Asian Booklist: February 2025
Discover new books by British-Asian authors
Update from Kia
Hello,
First of all, congratulations on making it through the longest January on record. I hope you’ve had a happy and productive start to the year – and, if not, that you’ll find some value in this month’s update.
Apart from one hiccup (a broken boiler 🤦🏽♀️), it was a relatively smooth start for me. Last week, I had my first event of the year: a panel for the Diverse Book Awards which was great fun.
This week, I sent off the acknowledgements for my next novel, What Happens in the Dark. In writing them, I remembered how lucky I am to have so many good people in my life. Apart from a three-year stint in Yorkshire, I’ve always found it easy to make (and keep) friends. Clearly, this is mainly because I’m irresistibly charming, but it’s also because I’m an organiser.
I’m someone who suggests dinner, rallies the group and makes a reservation. I’ll text you with “Hey, I haven’t seen you for ages, let’s have dinner?” or say “I’ll hit you up in the New Year” – and then actually do it. I’ll organise pub quiz night and find a replacement when we lose a member. And I’ll persevere when work, life or parenthood prevents us from seeing each other.
If January has been especially gloomy for you, then I encourage you to try being an organiser for a while. It doesn’t suit everyone (and, frankly, not everyone is capable of being one), but it’s worth a try. Not all of us get the privilege of writing book acknowledgements, but there are many other ways to acknowledge those we love.
Until next time.
Kia x
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Books out this month
6 February 2025
Uncivilised: A science historian explores ten founding ideas of Western civilisation, and their fatal flaws
Western civilisation is a powerful brand, full of accepted wisdoms like 'knowledge is power', 'time is money', and 'justice is blind' that we rarely question. Taking cues from Greek philosophy and honed in the Enlightenment, certain notions about humanity and society grew into the tenets many of us still live by today. But when we take a closer look at these ideas, it seems they're not all they are cracked up to be. […]
6 February 2025
I Feel No Peace: Rohingya Fleeing Over Seas & Rivers
Rohingya men, women and children have been fleeing their homes for 40 years. The tipping point came in August 2017, when almost 700,000 were wrung from Myanmar in a single military operation. Today, very few members of this Muslim minority remain in the country. Instead, they live mostly in Bangladesh’s refugee camps, or precariously in Malaysia, India, Thailand, Saudi Arabia and elsewhere. […]
6 February 2025
Dr Roopa’s Body Books: The Brilliant Brain
Every second of every day, something is happening in every tiny bit of your body, from the top of your head to the soles of your feet… And if you think of your body as a machine, your brain would be the control room with billions of buttons for all kinds of incredibly important jobs. With words by medical doctor Roopa Farooki, and pictures by award-winning artist Viola Wang, this book explores how different bits of the brain work and (just as importantly) how they work together. […]
25 February 2025
Fundamentally
"By normal, you mean like you? A slag with a saviour complex?" When academic Nadia is disowned by her mother and dumped by her lover, she decides to make a getaway – accepting a UN job in Iraq. Tasked with rehabilitating ISIS women, Nadia becomes mired in the opaque world of international aid, surrounded by bumbling colleagues. But then Nadia meets Sara, a precocious and sweary East Londoner who joined ISIS at just 15, and she is struck by how similar their stories are. […]
27 February 2025
Finding Sophie
Sophie King is missing. Her parents, Harry and Zara, are distraught. For the last 17 years, they've done everything for their beloved only daughter and now she's gone. The police have no leads, and Harry and Zara are growing increasingly frantic, although they are both dealing with it in very different ways. Increasingly obsessed with their suspicious neighbour, they are both coming to the same conclusion. If they want answers, they’re going to have to take matters into their own hands. […]
27 February 2025
Minority Rule: How the Culture War Took Over
We live under minority rule. But who is the ruling minority? Most of us are getting screwed over. Our world is defined by inequality, insecurity, lack of community and information overload. As the world burns, mega-corporations are reporting record profits. How are they getting away with it? 'Minority rule' is the term Ash Sarkar uses to describe the irrational fear that minorities are trying to overturn and oppress majority populations. […]
27 February 2025
Dragon Rider
Jai has spent his life forced to serve the cruel empire that killed his family and now rules his people. To grow ever more powerful, the emperor’s young son is betrothed to Princess Erica of the Dansk Kingdom. An unconquerable realm, where ancient beasts roam. The princess brings with her a priceless gift: dragons. Only Dansk Royalty can bond with these magical beasts to draw on their power and strength. Until now. […]
Books out last month
2 January 2025
This Book May Save Your Life: Everyday Health Hacks to Worry Less and Live Better
The hilarious, myth-busting survival guide to the human body from TikTok's favourite General Surgeon. Though the odds are stacked against us, the human body has an extraordinary tendency to survive. Here, Dr Karan Rajan explains the weird and wonderful bodily functions that keep us going, and offers practical advice to help you thrive. […]
2 January 2025
Empireworld: How British Imperialism Has Shaped the Globe
2.6 billion people are inhabitants of former British colonies. The empire's influence upon the quarter of the planet it occupied, and its gravitational influence upon the world outside it, has been profound: from the spread of Christianity by missionaries, to nearly 1 in 3 driving on the left side of the road, to the origins of international law. Yet Britain’s idea of its imperial history and the world’s experience of it are two very different things. […]
2 January 2025
Make Change That Lasts: 9 Simple Ways to Break Free from the Habits that Hold You Back
Dr Rangan Chatterjee reveals how to make positive change that actually lasts in his latest, most innovative book to date. We all have things we rely on going our way to help us feel calm and happy. Your partner waking up in a good mood. No traffic on the way to work. No queues at the supermarket. And no rain on your day off. But what happens when things don’t work out that way? We fall back on soothing habits. […]
9 January 2025
Feel-Good Productivity: How to Do More of What Matters to You
The secret to productivity isn't discipline. It's joy. We think that productivity is all about hard work. That the road to success is lined with endless frustration and toil. But what if there's another way? Dr Ali Abdaal – the world's most-followed productivity expert – has uncovered an easier, happier path to success. Drawing on decades of psychological research, he has found that the secret to productivity and success isn’t grind – it’s feeling good. […]
23 January 2025
Winter Animals
In one of America's Happiest Cities, 38-year-old Elen is trapped under the shadow of the snow-capped Cascade Mountains. Her husband has left her. Her belongings are in the boot of her car. Her days are filled mostly with silence and drinking. When she meets four English teenagers in an empty bar, she is enamoured. Luka, Clover, George and Lyn are wealthy squatters, drifting between ski resorts and breaking into empty Airbnbs. […]
30 January 2025
Hidden Fires
Ramadan, 2017. Yusuf wakes in the middle of the night to pray. His routine is always the same, but something tells him that tonight is different. Yellow flames blur Yusuf’s vision, and the laughter of a small child echoes in his ears. But this time, the red, smoke-filled skies aren’t just in his memory. Miles away, Rubi is also awake. On the television, she watches reports of a devastating fire in London. […]
30 January 2025
Hunted
Your kids are missing, accused of plotting to kill thousands. Can you find them before it's too late? It's a week before the presidential elections when a bomb goes off in an LA shopping mall. In London, armed police storm Heathrow Airport and arrest Sajid Khan. His daughter, Aliyah entered the USA with the suicide bomber, and now she's missing, potentially plotting another attack on American soil. […]
30 January 2025
The Spy
One missing boy. One man undercover. A whole nation at risk. Detective Kamil Rahman is working for the Metropolitan Police when he gets the call from MI5. They've received intelligence of a terrorist plot, and it's Kamil they need. Posing as a disaffected cop, and working back in his friend Anjoli's beloved restaurant on Brick Lane, Kamil attempts to infiltrate the cell. But when a young boy goes missing, Kamil finds the disappearance is linked to his case. […]
Books out last year
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