Non-European / western (white) fantasy

Hi all,
I've been on LibraryThing for a few years now, but I've not really used the forums, so I hope I am in the right place, and doing this right...
I love fantasy, and have read quite a lot of books with elves, faeries and in general stories based on Celtic or norse mythology.
Now I am looking for something different, stories based on other mythologies, African, Caribean, Middle Eastern or what have you.
What can you recommend? So far I have read some Nalo Hopkinson (Jamaican) and Patricia Wrightson (Australian Aboriginal), and next on my tbr list is The Golem and the Jinni, but other than that, I don't know much, so suggestions are welcome!

Maybe these lists/suggestions can help you. :-)

http://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/comments/tvouq/magic_in_a_nonmedieval_setting/
http://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/comments/2iv5cz/books_with_a_noneuropean_based_s...
http://www.buzzfeed.com/akpatel462/19-must-read-science-fiction-and-fantasy-nove...

The third list is more about the authors than about the books, but the settings look unusual enough to answer your question.

You could also try asking your question in The Green Dragon group here on LT.

This book that I got through Early Reviewers would be a good place to start.

http://www.librarything.com/work/15050776

and of course also the others in the series
http://www.librarything.com/series/Apex%20Book%20of%20World%20SF

Thanks! That second link looked like it had quite interesting suggestions to check out!
To clarify a bit more; I'd really like stories written by someone in that culture, rather than a European or Western author exploring a culture or mythology that is not theirs, if you see what I mean. So I would probably rule out Guy Gavriel Kay at this point. I want something that is culturally & mythologically new and different (to me).

Thank you MarthaJeanne, that looks very interesting and I guess there is a #1 and 2 also to check out.

That's why I pointed to the series. I haven't read those. BTW my review has short notes on each story. Some I liked. Others not, but the chances are that you will find a few authors worth following up on.

I recently read something by Nnedi Okorafor, and I liked it. One of my other favorites is Octavia Butler, and I also liked the first books by Kylie Chan (although I stopped at some point, because it seemes she was dragon (edit: wishful thinking, I ment dragging) her main mystery over way too many books...).

edit: And if you like SF as well, there is supposed to be a good Chinese SF book that has been translated: The three-body problem.

There is also this list:

http://www.librarything.com/list/328/all/Fantasy-by-Women-Who-Broke-Away-from-Eu...

I think I'll start a new list as well. I'll come back if it generates anything interesting.

Child of an Ancient City is about middle-eastern mythology, and is an excellent read. Don't let the author's origin dissuade you from reading it.

Thanks, I will definitely look out for Nnedi Okorafor, she looks especially interesting!

Thanks also to aulsmith and fuzzi for your suggestions.

>4 Hobbitlass:
Wow, stories written by someone in the culture - raises a high bar, at least if you want things published in English.
One thing I thought of, before I saw that, is the Otori books starting with Across the Nightingale Floor - not quite fantasy in the usual sense, but most fantasy readers enjoy them. Another set of books with a Japanese mythological theme is ones by Stephen Dedman starting with The Art of Arrow Cutting - but he's Australian. Also, in the SF genre but rather dark-fantasy-ish, Zoo City by Lauren Beukes (and at least there you have an African writer, albeit a white South African one).
How about collections of the mythology & folktales of other cultures?
I'll be interested to see what others come up with. Nnedi Okorafor does sound interesting.

>4 Hobbitlass: Oh, wow, I missed that. My list isn't going to be much help. There is a lot of magic realism stuff out there for other cultures, but if you want something that reads like contemporary fantasy, I think that's going to be really tough. If I think of anything, I'll chime in.

rshart3 and aulsmith, thanks for your comments! I know it's not that easy to find stuff, that's why I need help! 😃
I won't totally rule out other things, such as the Otori tales (which I have read, as I am fascinated with Japanese mythology and culture), but I want to expand my horizon. The Chinese SF book looks interesting too, as long as it's not too hard science.

I might look into The art of arrow cutting too, since it is Japanese, thanks!

Check out Charles Saunders, especially his Imaro novels. African sword & sorcery. If you are looking for African short stories, have a look at the Griots anthology.

Saladin Ahmed writes very good Middle Eastern fantasy in Throne of the Crescent Moon

While it's by a western author, The Desert of Souls by Howard Andrew Jones is a fantastic story set in an alternate 8th Century Baghdad.

Thanks, have made a note of all these!

Ooh! Alif the Unseen! Also Akata Witch. Anything by N.K. Jemisin is great. Let me see if I can find a list somewhere...

ETA: Dark Matter edited by Sheree R. Thomas, I hear good things about Zen Cho as well. Oh, and A Stranger in Olondria.

And thankyou Reconditreader! Out of those, I'd say A stranger in Olondria appeals the most, but the only one available from the library is The inheritance trilogy, so I guess that's where I'll start.

Well, Miyabe Miyuki's Brave Story and Book of Heroes both travel between modern Japan and a secondary fantasy world, so they may not quite be what you're looking for. Her Apparitions: Ghosts of Old Edo is, as the title suggests, a little more on the spooky side.

Ono Fuyumi's The Twelve Kingdoms books are also based in modern Japan and a secondary fantasy world. The Tokyopop translations are sadly not great, and ended at the fourth book in the series, but they're still worth a look IMO.

Ogawa Noriko's Dragon Sword and Wind Child is also good, and probably the one that closest matches what you've asked for, though it's actually my least favourite of the bunch.

I strongly recommend The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin.

There's also Throne of the Crescent Moon by Saladin Ahmed, Huntress by Malinda Lo, and Silver Phoenix by Cindy Pon, but I didn't like any of those as much.

There's a few others on my TBR pile that meet your requirements:
Killer of Enemies by Joseph Bruchac (possibly science fiction?)
Moribito: Guardian of the Spirit was originally written in Japanese, but there's a translated version available.
A bunch of different books by Octavia Butler
Lagoon by Nnedi Okorafor
On a Red Station Drifting by Aliette de Bodard (this is science fiction though). She's got a fantasy series, but it's set Meso-america while she's Asian, so it doesn't exactly meet the requirements of writing within her culture.

You could try looking through the A More Diverse Universe reviews - http://www.aartichapati.com/2014/09/diversiverse-more-diverse-universe.html It's an event that gets people to read and review books by non-white authors. Past years have been specifically fantasy and science fiction, but this year was opened to all genres.

If you're also open to Slavic-based fantasy, Deathless by Catherynne Valente would be worth looking at. As I recall, she's not Slavic herself, but her husband and in-laws are Russian. Ekaterina Sedia's The Secret History of Moscow is also worth mentioning.

Alternative Alamat fits your bill perfectly if you're all right with short story collections. It focuses on Philippine mythology, as retold by Philippine authors.

Whispers from the Cotton Tree Root will also give you some more ideas for Caribbean authors to look into. I'm not sure how many of them dealt with mythologies, but I think there were a couple.

Zadayi Red by Caleb Fox is based on Cherokee mythology.

And beyond that, my only suggestions are ones that have already been mentioned or ones that I don't recall dealing with mythology that clearly. I hope you'll find something you love amidst all our recommendations!

Thanks everyone!
I have spent a good bit of time looking at the #diveriverse list, and found a few promising titles (even some non fantasy), and I will look for these latest suggestions as well.
The Cherokee mythology sounds particularly intriguing! None of these are available at my library, so it's going to take me a while to get hold of them, but I will see what I can find next time I am in London and visit Forbidden Planet.
Edited to add: LT is very confident that I will like The Secret History of Moscow, more so than the Native American story, so I am adding that one to my wishlist.

A few people mentioned The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms so I ordered it from the bookshop, as I had a lovely gift voucher for Christmas. Look forward to getting it!

There's the re-telling of a Senegalese folktale, Redemption in Indigo, by Karen Lord.

Added to wishlist, thanks Morphidae!

Walter Dean Myers wrote a young adult fantasy novel called The Legend of Tarik

There's always Bridge of Birds, Barry Hughart's delightful "novel of ancient China that never was." It also has two sequels, Eight Skilled Gentlemen and The Story of the Stone, which are not quite as good, but still worth reading.

>28 tardis: I really wanted to recommend Bridge of Birds but the OP spoke of wanting them written by someone from that culture and Hughart is American.

>29 Morphidae: Ah, didn't notice that. But Bridge of Birds is so darned good!

You said, Caribbean -- how about South American? I'm not sure if that's too "western" or not. It's certainly a different style. The first ones that come to mind are:

One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Ficciones by Jorge Luis Borges
The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

>30 tardis: I know!

Thank you guys, I have read Bridge of Birds, and almost everything by Isabel Allende previously, and those are pretty good, I just forgot to list them. Somehow they don't seem to be just what I am looking for at the moment.
Likewise, Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Borges I haven't tried yet, but I just remembered that I have been meaning to try him. A few of his are available through the library.

Also, happy new year everyone!