Books and Boba

On this episode, we chat with author Andrew Yang (not the candidate) about his debut novel, I'm Not Here to Make Friends , a coming of age story about two girls who join the cast of a "Terrace House" like reality TV series that gathers six Asian Americans from across the country to live together for the cameras. Andrew shares with us his author's journey, as well as geek out a little with Reera ab...

On this episode we discuss our August 2023 book club pick Bitter Medicine by Mia Tsai. A contemporary fantasy romance about Elle, a skilled healer and Chinese immortal laying low to hide from her murderous little brother, and Luc, a French half-elf with a certain set of skills who does secretive work for the king of Faeries. Together they try to figure out how to make their nascent relationship wo...

While we await our book club discussion episode later this week, we wanted to share something special with you. Please enjoy the first episode of the new hit podcast, Dear Alana, from our partners at Tenderfoot TV. Dear Alana, is a show exploring the life of Alana Chen, a 24-year-old woman who disappeared from Boulder, Colorado in 2019. Alana left behind two dozen journals chronicling a deep faith...

On this episode, we're excited to finally get to chat with author (and one of the founding members of #WeNeedDiverseBooks) Aisha Saeed about her latest novel, Forty Words for Love , a story of childhood friends on the verge of adulthood who find themselves at a crossroads as Moonlight Bay, the small magical town they grew up in, faces an economic crisis when the magical pink waters it's known for...

On our mid-month check in for July 2023, we review the latest Asian American book and publishing announcements, while catching up on a pretty terrible few weeks for the Asian American literature community (and the literature industry in general). Upcoming books mentioned in our publishing news: Piper Chen Sings  by Phillipa Soo & Maris Pasquale Doran; illust by Qin Leng Mabel and the Muse...

On this episode, we sit down with author Kelly Loy Gilbert to talk about her latest novel, Everyone Wants to Know , a coming of age story following Honor Lo, the youngest daughter of a family who grew up under the spotlight of a popular reality TV show. We chat with Kelly about her inspirations behind the story as well as her journey as an author. Follow Kelly on instagram at @kellyloygilbert and...

On this episode we discuss our July 2023 book club pick The Imaginary Lives of James Poneke by Tina Makereti. A coming-of-age story of a Maori boy, armed with a British education and eager to see the world, who ventures to London to be a living exhibit for a British artist's exhibition. It's an epic tale written in the style of Victorian fiction, but told from the perspective of an indigenous yout...

On this episode, we welcome Thien Pham, the author and illustrator of Family Style: Memories of an American from Vietnam , his graphic memoir recounting his life growing up as a refugee in America, with each chapter centering around a specific food-related memory. Follow Thien on instagram at @thiendog and check out his graphic memoir, Family Style: Memories of an American from Vietnam , available...

On our mid-month check in for July 2023, we review the latest Asian American book and publishing announcements, while catching up on a pretty terrible few weeks for the Asian American literature community (and the literature industry in general). Upcoming books mentioned in our publishing news: White Mulberry  by Rosa Kwon Easton Suka's Farm  written by Ginger Park and Frances Park; illu...

On this author chat, we welcome Thao Thai to talk about her debut novel Banyan Moon , a story about three generations of Vietnamese women, and the gothic southern mansion that ties them all together. We chat with Thao about her inspirations in writing a southern gothic inspired story about a Vietnamese American family, as well as learn about her journey to becoming an author. Follow Thao on instag...

For this author chat, we sit down with Susie Luo to talk about her debut novel Paper Names , a decades spanning tale of a Chinese immigrant trying to build a new life in America, his Chinese American daughter looking for her place in her parent's American dream, and a privileged white lawyer trying to rise above his family's shady past, who are brought together by an unexpected act of violence and...

On this episode we discuss our June 2023 book club pick, We Have Always Been Here by Lena Nguyen. A Sci-Fi psychological thriller following Dr. Grace Park, a psychologist who hates people, serving on a spaceship that has been dispatched to the planet Eos for a colonization inspection, but as the members of her crew begin to succumb to a mysterious psychological contagion, Dr. Park has to step out...

On our mid-month check in for June 2023, we review the latest Asian American book and publishing announcements, while Reera catches Marvin up with the latest tea from Asian book twitter. Upcoming books mentioned in our publishing news: The Night Ends with Fire by  K.X. Song The Kamogawa Food Detectives by  Hisashi Kashiwai Momo by  Ranran Zhou If Lin Can by  Richard Ho ; illust...

For this author chat, we talk to Uzma Jalaluddin about her latest contemporary romance Much Ado about Nada , a contemporary adaptation of Jane Austen's Persuasion taking place in a Muslim convention in Toronto. We chat with Uzma about her love of Austen, her background as an English teacher, and more! Follow Uzma on IG at @uzmajalaluddin and check out her novel, Much Ado about Nada , available now...

For this author chat, we sit down with Rita Chang-Eppig about her debut novel Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea , a historical fiction novel painting a portrait of legendary (and real life) Chinese pirate queen Shek Yeung who ruled the South China Seas in the early 19th century. We chat with Rita about her inspirations for the story as well as her own journey as an author. Follow Rita on IG at @rche...

One of the cool parts of being in podcasting is taking part in a community of like-minded creators, this is especially true for those of us in the Asian American podcasting space. That's why we're always excited to find new shows that explore the Asian American experience through new and interesting lenses. Ten Thousand Things is a podcast from KUOW Seattle about modern-day artifacts of Asian Amer...

On this episode we are discussing our May 2023 book club pick, The Fortunes of Jaded Women by Carolyn Huynh. A story about a Vietnamese family dealing with the effects of a very petty curse that has resulted in generations of only daughters to be born to their family, and the modern decedents in America dealing with all the generational trauma that comes from being daughters to refugee mothers. To...

To finish up APAHM, we're highlighting another one of our fellow Asian American podcasts from the Potluck Podcast Collective. This time we're dropping an episode of our fellow #PotluckPod QUARANTINED COMICS, a podcast where hosts Raman and Ryan discuss, debate, and nerd out on some of the comic's greatest, latest, and strangest works, about Gene Luen Yang's seminal graphic novel, AMERICAN BORN CHI...

On this episode, we check out the latest book and publishing news in Asian American literature for our APAHM 2023 edition of our mid-month check-in and Reera teaches Marvin what a Bigolas Dickalas is. Upcoming books mentioned in our publishing news: The First State of Being by Erin Entrada Kelly Samina Goes to a Wedding by Farida Zaman The Pink Pajamas , by Charlene Chua Perfect Is Not Perfect by...

On this episode, we chat with Melissa de la Cruz, probably one of the most prolific Asian American authors in the industry, about her new YA thriller The Headmaster's List , about Spencer, a Filipina-American private high school student, who sets out to figure out the truth behind a fatal car crash that left one of her classmates dead, her ex-boyfriend under arrest, and herself without her memorie...

This APAHM, we wanted to highlight some of our fellow Asian American podcasts from the Potluck Podcast Collective, so we're dropping in an episode from our sister show, Asian Americana, a podcast about slices of distinctly Asian American culture and history hosted by veteran audio producer and journalist, Quincy Surasmith. Please enjoy, and we'll be back with our mid-month check-in for May later t...

On this episode, we chat with debut author Deepa Varadarajan about her novel, Late Bloomers , about an Indian American family of two recent divorcees and their adult children who are each going through their own romantic adventures and turmoil. We chat with Deepa about the inspirations behind her book as well as why "Late Bloomers" is such a relatable trope for Asian American children of immigrant...

On this episode, we discuss our April 2023 book club pick, Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers by Jesse Q Sutanto. A murder mystery where super-auntie Vera Wong attempts to solve the murder of a mystery man she finds one morning lying dead in her tea shop, and inadvertently forms a found family with her suspects. *Support the podcast by supporting our new Patreon * Follow our hosts: Reera...

On this episode, we chat with author and illustrator Victoria Ying about her new YA graphic novel, Hungry Ghost , a coming of age story about a Chinese American girl dealing with adolescence, parental expectation, and eating disorders. We talk with Victoria about her background in animation as well as her semi-autobiographical inspirations behind the story of Hungry Ghost. Follow Victoria on IG at...

On this episode, debut author Vibhuti Jain joins us to chat about her new novel, Our Best Intentions , a thriller taking place in an affluent New York neighborhood that has been thrown into chaos after a high school was stabbed. In the center is Angie Singh, a gifted teenage swimmer, who's life with her single father Babur gets uravelled as she delves deeper into the case. Follow Vibhuti on IG at...