Blasian Books to Check Out Before Black History Month Ends

Mixed Asian Media - February 28, 2023

By Jalen Jones

Finish Black History Month off strong with some much-needed Blasian representation! Here are some of our favorite Blasian books that may have flown under your radar, but deserve all the rave.

Blasian Invasion: Racial Mixing in the Celebrity Industrial Complex

By Myra S. Washington

In her book Blasian Invasion, Ethnic Studies Scholar Myra S. Washington traces how “Blasian” has emerged not just as an identity for Black/Asian mixed-race individuals, but also as a brand within one of contemporary culture’s most influential industries. Washington interrogates media representation of Blasian celebrities such as Kimora Lee Simmons, Tiger Woods, and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, and reveals how their respective depictions alter modern social constructions of race. As an academic text, Blasian Invasion proves itself as simultaneously accessible, illuminating, and utterly engrossing — especially for the typical mixed reader. If you’re looking to expand how you understand multiraciality in the modern world, this is a book you won’t want to skip.

Hybrida: Poems

By Tina Chang

Named one of the best poetry books of 2021 by Oprah Magazine, Tina Chang’s latest collection illustrates her experience of motherhood as she raises her Black and Chinese children. Pulling inspiration from fairy tales and hybrid forms of media, Chang immerses her readers into a world that is both frighteningly and fantastically surreal. Narrative and poetic form are delicately weaved in ways that will sit with you long after you’ve finished reading. Hybrida reminds you after every poem how much you want to call mom again.

Dogeaters

By Jessica Hagedorn

Jessica Hagedorn holds a magnifying glass to 1950s Philippine culture and politics in this eclectic and compelling novel. The narrative jumps between a disparate cast of characters, including celebrities, department store workers, and the richest man in the Philippines, stitching their stories together in unexpected but powerful ways. One of the central characters, Joey Sands, is the orphan son of a Black American father and Filipino mother, and embodies the alluring impression that America has stamped onto the Philippine imagination. As a National Book Award Finalist, Dogeaters is without a doubt a must-read for all fans of literature.

Country of Origin

By Don Lee

Country of Origin is a dimly-lit detective novel that stands as a poignant exploration of identity, race, and belonging. The narrative follows Lisa Countryman, a Black and Japanese adoptee who returns to Japan in search of her mother’s origin story, but finds herself falling victim to an unfortunate string of events. As one of the few stories centering multiple mixed-race characters, Lee portrays the struggles that we go through while searching for a place (or a community) to call our own. If you ever feel like you’re constantly searching for something, yet can never place exactly what, Country of Origin may have the answer in its pages.