The International Armenian Literary Alliance’s 2024 holiday book guide includes exciting new titles by Armenian authors that will make wonderful gifts for you and your loved ones. From recent and forthcoming releases to literature in translation, there’s a book for everyone on this list!
You can now browse through IALA’s holiday book guide on Bookshop! By purchasing from IALA Bookstore, you would directly donate to support their programming.
Armenian Wonderwomen by Gayane Aghabalyan and Elmira Ayvazyan
Armenian Wonderwomen, designed for both children and adults, tells the stories of 37 extraordinary Armenian women. It aims to shed light on the untold stories of women who have changed the course of history with significant contributions to science, art, music and beyond yet were never learned about.
Learn more and purchase Armenian Wonderwomen in English, Eastern or Western Armenian from Abril Bookstore or Zangak Bookstore.
The Flying African by Areg Azatyan, translated by Nazareth Seferian
The Flying African follows the journey of an unnamed traveler, a young Armenian writer who spends 54 adventurous days in Africa, one day in each of the continent’s countries. “Azatyan has a distinct talent with a playful sensibility full of probing questions,” writes Atom Egoyan.
Learn more and purchase here.
Jagadakeer: Apology to the Body by Lory Bedikian
Jagadakeer: Apology to the Body presents the voice of a daughter of immigrant parents, now gone, from Lebanon and Syria and of Armenian descent. In her multi-form collection, Bedikian contemplates the concept of fate, destiny (jagadakeer) and the excavation of memory — whether to question familial inheritance or claim medical diagnoses.
Learn more and purchase here.
Lost Words by Leila Boukarim, illustrated by Sona Avedikian
What is it like to walk away from your home? To leave behind everything and everyone you’ve ever known? Poetic, sensitive and based on a true family history, this picture book follows a young Armenian boy from the day he sets out to find refuge to the day he finally finds the courage to share his story.
Learn more and purchase here.PIN IT
A Million Kites by Leila Boukarim and Asaf Luzon
Leila Boukarim and Asaf Luzon came together in December 2023 to create A Million Kites with the aim of raising funds to support organizations helping Gazans and to amplify the voices of Gazan children who have suffered and continue to suffer unfathomable injustices. This little book is a collection of poems and testimonies from the children of Gaza, compiled between October 2023 and March 2024.
All profits from the sale of this book will be donated to organizations helping the people of Gaza. Purchase here.
Reparations of the Heart: Toward a SWANA Futurity by Kristin Anahit Cass
What does the world look like from a SWANA (Southwest Asia and North Africa) futurist perspective? Author and artist Kristin Anahit Cass explores this question in Reparations of the Heart — a vibrant tapestry of essays, stories, poems, quotes and detailed, often surreal images.
Learn more and purchase here.
The Palace of Forty Pillars by Armen Davoudian
Wry, tender and formally innovative, Armen Davoudian’s debut poetry collection, The Palace of Forty Pillars, tells the story of a self estranged from the world around him as a gay adolescent, an Armenian in Iran and an immigrant in America.
Learn more and purchase here.
The Prospectors by Ariel Djanikian
Selected by Barnes & Noble as their book-of-the-month for October, Ariel Djanikian’s newly-released The Prospectors is a sweeping rags-to-riches story of survival and greed across American history following a family transformed by the Klondike Gold Rush.
Learn more and purchase here.
Life Within the Armenian Community of Cyprus by Manoug Hagopian
Immersive and profoundly moving, this book, which follows Life Within the Armenian Community of Aleppo, is more than a memoir; it’s a celebration of heritage, a testament to the enduring spirit of a community and a fascinating exploration of life in Cyprus through Armenian eyes. The author, who settled in Cyprus in 1992, weaves a rich narrative through a collection of short stories. He delves deep into the heart of the Armenian community, bringing to life their daily struggles, profound feelings and the spirited social and cultural activities that define them.
Learn more and purchase Life Within the Armenian Community of Cyprus in Western Armenian or English on Amazon.
Stories Told in a Lost Tongue by Elaine Harootunian Reardon
A story of immigration and assimilation spanning three generations, Stories Told In A Lost Tongue is an exploration of heritage and healing found in everyday rituals through poetry. “This is a volume that should be read, and reread often, to remind us of how we came to be where we are, and why this remembrance matters,” writes Greg Fields.
Learn more and purchase here.
Bábo by Astrid Kamalyan, illustrated by Anait Semirdzhyan
Join Tato and her family as they help Bábo (grandmother) on rug-washing day in this sweet and playful picture book tribute to Armenian cultural traditions — a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection that has earned starred reviews from Kirkus, The Horn Book and Publishers Weekly.
Learn more and purchase here.
The Secret Language Method by Tamar Kassarjian
Preserving cultural heritage remains paramount in a multicultural world where languages blend and evolve. Enter Tamar Kassarjian, a proud South Florida native whose debut children’s book The Secret Language Method (illustrated by Wathmi de Zoysa) is not just a literary endeavor but a cultural manifesto aimed at empowering Armenian youth.
Learn more and purchase here.
Day Rates, Night Sweats, and Often Barcelona In Between by Paul Kayaian
Paul Kayaian’s debut book, Day Rates, Night Sweats, and Often Barcelona In Between, is a compelling and entertaining collection of short stories. At its heart, the book raises the curtain on the multifaceted city of Barcelona. Through Kayaian’s many years of traveling and visiting the city, Barcelona comes to life as a place that is at once lovely, occasionally magical and in some instances unapologetically harsh.
Learn more and purchase here.
Vanna’s Adventures by Talar Keoseyan
Vanna’s Adventures follows a young Armenian American girl on her expedition to tour the rich tapestry of Armenian customs and traditions. This engaging story is designed as an easy read, filled with cultural nuances and stunning pictures that highlight various events and the beauty of Armenia and Artsakh.
Learn more and purchase here.
The Black Moth by Carolyne Topdjian
A Publishers Weekly ‘Mysteries and Thrillers of Fall 2023’ selection, The Black Moth, the riveting new Mave Michael novel from the acclaimed author of The Hitman’s Daughter, is “a fast-paced haunting novel of survival,” says Library Journal.
Learn more and purchase here.
#jivjiv language by Hrayr Varaz, illustrated by Amy Kazandjian
#jivjiv language is the second volume of bilingual twitter poems written by queer Armenian poet and linguist Hrayr Varaz (ig hrayr_huh_died). It includes 40 pairs of poems about the joys of the Armenian language, letters, sound bites and word bits. This volume also includes a long form prose and a sounds (streams) of consciousness written in Armenian while gazing at Jupiter and Saturn during an early morning summer day.
Learn more and purchase here.
All the Ways We Lied by Aida Zilelian
Tololyan Literary Prize recipient Aida Zilelian explores the reality of love and loss in the everyday lives of a modern-day Armenian family in her novel, All the Ways We Lied.
Learn more and purchase here.
Forthcoming Publications
“Wasafiri: Armenia(n)s – Elevation” by Tatevik Ayvazyan and Naneh V Hovhannisyan
From poetry and fiction to thought-provoking book reviews, art, life writing and in-depth interviews, this landmark edition is a rich tapestry of modern Armenian voices. It offers readers a profound and eloquent exploration of the human condition through meditations on the Armenian language, culture and identity. Featured contributors include award-winners such as Chris Bohjalian, Nancy Kricorian and many more.
Learn more and preorder here.
The Jackal’s Mistress by Chris Bohjalian
In this Civil War love story, inspired by a real-life friendship across enemy lines, the wife of a missing Confederate soldier discovers a wounded Yankee officer and must decide what she’s willing to risk for the life of a stranger, from the New York Times bestselling author of such acclaimed historical fiction as Hour of the Witch and The Sandcastle Girls.
Learn more and preorder here.
Cher: The Memoir, Part One by Cher
The truly one-of-a-kind life story of Cher, told by the superstar herself, tracing from her humble origins to the remarkable heights she’s reached and everything in between. It’s honest, authentic and incredible.
Learn more and preorder here.
Nostalgia for the Future: New and Selected Poems by Gregory Djanikian
Gregory Djanikian’s Nostalgia for the Future: New and Selected Poems, written over several decades, takes for its many subjects romantic love and its difficulties, the horrors of the Armenian Genocide of 1915, the émigré experience and the joys and struggles of acculturation, the allure of landscapes and vast distances, the polarity of our material life on earth and our longing for what is ethereal and elusive, all in tones that are humorous, elegiac, contemplative, lyrical and suffused with a gratitude for the mysteriousness and wonder of life itself.
Learn more and preorder here.
Forest Euphoria: The Abounding Queerness of Nature by Patricia Kaishian
A thrilling collection of essays converging on themes of natural history, deep/queer ecology, philosophy of science, climate grief and more-than-human belonging. Wide-ranging, richly observant and full of surprise, Forest Euphoria will open your eyes and change how you look at the world around you.
Learn more and preorder here.
The Burning Heart of the World by Nancy Kricorian
Returning to the fabular tone of Zabelle, her popular first novel, Kricorian conjures up the lost worlds and intergenerational traumas that haunt a family in permanent exile. Leavened with humor and imbued with the timelessness of a folktale, The Burning Heart of the World is a sweeping saga that takes readers on an epic journey from the mountains of Cilicia to contemporary New York City.
Learn more and preorder here.
Waterline by Aram Mrjoian
In this deeply moving debut, a close-knit Armenian American family grapples with the aftermath of losing one of their own. “A gripping journey through time, Mrjoian brings readers deep into the heart of the Armenian Genocide and its ripples across generations… Waterline is a must-read — intense, moving and unforgettable,” writes Morgan Talty.
Learn more and preorder here.
For more Armenian books written in English, check out IALA’s holiday book guides for 2021, 2022 and 2023!
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