Top Ten Tuesday is hosted at The Broke and the Bookish.
This week's topic is Ten Books Set Outside The US. Are there any? Of course there are. Some genres and age groups seem to be more heavily skewed toward the US, but that doesn't mean there aren't a lot of great books out there that take place somewhere else. Here are some of my favourites:
Ten Books Set Outside The US:
by Markus Zusak
Setting: Germany
Nazi Germany in World War II is a setting that's used a lot... but there are so many stories to tell within that setting.
by Karen Cushman
Setting: England
England might not seem like that exciting of a setting, but this is England in the 1290s! As such, it's barely recognizable... but it creates a great backdrop for the characters and their stories.
by Laini Taylor
Setting: Prague, Czech Republic
The setting is incidental to this intricate story, but it's still nice to see a place other than some random American city featured as the MC's home. Having her live in a European city adds a little more magic (at least, for those of us who don't live in Europe).
by A. S. King
Setting: Ireland & Jamaica
This book is partly set in the US, but much of it (through flashbacks) is also set in Ireland. And then the MC jets off to Jamaica. So it's not exactly what I'd call an "American" book.
by Gina McMurchy-Barber
Setting: British Columbia, Canada
Like quite a few books on this list, this one is also historical, though it depicts a time in the fairly recent past. It's hard to believe that we treated people with disabilities is such horrible ways... and that we did it within the last century.
by S. M. Beiko
Setting: Manitoba, Canada
Though this wasn't a perfect book by any means, I really enjoyed the story, which is a mix of contemporary and paranormal, set in a small town in Manitoba. I can probably count the number of books I've read that were set on the Canadian Prairies on one hand, so this was a nice find.
by Thanhha Lai
Setting: Vietnam
When I realized this book wasn't a verse novel like the author's first book, I almost put it down. But I'm really glad I didn't because I thoroughly enjoyed this middle-grade story about a California girl who accompanies her grandmother back to Vietnam for the summer.
by Sarah Miller
Setting: Russia
I can't pass up a good Romanov book... and this is one of the better ones I've read, a purely historical tale with no added supernatural elements (which seem to be common in books featuring Anastasia).
by Lucy Christopher
Setting: Australia
Although I've seen some Australians complain about the way the Outback is portrayed in this book, to me it seemed very real and weirdly claustrophobic (which is what the story called for).
by Antonia Michaelis
Setting: India
This is probably the most fairytale-esque book on my list, with many fantasy elements. Heck, it has a telepathic talking tiger! But it is set in a real place, which appears to be India during British rule.
What are some of your favourite books set outside the USA?
Ooh, I want to read The Lost Crown! Just because RUSSIA. (I have a weird obsession with it.) And haha I'm one of those ones kind of looking at Stolen skeptically with it's outback portrayal. It wasn't that the claustrophobia aspect was wrong, just how hot it was. Like it honestly wasn't portrayed as hot enough. *shrugs* I'm still glad you liked the story though!
ReplyDeleteI'd highly recommend The Lost Crown. The setting and characters and everything were great... but the writing was just so well done. The author has at least one other novel out there, and I keep thinking I should check it out (it's about Helen Keller and Annie Sullivan).
Delete+JMJ+
ReplyDeleteI love that you picked so many different countries--and none of them the UK! (Medieval England doesn't count, of course! =P) With respect to others, making modern-day UK synonymous to "outside of the US" isn't very adventurous. Then again, I shouldn't talk . . . All the books on my own Top 10 for the week are set in a single other country: the Philippines!
Wow... I don't know if I could even come up with 10 books I liked that were set in one country other than the USA! Well, maybe books set in Canada...
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Love your top ten! Stolen also made my list! It's such a great read! My Top Ten Tuesday!
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by, Giovanna! I'm off to check out your TTT...
DeleteI really liked The Book Thief and there are SO many others on your list that I either hadn't heard of or want to read. Thanks for sharing! Here's mine: https://aubreysbooknook.wordpress.com/2016/07/19/books-set-outside-the-us/
ReplyDeleteI really liked The Book Thief, too! I still haven't gotten around to watching the movie, though.
DeleteThanks for stopping by!
I think Stolen is the only book I've read where the setting actually has a huge impact on the story and the plot. It seemed so...alive? The Book Thief and Daughter of Smoke & Bone have pheonominal settings as well. Thanks for sharing and, as always, fabulous choices! <3
ReplyDeleteYes... I really liked the setting in Stolen. Not that I'd want to go there or anything, but it was good for the story.
DeleteThanks for stopping by!