Books and Boba

For our mid-month book news check in for October 2025, we're catching up on the Asian American publishing news for the past 2 months (since we didn't do a mid-month episode in September) as well as checking in on the news about the latest National Book Award nominations as well as some exciting new listings on the NYT bestsellers list!Upcoming books mentioned in our publishing news:The Radiance by Ayad AkhtarThe Museum of Modern Love by Mariko TurkSir Silly by Gavin Aung ThanEmily Min-ji Makes Kimchi by Meredith Seung Mee Buse; illust. Jenn KocsmierskyThe River of Caregiving by Jocelyn Chung; illust. Sarah GonzalesOf Wind and Dust by Shirin Yim LeosProject Juni by Kaitlyn San MiguelMedusa's Pet Rock by Steph Lau Chrysanthemum's Glow written by Livia Blackburne; illust. Julia Kuo Fishbone Cinderella by Elizabeth Lim The Secret World of Briar Rose by Cindy Pham Born by Sarah LingThe Fallen Sun by C.M. Basma Swimming Lessons for a Mermaid by YongchanWho the Flan Am I? by Kiera Wright-Ruiz and Claudia LamThe Missing Magic of Sparrow Xia by Leia HamBear Wakes Up by Lisa ChowFrankie Lu's Summer of No Regrets by Betty ChangI Shall Master This Family by Kim Roah, Mon, and ANTStudioBook news mentioned on this episode:2025 Finalists for the National Book AwardsAlchemised by SenLinYu debuted at #1 on the New York Time’s Hardcover Fiction list on October 12thBooks & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authorsSupport the Books & Boba Podcast by:Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perksPurchasing books at our bookshopRocking our Books & Boba merchFollow our hosts:Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)Follow us:InstagramTwitterGoodreadsFacebookThe Books & Boba October 2025 pick is a...

On this episode, we are joined by Jade Chang, the author of our August 2025 book club pick The Wangs Vs the World, to chat about her newest novel, What a Time to be Alive, which follows a messy Chinese American girl named Lola Treasure Gold who inadvertently finds internet fame when a tongue in cheek speech she makes at a party honoring her recently deceased best friend goes viral, turning her into an internet self-help influencer. Follow Jade on Instagram at @hellojadechang and check out her newest novel What a Time to be Alive available now on the Books & Boba bookshop!Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authorsSupport the Books & Boba Podcast by:Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perksPurchasing books at our bookshopRocking our Books & Boba merchFollow our hosts:Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)Follow us:InstagramTwitterGoodreadsFacebookThe Books & Boba October 2025 pick is Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng by Kylie Lee BakerThis podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we discuss our September 2025 book club pick, A Witch's Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu Mandanna, a cozy magical story about Sera, who used to be the most powerful witch in the UK until losing all her power casting a forbidden spell to bring her beloved great aunt back from the dead. Now 15 years later, she runs a magical inn in the English countryside after being expelled from magical society, and we follow her adventures when a chance to regain her lost power emerges.Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authorsSupport the Books & Boba Podcast by:Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perksPurchasing books at our bookshopRocking our Books & Boba merchFollow our hosts:Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)Follow us:InstagramTwitterGoodreadsFacebookThe Books & Boba October 2025 pick is Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng by Kylie Lee BakerThis podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we are joined by best selling author Dustin Thao to chat about his newest novel, You've Found Oliver, the follow up to his bittersweet debut You've Reached Sam. Dustin shares with us how a real life glitch in the matrix inspired the supernatural setting of his latest romance as well as his thoughts on time, grief, and magic.Follow Dustin on Instagram at @thedustinthao and check out his newest novel You've Found Oliver available 9/30 on the Books & Boba bookshop!Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authorsSupport the Books & Boba Podcast by:Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perksPurchasing books at our bookshopRocking our Books & Boba merchFollow our hosts:Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)Follow us:InstagramTwitterGoodreadsFacebookThe Books & Boba September 2025 pick is A Witch's Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu MandannaThis podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we are joined from all the way on the other side of the world by Emma Pei Yin to chat about her debut novel When Sleeping Women Wake, a historical fiction novel about three women who each find their individual paths to resistance during the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong during world war 2. Emma shares with how she was inspired to write the story after hearing about her grandfather's experiences as a resistance fighter in WW2 as well as how surprisingly difficult it was to find research about life under occupation from the Chinese perspective.Follow Emma on Instagram at @emmapeiyin and check out her debut novel When Sleeping Women Wake available now on the Books & Boba bookshop!Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authorsSupport the Books & Boba Podcast by:Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perksPurchasing books at our bookshopRocking our Books & Boba merchFollow our hosts:Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)Follow us:InstagramTwitterGoodreadsFacebookThe Books & Boba September 2025 pick is A Witch's Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu MandannaThis podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we chat with author Amran Gowani about his debut novel Leverage, a financial thriller about a rising star hedge fund analyst who is forced to dive into the seedy underbelly of the financial system when he loses his firm $300 million in a day and has to make everything back in 3 months or face some dire consequences. Amran chats with us about the themes of his novel as well as shares his inspirations for the story as a former Wall Street analyst!cw: discussion of themes involving suicidal ideation from 37:46 to 41:51Follow Amran's writing at www.amrangowani.com and check out his debut novel Leverage available now on the Books & Boba bookshop!Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authorsSupport the Books & Boba Podcast by:Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perksPurchasing books at our bookshopRocking our Books & Boba merchFollow our hosts:Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)Follow us:InstagramTwitterGoodreadsFacebookThe Books & Boba September 2025 pick is A Witch's Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu MandannaThis podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode we discuss our August 2025 book club pick The Wangs Vs. The World by Jade Chang, about the (formerly) affluent Wang family who embark on a road trip from from LA to NY after losing everything during the 2008 financial crisis. This is a book that is almost as old as our podcast and has been on our TBR for a long time so we're excited to dive in!TW: One of the storylines involve a character who's fascination with suicidal ideation is discussed at 1:05:10, if this is a sensitive topic for you, you can bypass this section by skipping ahead to 1:11:03Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authorsSupport the Books & Boba Podcast by:Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perksPurchasing books at our bookshopRocking our Books & Boba merchFollow our hosts:Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)Follow us:InstagramTwitterGoodreadsFacebookThe Books & Boba September 2025 pick is A Witch's Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu MandannaThis podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we sit down with author Benedict Nguyễn to chat about her debut novel Hot Girls with Balls, a romantic sports satire about two Asian American trans athletes at the top of their game as stars of the international men’s pro indoor volleyball league (who also happen to be girlfriends)! Follow Benedict on Instagram at @xbennyboo and check out her debut novel Hot Girls with Balls available now on the Books & Boba bookshop!Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authorsSupport the Books & Boba Podcast by:Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perksPurchasing books at our bookshopRocking our Books & Boba merchFollow our hosts:Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)Follow us:InstagramTwitterGoodreadsFacebookThe Books & Boba August 2025 The Wangs Vs. The World by Jade ChangThis podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

Reera is off on family business so it's a solo Marvin mid-month check in this week. On this short but sweet episode, Marvin highlights some of the latest publishing announcements for books by Asian and Asian American authors so that you can have even more books to keep an eye on for your TBR lists!Upcoming books mentioned in our publishing news:SLASHER SUMMER By E.L. ChenAMBROSIA By Katrina KwanMADDER LAKE By Katie WuTIGER'S MOUTH By Lucy TanEVERYTHING TO THE SEA By Alicia UpanoDUST By Theresa HottelAMERICAN HAN By Lisa LeeSHE WAITS WHERE SHADOWS GATHER By Michelle TangTHE FIDGET BOOTH By Abigail Hing Wen; illust by Maple LamBooks & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authorsSupport the Books & Boba Podcast by:Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perksPurchasing books at our bookshopRocking our Books & Boba merchFollow our hosts:Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)Follow us:InstagramTwitterGoodreadsFacebookThe Books & Boba August 2025 The Wangs Vs. The World by Jade ChangThis podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we chat with Julia and Brad Riew, the sibling writing duo behind the new Asian-inspired fantasy novel The Last Tiger! Julia and Brad share their experiences writing a novel as a team as well as how they were inspired to write their fantasy epic, which takes place in a world inspired by Japanese-occupied Korea in the 1940's, by the real life star-crossed love story of their grandparents.Follow Julia and brad on Instagram at @juliariew and @bradriew and check out their debut novel The Last Tiger available now on the Books & Boba bookshop!Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authorsSupport the Books & Boba Podcast by:Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perksPurchasing books at our bookshopRocking our Books & Boba merchFollow our hosts:Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)Follow us:InstagramTwitterGoodreadsFacebookThe Books & Boba August 2025 The Wangs Vs. The World by Jade ChangThis podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we discuss our July 2025 pick is Bingsu for Two by Sujin Witherspoon, a coffee house romantic comedy set in Seattle about high school senior River, who is reeling from the consequences of a series of disastrous personal decisions and seeks refuge at a small Korean cafe where he finds a found family and maybe even an enemies-to-lovers romance with the goth Korean girl of his dreams/nightmares, too bad that it's also the coffee house that his chain family business is directly targeting to put out of business. Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authorsSupport the Books & Boba Podcast by:Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perksPurchasing books at our bookshopRocking our Books & Boba merchFollow our hosts:Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)Follow us:InstagramTwitterGoodreadsFacebookThe Books & Boba August 2025 The Wangs Vs. The World by Jade ChangThis podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

Note: This is a re-upload of episode 321 since we had the wrong audio file uploaded last week, apologies for any confusion!On our mid-month check in for July 2025, we highlight some of the latest Asian American publishing announcements, and catch up on the latest book news!Upcoming books mentioned in our publishing news:Break Room by Miye Lee; translated by Sandy Jooson LeeGods & Comics by Kat Cho Yuki's Special Delivery by Chloe Ito Ward; illust. by Jiangshan LyuThe Pain Chasers by Bora Chung; translated by Anton HurMonkey Dragon Rabbit! A Wild Lunar New Year Stampede by MeiLin Chan; illust. by Kristen ChowFriends Furever by Sylvia LiuBooks & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authorsSupport the Books & Boba Podcast by:Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perksPurchasing books at our bookshopRocking our Books & Boba merchFollow our hosts:Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)Follow us:InstagramTwitterGoodreadsFacebookThe Books & Boba July 2025 pick is Bingsu for Two by Sujin WitherspoonThis podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we sit down with author Allison King to chat about her debut novel The Phoenix Pencil Company, a novel that's part historical fiction, part magical realism, and part sapphic romance about a young woman who discovers her family's secret magical power to reconstruct anything written by a pencil while taking care of her ailing grandmother and learning about her own family's history from Shanghai to Taiwan to the States. Follow Allison on Instagram at @allisonkingwrites and check out her debut novel The Phoenix Pencil Company available now on the Books & Boba bookshop!Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authorsSupport the Books & Boba Podcast by:Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perksPurchasing books at our bookshopRocking our Books & Boba merchFollow our hosts:Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)Follow us:InstagramTwitterGoodreadsFacebookThe Books & Boba July 2025 pick is Bingsu for Two by Sujin WitherspoonThis podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we're joined by author Naomi Xu Elegant to chat about her debut novel Gingko Season, a story about a young Chinese American woman finding love, identity, purpose, and political awakening alongside her friends, set in New York City in 2018. Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authorsSupport the Books & Boba Podcast by:Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perksPurchasing books at our bookshopRocking our Books & Boba merchFollow our hosts:Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)Follow us:InstagramTwitterGoodreadsFacebookThe Books & Boba July 2025 pick is Bingsu for Two by Sujin WitherspoonThis podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we discuss our June 2025 book club pick is Afterparties by the late Anthony Veasna So, a short story collection about a community of Cambodian Americans in San Joaquin County. Join us as we discuss all nine short stories that take us through a myriad of emotions with Anthony's often melancholic, sometimes hopeful, and darkly funny storytelling.Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authorsSupport the Books & Boba Podcast by:Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perksPurchasing books at our bookshopRocking our Books & Boba merchFollow our hosts:Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)Follow us:InstagramTwitterGoodreadsFacebookThe Books & Boba July 2025 pick is Bingsu for Two by Sujin WitherspoonThis podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we welcome award winning author and illustrator Mike Curato to the podcast to chat about his latest graphic novel, Gaysians, an adult graphic novel following four gay Asians navigating love, identity, found family, and friendship in early 2000's Seattle.Follow Mike on Instagram at @mike_curato and check out his latest graphic novel Gaysians available now on the Books & Boba bookshop!Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authorsSupport the Books & Boba Podcast by:Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perksPurchasing books at our bookshopRocking our Books & Boba merchFollow our hosts:Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)Follow us:InstagramTwitterGoodreadsFacebookThe Books & Boba June 2025 pick is Afterparties by Anthony Veasna SoThis podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On our mid-month check in for June 2025, we highlight some of the latest Asian American publishing announcements, and catch up on the latest book tea!Upcoming books mentioned in our publishing news:Stormraven by Kelsea YuMomma's Christmas Gift by Kao Kalia Yang; illust. by Jacqueline TamBlood of Silver by Allie NguyenWorth a Shot by Dora WangLion Dancer's Lost Lettuce by Michelle Jing Chan Leaf It to Me! by Katrina Moore; illust. by Biva NguyenFried Rice Surprise by Patricia Tanumihardja; illust. by Shiho PateMore Than What Eyes See by Miso Kwak; illust. by Thaís MesquitaKiri by Alice ChuThe Quest for the Longest Noodle by Stephanie Sy; illust. by Cindy WumeHunger Fighter by Jacqueline Chio-Lauri; illust. by Kristin SorraOh, My Affogato! by Daphne Ang and Donna GhorbanpoorPlanted by Niña MataToday Is Children's Day by Aram KimThe Shape of Love by Carren Jao; illust. by Corinne CaroShaping Ramadan by Mustaali RajBeneath the Same Round Moon by Jasmine Fang; illust. by Rồng Phạm & Vinh Nguyễn Book news mentioned on this episode:Chicago Sun-Times publishes a summer reading list filled with fake titles generated by AIBookToker given book deals despite having zero writing experienceBooks & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authorsSupport the Books & Boba Podcast by:Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perksPurchasing books at our bookshopRocking our Books & Boba merchFollow our hosts:Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)Follow us:InstagramTwitterGoodreadsFacebookThe Books & Boba June 2025 pick is 

On this episode, we're excited to welcome author Susan Lee to the podcast to chat about her latest novel, The Romance Rivalry, a YA romantic comedy about two rival booktubers who find themselves as freshmen at the same small liberal arts college and enter a competition with each other to see who can find love first using nothing but romance tropes!Follow Susan on Instagram at @susanleewrites and check out her latest novel The Romance Rivalry available now on the Books & Boba bookshop!Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authorsSupport the Books & Boba Podcast by:Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perksPurchasing books at our bookshopRocking our Books & Boba merchFollow our hosts:Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)Follow us:InstagramTwitterGoodreadsFacebookThe Books & Boba June 2025 pick is Afterparties by Anthony Veasna SoThis podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we discuss our May 2025 book club pick Blob: A Love Story by Maggie Su. A story about Vi, a twenty three year old biracial midwest Asian American woman, reeling from a bad breakup and a lifetime of bad choices, who finds a sentient blob in the alleys behind a bar and decides to mold it into her ideal romantic partner. What could go wrong?Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authorsSupport the Books & Boba Podcast by:Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perksPurchasing books at our bookshopRocking our Books & Boba merchFollow our hosts:Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)Follow us:InstagramTwitterGoodreadsFacebookThe Books & Boba June 2025 pick is Afterparties by Anthony Veasna SoThis podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

On this episode, we're excited to welcome NYT bestselling author Axie Oh, who joins us to chat about her latest novel The Floating World, an epic romantic fantasy following the adventures of an amnesiac mercenary and a small town village girl (with hidden chosen one powers) that blends the JRPG vibes of Final Fantasy with a re-imagining of the Korean Legend of the Celestial Maidens. Follow Axie on Instagram at @axieoh and check out her latest novel The Floating World available now on the Books & Boba bookshop!Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authorsSupport the Books & Boba Podcast by:Joining our Patreon to receive exclusive perksPurchasing books at our bookshopRocking our Books & Boba merchFollow our hosts:Reera Yoo (@reeraboo)Marvin Yueh (@marvinyueh)Follow us:InstagramTwitterGoodreadsFacebookThe Books & Boba May 2025 pick is Blob by Maggie SuThis podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective