On this episode, we’re excited to welcome Carolyn Huynh, the author of Books & Boba pick The Fortunes of Jaded Women, to discuss her sophomore novel, The Family Recipe, another dramedy about a messy Vietnamese American family, this time following the estranged scions of a banh mi empire who are thrown into competition with each other for their inheritance by their eccentric father.
On this episode we discuss our Books & Boba April 2025 pick is The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd, a mystery thriller with magical realism elements about a woman investigating the death of her father who had exiled her from the field of cartography years ago, and uncovering old family secrets through the discovery of the old highway map that had caused their estrangement, which turned out to be the last map of its kind, and also kinda magical.
Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authors
On this episode, we discuss our March 2025 book club pick The Stationery Shop by Marjan Kamal, a sweeping historical & contemporary novel about a woman who meets her first love again 60 years ago after he stood her up on the day of their marriage in the midst of political upheaval in 1953 Tehran. Join us as we dive into this not-quite second chance romance as we discuss our own thoughts on the existence of destiny and true loves.
Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authors
On this episode, we chat with author Jane Pek, author of our February 2025 book club pick The Verifiers, and most recently its sequel The Rivals. Jane shares with us her journey into becoming an author as well as the inspirations behind writing a murder mystery series surrounding an online dating detective agency, with the bearing heart of an Asian American family drama.
On our mid-month check in for March 2025, we highlight some of the latest Asian American publishing announcements, discuss the latest book to TV adaptation news, check in as the first book ban case hits the Supreme Court, and share some exciting news for the podcast!
Upcoming books mentioned in our publishing news:
BLACKPINK: A Little Golden Book Biography by Jessica Yoon
The Swan’s Daughter: A Possibly Doomed Love Story by Roshani Chokshi
Honeytrap by Kiana Krystle
I Dance by Diana Rañola; illust. by Christine Almeda
The Summoning of Tess Pham by Trang Thanh Tran
The Poet Empress by Shen Tao
The Vale by Abigail Hing Wen; Illust. by Yuna Cheong
Every Day I Read by Hwang Bo-reum; Translated by Shanna Tan
The Chinese Lady by Bo Wang
I Got You, Allen Liu by Derrick Chow
Habbi’s Treasures by Yoojin Grace Wuertz; illust. by Dung Ho
The Take by Kelly Yang
G Is for Gratitude, by Rina Horiuchi & Risa Horiuchi
Don’t Feed the Hungry Ghosts by Connie Chang & J.M. Blakemore
Bad Dog, Benny by Maggie P. Chang
Where There’s Roomfor Us by Hayley Kiyoko
Strong as a Lion by Karla Sy; illust. by FelishiaHenditirto
The Riceball Fairy by Michelle Lin; illust. by Alyssa Hutchings
The Late Bird by Sha’an d’Anthes
Where Does Dinosaur Go? by Songju Ma Daemicke; illust. by Sian James
The Dinosaur and the Bird: A Tale of Prehistoric
Friendship by Richard Ho; illust. by Jamie Green
Fatal Glitch by Erin Entrada Kelly & Eliot Schrefer
A Party for Bear by Alice Wang
Stone Lion by Debbie Fong
Wake Up, Poppyville! by Vikki Chu
Flowers of the Season by Mishy Wang; illust. by Bianca Austria
On this episode, we discuss our February 2025 pick, The Verifiers by Jane Pek, following Claudia Lin, an underachieving Asian American woman with a complicated and somewhat dysfunctional family situation, who is recruited to become an investigator for an online dating detective agency and gets drawn into a vast conspiracy involving big tech and data when one of her clients ends up dead under mysterious circumstances.
Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authors
Books & Boba 