Order of Book Series
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Naomi Hirahara Books in Order

Naomi Hirahara has written 20 books, published between 2003 and 2026. The first book is Distinguished Asian American Business Leaders (2003) and the newest is Crown City (2026). Publication order is the reading order below.

Books
20
Published
2003–2026
Confirmed
1 of 20 titles
Pages on record
3,284 in 13 of 20 books
Reading time
55–82 hours

Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 3,284 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 13 of 20 titles with a page count on record.

See all 20 books in order Printable Naomi Hirahara checklist
Photo of Naomi Hirahara, author

Naomi Hirahara, born 1962, is an American journalist and mystery novelist who edited Rafu Shimpo, the largest Japanese-American daily newspaper, for several years. The Mas Arai mysteries won an Edgar Award. The catalogue lists 20 books from Distinguished Asian American Business Leaders (2003) to Crown City (2026), including Summer of the Big Bachi (2004), Gasa-Gasa Girl (2005), Snakeskin Shamisen (2006) and Murder on Bamboo Lane (2014). Other series include Japantown Mystery, Officer Ellie Rush and Leilani Santiago Hawai'i Mystery. Subjects include Japanese Americans, gardeners, bicycle police, policewomen and Los Angeles.

How many Naomi Hirahara books are there?

Naomi Hirahara has 20 books, released between 2003 and 2026. They include 4 series and 5 titles listed outside any series.

Naomi Hirahara Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 20 Naomi Hirahara books in the order they were published, with the release year, the page count where one is on record, and how many independent book listings confirm each title. Catalogue data as of September 2026.

  1. Cover of Distinguished Asian American Business Leaders by Naomi Hirahara (2003)
  2. Cover of Summer of the Big Bachi by Naomi Hirahara, book 1 of the Mas Arai series (2004)
  3. Cover of Gasa-Gasa Girl by Naomi Hirahara, book 2 of the Mas Arai series (2005)
  4. Cover of Snakeskin Shamisen by Naomi Hirahara, book 3 of the Mas Arai series (2006)
  5. Cover of Blood Hina by Naomi Hirahara, book 4 of the Mas Arai series (2010)
  6. Cover of Strawberry Yellow by Naomi Hirahara, book 5 of the Mas Arai series (2013)
  7. Cover of Murder on Bamboo Lane by Naomi Hirahara, book 1 of the Officer Ellie Rush series (2014)
  8. Cover of Life After Manzanar by Naomi Hirahara (2018)
  9. Cover of A Scent of Flowers by Naomi Hirahara (2020)
  10. Cover of Clark and Division by Naomi Hirahara, book 1 of the Japantown Mystery series (2021)
  11. Cover of We Are Here by Naomi Hirahara (2022)
  1. 1
    Distinguished Asian American Business Leaders2003 · 256 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2003256
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  2. 2
    Summer of the Big BachiMas Arai #12004 · 337 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2004337
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  3. 3
    Gasa-Gasa GirlMas Arai #22005 · 287 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2005287
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  4. 4
    Snakeskin ShamisenMas Arai #32006 · 255 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2006255
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  5. 5
    1001 Cranes2008 · 240 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2008240
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  6. 6
    Blood HinaMas Arai #42010 · 224 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2010224
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  7. 7
    Strawberry YellowMas Arai #52013 · 237 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2013237
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  8. 8
    Murder on Bamboo LaneOfficer Ellie Rush #12014 · confirmed 2/4
    2014–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  9. 9
    Grave on Grand AvenueOfficer Ellie Rush #22015 · 290 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2015290
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  10. 10
    Sayonara SlamMas Arai #62016 · confirmed 2/4
    2016–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  11. 11
    Life After Manzanar2018 · 187 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2018187
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  12. 12
    Hiroshima BoyMas Arai #72018 · 212 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2018212
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  13. 13
    Iced in ParadiseLeilani Santiago Hawai'i Mystery #12019 · 216 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2019216
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  14. 14
    A Scent of Flowers2020 · 231 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2020231
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  15. 15
    Clark and DivisionJapantown Mystery #12021 · 312 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2021312
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  16. 16
    An Eternal LeiLeilani Santiago Hawai'i Mystery #22022 · confirmed 2/4
    2022–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  17. 17
    We Are Here2022 · confirmed 2/4
    2022–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  18. 18
    South Central NoirAkashic Noir #1152022 · confirmed 3/4
    2022–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  19. 19
    EvergreenJapantown Mystery #22023 · confirmed 2/4
    2023–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  20. 20
    Crown CityJapantown Mystery #32026 · confirmed 2/4
    2026–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK

Naomi Hirahara books grouped by series

Each title below is a row in the publication-order table above. None of these groups has a reading-order page of its own on this site.

Mas Arai in order

7 books
  1. 1. Summer of the Big Bachi
  2. 2. Gasa-Gasa Girl
  3. 3. Snakeskin Shamisen
  4. 4. Blood Hina
  5. 5. Strawberry Yellow
  6. 6. Sayonara Slam
  7. 7. Hiroshima Boy

Japantown Mystery in order

3 books
  1. 1. Clark and Division
  2. 2. Evergreen
  3. 3. Crown City

Officer Ellie Rush in order

2 books
  1. 1. Murder on Bamboo Lane
  2. 2. Grave on Grand Avenue

Leilani Santiago Hawai'i Mystery in order

2 books
  1. 1. Iced in Paradise
  2. 2. An Eternal Lei

Akashic Noir in order

1 book
  1. 115. South Central Noir

Standalone books

5 books

5 Naomi Hirahara titles here are not listed as part of any series.

Do you have to read Naomi Hirahara books in order?

You only need to read Naomi Hirahara books in order within each series: the books listed here span 4 separate series, and each series has its own publication order.

Where to start with Naomi Hirahara

Start with Distinguished Asian American Business Leaders (2003), the earliest published title.

What is the newest Naomi Hirahara book?

Crown City (2026) is the newest Naomi Hirahara book released so far.

Is there a new Naomi Hirahara book coming?

No next Naomi Hirahara book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.

Awards Naomi Hirahara has won

Wikidata records 2 awards for Naomi Hirahara. Each row states whether the title won or was shortlisted, and the year the award was given.

  • Asian/Pacific American Awards for Literature2009Won
  • Edgar Awards2007Won

Naomi Hirahara at a glance

Still publishing
Naomi Hirahara published a book as recently as 2026.
Release pace
Naomi Hirahara books have appeared about one a year on average.
Length
3,284 pages across the 13 of 20 books with a recorded length, a median of 240 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most Naomi Hirahara books, 8 of 20, were published in the 2010s.

What the Naomi Hirahara books are about

15 of the 20 Naomi Hirahara books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: japanese americans is tagged on 9 of 15. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.