Permanently in the works

The Tale of Genji by Murasaki Shikibu (Japan) Recommended translation: Edward Seidenstricker

From 1008CE comes the world's first novel. Granted, this is one of the most famous works of Japanese literature but it's also so significant I would feel wrong leaving it off of here. This is a work that inspired fan fiction so prolific there are chapters where we're not sure if they're authentic or not. People would get together to discuss it as each chapter released and take fandom quizzes as conversation starters - e.g., favorite male character; favorite female character; favorite couple; least favorite couple; couple you want to see; etc. - which would be immediately familiar behavior to modern readers. Since this was written over 1000 years ago, my warning about different cultures and different time periods is in full effect.

Strong recommendation on the Seidenstricker translation for first-time/new readers of the text. While Royall Tyler's is more faithful to the poetry and subtlety of the original, Seidenstricker does a marvelous job of making the text accessible to readers without a background in Heian Japan.

The Tale of the Heike by Various (Japan) Recommended translation: Helen Craig McCullough

If the slow moving character drama of Genji isn't to your liking, here's something a bit more exciting: a narrative re-telling of the Genpei Wars (1180 - 1185) as recited by traveling blind minstrels.

McCullough does a wonderful job of bringing the reader up to speed on the political upheavals which lead to the outbreak of the war and helping reader's keep the major players straight.

Comrade Loves of the Samurai by Ihara Saikaku (Japan)

I know which website I'm on and if a collection of yaoi short stories is the carrot on a stick I need to get you to read Japanese literature then I'm gonna use it. If you like this then you may want to check out The Life of an Amorous Man, The Life of an Amorous Woman, Five Women Who Loved Love, and This Scheming World (alternately titled Reckonings that Carry Men Through the World, depending on the translation).

Kusamakura by Natsume Soseki (Japan)

While I do enjoy Alan Turney's translation (re-titled as The Three-Cornered World), that preference isn't strong enough to say you shouldn't read Meredith McKinney's. Most lit profs I know usually have students read Kokoro for Natsume Soseki but I think Kusamakura is probably the better entry point. If you like this, by all means read Kokoro (and Botchan and I am a Cat).

Naomi by Tanizaki Junichiro (Japan)

It was either this or The Makioka Sisters and it was not an easy choice. You could also go for a collection of his short stories if you want more variety but Naomi isn't too long and hits a lot of his major themes.

Musashi by Yoshikawa Eiji (Japan)

If you want a historical drama with action and excitement, here you go.

Masks by Enchi Fumiko (Japan)

Enchi Fumiko rules out loud and Masks is no exception.

Spring Snow by Mishima Yukio (Japan)

Most will recommend Confessions of a Mask which is a solid choice in place of this. Just don't take his inclusion here as an endorsement of his politics.

A Personal Matter by Oe Kenzaburo (Japan)

He's a Nobel laureate.

Kitchen by Yoshimoto Banana (Japan)

You could also read Snakes and Piercings but Kitchen is very accessible and, if you're a Japanese language learner, it's a great novel to test your skills with the original Japanese and get some solid practice in. She writes in a very accessible and casual manner.

Grotesque by Natsuo Kirino (Japan) Translation: Rebecca Copeland

Every content warning for this one but Natsuo Kirino is kinda like that. Her other works are also rather challenging but also brilliant. Strong recommendation for Rebecca Copeland's translation (and anything else she's translated/edited, to be honest).

Journey to the West by Unknown (China) Translation: Anthony C. Yu

This is such a foundational text that it needed to be included. Yu's translation offers wonderful footnotes and explanatory sections that are very helpful for people who are not familiar with many of the religious, philosophical, cultural contexts, or terms being used. That said, if you want to get the Foreign Language Press paperback set, that's fine. It's a lot cheaper, looks nice, and pairs well with their editions of Three Kingdoms, Outlaws of the Marsh, and A Dream of Red Mansions. Which you should also read. Seriously, Outlaws of the Marsh is just propulsive.

The Remote Country of Women by Hua Bai (China)

A dual-narrative novel looking at culture clashes, upheavals, and the way systems push down on people who might then push down on others.

The Money Demon by Chen Diexian (China)

So you liked The Great Gatsby...

Soul Mountain by Gao Xingjian

Another Nobel laureate! You could also read his collection of plays The Other Shore but this is probably most accessible as a novel reading experience.

The Grace of Kings by Ken Liu (China)

A historical fantasy and solid story. Of note: this is the first volume in a multi-book series. That's either a warning or a promise depending on how you feel about multi-book series.

What Has Passed Shall in a Kinder Light Appear by Bao Shu (China)

This is actually a novella but it is masterful work of speculative fiction with a narrative where the history of China plays out in reverse starting on January 1, 2000. From the way everything plays out with total plausibility to how the author chooses to represent certain events, it's wonderfully audacious and creative. You'll find it in the March/April 2015 volume of "The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction" but it's a really inexpensive volume.

A Thousand Moons on a Thousand Rivers by Hsiao Li-Hung (Taiwan)

The Home and The World by Rabindranath Tagore (India)

Foundational text by an author of historical importance. I couldn't not include it.

Kanthrapura by Raja Rao (India)

A novel set during the push for Indian independence and how the struggle affected a small town.

Three Plays by Girish Karnad (India)

As the title tells you, this is a collection of three plays. Yes, this is as good as a novel.

A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth (India)

When a book big enough to be a lethal weapon is also a best selling summer read it's probably got something to it, you know?

Men in the Sun by Ghassan Kanafani (Palestine)

A writer of incredible reach and impact, he needs to be included. I will recommend the publication Men in the Sun and Other Palestinian Stories translated by Hilary Kilpatrick both for the quality of her translation but also because you get extra short stories included. That's just more book per book.

A Lake Beyond the Wind by Yahya Yakhlif (Palestine)

This one hurts.

The Honey by Zeina B. Ghandour (Palestine)

Season of Migration to the North by Tayeb Salih (Sudan)

Passage to Dusk by Rashid al-Daif (Lebanon)

Dealing with the aftermath of the long-running (and ever shifting) civil war, as it played out in Beirut, this is a surrealist take that has you walking through a dreamscape informed by the PTSD of its narrator and the city itself.

Baghdad Diaries by Nuha al-Radi (Iraq)

Dunyazad by May Telmissany (Egypt)

Houses Behind the Trees by Mohamed El-Bisatie (Egypt)

Terra Nostra by Carlos Fuentes (Mexico)

Just...just read it, okay?

Once Were Warriors by Alan Duff (Aotearoa)

Deals with the heavy impacts of colonialism on the Maori people and their culture which persist into the present. Deals with a single family in 1990 navigating questions of identity, dignity, community. Many content warnings on this - SA, abuse, suicide, etc - but well worth the read.

Okay, that was really long and I clearly ran out of steam toward the end but those are all books you could read to start exploring other countries and cultures.

To that end, here's my wildcard for people new to reading other cultures:

The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie (Indian diaspora, Britain)

This book deals directly with the experiences and conditions of South Asian and Afro-Carribean immigrants living in Britain along with questions of assimilation vs authenticity. It is powerful and painful while also having gorgeous and evocative prose. This book looks at what it means to exist outside of the culture in which you live and persistent background radiation that being an outsider brings. Being aware of it and combating it is the whole point of lists like this.