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Wiz Wharton

@wizwharton

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Author. Ghost Girl, Banana @hodderbooks (UK) & @harperviabooks (US) TV series in progress.
📚 @cmlwilson @rcwliteraryagency
🎬 @emilyhaywardwhitlock

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The Book Taster Online Book Club
September 2026 author announcement 📣

I am so excited to share with you all that our September Online Book Club pick is When the fireflies dance by @aishahassanwriter

Inspired by a true story, this mesmerising debut novel of love, family, resilience and redemption will appeal to fans of modern classics The Kite Runner and The Beekeeper of Aleppo.

Fans of the book say -

‘A bold, beautiful novel that sweeps you away in an evocative story of family secrets, sacrifice and redemption. I read this in three breathless gulps and if you enjoyed The Beekeeper of Aleppo, or The Kite Runner, you’re going to love it. A page-turning, heart-pounding thrill of a book, full of truth and insight and hope’ WIZ WHARTON @wizwharton

‘Deeply evocative and totally transporting, a story that will really stay with me’ SAMUEL BURR @samuelburr

‘A beautiful novel. Lalloo’s story is evocative, heartbreaking, and full of hope. I loved it’ CHARLOTTE LEVIN @tinycharlotte29

Aisha will be joining us online to discuss all things bookish … and definitely more! So do join us!

We welcome and encourage new members to join our incredible book club community! Do say hello 👋🏻 below if you would like more information.

So what do you think about this announcement? Let’s chat below ⬇️

#bookclubofinstagram #bookclubsofinstagram #bookclubpick #bookclubreads

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13 Authors of Mixed East and/or Southeast Asian heritage - Fiction ✍️🌏

Here’s a new post showcasing writers with mixed East and/or Southeast Asian heritage. Today the focus is on authors of literary/contemporary and historical fiction📚

This is by no means a comprehensive list. There are so many writers I read and love that I will include in future posts… and many others that I’ve yet to discover! So please comment below any other author that you’d add to the list💖
Stay tuned for the next post of the series and follow for more!
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🇮🇹 Ecco una lista che comprende 13 autori di origini miste dell’Asia orientale e sudorientale. Sono inclusi in questo post autori di romanzi storici e contemporanei.

Libri disponibili in italiano:
- Anime erranti di Cecile Pin @einaudieditore
- Edimburgo di Alexander Chee @nneditore
- Innocua come te e Il volo dello storno di Rowan Hisayo Buchanan @codice_edizioni
- Il ministero del tempo di Kaliane Bradley @librimondadori
- Storia d’amore e di eresia Charmaine Craig @libribompiani @cheemobile
- La ragazza gallese @bollati_boringhieri e Aspettando Lady Godiva di Peter Ho Davies

In arrivo in italiano:
- Dove fioriscono i ciliegi di Alli Parker @giuntieditore in uscita a luglio 2026
- I libri di Nicola Dinan sono in traduzione! Da settembre in poi state in allerta👀

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International Women, you say? Yeah, we know a few. #internationalwomensday

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恭喜發財 🧧🍊❤️ Wishing everyone a happy new year of the fire horse 🐎 - the animal in the Chinese zodiac which symbolises strength, speed, courage, loyalty, freedom and talent.

Chinese new year or lunar new year is a major holiday for Chinese, Vietnamese and Koreans. It’s also great to see how it is globally embraced with festival parades and activities around the world.

To celebrate, I’ve put together a list of books that are great if you want to learn more about Chinese history and culture, as well as understand what it feels like to identify as Chinese and/or be part of the Chinese diaspora community. I’m always seeking out these books as it helps me to understand my Chinese heritage more having grown up with dual identities in the UK.

Do you spot any favourites?

This year I really want to discover and read more Chinese translated literature so if you have any recs please share 🫶

Hope everyone is wearing some red for good luck today!

❤️❤️❤️

Follow for more ESEA book recommendations 💚

Ps the song is from one of my fave canto artists 🥰

#asianbookstagram #chinesebooks #chinesecultures #booksworthreading #eastasian | bookstagram | east asian identity | sammi cheng | Hong Kong

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Food stack (some ad/pr*)

@janetemson did a post recently about books with food in the title and I got excited because I was convinced I had loads. Turns out I have loads with pictures of food on the cover (another post idea!) This is all I can find. Have you read any? Can you think of any more?

🥪Sandwich by Catherine Newman*

🫘Sweet Bean Paste by Durian Sakagawa

🍯Bitter Honey by Caryl Lewis*

🥧Pies and Prejudice by Stuart Maconie

🥚Isaac and the Egg by Bobby Palmer

🍌Ghost Girl Banana by Wiz Wharton*

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…Kinda busy organising the best bookish events with your favourite authors and likeminded people 🤍📚

Est 2016, we’ve been building this fantastic community and we’re so excited to keep expanding and meet more of you all! 🔥

#thecandidbookclub
#telephonechallenge
#kindabusy
#bookevents
#londonevents
#meettheauthor
#waterstonesevents

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Lately I've been reading many books written by people of mixed background or about the mixed heritage experience. Sometimes my choice was intentional; having mixed heritage myself, themes of identity and belonging deeply resonated with me. Other times I just ended up reading about the mixed heritage experience totally by chance, making some great discoveries!😍

Through #mixedbooksinda I'd like to collect my reads about the mixed heritage experience through memoirs and autobiographies of writers with mixed backgrounds as well as novels with mixed characters. Nuanced, personal and intimate stories that show complex journeys of mixed heritage people navigating through multiple cultures, reconnecting to their roots, dealing with acceptance and rejection, fighting labels, categorisation, exoticism and racism.

Exploring the mixed heritage experience means also delving into history, migration and colonisation.
I'm especially keen to include historical fiction depicting mixed communities, particularly in the context of East and Southeast Asia: the Indo-Europeans in Indonesia, Amerasians in Vietnam, Cape Malays in South Africa, Eurasians, Peranakan and other communities that describe themselves as multicultural or hybrid.

In the last couple of years I've been looking for more platforms for the mixed heritage experience. I highly recommend reading the newsletter @mixedmessagesnewsletter . Each week Isabella Silvers interviews people of mixed race backgrounds, inviting them to share their experiences. I joined @izzymks event 'Mixed Messages Live' last year and it was great to be part of such an amazing community💛

For more insights into the mixed-race experience, check out @mixedup.podcast by @nicoleocran and @emsladedmondson . Can't wait to read their book 'The Half of It'🧡

📖 Swipe left to find a selection of a few mixed titles I already reviewed in previous posts!

❓Are you interested in the mixed heritage experience? Let me know your favourite reads about being mixed in the comments!!

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Wiz Wharton’s debut novel, Ghost Girl, Banana (2023), is an excellent read for those interested in family drama and historical fiction. She is a natural storyteller! I enjoyed the read, especially as it didn’t fall into the trap of being overly sentimental or soap-opera-like, as much historical fiction is to me.

The story follows two timelines and locations. First, in 1966, in Hong Kong, Sook-Yin, the daughter of a family fallen on hard times, is sent to London to find a job as a nurse and support her family. She had failed them in Hong Kong, as she failed school (I think she is dyslexic) and couldn’t find a suitable job. In 1997, in London, Lily, her daughter, grew up estranged from her heritage and her mother, who had passed when she was tiny. Lily receives a letter informing her that she has inherited half a million pounds from a tycoon in Hong Kong, a gift utterly unrelated to her family. Her older sister, Maya, who took over caring for her upon their mother’s death, receives a similar one. There is a catch, though: for them to access the inheritance, they need to go to Hong Kong and walk their mother’s path, learn her past and secrets. And they need to do all these in the span of 49 days, the period of mourning lasts in Hong Kong.

Lily and Maya couldn’t be any different: Maya is married to an older, wealthy husband, pregnant with her first baby, and a successful lawyer. Lily is lost, having suffered from depression, she is now focusing on recovery and works in a thrift shop. Maya supports her, as she always did, but also doesn’t answer any of her questions about their mother and her past. Maya was a bit older when their mother passed in a car accident, and she should know more. However, both Maya and their dad (who had passed away as well) kept their history away from Lily. So, Lily is curious, and curious enough to travel to Hong Kong, meet the son of the deceased tycoon and go on a journey to know her mother.

(1/3, Cont’d in comments)

#andreeareviews #bookreview #historicalfiction #literaryfiction #GhostGirlBanana #WizWharton #hongkong #bookstagram #bookworm #booklover #bookrecommendation #reader #readersofIG #reading

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So excited to be a 2025 Page Turner Writing Award Finalist for 2nd year running, with a new book 🤩 ✍️ Alone in the Rainforest @pageturnerawards #bookstergram #novelist #writersoninstagram #writer #writerlife #novelist #writingcommunity

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📖➕📖🟰🎬, the HarperVia edition

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