Lunar New Year represents tradition, family, and new beginnings. It is the welcoming of a new year based on the lunar calendar and primarily celebrated in countries such as China, Japan, Korea, Indonesia, and Singapore, as well as the Asian diaspora all over the world. This year’s symbol, based on the Chinese Zodiac, is the snake, which symbolizes wisdom, transformation, renewal, and intuition.
Each culture that celebrates Lunar New Year has its own traditions passed down from generation to generation. Some of the most common ones are to dress in red, (symbolizing good luck), for the elders in the family to give red envelopes to the younger members as a symbol of prosperity, wearing new clothes to welcome a fresh start, and eating delicious traditional foods.
Here are our book recommendations for this Lunar New Year!
Paper Dragons, The Fight for The Hidden Realm, by Siobhan MacDermott
“A 12-year-old girl wins an invitation to train as an apprentice to immortals in the first book of the new must-read magical series destined to take the world by storm—perfect for fans of Amari and the Night Brothers, Skandar and Eragon. Let the competition begin!”
Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim
“A princess in exile, a shapeshifting dragon, six enchanted cranes, and an unspeakable curse… Drawing from fairy tales and East Asian folklore, this original fantasy from the author of Spin the Dawn is perfect for fans of Shadow and Bone.”
Gods of Want by K-Ming Chang
“Startling stories center the bodies, memories, myths, and relationships of Asian American women in “a voracious, probing collection, proof of how exhilarating the short story can be” (The New York Times Book Review, Editors’ Choice)—from the National Book Award “5 Under 35” honoree and author of Bestiary.”
Lunar Love by Lauren Kung Jessen
“This sweet, enemies-to-lovers debut rom-com filled with Chinese astrology will undoubtedly prove to be a perfect match with readers of Helen Hoang, Jasmine Guillory, and Sarah Adams.”
Chlorine by Jade Song
“In the vein of The Pisces and The Vegetarian, Chlorine is a debut novel that blurs the line between a literary coming-of-age narrative and a dark unsettling horror tale, told from an adult perspective on the trials and tribulations of growing up in a society that puts pressure on young women and their bodies… a powerful, relevant novel of immigration, sapphic longing, and fierce, defiant becoming.”