Books and Boba

On this episode we sit down with speculative fiction author (and writing Youtuber) Lynn D Jung to chat about her debut novel Mothsblood , A dark academia/fantasy mystery thriller following Larkspur Lee, an ambitions and competitive Korean American woman studying alchemy in modern day Paris, who's life is turned upside down when she finds herself in the middle of an investigation when the immortal...

On this episode we welcome back author E. L. Shen to chat about her newest novel Foreigners ! Loosely based on her own family's history, Foreigners is a compelling take on the multigenerational Asian American story following characters from Qing dynasty China, 1960's New York, and present day New England, and the lies (big and small) we tell to fit in. Follow E. L. Shen on Instagram at @elshenwrit...

On this episode, we discuss our September 2026 book club pick, Fishbone Cinderella by Elizabeth Lim, a classic Asian American multigenerational story, about the tenuous relationship between an immigrant mother and her American daughter, but with a magical realism twist as both mother and daughter also have mysterious powers from a family curse passed down through the generations (the mother can tu...

On this episode, we catch up on the latest Asian American book news and the last 2 month of publishing announcements for our September 2026 mid-month check-is Upcoming books mentioned in our publishing news: For You I Would Forget by Zeyneb Holdridge We Rose from the Sea by Olivia Sun Fern and the Fox by Sophie Diao A Drop of Kindness by Andrea Wang; illust. by Sally Soweol Han Wings by Susan Tan;...

On this episode, we welcome author Julie Abe back to the show to talk about her newest middle grade fantasy novel, The Magic Library of Waterfall Way , a story about an unremarkable girl in a magical world of remarkable people, and her one chance at finding a guild to finally belong to in order to avoid exile, but in order to do so, she must fulfill a quest to save a magical library. We're excited...

On this episode,we discuss our August 2026 book club pick, Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro, following Klara, an android "artificial friend," and her quest to bring happiness to her teen Josie as she grows up in a dystopic future. Join us as we dive into another masterful Ishiguro tale about the fleeting innocence of children, having conviction in the face of despair, and the complex responsibi...

On this episode, we chat with author Momo Yamaguchi about her debut novel, Hello, Limerence , an ode to bad decisions made in our mid-twenties following a young Japanese woman, dealing with a soul-sucking corporate job and a stagnant love-life, who lets a growing crush on a Japanese American man become an obsession that throws her life into chaos. Follow Momo on Instagram at @momoyamagucci and che...

On this episode, we're excited to welcome author Susan Lee back to the podcast to catch up on BTS news as well as chat about her latest novel, See You at the Sunset , an adult romantic comedy about a young woman, who is staying with her grandmother in a Palm Springs senior living community after losing her job at a law firm in NYC, as she strikes up a relationship with her grandma's new neighbor's...

On this episode, we chat with author Erin Baldwin about her latest novel Good Luck, Babe! A sapphic YA coming of age romantic comedy about two former best friends who reluctantly agree to work together to pursue their dream of competing on an Amazing-race style reality TV competition, the catch is they also have to pretend to date because their season is for couples-only! Erin shares with us her j...

On this episode, we discuss our July 2026 Patron's Choice Book Club pick, Sunshine Nails by Mai Nguyen, A family comedy about the Trans of Toronto Canada, a messy but close-knit family who come together to try and save their family's nail salon when gentrification comes into their neighborhood in the form of a high-tech all-inclusive rival nail salon, by any means necessary. Books & Boba is a...

On this episode, we sit down with author Tania Tay to discuss her new cafe cozy romance novel The Matcha Maker Café (which she wrote under the pen name Lily Chen). We chat with Tania about her journey to becoming a novelist, her experience writing about the British East Asian experience for IP projects, as well as the rise (and decline) of cafe culture. Learn more about Tania at taniatay.com and c...

On this episode, we catch up on the latest Asian American book news and publishing announcements for our July 2026 mid-month check-is Upcoming books mentioned in our publishing news: Swaplife by Abdi Nazemian and Pedro Rhuas My Heart or Yours by K. Sugimoto Destined or Damned by Sara Jafari Chicken's Noodle Soup by Naaz H. Khan ; illust. by Valentina Tu Novae by Jennifer Xu and Kate Rhodes Book ne...

On this episode, we chat with author Yejin Suh to talk about her debut novel The Last Soldier of Nava , a Korean-inspired fantasy novel following a girl named Shadow, a former peerless soldier who awakens after a thousand years of slumber, who struggles to retain her freedom under a new identity, even as she is dragged back to her immortal father's court by his new protege (whom she also feels an...

Join us as we discuss our June 2026 pick, The Chosen and the Beautiful by Nghi Vo. A queer retelling of the classic American novel The Great Gatsby. Set in a magical alternate Jazz Age New York, this version is told through the perspective of Jordan Baker, a side character in the original text, re-imagined as a Vietnamese American adoptee who does her best to survive in a high society as an outsid...

On this episode, we sit down with author Yu-Mei Balasingamchow to talk about her debut novel Names Have Been Changed , a modern epistolary novel told in the style of tell-all podcast hosted by a Singaporean woman who has been on the run across the world for a decade. We're excited to chat with Yu-Mei about her debut that's part globetrotting adventure and part love letter to diaspora communities a...

On this episode, we catch up on the latest Asian American book news and publishing announcements for our June 2026 mid-month check-is Upcoming books mentioned in our publishing news: Life Is a K Drama by Sherri Shepherd & Jayci Lee Ophelia No. 23 by Saou Ichikawa A Girl’s Spine by Saou Ichikawa Birchwood Prep #1: Lina’s Secret by Mae Raespicio Kapa Kuiki: My Hawaiian Quilt by Ilima Kahokuheala...

On this episode, we're very excited to welcome booktuber, and now published author, Cindy Pham to chat about her debut novel, The Secret World of Briar Rose , a sapphic dark retelling of the legend of sleeping beauty, following a jaded thief who, while searching for her missing sister, finds herself transported into the dream world of her fallen kingdom's slumbering princess. We chat with Cindy ab...

On this episode we discuss our May 2026 pick is No-No Boy by John Okada, one of the earliest in the Asian American canon following the story of Ichiro Yamada who returns home to Seattle after serving 2 years in prison for refusing to serve in the military during the internment of Japanese Americans during World War 2. We're excited to dive into this Asian American classic from 1957, who's publicat...

On this episode, we welcome author Vincent Yu to chat about his debut novel, Seek Immediate Shelter , which follows the stories of several members of a small town community in Massachusetts, who have to deal with the consequences of their impulsive actions when a faulty mass alert is sent our warning them of an imminent missile strike. Follow Vincent on Instagram at @vinyu12 and check out his debu...

For our mid-month book news check in for May 2026, we catch up on the latest Asian American publishing announcements as well as check in on some of the latest news and tea from the greater book industry. Upcoming books mentioned in our publishing news: The First White Hair by Yasmin Zaher The Dragon Thief by Ellen Oh It Begins with the End by Samira Ahmed Summers in Syria by Shifa Saltagi Safadi;...

On this episode, we chat with Canwen Xu about her debut novel, Boring Asian Female, a thriller about a Chinese American college student who, in the midst of spiraling from having failed her life's dream of being accepted into Harvard Law School, decides to stalk a fellow Asian classmate who did make it in to see what makes her so special! Follow Canwen on Instagram at @Canwen. Xu and check out her...

On this episode, we discuss our April 2026 book club pick, The Elsewhere Express by Samantha Sotto Yambao, chosen for us by our patrons (you can help us pick our next patron's choice in July by joining our patreon). Pitched a a Ghibli-style cozy fantasy (but we found it to be a little more than it seems), The Elsewhere Express is a ethereal train that appears to pick up passengers who have lost th...

On this episode, we welcome Kelly Yang to the podcast to chat about her adult novel debut, The Take , a story about a young Chinese American woman who aspires to become a novelist, and a veteran Hollywood producer who offers to help her break into the industry... in return for a bit of her youth. We're so excited to finally have the chance to chat with Kelly about her adult debut after a prolific...

For our mid-month book news check in for April 2026, we catch up on the latest Asian American publishing announcements as well as check in on some distressing news for our legacy Kindles. Upcoming books mentioned in our publishing news: The Library of Lost Time by Vaishnavi Patel BoxBoxBoxBox by Wan Sakamoto Mama's Magical Hands by Yu An Xie The Kids Came Back Wrong edited by Wen-yi Lee Crush by S...

On this episode, we're very excited to bring you an author chat with Rachel Khong, author of our September 2017 book club pick Goodbye Vitamin (episode 28), to talk about her latest book, My Dear You , a short story collection featuring a genre-spanning stories exploring themes of identity, relationships, and time. From a story about missed connections and a cat that conjures the ghosts of ex-boyf...