Today’s topic is:

Underrated Books We Think Deserve More Buzz

I’ve previously gone with Goodreads ratings in the past, and will continue with that this year.

The Book Eaters – Sunyi Dean (10,529 ratings)

I really liked the dark vibe in this book.

Hunt the Stars – Jessie Mihalik (5,746 ratings)

This sci-fi romance was just such an enjoyable read for me. A book I didn’t want to put down although it was getting late.

Himawari House – Harmony Becker (3,456 ratings)

A fun graphic novel about a girl who moves to Japan to find her heritage.

Grass – Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, translated from the Korean by Janet Hong (5,571 ratings)

An anti-war graphic novel about a young Korean girl forced into sexual slavery during WWII. Not an easy read but an important one that’s beautifully done. Waiting is another amazing graphic novel by this author about the Korean War that deserves more readers!

The Fortunes of Jaded Women – Carolyn Huynh (916 ratings)

While this book was only published in September, I was surprised that there were less than 1,000 ratings, as I had definitely seen it more than a few times on Instagram. It has a large number of characters and that can be confusing, but it was such a great story about a family who’s been cursed so that they would never find happiness and love, and can only bear daughters.

Winter Pasture – Li Juan, translated by Jack Hargreaves (366 ratings)

This was quite an eye opener. Li Juan, who is Chinese, joins a family of Kazakh herders taking their animals to winter pasture in the remote wilds. She lives with them for some time, learns to herd, and what life is like when it’s way below freezing. This was first published in 2012 but only recently translated into English.

Moshi Moshi – Banana Yoshimoto (4,495 ratings)

I loved this one by Yoshimoto (my post) about a young woman who moves to a Tokyo neighbourhood after the death of her father.