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UnderratedReads is devoted to discovering underrated books and under-represented authors. We highlight hidden gems from around the world–honest reviews only, never pay-to-play.
Category Archives: World Literature
The Memory Monster – Yishai Sarid
(reviewed by JD Jung) “Force is the only way to resist force, and one must be prepared to kill.” This Israeli PhD History student wasn’t prepared for what he was about to embark on. Trying to figure out the topic … Continue reading
Posted in Middle Eastern Literature, World Literature
Tagged Holocaust, Israel, Poland
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My Part of Her – Javad Djavahery, Preface by Dina Nayeri, Translated by Emma Ramadan
(Reviewed by JD Jung) “For what reason did the people take to the streets to demand the Shah’s departure? I assure you that if we asked the question today, the majority of Iranians wouldn’t know how to respond. For liberty? … Continue reading
Posted in Historical Fiction, Middle Eastern Literature, Political fiction, World Literature
Tagged Iran, Islamic revolution, Tudeh party
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No Room at the Morgue – Jean-Patrick Manchette, Translated by Alyson Waters
(reviewed by JD Jung) “They’re going to lock me up. I’m the perfect fall girl. My fingerprints are everywhere, even on the knife that belongs to me, and I got blood all over me.” Maybe another reason that this femme-fatale, … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, French Literature, Lost and almost forgotten, World Literature
Tagged French literature, noir
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The German Client: A Bacci Pagano Investigation-Bruno Morchio
(Reviewed by JD Jung) “If Germans and fascists don’t shoot us, Americans bomb us.” Private Investigator Bacci Pagano doesn’t have an easy relationship with the past. He grew up poor as his mother worked in a cigar factory and … Continue reading
Posted in Historical Fiction, Italian Literature
Tagged Genoa, Italian literature, translated world literature, WWII
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Outside the Lines-Ameera Patel
(reviewed by JD Jung) “She’s pregnant with a domestic worker’s son, who has matric but whose skill is drug peddling. How did she get herself into this?” Her parents want to control the situation, but Farhana doesn’t know what she … Continue reading
Posted in African Literature, Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, World Literature
Tagged contemporary fiction, culture, drug addiction, Johannesburg, south Africa
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It Is Wood, It Is Stone – Gabriella Burnham
(reviewed by JD Jung) “I don’t even think I want to flee anymore. I thought that was what I wanted, but I think more so I wanted to disappear. I wanted to become so unburdened that I would actually become … Continue reading
Posted in Latin American Literature, Modern Literary Fiction
Tagged Brazil, class, romance. women's fiction
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The Man in the Cellar – Palle Rosenkrantz
(Reviewed by Heidi A. Swan) I was captivated by the voice of the author from the very beginning. It is a translation of the best-selling novel by the Danish novelist, Palle Rosenkrantz, and was written over one hundred years ago. … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Lost and almost forgotten, Scandinavian Literature, World Literature
Tagged Danish literature, mystery
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Lives on Fire – Rosie Scott
(Reviewed by JD Jung) When I travel to a new city, I love to pop into independent bookstores. So, when I ran across Hard To Find Bookshop, a second-hand bookstore in Auckland, New Zealand, I just had to enter this … Continue reading
Posted in Australian Literature, Lost and almost forgotten
Tagged infidelity, love, marriage, women's fiction
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