Oh, the sweet whirlwind of parenthood! Just when you think you’ve got it all figured out, your little one takes a curious leap into the world of heart-flutters and first crushes. It’s a journey of discovery, both for them and for us.
With the arrival of spring, my daughter has found a new interest, tiptoeing into the romance section of Barnes and Noble during our cozy, post-church Sunday visits. It’s a chapter of her life that’s blooming right before my eyes, and I can’t help but feel a mix of excitement and nostalgia.
What’s heartwarming is seeing the shelves now adorned with Tween-friendly romance books that reflect the beauty of Asian cultures and characters—a delightful change that I wish had been around in my own youth.
If you’re in the same boat, wondering what magical tales to introduce to your young reader, here are some reads to add to your list!
This charming book features Lara-Jean Song, a sweet but shy girl who isn’t able to tell her crushes that she’s – well – crushing on them. So instead she writes them each a letter and hides those letters away in a hatbox under her bed! When by mistake these letters are all mailed, however, she has to find a way to deal with her romantic past face-to-face.
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In this arranged-marriage-with-a-twist story, Dimple Shah and Rishi Patel meet at the summer camp for computer programmers and the sparks fly. What Dimple doesn’t know however is that Rishi has been picked out by her parents for an arranged marriage and that Rishi is using the summer to woo her…..This Indian-American story is romantic and funny while still dealing with the issues of tension between immigrant parents and American-born teenagers.
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Okay, so you wouldn’t think that there would be much of an overlap between Asian teen romance and Leo Tolstoy’s famous book, Anna Karenina, but Jenny Lee manages to pull it off in this modern retelling of the classic story. Anna K is a sweet Korean-American girl who loves her dogs, her horses and her dad. But her life is turned up-side down when she meets bad boy Alexa “Count” Vronksy and must decide just how much of her life she is willing to give up to be with him.
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Desi Lee is on top of most of her life: student body president, Varsity soccer star, on track to start Stanford in the fall. But she is also romantically backwards and goes from one romantic disaster to another when she tries to get a guy’s attention. But when she meets Luca Drakas, a transfer student, she is desperate to get more adept with boys – and starts to take lessons from the K-dramas her widower father is so addicted to!
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In this complex book, Frank Li, a Korean-American teen, and his best friend Joy pretend to fall in love with each other so that they are both free to secretly date the people they really like, people whom their parents would not approve of. This story is a wonderful read for teens and also explores the complex relationship between Asian-Americans and communities of color as well as the different perspectives of parents and their children.
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On the surface, Mei (a 17 year old freshman at MIT) is all set to live the life that her hard-working parents have planned for her: she will become a doctor, marry a suitable Taiwanese-American husband and start her family. However, Mei is actually afraid of germs, uninterested in biology, and crushing hard on a fellow student, Darren, who is Japanese. However, her relationship with her parents becomes increasingly based on lies and she must decide how to navigate staying close to her family while staying true to herself.
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18-year-old Ever Wong from Ohio finds herself in a very different world when her strict Chinese parents send her to Taiwan to study Mandarin among some very eligible young Chinese teens. Free from her parents for the first time in her life, Ever goes clubbing, takes secret dance lessons – and becomes involved in a complex “love square” with prodigy Rick, bad boy Xavier and her glamorous new friend Sophie.
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This historical Asian-American story follows Jo Kuan as she tries to carve out a place for herself in 19th century Atalanta, at a time when Chinese Americans faced a wide variety of discriminations. Jo is forced to become a maid, but finds her voice by anonymously starting an advice column to “Dear Miss Sweetie” which becomes both wildly popular and wildly controversial – and also leads her into a dark world of crime.
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This light romantic book follows Lucky, a K-pop star and Jada, a tabloid journalist as they meet by accident in Hong Kong; their romance is threatened however by the lies they have both told one another and they must find a way to get past the identities they have assumed in order for their romance to survive.
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In an Asian-American version of Romeo and Juliet, focuses on Bao Nguyen and Linh Mai, who work at rival pho restaurants owned by their respective parents. But when an accidental encounter leads them to realize they are attracted to each other, they must find a way to maintain that relationship in the face of their warring families.
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In summary, those books were
1. To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han – Lara-Jean Song’s secret love letters get mailed, forcing her to confront her romantic past.2. When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon – Dimple Shah and Rishi Patel meet at a coding camp, but Dimple is unaware that Rishi has been arranged to woo her.3. Anna K by Jenny Lee – A modern retelling of Anna Karenina follows sweet Korean-American Anna K’s romance with bad boy Count Vronsky.4. I Believe in a Thing Called Love by Maurene Goo – Desi Lee seeks love advice from K-dramas to win over her crush, Luca.5. Frankly in Love by David Yoo – Korean-American teen Frank Li and his friend pretend to date to secretly pursue their crushes, navigating cultural expectations.6. American Panda by Gloria Chao – Mei, a Taiwanese-American freshman at MIT, juggles her parents’ plans with her own dreams, including a forbidden romance.7. Loveboat Taipei by Abigail Hing Wen – Sent to Taiwan to study Mandarin, Ever Wong discovers freedom, love, and herself among fellow teens.8. The Downstairs Girl by Stacey Lee – Jo Kuan, a maid in 19th-century Atlanta, anonymously starts an advice column, stirring controversy and uncovering secrets.9. Somewhere Only We Know by Maurene Goo – K-pop star Lucky and tabloid journalist Jada’s romance in Hong Kong is complicated by their false identities.10. A Pho Love Story by Loan Le – Bao and Linh, whose families own rival pho restaurants, fall in love, challenging their feuding families’ expectations.
And you know what? There are so much more!
There is such a great variety of stories here that no matter what kind of romance your teen or tween is wanting, there is sure to be something here that she will enjoy and the Asian-American flavor of all these works definitely makes this list inclusive!
Happy Reading!
Steph