Happy Year of the Snake! Starting today is the celebration of Lunar New Year. Also known widely as Chinese New Year. This celebration takes place throughout Asian and is based on lunisolar calendar and celebrates the coming of spring.
This is a 15 day festival that falls anywhere between January 20th and February 20th on western calendars. It ends at the following full moon. The specifics of the celebration have origins in ancient legend. In this legend a monster named Nian (The Chinese word for year), would attack villagers at the beginning of each year.
It was said that the monster was afraid of loud noises, bright lights and color red. So these elements were used in the festival to keep the beast away. This festival includes fireworks and firecrackers as well as red clothes and decorations. Money is often given to children in red envelopes and feasts are common. Some traditions honor those who have died.
The ‘animal’ of each year comes from the 12 year cycle of the Chinese Zodiac. Different things are thought about people born in each year. For example, those born in the year of the Snake are thought to be enigmatic and keep to themselves. They are also thought to be intuitive and hate to fail at reaching their goals.
You can find the year you were born in the Chinese Zodiac here. Chinese Zodiac
Now for literature centering Lunar New Year, a couple of these books below focus on it. The rest, I think, have good elements of Chinese culture and tradition.
1) Lunar Love
Olivia Huang Christenson is excited and terrified to be taking over her grandmother’s matchmaking business. However when a new app steals her Po Po’s methods and claims them for their own, taking several elements of her culture out of it. She’s furious and outraged especially when she learns that Bennett O’Brien LA’s most eligible bachelor is behind the app.
Liv tries to avoid falling for any guy, especially one who doesn’t believe in tradition. But as the two businesses go head to head Bennett and Liv make a deal. They will each find a match for each other and whoever falls in love loses. Only problem is Liv knows Bennett is already good and stealing and is worried he will steal her heart too.
Amazon: Lunar Love
2) Natalie Tan’s Book of Luck and Fortune
Natalie Tan’s Book of Luck and Fortune tells the story of a woman who returns home to San Francisco after her mother’s death. Natalie finds the Chinatown that she grew up in fading and finds that families are moving away. But there is another surprise for Natalie. She’s inherited her grandmother’s restaurant.
When Natalie gets the fortune for the restaurant read by a local seer. The seer concludes that Natalie must cook three recipes to aid her neighbors before she can make the restaurant successful.
The only problem is Natalie resents the neighbors. She thinks that they did not giving her enough help with her agoraphobic mother when she was growing up. However with the support of a new friend and a budding romance. She begins to see that they neighbors were perhaps there to help her all along.
Amazon: Natalie Tan’s Book of Luck and Fortune
3) Love, Lies, Lunar New Year: A Fake Dating Holiday Romance
This is another fake dating book. It focuses on activist Lily Wong. She is single at thirty-five, much to the chagrin of her overbearing Chinese parents. She is focused on helping animals with her activism work, not finding a date. But the pressure intensify when her brother brings home a new girlfriend.
Lily starts fake dating a multi-millionaire who is the heir to an empire that uses animal parts. He also needs a girlfriend to help take the pressure off him from his parents who don’t like his social media famous girlfriend Margaux.
Charles wants to bring Lily home as a contrast to Margaux in hopes that they will appreciate her more. However things start to spiral when his parents like Lily, and the two begin to develop real feelings for each other.
Lily has to confront her fear of getting hurt while Charles has to choose between his family and his feelings. Will the two end up together in the end? Or are their difference too great?
Amazon: Love Lies and Lunar New Year
4) Lunar New Year Love Story
This sweet Lunar New Year based comic focuses on Val. She is quite ready to give up on love. A family ‘curse’ guarantees that she will end up alone. But when she meets a couple of lion dancers sparks something, is real love possible for her despite her family history of bad luck?
Could this be the chance to break her family curse. This is a great teen novel and follows Val over the year as she deals with her feelings for the two very different lion dancers.
Amazon: Lunar New Year Love Story
5) A Fake Girlfriend for Chinese New Year
Zach is worried about his family trying to set him up, especially since his brothers have all gotten into relationships. He’s not interested especially since his fiancee left him. So he ends up roping in a girl to fake date him.
Jo MacGregor the town dentist is an obvious choice. They both live in the same town. They have been friends for years. They won’t let their fake dating get in the way of their friendship. They just need to share a few kisses. They also need to go on fake dates around town. Then, everyone will believe they are in a relationship.
Only problem is this fake relationship is starting to feel all to real.
Amazon: A Fake Girlfriend for Chinese New Year
Are you planning to enjoy any of the above romances or something similar for the new year? Let me know about any celebrations you have planned in the comments and a Happy New Year to everyone.
Image by will zhang from Pixabay
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