Books and Boba – Details, episodes & analysis

On our mid-month check in for September 2024, we highlight some of the latest Asian American publishing announcements, get some updates on which authors of Asian descent who made it to the National Book Awards long-lists, and touch a little on the latest controversy with NaNoWriMo!

Upcoming books mentioned in our publishing news:

• Flashlight by Susan Choi
• Let It Be a Tale: Palestinian Journalists on Survival and Resistance edited by Zahra Hankir
• The Singular Life of Aria Patel by Samira Ahmed 
• Stars, Stripes, and Summer Nights by Celeste Dador
• How to Free a Jinn by Raidah Shah Idil
• Okchundang Candy by Jung-soon Go, translated by Aerin Park
• Nest of Tongues by Randy Ribay
• Every Single Splendor by Mae Respicio
• A Zombie Day by An Na; illust by August Zhang
• A Space for Nina by Karen Koh
• When They Burned the Butterfly by Wen-yi Lee
• Everything We Never Had by Randy Ribay
• Kareem Between by Shifa Saltagi Safadi
• The First State of Being by Erin Entrada
• The Tale of a Wall: Reflections on the Meaning of Hope and Freedom by Nasser Abu Srour, translated by Luke Leafgren 
• The Book Censor’s Library by Bothayna Al-Essa; translated from Arabic by Ranya Abdelrahman and Sawad Hussain
• Taiwan Travelogue by Yáng Shuāng-zǐ; translated by Lin King
• Where the Wind Calls Home by Samar Yazbek; translated by Leri Price

Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authors

Support the Books & Boba Podcast by:

• Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perks
• Purchasing books at our bookshop
• Rocking our Books & Boba merch

Follow our hosts:

• Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)
• Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)

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The Books & Boba September 2024 pick is A Burning by Megha Majumdar

This podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we chat with author Randy Ribay about his latest novel, Everything We Never Had, a YA story about four generations of Filipino men, each grappling with their own unique relationships with identity, masculinity, and father-son relationships. We talk with Randy about his inspirations for the book, as well as his thoughts on its themes of breaking out of toxic cycles.

Follow Randy on Instagram at @RandyRibay and check out his novel Everything We Never Had, available now on the Books & Boba bookshop!

Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authors

Support the Books & Boba Podcast by:

• Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perks
• Purchasing books at our bookshop
• Rocking our Books & Boba merch

Follow our hosts:

• Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)
• Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)

Follow us:

• Instagram
• Twitter
• Goodreads
• Facebook

The Books & Boba September 2024 pick is A Burning by Megha Majumdar

This podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we welcome author Tara Sim to chat about her latest novel, We Shall Be Monsters, a YA dark Indian-inspired fantasy take on the Frankenstein story following a girl on a quest to resurrect her sister (who's accidental death she may also be responsible for) who gets drawn into a web of political intrigue by people who want her knowledge and powers. We chat with Tara about her journey as an author, as well as the inspirations behind her book (especially the very good zombie pup).

Follow Tara on Instagram at @tarasimauthor and check out her novel We Shall Be Monsters, available now on the Books & Boba bookshop!

Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authors

Support the Books & Boba Podcast by:

• Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perks
• Purchasing books at our bookshop
• Rocking our Books & Boba merch

Follow our hosts:

• Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)
• Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)

Follow us:

• Instagram
• Twitter
• Goodreads
• Facebook

The Books & Boba July 2024 pick is The Sense of Wonder by Matthew Salesses

This podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we chat with author Lygia Day Peñaflor about her debut latest novel Creep: A Love Story, a story about a girl who might be too big a fan of her high school's "it" couple. We chat with Lygia about her inspirations for the story and what it was like to get into the head of an extreme stan.

Follow Lygia on instagram at @lygiaday and check out her novel Creep: A Love Story on sale now!

*Support the podcast by purchasing books at our bookshop *

Follow our hosts:

• Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)
• Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)

Follow us:

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Goodreads Group

The Books & Boba October 2022 pick is The Hole by Hye-Young Pyun

This podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we discuss our Books & Boba September 2022 pick, You're Invited by Amanda Jayatissa, a twisty thriller about Amaya, a woman who returns to her hometown for the first time in years to stop the wedding between her ex-best friend and her ex-boyfriend. To do so, she need to re-enter the cutthroat Sri-Lankan high society that she thought she had left behind forever. But is everything really how it seems? Or is there something dark festering underneath this perfect wedding that Amaya is willing to go as far as it takes to stop it?

*Support the podcast by purchasing books at our bookshop *

Follow our hosts:

• Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)
• Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)

Follow us:

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Goodreads Group

The Books & Boba October 2022 pick is The Hole by Hye-Young Pyun

This podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we welcome bestselling author Judy I. Lin to chat about her debut duology A Magic Steeped in Poison and A Venom Dark and Sweet, an Asian-inspired fantasy series about magical tea, imperial court intrigue, and a young woman's quest for redemption. We chat with Judy about her inspirations behind the story, as well as her series' whirlwind publishing schedule. 

Follow Judy on instagram at @judyilinauthor and check out her novels A Magic Steeped in Poison and A Venom Dark and Sweet on sale now!

*Support the podcast by purchasing books at our bookshop *

Follow our hosts:

• Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)
• Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)

Follow us:

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Goodreads Group

The Books & Boba September 2022 pick is You're Invited by Amanda Jayatissa

This podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we highlight the latest book and publishing news in Asian American literature for our September 2022 mid-month check-in, this month we also check out some recent book awards updates and have a chat about the sad recent trends of book bans.

New books and authors mentioned in our publishing news:

• Song of the Six Realms by Judy Lin
• Good Fortune by C.K. Chau
• Covenant series by LySandra Vuong
• Oxherd Boy by Regina Linke
• My Father, the Panda Killer by Jamie Jo Hoang
• Toto by Hyewon Yum
• A Suffragist's Guide to the Antarctic by Yi Shun Lai
• The Spirit Mirror by Roshani Chokshi
• A Drop of Venom by Sajni Patel
• The No-Shoes Home by Helena Ku Rhee; illust by Myo Yim
• I Drew a Heart by Gillian Sze
• Perfect by Waka T. Brown; illust by Yuko Jones
• Ganesha Goes Green by Lakshmi Thamizhmani; illust by Debasmita Dasgupta
• A Sky That Sings by Anita Sanchez & George Steele; illust by Emily Mendoza
• Goodnight Zodiac Animals by Jiemei Lin
• Postcards from Malcolm X: How Yuri Kochiyama Became a Civil Rights Activist by Mia Wenjen; illust by Keith Henry Brown
• Together on Eid by Sana Rafi; illust by Mariam Quraishi
• When We Were Sisters by Fatimah Asghar
• The Haunting of Hajji Hotak and Other Stories by Jamil Jan Kochai
• All This Could be Different by Sarah Thankam Mathews
• As She Appears by Shelley Wong
• The Rupture Tense by Jenny Xie
• A Thousand Steps into Night by Traci Chee
• Maizy Chen’s Last Chance by Lisa Yee
• All My Rage by Sabaa Tahir
• Seasons of Purgatory Shahriar Mandanipour
• Scattered All Over the Earth by Yoko Tawada
• Ibn Arabi’s Small Death by Mohammed Hasan Alwan

*Support the podcast by purchasing books at our bookshop *

Follow our hosts:

• Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)
• Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)

Follow us:

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Goodreads Group

The Books & Boba September 2022 pick is You're Invited by Amanda Jayatissa

This podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, author Tracey Lien joins the podcast to talk about her debut novel All That's Left Unsaid, a thrilling mystery about a journalist who returns to her hometown of Cabramatta after her baby brother's violent death in search for answers and to confront her past. Tracey shares about her inspirations for the novel, as well as about her journey to becoming a novelist.

Follow Tracey on instagram at @hellotraceylien and check out her latest novel All That's Left Unsaid on sale now!

*Support the podcast by purchasing books at our bookshop *

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This episode was sponsored by the Ma-Yi Theater Company:

From Ma-Yi Theater Company (The Chinese Lady, Teenage Dick) comes a generation-spanning new journey through the historical and fantastical. Mixing traditional Korean fables with the horrors of the Korean War, Daniel K. Isaac’s epic new play is a funny and deeply moving analog for the experiences of the Korean American diaspora. Isaac deftly moves his characters through time, tracing the legacies of trauma that are passed from one generation to the next, and the various coping mechanisms each one uses to soldier on.

Playing August 23 - September 18 at the  La Mama's Ellen Stewart Theater in New York City

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Follow our hosts:

• Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)
• Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)

Follow us:

• Facebook
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• Goodreads Group

The Books & Boba September 2022 pick is You're Invited by Amanda Jayatissa

This podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we discuss our August 2022 book club pick, Hani and Ishu's Guide to Fake Dating by Adiba Jaigirdar, a story about 2 Bengali Irish teens who enter into, you guessed it,  a fake relationship. Hani is doing i to prove to her very toxic friends that she is bi-sexual, and Ishu is doing it so Hani can help her become head girl. But what happens when the fake relationship starts becoming too real?

*Support the podcast by purchasing books at our bookshop *

Follow our hosts:

• Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)
• Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)

Follow us:

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Goodreads Group

The Books & Boba September 2022 pick is You're Invited by Amanda Jayatissa

This podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we welcome author Sangu Mandanna to chat about her new novel The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches, a cozy story about a lonely witch named Mika who finds herself in charge of educating three young witches in the English countryside. We chat with Sangu about her inspirations for this story of found family, generational trauma, and romance.

Follow Sangu on instagram at @sangumandanna and check out her latest novel The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches on sale now!

*Support the podcast by purchasing books at our bookshop *

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This episode was sponsored by the Ma-Yi Theater Company:

From Ma-Yi Theater Company (The Chinese Lady, Teenage Dick) comes a generation-spanning new journey through the historical and fantastical. Mixing traditional Korean fables with the horrors of the Korean War, Daniel K. Isaac’s epic new play is a funny and deeply moving analog for the experiences of the Korean American diaspora. Isaac deftly moves his characters through time, tracing the legacies of trauma that are passed from one generation to the next, and the various coping mechanisms each one uses to soldier on.

Playing August 23 - September 18 at the  La Mama's Ellen Stewart Theater in New York City

Tickets on sale now at:ma-yitheatre.org - use promo code BOOKSANDBOBA for discounted tickets.

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Follow our hosts:

• Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)
• Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)

Follow us:

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Goodreads Group

The Books & Boba August 2022 pick is Hani and Ishu's Guide to Fake Dating by Adiba Jaigirdar

This podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective