Category: 2026 Books
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] βSa Re Ga MΔyΔ: The Speculative Life of Breath in Anaar Desai-Stephensβs Voicing Aspirationβ by Tyran Grillo Anaar Desai-Stephens. Voicing Aspiration: Bollywood Songs and Dreamwork in Contemporary India. Wesleyan University…
![[ESSAY] βSa Re Ga MΔyΔ: The Speculative Life of Breath in Anaar Desai-Stephensβs πππππππ π΄π πππππ‘πππβ by Tyran Grillo](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Voicing-Aspiration.png)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] βYuanfen of Emmy the Great: On Emma-Lee Mossβs My Cantopop Nightsβ by Mario Rustan Click HERE to read all entries in Chaon My Cantopop Nights. Emma-Lee Moss. My Cantopop Nights:…
![[REVIEW] βππ’πππππ of Emmy the Great: On Emma-Lee Mossβs ππ¦ πΆπππ‘ππππ πππβπ‘π β by Mario Rustan](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/emma-lee-moss.-my-cantopop-nights-a-memoir-in-songs.png)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] βBetween Hegel and Home: Reading Fukuyamaβs In the Realm of the Last Manβ by Raymond Pun Francis Fukuyama. In the Realm of the Last Man: A Memoir, Farrar, Straus and…
![[REVIEW] “Between Hegel and Home: Reading Fukuyamaβs πΌπ π‘βπ π
ππππ ππ π‘βπ πΏππ π‘ πππ” by Raymond Pun](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Francis-Fukuyama.-In-the-Realm-of-the-Last-Man-A-Memoir-.jpg)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] βForms of Drift: Displacement and Its Antidotes in Mai-Linh Hongβs Continental Driftβ by Kai Hang Cheang Click HERE to read all entrieson Continental Drift. Mai-Linh Hong. Continental Drift, Trio House…
![[REVIEW] βForms of Drift: Displacement and Its Antidotes in Mai-Linh Hongβs πΆπππ‘πππππ‘ππ π·ππππ‘β by Kai Hang Cheang](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/mai-linh-hong.-continental-drift.webp)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] “The Dead Are Still Addressing Us: On Jeremy Fernandoβs translating love“ by Tyran Grillo Click HERE to read all entries in Chaon translating love. Jeremy Fernando (author), with paintings by Sara…
![[ESSAY] “The Dead Are Still Addressing Us: On Jeremy Fernando’s π‘ππππ πππ‘πππ πππ£π” by Tyran Grillo](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Translating-Love-Jeremy-Fernando.png)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] βListening to the Ghosts of Writing: On Jeremy Fernandoβs translating loveβ by Anders KΓΈlle Click HERE to read all entries in Chaon translating love. Jeremy Fernando (author), with paintings by…
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[INCIDENTAL] βThe Ties That Bind Us: Listening to Catherine Cho on The Devoted and Hong Kongβ by Ming-yeh T. Rawnsley Catherine Cho. The Devoted. Fourth Estate, 2026. 368 pp. Listening to Catherine Cho speak about The Devoted on 2 October 2026 at this yearβs Lincoln…
![[INCIDENTAL] βThe Ties That Bind Us: Listening to Catherine Cho onΒ πβπ π·ππ£ππ‘ππΒ and Hong Kongβ by Ming-yeh T. Rawnsley](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/7101dHH2ZvL._AC_UF8941000_QL80_.jpg)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “The Right to Remain: Akane ArakiβsΒ Murder at the End of the World” by Tyran Grillo Akane Araki (author), Jesse Kirkwood (translator).Β Murder at the End of the World. Pushkin Press, 2026.…
![[REVIEW] “The Right to Remain: Akane ArakiβsΒ ππ’ππππ ππ‘ π‘βπ πΈππ ππ π‘βπ πππππ” by Tyran Grillo](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/The-Right-to-Remain-Akane-Arakis-Murder-at-the-End-of-the-World.jpeg)
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[CONVERSATION] “Between Text and Textile: On Unravelling Threads” by Tiffany Troy and brenda Lin brenda Lin. Unraveling Threads: Essays on Inheritance. The Ohio State University Press, 2026. 216 pgs. Tiffany Troy (Tiffany): You begin the essay collection with βUmbilical Cord ηΉ«β, where…
![[CONVERSATION] “Between Text and Textile: On πππππ£ππππππ πβπππππ ” by Tiffany Troy and brenda Lin](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/brenda-Lin-CHA-An-Asian-Literary-Journal.png)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] “Bodies That Exceed the Frame: Reading Andrea Mendozaβs Transpacific Nonencounters” by Tyran Grillo Andrea Mendoza. Transpacific Nonencounters: Racial Disconnects Across Twentieth-Century Japan and Mexico, Duke University Press, 2026. 208 pgs. Mifune…
![[ESSAY] “Bodies That Excceed the Frame: Reading Andrea Mendoza’s πππππ πππππππ ππππππππ’ππ‘πππ ” by Tyran Grillo](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Transpacific-Nonencounters-Racial-Disconnects-Across-Twentieth-Century-Japan-and-Mexico.jpg)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] βGigi L. Leungβs Everyday Movement: Momentum within Momentsβ by Tin Yuet Tam Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on Everyday Movement. Gigi L. Leung (author), Jennifer Feeley (translator), Everyday Movement, Riverhead Books. 2026.…
![[ESSAY] βGigi L. Leungβs πΈπ£πππ¦πππ¦ πππ£πππππ‘: Momentum within Momentsβ by Tin Yuet Tam](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/everyday-movement-by-gigi-l.-leung-translated-by-jennifer-feeley-.jpg)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] “Reading MarΓa Teresa Ogliastri’s From the Diary of Madame Mao: Poetry, Politics and Memories of the Cultural Revolution” by Ming Wan All entries in Cha on Madame Mao. MarΓa Teresa…
![[ESSAY] “Reading MarΓa Teresa Ogliastri’s πΉπππ π‘βπ π·ππππ¦ ππ ππππππ πππ: Poetry, Politics and Memories of the Cultural Revolution” by Ming Wan](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/from-the-diary-of-madame-mao.jpg)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] βHong Kong, Cantopop and the Memory of Home: Emma-Lee Mossβs My Cantopop Nightsβ by Susan Blumberg-Kason Click HERE to read all entries in Chaon My Cantopop Nights. Emma-Lee Moss. My Cantopop…
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[ESSAY] “The Unstuck City: Dorothy Tse’s City Like Water” by Luca Griseri Click HERE to read all entries in Chaon City Like Water. Dorothy Tse (author), Natascha Bruce (translator). City Like Water, Graywolf Press, 2026. 112 pgs. The novel resembles a dΓ©collage precisely because…
![[ESSAY] “The Unstuck City: Dorothy Tse’s πΆππ‘π¦ πΏπππ πππ‘ππ” by Luca Griseri](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/city-like-water-dorothy-tse-cha-an-asian-literary-journal.jpg)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Hungry as a Ghost: Compassion and Cruelty in From the Diary of Madame Mao” by Marsha McDonald All entries in Cha on Madame Mao. MarΓa Teresa Ogliastri (author), Yvette…
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] “Singing in Hiragana: On The Chronicles of Japan” by Mario Rustan All entries in Chaon The Chronicles of Japan Matthieu Felt (translator). The Chronicles of JapanβVolume I: Age of the…
![[ESSAY] “Singing in Hiragana: On πβπ πΆβππππππππ ππ π½ππππ” by Mario Rustan](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/71mw8p3wrll._sl1500_.jpg)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] βFathers Arenβt Mountains: A Closer Look at Buddhisagarβs Karnali Bluesβ by Abhinav Tulachan Buddhisagar (author), Michael Hutt (translator). Karnali Blues, Penguin Random House, 2022. 422 pgs. What role does a…
![[REVIEW] βFathers Arenβt Mountains: A Closer Look at Buddhisagarβs πΎππππππ π΅ππ’ππ β by Abhinav Tulachan](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/buddhisagar-author-michael-hutt-translator.-karnali-blues-.png)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “Theory after Academia: The Frenchmen, A Loverβs Discourse, and the Return to Everyday Life” by Anna Nguyen β Emily Eakin. The Frenchmen: Or, My Life in Theory. Penguin, 2026. 496…
![[REVIEW] “Theory after Academia: πβπ πΉππππβπππ, π΄ πΏππ£ππβπ π·ππ πππ’ππ π, and the Return to Everyday Life” by Anna Nguyen](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/theory-after-academia-cha.png)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “Jiang Qing, Power, and Historical Vilification: MarΓa Teresa Ogliastri’s From the Diary of Madame Mao” by Jennifer Eagleton All entries in Cha on Madame Mao. MarΓa Teresa Ogliastri (author), Yvette…
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[ESSAY] βReturn Trips: A Japanese Canadian Writer Revisits Her Family Past at Vancouverβs Powell Street Festivalβ by Leslie Shimotakahara All things Leslie Shimotakahara in Cha. ARRIVAL I think of the internment camps where my Japanese Canadian grandparents spent the Second…
![[ESSAY] βReturn Trips: A Japanese Canadian Writer Revisits Her Family Past at Vancouverβs Powell Street Festivalβ by Leslie Shimotakahara](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/766762714_1570548318418903_6545822534501777451_n.jpg)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “The Many-Headed Dragon: Myth, History, and The Chronicles of Japan” by Marsha McDonald All entries in Chaon The Chronicles of Japan Matthieu Felt (translator). The Chronicles of JapanβVolume I:…
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “Mapping Belonging in Sonia Bahlβs Eighteen Inches Apart” by Namrata Sonia Bahl. Eighteen Inches Apart, Fingerprint, 2026. 362 pgs. In Eighteen Inches Apart, Sonia Bahl turns to the fleeting encounters…
![[REVIEW] “Mapping Belonging in Sonia Bahlβs πΈππβπ‘πππ πΌππβππ π΄ππππ‘” by Namrata](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/eighteen-inches-apart-by-sonia-bahl.jpg)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “The Body Remade: On Sarah Wangβs New Skin” by Kailee Haong Ellis Sarah Wang. New Skin, Little, Brown and Company, 2026. 448 pgs. “Body horror” receives a new definition in…
![[REVIEW] “The Body Remade: On Sarah Wangβs πππ€ ππππ” by Kailee Haong Ellis](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/sarah-wang.-new-skin-.jpg)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “Many Hong Kongs: Xu Xiβs Horizon Hong Kong” by Rebekah Chan ClickΒ HERE to readΒ all entries inΒ Cha onΒ Horizon Hong Kong. Xu Xi. Horizon Hong Kong: Selected Stories, Gaudy Boy, 2026. 288…
![[REVIEW] “Many Hong Kongs: Xu Xiβs π»ππππ§ππ π»πππ πΎπππ” by Rebekah Chan](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/horizonhongkong122925.webp)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “Never Finish Making Refuge: Mai-Linh Hongβs Continental Drift” by Anna Nguyen Click HERE to read all entrieson Continental Drift. Mai-Linh Hong. Continental Drift, Trio House Press, 2026. 108 pgs. There…
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Christopher Cheung’s Very Vancouver: A City in Everyday Voices” by Raymond K. Nakamura Christopher Cheung. Very Vancouver: Uncovering the Soul of a West Coast City, ECW Press, 2026. 328…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Christopher Cheung’s ππππ¦ ππππππ’π£ππ: A City in Everyday Voices” by Raymond K. Nakamura](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/very-vancouver-uncovering-the-soul-of-a-west-coast-city.jpg)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] βLoss, Survival, and Hope: Yuyutsu Sharmaβs In Godβs Messy Workplaceβ by Arun Budhathoki Yuyutsu Sharma. In God’s Messy Workplace: New Poems, Nirala Publications, 2026. 110 pgs. The COVID-19 pandemic generated…
![[REVIEW] βLoss, Survival, and Hope: Yuyutsu Sharmaβs πΌπ πΊππβπ πππ π π¦ πππππππππβ by Arun Budhathoki](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/in-gods-messy-workplace-new-poems-by-yuyutsu-sharma-author-.jpg)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] βWhat Lingers: On Babitha Marina Justinβs The Way Madmen Smellβ by Ankush Banerjee Babitha Marina Justin. The Way Madmen Smell, Red River Press, 2026. 149 pgs. Noted Trivandrum-based academic, poet,…
![[ESSAY] βWhat Lingers: On Babitha Marina Justinβs πβπ πππ¦ ππππππ πππππβ by Ankush Banerjee](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/the-way-madmen-smell-by-babitha-marina-justin-.jpg)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “Between the Rabbit and the Not-Rabbit: Yoo Heekyung’s Surrealism in Winter Night Rabbit Worries” by San Kwon Yoo Heekyung (author), Stine An (translator). Winter Night Rabbit Worries, Ugly Duckling Press,…
![[REVIEW] “Between the Rabbit and the Not-Rabbit: Yoo Heekyung’s Surrealism in ππππ‘ππ πππβπ‘ π
πππππ‘ πππππππ ” by San Kwon](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/winter-night-rabbit-worries-1.jpg)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “Insignificant Moments, Significant Lives: Xu Xi’s Horizon Hong Kong” by Jennifer Eagleton ClickΒ HERE to readΒ all entries inΒ ChaonΒ Horizon Hong Kong. Xu Xi. Horizon Hong Kong: Selected Stories, Gaudy Boy, 2026. 288…