Books and Boba

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...

We sit down for an author chat with Lisa Lee to talk with her about about her debut novel American Han , a Korean American family drama about the Kims, a family whose members are each going through their own personal crises. When an even bigger crisis occurs the whole family is forced to come together and deal with the consequences of decades of built up resentment and estrangement, all stemming f...

On this episode, we discuss our March 2026 Book Club Pick, Butter by Asako Yuzuki, a story of food and murder following a Japanese journalist who begins a professional relationship with a convicted serial killer, charged with the murders of three domestic partners, in hopes of getting an exclusive interview. However, she ends up getting more than she bargained for as she gets sucked into the kille...

For our mid-month book news check in for March 2026, we catch up on the latest Asian American publishing announcements as well as check in on the ongoing fight against book bans: The Carlton Girls: Casey and the Cruel Thief by Julie Abe The Goodfolke Family by Roshani Chokshi P.S. Are We Friends Now? by John Schu and Jasmine Warga My Neighbor Yokai by noho Fall, in Love by Mia Kayla The Gravedigge...

On this episode, we discuss our February 2026 book club pick, Behind Frenemy Lines by Zen Cho, a romantic comedy about two Asian lawyers in London who share an (kinda?) adversarial relationship who end up sharing an office and perhaps become something more as they find themselves in a pseudo fake relationship to help with each other's personal troubles. We read Zen Cho's Regency era fantasy romanc...

Happy New Year! On our first mid-month book news check-in episode for the year of the horse, we go over a hefty list of latest Asian American publishing news as the publishing industry revs back into gear after the holidays. Upcoming books mentioned in our publishing news: Blur the Lines by Kanitha P. Paper Ghosts by Samantha Chong Cold Blood by Aashna Avachat Untitled Contemporary YA By Jesmeen K...

Happy New Year! We ring in the Year of the Horse with an exciting author chat with Lillian Li (author of past book club pick #1 Chinese Restaurant), who joins us to chat about her newest novel Bad Asians , a coming of age story following four childhood friends who all move home after graduating college in 2008 after their well laid plans were derailed by the great recession. They inadvertently bec...

On this episode, we sit down with Yosha Gunasekera to chat about her debut novel, The Midnight Taxi . A murder mystery following a true crime loving Sri Lankan American cab driver who ends up accused of murder when a passenger ends up mysteriously murdered in her cab. Yosha shares with us her personal journey to writing her novel as well as how she drew from her experience as an attorney for The I...

On this episode, we discuss our January 2026 (and patron's choice) pick, Reef by Romesh Gunesekera, a historical fiction novel about a boy who grows up as the personal cook and housekeeper for a wealthy marine biology enthusiast in Sri Lanka, blissfully and willingly unaware that the world outside the walls of his residence is slowly descending into chaos in the years leading up to Sri Lanka's civ...

On our first mid-month book news check-in episode for 2026, we go over the latest Asian American publishing news from the holiday season, as well as check out some of January's new releases from Asian and Asian American authors. Upcoming books mentioned in our publishing news: Death Wish by Lilly Lu What Hungers in the Dark by Monika Kim How to Crash a Kite by Ellie Peterson Tokki's Tricks by Aram...

Hey everyone! We're back from our holiday break for our first podcast of 2026 and we're finally discussing our December 2025 Book Club Pick Blackmail and Bibingka by Mia P. Manansala. A X'mas themed cozy mystery (but actually a story about family and Filipino noms). At this point, we're kind of murder mystery connoisseurs so this was the perfect end of year treat for us. Fun fact, we did an author...

On our final mid-month book news episode in 2025, we review some of the latest Asian American publishing announcements, and weigh in on some recent book tea for December 2025! Upcoming books mentioned in our publishing news: Light and Thread by Han Kang When We Swallowed the Sea by Janet Hong Limitlessly, Mina by Gianna Lakenauth Take to the Sky by Christina Soontornvat Not Again, Dragon Chen! by...

On this episode we discuss our November 2025 book club pick, Taiwan Travelogue  by Shuang-zi Yang, translated by Lin King, a historical fiction novel (with a meta-fiction twist) about a Japanese travel writer invited to write about the imperial colony of Taiwan by the Japanese government in the 1930's, and follows her budding relationship with her Taiwanese translator as they eat through the...

On this episode, we chat with bestselling author Lyla Lee to chat about her new YA romance novel,  The Cuffing Game , a modern Korean American take on the timeless enemy-to-lovers tale Pride & Prejudice, remixed with the chaotic reality TV energy of Love Island about an aspiring student producer who reluctantly recruits her crush to participate in the college dating show she is producing....