Books and Boba

On this episode we discuss our February 2020 book club pick The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang. Reera's friend Kaitlin Kelly joins us to discuss this fun (and very horny) romantic romp featuring a heroine on the autism spectrum and her Asian American male love interest.  For additional thoughts and discussion, visit the Books & Boba Goodreads forums on Goodreads. Follow our hosts: Reera Yoo ( @reera...

On this episode, we go over the latest book and publishing news in Asian American literature for our Books & Boba mid-month check-in for February 2020. For additional thoughts and discussion, visit the Books & Boba Goodreads forums on Goodreads. Follow our hosts: Reera Yoo ( @reeraboo ) Marvin Yueh ( @marvinyueh ) Follow us: Facebook Twitter Goodreads Group The Books & Boba February 2020 pick is T...

On this episode of Books and Boba, we chat with Mike Chen, the author of A Beginning at the End , a story of survival and rebuilding in a post-apocalyptic San Francisco after a global pandemic wipes out most of humanity. Follow Mike at @mikechenwriter For additional thoughts and discussion, visit the Books & Boba Goodreads forums on Goodreads. Follow our hosts: Reera Yoo ( @reeraboo ) Marvin Yueh...

On this episode we discuss our January 2020 book club pick The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu & translated by Ken Liu. Join us as we try to wrap our heads around this hard science fiction epic about first contact with an alien civilization from a different context than we're used to in western sci-fi.  For additional thoughts and discussion, visit the Books & Boba Goodreads forums on Goodreads. F...

It's our first mid-month book news check-in for the new decade! We go over the latest book and publishing news in Asian American literature for January 2020. For additional thoughts and discussion, visit the Books & Boba Goodreads forums on Goodreads. Follow our hosts: Reera Yoo ( @reeraboo ) Marvin Yueh ( @marvinyueh ) Follow us: Facebook Twitter Goodreads Group The Books & Boba January 2020 pick...

On this episode we chat with author Abigail Hing Wen about her recently released debut novel LOVEBOAT, TAIPEI . A coming-of-age story about a college bound girl named Ever Wong, torn between pursuing her parent's expectations and her own personal dreams, who finds herself spending the summer of a lifetime in Taiwan attending the Overseas Compatriot Youth Formosa Study Tour, also infamously known a...

It's time to discuss our Books and Boba December 2019 book club pick, Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie, a modern day retelling of the Greek tragedy Antigone. We discuss the book's themes of what loyalty to family, love, and country means when your people are considered enemies of the state, and the physical and psychological costs of the sacrifices people make to survive as diaspora immigrants. For add...

On our last episode of the decade, we review the latest book and publishing news in Asian American literature for our Books & Boba Mid-Month check-in for December 2019. For additional thoughts and discussion, visit the Books & Boba Goodreads forums on Goodreads. Follow our hosts: Reera Yoo ( @reeraboo ) Marvin Yueh ( @marvinyueh ) Follow us: Facebook Twitter Goodreads Group The Books &...

On this episode, we go over the latest book and publishing news in Asian American literature for our Books & Boba mid-month check-in for November 2019. For additional thoughts and discussion, visit the Books & Boba Goodreads forums on Goodreads. Follow our hosts: Reera Yoo ( @reeraboo ) Marvin Yueh ( @marvinyueh ) Follow us: Facebook Twitter Goodreads Group The Books & Boba November 2019 pick is S...

On this episode, we discuss our Books and Boba October 2019 book club pick, Summer of the Big Bachi by Naomi Hirahara, a story about an elderly and jaded Japanese-American gardener named Mas Arai who also happens to be a competent (though reluctant) sleuth. Against his wishes, Mas is drawn into a series of unfortunate events that force him to re-confront his experiences as a survivor of the atomic...

On this episode, we go over the latest book and publishing news in Asian American literature for our Books & Boba mid-month check-in for October 2019. For additional thoughts and discussion, visit the Books & Boba Goodreads forums on Goodreads. Follow our hosts: Reera Yoo ( @reeraboo ) Marvin Yueh ( @marvinyueh ) Follow us: Facebook Twitter Goodreads Group The Books & Boba September 2019 pick is S...

On this episode, we discuss our Books and Boba September 2019 book club pick, Everything Here is Beautiful by Mira T. Lee, a story about a pair of sisters and their the testing of their bond as the younger one struggles with mental illness. We discuss the book's takes on the effects of mental illness on not only the person dealing with it, but also those around them. Reera also reflects on her own...

It's time to go over the latest book and publishing news in Asian American literature for our Books & Boba mid-month check-in for September 2019. We also recap the results of the 2019 Hugo Awards including the big splash that Jeannette Ng made in her acceptance speech for the Best New Writer award. For additional thoughts and discussion, visit the Books & Boba Goodreads forums on Goodreads. Follow...

On this episode, we discuss our Books and Boba August 2019 book club pick, Severance , by Ling Ma, a story about a millennial New Yorker dealing with (or not dealing with) a zombie apocalypse. Marvin and Reera discuss the book's contemporary take on the Zombie genre and how the book deftly melds millennial anxieties with the nuances of life as a 1.5 generation Asian American immigrant. For additio...

On this episode, we go over the latest book and publishing news in Asian American literatureon our August 2019 Books & Boba mid-month check-in. We also chat about the latest TV adaptation news and the recent passing of celebrated author Toni Morrison. For additional thoughts and discussion, visit the Books & Boba Goodreads forums on Goodreads. Follow our hosts: Reera Yoo ( @reeraboo ) Marv...

On this episode, we discuss our Books and Boba July 2019 book club pick, Zero Sum Game , by S.L. Huang, a thriller about Cas Russel, a mercenary who uses her superhuman math skills to "retrieve" things for her clients. She's used to relying on herself to get through tough situations, but meets her match and has to rely on others for the first time to survive. Marvin and Reera discuss thi...

On this episode, we bring you the delayed discussion of our Books and Boba June 2019 book club pick, Kafka on the Shore , by Haruki Murakami, a metaphysical coming-of-age story with talking cats, demon brand avatars, and lots of icky sex. Marvin and Reera do their best to talk about their first Murakami experience, breaking down the story and discussing the many metaphors in the book, as well as s...

On this episode, we chat with author Misa Sugiura, author of the novel THIS TIME WILL BE DIFFERENT , a story about a Japanese American teen's fight for justice against the family that swindled her family after they returned from being incarcerated during WW2. Misa discusses the inspirations behind writing the story as well as what she hopes readers take away from her book. For additional thoughts...

It's time for our June Books & Boba mid-month check-in. On this episode, we round up the latest news and announcements out of the world of Asian American literature. We also chat about the latest controvrsey in the Asian American publishing world regarding Penguin Classic's publication of the seminal No-No Boy by John Okada. For additional thoughts and discussion on the monthly pick, visit the...

We discuss our Books and Boba May 2019 book club pick, This is Paradise: Stories , by Kristiana Kahakauwila, a collection of six short stories taking place across the islands of Hawaii. We discuss our thoughts on the book's portrayal of life in Hawaii, and its exploration of characters who have been shaped by their relationship to the islands. For additional thoughts and discussion on the monthly...

It's time for the May Books & Boba mid-month news roundup. On this episode, we check in with the latest publishing announcements and news out of the world of Asian American literature. We also chat about recent book to film adaptation news! For additional thoughts and discussion on the monthly pick, visit the Books & Boba Goodreads forums . Your Books & Boba Hosts: Reera Yoo ( @reerabo...

On this episode, we discuss our Books and Boba April 2019 book club pick, Bangkok Wakes to Rain , by Pitchaya Sudbanthad, a book featuring stories of a myriad of characters, all connected through time and space to a single building in the city of Bangkok. We discuss the book's musings on the cycles of history, and the tensions between memory,culture, and technological progress. For additional thou...

On this episode, we chat with Henry Lien, the author of The Peasprout Chen Series , a middle grade series about Peasprout Chen, a new student and immigrant to an academy that teaches wu liu, the art of martial arts figure skating. Henry shares about his journey of going from a career in law to writing fiction for youth, as well as what he's learned about himself through the process. For additional...

It's the April Books & Boba mid-month news roundup. On this episode, we check in with the latest publishing announcements and news out of the world of Asian American literature. For additional thoughts and discussion on the monthly pick, visit the Books & Boba Goodreads forums . This Month's Book Club Panelists: Reera Yoo ( @reeraboo ) Marvin Yueh ( @marvinyueh ) Follow us: Facebook Twitte...

On this episode, we discuss our Books and Boba March 2019 book club pick, Darius the Great Is Not Okay , by Adib Khorram, the story of Darius, a teenage kid who loves Star Trek and Tolkien, and his trip to his mother's home country of Iran to visit his ailing grandfather for the first time. We discuss Darius' journey of finding his inner strength in Iran while dealing with clinical depression (CW:...