under the German occupation. While one is forced to navigate survival, fear, and impossible choices within her…

More here: Musings on The Mermaid from Jeju by Sumi Hahn

So, if you’re like me, you must have stumbled upon Lisa See’s books. Books like The Island of Sea Women, which, in all honesty, was exquisite. It was an amazing, emotional, sensitive, empathetic, historical book that left you and me thirsting for more stories about haenyeo and about Jeju. Now, when I saw the title of this book, The Mermaid from Jeju, obviously, I knew it was talking about haenyeo and not mermaids, real mermaids. So, I picked it up, very excited, with lots of hopes, and really thinking that I’d get a story centered on the divers.

But everything goes a bit differently.

We take a deep dive into our main character’s life, from youth to old age and even death, and we see Jeju Island in the years just after World War II, around 1948. That was an unstable, turbulent time: Japanese troops had just withdrawn, U.S. troops came in, and political instability was everywhere. The story really begins when Junja, the daughter of a haenyeo, wants to take the abalone across Mount Hallasan to trade for pork. Normally her mother would make this yearly trip, but Junja decides it’s her turn to step into responsibility. On the way she meets Yang Suwol, a mountain boy — and you can already guess where that’s going. At the house where she trades, she discovers the woman there is actually her mother’s close friend. Suddenly, Junja feels guilty for having taken her mother’s place on the trip, realizing that by doing so, she may have stolen her mother’s chance to see her friend.

When she returns home, tragedy strikes: her mother has drowned while diving. At first, everyone believes it was an accident, but gradually we see the broader picture — political upheaval, ideological battles, arrests, and social turmoil creeping even into Junja’s family.

Do I have a thousand other books on my TBR? Yes. Did I stumble upon some quote on Tumblr that got me hooked? Also, yes. Have I created a Readalong on The Story Graph for this one to share the hype? Also, again, yes.

I'm not too sure how to share links around here other than in bio, but it’s in my story so if you want to join the readalong, feel free to do it! It ends on the 1st of August 2026 so we'll have plenty of time to read and share our views

The quote in question: "There is something wonderful in being a stranger, in being foreign, something to be relished, something as alluring as candy. It is good not to be able to understand a language, not to know the customs, to glide like a spirit among others who are distant and unrecognizable. Then a particular kind of wisdom awakens - an ability to surmise, to grasp the things that aren't obvious. Cleverness and acumen come about. A person who is a stranger gains a new point of view, becomes, whether he likes it or not, a particular type of sage. Who was it who convinced us that being comfortable and familiar was so great?"

More here: Musings on Greek lessons by Han Kang

To be fair, the writing itself can be beautiful. Han Kang’s background as a poet is evident in certain images and fragments that linger. But for me, isolated moments of beauty weren’t enough to sustain the novel as a whole.

And maybe part of my frustration comes precisely from the fact that I do care about the themes this book touches on. I understand the fascination with language—I share it. I’ve read novels that explore linguistics in ways that feel both intellectually rich and narratively satisfying. Babel, although I didn’t fully liked it and I have some issues with it does this exceptionally well. Even Vita Nostra, as disorienting as it is (and I’ve read it multiple times and still couldn’t fully tell you what I read), engages with language in a way that feels purposeful and deeply integrated into the story.

More here: Musings on Four treasures of the sky by Jenny Tinghui Zhang

We follow Daiyu, a girl from a loving family. Suddenly, her parents vanish. She’s left with her grandmother, who disguises her as a boy and sends her off, hoping to keep her safe. She ends up working in a calligraphy studio, where her talent is recognized. But just when you think she might find a small path forward, she’s tricked, kidnapped, and trafficked to the United States—forced into a brothel in Los Angeles.

From there, she escapes. And what follows is a story of survival, transformation, and reinvention… or that’s what we hope. However, it’s not just her personal story. Through Daiyu’s journey, we also see the hardships, exploitation, and racism that Chinese immigrants—especially women—faced in America at that time. The novel doesn’t shy away from showing how Chinatown communities were both refuge and prison, how survival often meant silence, and how the broader American system made sure Chinese bodies were used, taxed, feared, and discarded. It’s not preachy—but it’s there, in every choice Daiyu is forced to make.

More here: Musings on Pedro Páramo by Juan Rulfo

Within barely more than a hundred pages we encounter love stories, betrayals, revenge, political upheaval, obsession, murder, and something that almost feels like a thriller hidden beneath layers of memory. At the same time, the book quietly explores Mexican cultural beliefs about death and the afterlife, weaving together ancient traditions with the presence of Catholicism in rural life.

The result is a narrative that feels both intimate and mythic.

What amazes me every time I return to this book is how much it contains despite its size. The characters feel complete, the emotional arcs feel real, and the atmosphere of Comala — a town that seems suspended somewhere between life and death — stays with you long after the final page.

It’s rare to find a story that is this rich, this strange, and this beautifully written while remaining so concise.

More here: Musings on Happy dreams by Jia Pingwa

Lately, I’ve read quite a few books, but unfortunately none of them impressed me enough to sit down and write about them. However, this isn’t all bad because it made me realise I have never told you about this book: Happy Dreams by Jia Pingwa.

While it’s one of my favourite books, its qualities are not necessarily “flashy”. There are no dramatic twists, no grand philosophical breakdowns, no carefully constructed “wow” moments. If anything, it feels almost understated. And yet, it’s one of those books that stays with you long after you finish it.

At its core, Happy Dreams is about resilience—about the strange, often quiet ways in which people continue moving forward even when life gives them very little to work with. Don’t let yourself be misled by the gravity of the word “resilience” though for Happy Liu is determined to infuse you with his joy!