Do you need more books to delve deeper into the topic? Here are last year’s “5 Great Books for Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month.” When Derek tries a dish that Lila herself offers him, he dies, and the Macapagals are blamed for it. Afraid of going to jail, Lila conducts her own investigation into what really happened. Arsenic and Adobo is a refreshing mix of romance and mystery. Readers will get a glimpse of the family-centered Filipino culture. The audiobook, which is narrated by Danice Cabanela, is a must-listen. Just like in the ingenious Insurrecto, Apostol pushes the boundaries of storytelling as fact and fiction collide. The novel is presented as a fictional memoir of Raymundo Mata, a half-blind bookworm, and explores the Spanish colonial period of the Philippines. But the fun doesn’t stop there as three characters with different backgrounds scrutinize Mata’s memoir. An obra maestra written in Spanish, English, and some Philippine languages, the book got a starred review from Publishers Weekly. Vo makes Fitzgerald’s world more appealing and lively. Jordan Baker, adopted, queer, and Vietnamese, is the star here. Though the book extensively makes use of Fitzgerald’s characters and world, it also explores Asian identity and acts as a social commentary. It’s clever and imaginative. “If you love Fitzgerald, but have felt excluded by his narratives, here is a fantastical vision…that will come for your heart,” said the book’s editor Ruoxi Chen. Deliciously visceral, readers will be transported into the dreamy Hawaiian backdrop. The book, which is Higa’s debut, is the winner of the 2020 Robert C. Jones Prize for Short Prose. For book club discussions, you can download the readers’ guide to talk about the stories.
