Crystal Hana Kim holds an MFA from Columbia University and is a contributing editor for Apogee Journal. She has received numerous awards, including PEN America’s Story Prize for Emerging Writers, along with fellowships and support from the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference and the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown. Born and raised in New York, she currently lives in Chicago.
A Home for the Holidays (2024) Taylor Hahn "A Home for the Holidays is a wonder. Taylor Hahn has written a pitch-perfect novel about grief, healing, and coming to terms with family secrets. I fell in love with Mel, a wedding singer who must re-examine the meaning of home after her mother's passing, and in doing so, opens herself up to a more expansive definition of family. Heartwarming, true, and ultimately playful, this novel will stay with me for a long time."
Five-Star Stranger (2024) Kat Tang "A fresh and moving portrait of loneliness in a society where a swipe of a finger can buy you a friend, a best man, and even a father. How long can we purchase companionship before our sense of self shatters? Kat Tang adeptly and acutely explores how these perfect, five-star transactions can deepen the gaps in our lives, until we are unrecognizable to ourselves. A disassembling, propulsive, and absorbing read."
The Liberators (2023) E J Koh "An elegiac, ferocious, and deeply stirring novel. E. J. Koh melds image and story together precisely, holding up to light the history and making of Korea. I loved The Liberators not only for what it shows us about our world, but moreso, ourselves."
What We Kept to Ourselves (2023) Nancy Jooyoun Kim "Nancy Jooyoun Kim has crafted a moving, propulsive story about a family haunted by secrets. What We Kept To Ourselves spans the intimately personal to the urgently political to investigate how the traumas of the past shape the human experience. This is a probing, sharp novel about family, loss, desire, grief, the search for justice, and so much more."
What Happened to Ruthy Ramirez (2023) Claire Jiménez "I loved this book. Equal measures hilarious and haunting, What Happened to Ruthy Ramirez is about a family who must keep living in the face of sudden loss. The humor makes the pages glide, but there's true heartache at the center of this story, and I held my breath as I reached the end - full of such hope and fear for these women. Claire Jimenez is a stand out talent."
The Great Reclamation (2023) Rachel Heng "Arresting and haunting... Rachel Heng asks us to consider the tensions between homeland and nationhood, and whether progress can be made without sacrifice. This is a powerful, expansive book that made my heart ache. It will stay with me for a long time."
Violets (2022) Kyung-Sook Shin "Violets is an aching, atmospheric novel about grief and longing. Oh San, our main character, navigates a life of haunting loneliness and yet she finds tender moments of true beauty. In this slim and powerful book, Kyung-Sook Shin deftly explores the violence of life--of shedding childhood, of becoming a woman, of searching for identity in a shifting world. A beautiful translation by Anton Hur. Go read this book!"
Win Me Something (2021) Kyle Lucia Wu "Win Me Something is an observant, contemplative story about the complex reality of growing up with a mixed identity in two starkly different mixed families. Kyle Lucia Wu deftly weaves back and forth between Willa’s teenaged years and her adult life to explore loneliness, uncertainty, and a singular, persistent question-where do I truly belong?"
The Four Humors (2021) Mina Seçkin "The Four Humors is a quiet, startling book that will stay with you long after you turn the final page. Sibel holds grief and guilt in her body, and as she reconnects with her homeland, she will uncover deep secrets and profound truths that will change her forever. Mina Seçkin has written a poignant and penetrating meditation on how we take care--of ourselves, our stories, and our families."
What's Mine and Yours (2021) Naima Coster "Naima Coster weaves a beautiful tapestry of voices together in What's Mine and Yours. This is a sprawling, moving narrative about the messiness of love and family, mothering, race, and community. Here we follow two families connected by place and circumstance as they try to free themselves of those bonds. The result? Rich, complex individual stories that merge to form a satisfying, startling end."
The Upstairs House (2021) Julia Fine "The Upstairs House is an inventive, surreal, feminist examination of the postpartum experience. Is new mom Megan Weiler haunted by the ghosts of Margaret Wise Brown and her lover Michael Strange, or is she experiencing a deep postpartum depression? The Upstairs House reveals the isolating, world-changing, full-bodied experience that is new motherhood while unfurling a fascinating tale about one of our most beloved children’s book authors. I love Julia Fine’s brain and the radical stories she creates. Full of rage and resentment and deep love, The Upstairs House is a must-read."
The Margot Affair (2020) Sanaë Lemoine "A stunning debut, simmering with tension and sensuality. This jewel of a novel examines the in-between spaces in life. . . . A mesmerizing story by an important new voice."
The House of Deep Water (2020) Jeni McFarland "A sensitive and aching meditation on reluctant homecomings, complicated families, and past selves. Poetic and yet unflinchingly told, this book does not provide clean absolution; rather, as Linda, Paula, and Beth confront the town and community that have shaped them, their weaving narratives mirror the messy contours of our real lives."
