Asian Fairy Tales

Aru is only just getting the hang of this whole Pandava thing when the Otherworld goes into full panic mode. The god of love's bow and arrow have gone missing, and the thief isn't playing Cupid. Instead, they're turning people into heartless fighting-machine zombies. If that weren't bad enough, somehow Aru gets framed as the thief. If she doesn't find the arrow by the next full moon, she'll be kicked out of the Otherworld. For good.

Thirteen-year-old Min comes from a long line of fox spirits. But you'd never know it by looking at her. To keep the family safe, Min's mother insists none of them use any fox-magic such as charm or shape-shifting. They must appear human at all times. Min feels hemmed in by the household rules and resents the endless chores, the cousins who crowd her, and the aunties who judge her. She would like nothing more than to escape Jinju, her neglected, dust-ridden, and impoverished planet. She's counting the days until she can follow her older brother, Jun, into the Space Forces.

All light in Chattana is created by one man - the Governor, who appeared after the Great Fire to bring peace and order to the city. For Pong, who was born in Namwon Prison, the magical lights represent freedom, and he dreams of the day he will be able to walk among them. But when Pong escapes from prison, he realizes that the world outside is no fairer than the one behind bars. The wealthy dine and dance under bright orb light, while the poor toil away in darkness. Worst of all, Pong’s prison tattoo marks him as a fugitive who can never be truly free.

The Three Kingdoms is one of the Chinese Noble Classics. The great empire of China is in turmoil. As the government becomes increasingly incompetent, warlords and nobles battle for power. In the north is the Kingdom of Wei, headed by cunning and manipulative Cao Cao. In the southeast is the Kingdom of Wu, ruled by masterful and charismatic Sun Quan. In the west is the Kingdom of Shu, commanded by kindhearted and humble Liu Bei.

Originating long ago in Japan, this fable invites listeners to evaluate the importance and value of being honest.

The ancient Chinese philosopher and military general Sun Tzu believed that being able to outsmart enemies is far better than being able to outfight them. Decide whether you agree with Sun Tzu after you listen to this story.

Twelve American tourists join an art expedition that begins in the Himalayan foothills of China - dubbed the true Shangri-La - and heads south into the jungles of Burma. But after the mysterious death of their tour leader, the carefully laid plans fall apart, and disharmony breaks out among the pleasure-seekers.

When a nonbinary tiger spirit named Sebin finally gets their chance to follow in their Uncle Hwan's footsteps in the Thousand World Space Forces, it's more of a nightmare than a dream come true.

In this Indian folktale, a young turtle shares a shallow lake with unlikely friends—two geese. But when the lake starts drying up, the stubborn turtle must follow his winged friends’ advice, or he’ll be left out to dry.

Riley Oh can't wait to see her sister get initiated into the Gom clan, a powerful lineage of Korean healing witches their family has belonged to for generations. Her sister, Hattie, will earn her Gi bracelet and finally be able to cast spells without adult supervision. Although Riley is desperate to follow in her sister's footsteps when she herself turns 13, she's a saram - a person without magic. Riley was adopted, and despite having memorized every healing spell she's ever heard, she often feels like the odd one out in her family and the gifted community.

A beautifully crafted, enriching saga inspired by East Asian mythology, The Melancholy of Untold History is Minsoo Kang’s debut novel, steeped in history like R.F. Kuang’s Babel, epic in scope like Anthony Doerr’s Cloud Cuckoo Land, and lyrically exciting like David Mitchell’s Cloud Atlas, interweaving four complex yet entertaining stories as they shape and create a nation’s literary narrative through the themes of love and grief.

Riya loves Diwali for the tasty treats but not the darkness and loud fireworks. Can Riya be brave and find a way to celebrate Diwali with her family without being scared? Presented as a 'Once Upon a Time' bedtime story, children will learn the origin of Diwali and how it came to be a celebration of light over darkness and good over evil. Diwali is a five-day long celebration beginning from purchasing silver and gold items, to decorating the home with lights and candles, to preparing baked goods and visiting friends and family, to ending the holiday with fireworks and a celebration of siblings.

Curious and drawn to adventure, Mulan struggles to meet her village’s traditional standards. After a disastrous visit with the Matchmaker, Mulan worries she will never be able to bring her family the honor they deserve. But when the emperor decrees that one man from every family must join the army to face a dangerous threat to China, Mulan decides to disguise herself as a man and take her father’s place. Now, Mulan must hide her secret as she trains alongside her fellow soldiers. With the enemy drawing nearer, will Mulan become the hero China needs?

Nura longs for the simple pleasure of many things—to wear a beautiful red dupatta or to bite into a sweet gulab. But with her mom hard at work in a run-down sweatshop and three younger siblings to feed, Nura must spend her days earning money by mica mining. But it’s not just the extra rupees in her pocket Nura is after. Local rumor says there’s buried treasure in the mine, and Nura knows that finding it could change the course of her family’s life forever. Her plan backfires when the mines collapse and four kids, including her best friend, Faisal, are claimed dead.

Warrior-prince Rama is about to be crowned Young King, when he hears the devastating news that his father, king of Ayodhya, has been tricked into banishing him to the forest. His devoted wife, Sita, insists on accompanying him in exile, but the evil 10-headed Lord Ravana has fallen deeply in love with the beautiful princess and steals her away. Aided by Hanuman, mighty captain of the monkeys, Rama sets out across the world to find her and destroy Ravana in a deadly battle.

Kiki Kallira has always been a worrier. Did she lock the front door? Is there a terrible reason her mom is late? Recently her anxiety has been getting out of control, but one thing that has always soothed her is drawing. Kiki's sketchbook is full of fanciful doodles of the rich Indian myths and legends her mother has told her over the years. One day, her sketchbook's calming effect is broken when her mythological characters begin springing to life right out of its pages and Kiki ends up falling into the mystical world she drew.

Twelve-year-old Winston Chu is supposed to learn impulse control at the cooking academy his mom enrolled him in. But learning to think before he acts won't happen overnight. While skateboarding home with a pie in hand, Winston inadvertently stops a robbery at Mr. Pang's Whimsies, an oddities shop in Chinatown. As a reward, Mr. Pang invites Winston to choose any item in the store. But the strange old man warns Winston to browse carefully, for the first thing Winston touches will be the thing he gets.

Based on Japanese literature and foldlore, Kwaidan contains 17 stories. The story of Loichi, the blind biwa player who was called to perform for the dead; of Muso, the journeying priest who encountered a man eating goblin; of the samurai who outwitted the ghost of a dead man. All these plus 14 other spooly tales are included in this collection.

After vanquishing a demon king, saving her mom, and reconnecting with her friend Danny, Momo ought to be living the life she's always wanted. But lately, Danny has been ditching her to hang out with mean-girl Ryleigh—and groups of kids have begun vanishing without a trace. Then a whole backyard full of cool kids at Ryleigh's exclusive birthday party becomes the latest to disappear, leaving Momo, Ryleigh, Danny, boy band superstar Jin, and Momo's old friend Niko the fox to fight a dangerous new enemy from Shinto legend.

All Momo wants for her twelfth birthday is an ordinary life—like everyone else's. At home, she has to take care of her absentminded widowed mother. At school, kids ridicule her for mixing up reality with the magical stories her mother used to tell her. But then Momo’s mother falls gravely ill, and a death hag straight out of those childhood stories attacks Momo at the mall, where she’s rescued by a talking fox . . . and “ordinary” goes out the window. It turns out that Momo's mother is a banished Shinto goddess who used to protect a passageway to the land of the dead.