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Quick answer: If you loved Shanghai Girls, read Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni's Sister of My Heart and The Palace of Illusions, then Jung Chang's Wild Swans, then Pearl S. Buck's The Good Earth, and Arthur Golden's Memoirs of a Geisha and Min Jin Lee's Pachinko. All are sweeping historical novels about sisters.
Lisa See's Shanghai Girls (2009) follows two sisters from Shanghai to Los Angeles. These picks share its scale.
Table of Contents
Quick Picks at a Glance
| Book | Author | Ages | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sister of My Heart | Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni | Adult | more Divakaruni |
| Wild Swans | Jung Chang | Adult | readers who want nonfiction |
| The Good Earth | Pearl S. Buck | Adult | readers who like family sagas |
| Memoirs of a Geisha | Arthur Golden | Adult | readers who like detailed settings |
| Pachinko | Min Jin Lee | Adult | readers who like family sagas |
| The Nightingale | Kristin Hannah | Adult | readers who want a big emotional story |
| The Palace of Illusions | Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni | Adult | epic retelling |
| Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet | Jamie Ford | Adult | the closest historical match |
| Factory Girls | Leslie T. Chang | Adult | workers' stories |
| Firefly Lane | Kristin Hannah | Adult | lifelong friendships |
| My Brilliant Friend | Elena Ferrante | Adult | friendship epics |
| Daisy Jones & The Six | Taylor Jenkins Reid | Adult | readers who like music and drama |
| The Red Tent | Anita Diamant | Adult | readers who like women's communities |
| The Namesake | Jhumpa Lahiri | Adult | readers who like immigrant stories |
| Americanah | Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie | Adult | readers who want depth |
1. Sister of My Heart by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
Two cousins grow up like sisters in Calcutta, and their lives diverge. Warm and moving.
Best for: more Divakaruni.
2. Wild Swans by Jung Chang
Three generations of women in China, from foot-binding to the Cultural Revolution. A landmark nonfiction memoir.
Best for: readers who want nonfiction.
3. The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck
Wang Lung rises from a poor farmer to a rich landowner in rural China. A family saga about land and loyalty.
Best for: readers who like family sagas.
4. Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden
Sayuri tells her life as a geisha in Kyoto. Lush and famous, though it is a novel by a Western author.
Best for: readers who like detailed settings.
5. Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
Four generations of a Korean family in Japan across the 20th century. Epic and emotional.
Best for: readers who like family sagas.
6. The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
Two sisters in occupied France take different paths of resistance. A moving bestseller.
Best for: readers who want a big emotional story.
7. The Palace of Illusions by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
Draupadi tells her life from her own point of view. Rich and absorbing.
Best for: epic retelling.
8. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford
A Chinese American man recalls his boyhood friendship with a Japanese American girl in wartime Seattle. Tender and historical.
Best for: the closest historical match.
9. Factory Girls by Leslie T. Chang
A journalist follows young migrant women who work in Chinese factories. Human and grounded.
Best for: workers' stories.
10. Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah
Two best friends grow up together from the 1970s to the 2000s. Emotional and long.
Best for: lifelong friendships.
11. My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante
Two girls grow up in postwar Naples. Intense female friendship drives the first Neapolitan novel.
Best for: friendship epics.
12. Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
The oral history of a 1970s rock band that breaks up at its peak. Told in interview format.
Best for: readers who like music and drama.
13. The Red Tent by Anita Diamant
The biblical story of Dinah told from the women's perspective. Rich in detail about women's lives.
Best for: readers who like women's communities.
14. The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri
Gogol Ganguli grows up in America as the son of Bengali immigrants. Quiet and lovely.
Best for: readers who like immigrant stories.
15. Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Ifemelu and Obinze leave Nigeria and reunite years later. A big, wise novel about race and love.
Best for: readers who want depth.
How We Chose These Books
Every pick is a real, widely available book that shares something specific with Shanghai Girls: its tone, its themes, its pace or the kind of characters it puts at the center. We mixed well-known favorites with a few less obvious titles, and we noted who each book suits best so you can match it to the reader. Where a book belongs to a series, we list the first volume so you can start at the beginning.
If you are not sure where to begin, start with the first three picks in the table: they are the closest match to Shanghai Girls. The rest of the list moves further out, so it works well once you know which part of the original you liked most.
How to Choose
For sisters, read Sister of My Heart. For China, try Wild Swans. For history, pick The Good Earth.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Who wrote Shanghai Girls?
Lisa See, in 2009.
Is it a series?
Yes, followed by Dreams of Joy.
Is it historical?
Yes.
Which book here is best for readers who want depth?
Try Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, which suits readers looking for readers who want depth.
Which book here is best for readers who like immigrant stories?
Try The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri, which suits readers looking for readers who like immigrant stories.
Which book here is best for readers who like women's communities?
Try The Red Tent by Anita Diamant, which suits readers looking for readers who like women's communities.