Min Jin Lee's Reading List

Korean American novelist; author of Pachinko (2017 National Book Award finalist).

Min Jin Lee's Recommended Reading List — Translated East Asian Novels (2023)

Five translated East Asian novels she curated for Service95.

Sayaka Murata · 2016 · Buy on Amazon

"Sayaka Murata's brilliant novel follows 36-year-old Keiko Furukura, who has devoted half her life to working part-time at a Japanese convenience store."

Human Acts

Han Kang · 2014 · Buy on Amazon

"Set against the backdrop of the May 1980 Gwangju Uprising — a modern masterwork."

Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982

Cho Nam-joo · 2016 · Buy on Amazon

"A powerful work of fiction exposing the inequalities and pressures faced by women in South Korea."

The Makioka Sisters

Junichiro Tanizaki · 1948 · Buy on Amazon

"Like a classic 19th-century marriage plot novel but told with modern wisdom."

Who Ate Up All the Shinga?

Park Wan-suh · 1992 · Buy on Amazon

"With clear-eyed prose and marvellous details, Wan-suh captures the atmosphere, deprivation and social upheaval of the time."

Books from Fox Center for Humanistic Inquiry: Min Jin Lee and Tayari Jones (2026)

Extracted via LLM from auto-captions of Fox Center (2026-03-18).

Source: www.youtube.com

Kin

Tayari Jones · 2026 · Buy on Amazon

"It's a really beautiful book and you can buy it today. The reason I wanted to bring it out is because it's so good. You guys have to get this book."

In Search of Our Mothers' Gardens

Alice Walker · 1983 · Buy on Amazon

"I love that you referenced that essay. If you guys haven't read it, you should read it. It's so important and it's really powerful."

Their Eyes Were Watching God

Zora Neale Hurston · 1937 · Buy on Amazon

"I think Their Eyes Were Watching God is one of my favorite novels of all time. And I think Tea Cake is so hot."

Big Fiction

Dan Sinykin · 2023 · Buy on Amazon

"One of the reasons I read his book Big Fiction — I just tore through it. Have you read it? It's good. It's really good. It's important too."

Favorite books (2021)

Favorite books recommended by Min Jin Lee, as compiled by radicalreads.com. Source article: https://radicalreads.com/min-jin-lee-favorite-books/.

Source: radicalreads.com

Ghosts in the Schoolyard: Racism and School Closings on Chicago’s South Side

Eve L. Ewing · Buy on Amazon

"Ewing is a phenomenal writer who has researched and written about modern problems in education in light of history. As far as I’m concerned, fixing education inequities is right up there with securing clean water, defending free press, and protecting air quality. She is also a terrific poet and critic, and what is evident in her book, is the vastness of her imagination applied to the very difficult problems we have today in public education. Ewing tackles racism, inequality, statistics, socia..."

Hunger

Roxane Gay · 2017 · Buy on Amazon

"I read Gay’s memoir in two days, and I stopped everything to read it, because her story meant so much to me. I’d had a very bad eating disorder in college, and her story made so much sense intellectually. Gay is one of America’s great writers, and I was astonished and grateful to learn how our bodies hold our histories and how our minds have the power to release them. This book is important and beautiful."

The Monk in the Garden: The Lost and Found Genius of Gregor Mendel

Robin Marantz Henig · Buy on Amazon

"Henig is a knock-out writer, who has published numerous books and articles that are nothing short of master-class. I’ll read whatever she writes because she is brave and badass smart. My favorite book of hers is The Monk in the Garden , a biography of Gregor Mendel, a monk who studied pea plants and is known as the father of genetics. Mendel never got his due while he was alive, but Henig fixes that for the record with a stirring and vivid biography in her trademark clear-eyed prose."

This Is the Story of a Happy Marriage

Ann Patchett · Buy on Amazon

"Patchett writes amazing fiction. Very amazing fiction. She also writes supremely amazing essays, which make me weep. When I think of the fine essayists Didion, Woolf, and Baldwin, I also think of Patchett. You’re going to cry when you read this collection; however, my eye doctor says crying is good for your eyes."

Chief Engineer: Washington Roebling, The Man Who Built the Brooklyn Bridge

Erica Wagner · Buy on Amazon

"I love biographies, and this one of Washington Roebling is one of my very favorites. Wagner, a native New Yorker who lives in England, writes excellent fiction and non-fiction, as well as criticism. She wrote one of my most beloved short story collections of all time, Gravity , and the reason why this biography is so top-notch is because Wagner tells a terrific story of the birth of a bridge, as well as a gripping story of a son who had a difficult father and a gifted wife — all with the grac..."

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