Understanding History Through the Subtle Asian Book Club

Reading is typically seen as a solitary activity, but it has always fostered my most meaningful connections with other people. In elementary school, my friends and I would vicariously fight alongside fictional hero Percy Jackson to defeat the minotaur, or time travel to ancient Egypt through the Magic Tree House series. Years later, I would travel to Tehran and Seoul through the pages of a novel with my book club. While the core of my hobby has never changed, it has grown into an adventure shared with a global community of over 15,000 readers known as Subtle Asian Book Club (SABC).

In 2019, Asian representation in media skyrocketed with breakthrough films such as Crazy Rich Asians and To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before, and I longed to see Asian literature achieve the same level of mainstream success. Stories have always challenged me to reflect on my heritage and enriched my understanding of the world, and I wanted to help others discover books that would inspire them the same way. I noticed there were few organizations that centered around uplifting Asian storytellers, so I decided to create one.

On New Year’s Eve in 2019, I texted my best friend since pre-school, Alexandra Ling, asking if she’d like to start a book club. We had both been active in the online reading community as book bloggers and were comfortable working with publishers to promote new releases, provide early feedback, and share recommendations with other readers. We’d seen firsthand how the number of Asian voices in the literary community was growing and were inspired by writers like Chloe Gong, who we witnessed transform their pitches into New York Times bestsellers. Our friendships with fellow book bloggers in countries including the Philippines, Morrocco, and Hong Kong motivated us to create a community that wasn’t constrained by physical locations.

And so, we founded the Subtle Asian Book Club, as a virtual community in which readers all over the world would be able to participate. The name was inspired by the viral Facebook group “Subtle Asian Traits” which acknowledged the small, often unspoken cultural quirks and shared experiences of growing up as part of the Asian diaspora. Every month, we chose a book by an Asian author and held discussions online. As the book club grew, we began to conduct author interviews both on our website and YouTube channel and evolved our selections to incorporate both backlist titles and new releases.

Through monthly discussions and reading challenges, the SABC provided a forum for curiosity and honest conversation, and I witnessed stories transcend physical distance and societal divides. Members from Lebanon and Portugal bonded over Japanese translated fiction, and a Thai fantasy retelling of Les Misérables sparked discussions about different Asian folklore.

The stories we read challenged us to see beyond what we learned in classrooms and revealed the complexities of our heritage and humanized the events that shaped generations. During one interview with Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai, the author of a multigenerational tale of a family torn apart by the Vietnam War called The Mountains Sing, the author sang a lullaby passed down from her mother that embodied the heartache and hope of the refugee experience. One book club member revealed that while she grew up surrounded by friends who were Vietnamese, she never fully understood the impact of the war on their families. Similarly, I had never questioned why several of my Vietnamese friends spoke Cantonese at home; through the discussions with my book club, I learned that some Vietnamese families resettled as refugees in primarily Chinese communities, and came to understand how these historical events shaped generations of children and the immigrant community in my own hometown.

SABC is truly a labor of love that Alexandra and I work to balance between our academic studies and full-time jobs. We wanted the club to shape the publishing industry for the better. When one member shared how the pandemic devastated her favorite Asian-owned bookstore in San Francisco, we immediately coordinated with a publisher and author to offer discounted signed books for members who purchased directly from the bookstore. In a few days, we sold over 50 copies and were invited to conduct a virtual interview as part of the author’s book tour.

In 2022 and 2023, we launched Subtle Asian Book Con, a virtual book conference that brought approximately 4,000 readers around the world closer to their favorite stories. Historically, book conferences have been in-person, limiting access to those who could afford to physically attend. We set out to create an event that was accessible to anyone at any time. Panels such as “Shattering Stigmas” spotlighted the importance of mental health representation in Asian literature, and “Writing 101” and “So You Want to Work in Publishing?” connected industry veterans with aspiring professionals. Alongside the conference, we also worked with authors and small businesses to launch fundraisers for community nonprofits to combat anti-AAPI hate, help public schools and libraries build and maintain robust Asian American literature collections, and make mental health more accessible for Asian communities worldwide.

My book club has shown me how reading challenges us to understand history more deeply and grow more compassionate. We’ve been incredibly lucky to have been invited to the Today Show, and to work with talented authors including Marjan Kamali, Amal El-Mohtar, and Yale alum R.F. Kuang. Literature has been undeniably intertwined with my personal growth, which is why I’m passionate about helping people discover stories that will undoubtedly challenge their way of thinking, as they did mine.

Tiffany’s reading recommendations for Pan Asian American Heritage Month

• Homeseeking, Karissa Chen
• Against the Loveless World, Susan Abulhawa
• Jade City, by Fonda Lee
• Taiwan Travelogue, Yang Shuang-zi
• As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow, Zoulfa Katouh
• The Paper Menagerie, Ken Liu
• Martyr!, Kaveh Akbar
• The Mountains Sing, Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai

About Pan Asian American Heritage Month

Yale SOM recognizes the immeasurable contributions of individuals and groups of Asian and Pacific Islander (AAPI) descent to the United States. The AAPI umbrella term includes a broad range of cultures from the entire Asian continent—including East, Southeast, and South Asia—and the Pacific Islands of Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. As we honor this important month in the United States, we aim to celebrate the wide diversity of the Asian diaspora and explore the distinctiveness of the Asian American experience.

While the month of May is federally designated as Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month, the Asian American Cultural Center (AACC) at Yale leads university-wide celebrations from March to early April. For Pan Asian American Heritage Month (PAAHM) 2025 at Yale, the AACC invited us to explore our shared history as “a dynamic force that influences the present and shapes the future.” In response, we shared a monthlong series of events structured around the theme “Imagining Just Futures.”

Throughout the month, SOM’s Office of Inclusion and Diversity (OID) and the student-run Asian American and Pacific Islander Association celebrated with the community through meaningful programming including a karaoke night, a free book giveaway, and a speaker event focused on the 4B feminist movement in South Korea. We also supported local and national Asian-owned restaurants, bookstores, and venues throughout the month. To stay up to date on SOM’s events, follow us on Instagram.

OID hosts multiple cultural immersions throughout the academic year to encourage the SOM community to deeply engage with and experience different cultures through sound, taste, touch, and thought in support of our mission to foster understanding, empathy, and inclusivity. We invite you to learn more about our commitment to celebrating diversity and fostering inclusion at SOM.