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- [00:00]
A
But I'm gonna crash so hard probably during the middle of this recording. So buckle up.
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B
Buckle up baby.
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A
Welcome to Book Talk Etc, a podcast bound to grow your tbr. I'm Tina from TBR Etc.
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B
And I'm Hannah from Hand Picked Books.
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A
This is a conversational podcast about books and more from two Midwest Mood readers who are easily distracted by new releases. And this week we are our April Books on the Radar.
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B
If you enjoy listening, we'd love for you to follow us on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app. And if you have a quick minute, please consider leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or sharing us on social media. It truly helps us connect with other book lovers.
- [00:48]
A
Hey everyone. It is about to be the start of a brand new month, so we wanted to take the time to invite you to join us on Patreon. Our Patreon Group is such a wonderful, supportive community of readers and if you've ever wanted your reading to be more of a social experience, this is a great way to find that connection. Becoming a patron is also a way for you to financially support our podcast, to meet other readers, and of course to get access to our exclusive bonus content. So for $5 a month you'll get access to two bonus episodes a month and one live event, as well as invites to our BTE Discord server, Facebook Group and our monthly Community Read. You will also have access to everything we've created since we started, which is a touch and you help keep the main show ad free. Now what do April Bonuses look like? We're going to have a DNF chat because Lord knows we've been sampling. We're going to do an episode of Niche Novels and then of course our favorite live event, the Mood Reader Happy Hour. Our April Community Read is such a buzzing one. I cannot wait to discuss it. It is Yesteryear by Carol Claire Burke. This is one of the most buzzy books of the year so far and it's going to be a fun conversation. So if you would like to join us, head to patreon.com booktalk etc or or look for the link in our show notes. And thank you so much for your support. Hey Hannah, great job. I feel really good. Oh my gosh, if I sound scattered right now, listeners, it's because I am. I was telling Hannah I did a hit workout before we started recording so
- [02:18]
B
I have that runner high.
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A
It's gonna crash about my second book that I'm sharing, so I'm just gonna try and hold on to this high as long as I can. But how are you?
- [02:28]
B
I'm doing great. A really busy week for me just at work and now my kids are on spring break and we're trying to plan a couple of trips. And so I have a little bit of a different kind of buzz going. But I'm also feeling just, like, busy and energized by that, so feeling similarly. We've had some really great weather the last couple of days, which always delights.
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A
Always delights and surprises.
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B
Always delights and surprises. I'm pretty sure it's cold again today. Oh, Yep, it's cold. 30 degrees here today, so wrote that high while it lasted. But it's over now.
- [03:05]
A
It's over now. It'll be back, though. You know, it's one of those things. Right now my coat area looks insane because I have my full winter jacket. I've got my raincoat, I've got my flannel coat. I've got. I'm like, blessed to have so many coats, but, my God, which one do I need exactly. Well, I will kick things off as we do by sharing my loving lately and listeners. I have been doing this podcast now for coming up on five years. That is a loving lately. A week just about. For five years. So yesterday I was, like, having this funny moment where I was, like, headed to bed and I was, you know, putting the house away before I went upstairs to the bed. And I'm like, oh, I brought this before. Oh, I brought that before. Literally everything I was touching, I'm like, oh, my God, you've brought everything you use on a daily basis as a loving lately. But then I remembered that I have not told you about the only skin care item that I pay a premium price for. It is my. It is my Sunday Riley lactic acid. This is an acid. It is a treatment. It's essentially a high potency, multitasking serum that exfoliates dull skin, reduces dark spots, and plumps fine lines in just three minutes. Now, I actually did not realize that you could use this as a mask and that people wipe this off. I don't. I just put one to two pumps on, leave it there, and then. This is going to sound absolutely vile, and I don't care. You can kind of smush it around and, like, you can actually feel the skin coming off, and it's the most satisfying thing on planet Earth. I love this stuff. I bought it, I don't know, four or five times. I've been using it for many years. And you sort of do it. I do it at night. I don't use it every day. You do it after you clean your skin. You leave it, you know, you put it on, and then I kind of just wait a little bit, let it work, let it cook, and then I add my other stuff over top of it. So this is a purified lactic acid treatment. That's what it's called. Now, the best part about my last bottle, it was New Year's Eve. We were at our friend's house, and I was chatting to my friend, and I'm like, oh, my gosh, I have $70 left to use on my FSA for the year. You know, it's December 31st. So anyway, I ran into this store that sells skincare. Yada, yada, yada. I was able to use my FSA money to pay for this, and I'm, like, delighted. Yes. I got it from the website Derm store. And they have a way in there where you can sort of, I guess, get a prescription for it. I forget what I said. Old. I don't know, you know, fine lines, acne. I'm not sure what I said, but whatever I said, they were able to give me a doctor's note for it, which, you know, fair enough. Right. And I was able to use my FSA money. At any rate, something. It's like an additional subplug that I wanted. However, the Sunday Riley lactic acid serum, unfortunately, is great. And I've not been able to find a dupe. I really, really love this stuff. So that was my loving lately.
- [06:07]
B
Ooh, I love a new skincare product. And this is.
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A
Your skin might freak out, I feel. Because it kind of tingles.
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B
Tingles a little. Yeah. I do have some sen. Sensitive skin.
- [06:19]
A
Yeah, we'll have. Maybe next time you visit, you can. Maybe next time you visit, we can try it on a small. See if you freak out. Yeah. Lactic acid. It's an exfoliant. It is a chemical exfoliant.
- [06:32]
B
And does it, like, clean out your pores and stuff?
- [06:35]
A
No, it. How do I. No, really, it's really just like a serum. You don't. It's not cleaning anything. It's really just like a thick, kind of creamy white paste. Not paste, but like serum. And you put it on, and then it just sits there, and then it tingles. And you kind of feel okay? Yeah, I feel it working. And it boosts your radiance. Allegedly. But here's what I will say. Oh, my gosh. After you use it, my skin feels so soft the next day because all the, like, dead skin has been sloughed away.
- [07:04]
B
Yeah.
- [07:05]
A
So it's not. You have physical exfoliants and chemical exfoliants. Physical or like the ones you probably don't want to use too often. If you remember St. Ives or whatever when we, when you know, in the 90s, like the little granules, those can be harsh. This is kind of doing that same thing. But it's a chemical exfoliant.
- [07:22]
B
Yep, that totally makes sense. Thanks for describing that for us.
- [07:26]
A
Now I am not a skincare expert, of course. I'm just a girl that likes serums. So if I'm wrong, listeners feel free to correct me. But I think I have that right.
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B
Yes, I feel like our tagline of this podcast at this point could be like, we're just girls.
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A
We're just girls.
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B
Girls. We're just kids.
- [07:42]
A
And we're talking to you like pat pals. You're our pals. And I want to share. This is stuff that I share with people I know in real life and that's sort of how I'm treating it. But this, you know, is not like medical advice or whatever.
- [07:52]
B
Definitely not. I'm going to completely shift gears here and talk about a couple of games now. The first one that I wanted to bring is specific for kids. And then I was like, well I don't want to just bring something for kids, so don't worry grown ups. I have something that I'm going to bring for you too. And both are genuine things that, that are loving lately's of mine. The first one is specific for kids. So my kids have really been loving PBS games, free online games and they're all from TV shows of PBS kids. And the games are great. Some of them are interactive so some of the games are even puzzle games that I can play with the kids or that they can play together where they're both having to problem solve and they're both having to do things with each other collaboratively to solve the puzzle. So they're, they're, they're great for like not only learning but also skill building and things like that. And I just really like how low stimulation they are. A lot of them are 2D. Most of them, if not all of them are educational in some capacity like I said, you know, puzzles or teaching things facts about animals. My 4 year old loves the Wild Kratz games particularly and this has just been a great resource and distraction that feels, that feels good and I like that my 4 year old son asks to play PBS games all the time. And it's just a really. I remember playing kids on My computer growing up too or even just messing around with Microsoft Paint. And this feels similar where it's just really low stimulation, creative building, problem solving, skill building, learning, et cetera. So that has been a resource that I have been really loving. And you can just get it on your desktop. So I was going to ask. You can get it on an iPad too. I don't use it on an iPad. I don't have an iPad. But if you do have one, as long as it has wifi and you can access a website, then you would be able to play these games there. I just have my kiddos play on the computer.
- [10:10]
A
Okay.
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B
And it's also good for learning how to use the computer, which is a skill they need. Which is a skill that they're going to need. And I was worried about. My 4 year old has never touched a computer and it is wild how fast these digital native kids learn things. He's already got it. So anyway, yeah, that has been really great. Okay. But a game for grown ups. This is so fun. The game is called Inside and Randomly. I played this for the first time on our Apple tv. So if you have an Apple tv, it's available for free. I did look though. And you can play it on. It's available on Steam, you can get it on your Switch. I often see it for sale on the deals page for Nintendo Switch and I believe you can get it for console as well. But this is a 2A puzzle game about a boy who finds himself drawn into the center of a very, very dark sci fi project. And you don't know what it is, but it's a narrative driven platformer that combines intense action with puzzles. So you're having to solve some puzzles in order to get to the next scene. There's no dialogue in it, but it does tell a story with the graphics and the puzzles that you have to complete. You slowly start to what this dark project is and it gets more and more sinister as you move from scene to scene. Overall, you can play this entire game in like two hours. So if you are looking for something fun to do, you know, on a weekend or even with your partner or what have you, this is a pretty quick game that you can completely like complete and get through in a matter of just a couple of hours in an evening. And the story, if you like sci fi stories where you're just like what the heck is going on? This was really fun and interesting and entertaining and it's kind of fun to get back to those like 2D games. Sometimes you know that Just have. You can just go two directions. That's it. It's kind of fun, but I also really like it when games can tell a story without there being a lot of dialogue. And I feel like this one did it really well. So PBS games for kids and this game called Inside are my loving Whitneys this week.
- [12:37]
A
I love games. If there is an event or something where there's games involved, I will sit there and play the entire evening. Like I'm the last to leave the table or whatever. As you saw during our last live with our patrons, we did a game night this month and I was obsessed with hosting it, running it. I knew the answers, I didn't care. So much fun. So I'm glad that you shared those. I'm always looking for games and I like that they are for kids and they can kind of get. Games are. It's a good skill for them. Right. It's like a good way for them to pass the time. So I'm definitely going to introduce that as soon as possible. I know my girls will be excited too, to use the computer because, like, they don't. Or maybe their iPad. But good recommendation.
- [13:19]
B
And it's nice that it's free. I mean, we have ABC Mouse, too. Well, my. So my mom hangs out with our kids quite a bit and she does have an iPad and she has ABC Mouse on her iPad, but that's a subscription. And it. It costs not a ton of money, but, you know, it does cost to have that on your device and to have a subscription to it. And I like that PBS games are free and the games are really similar. So if you are familiar as a teacher, educator or parent with ABC Mouse, very similar concept and very similar types of games.
- [13:51]
A
I like that we use Kidopia. That is a app. I think it's kind of similar to ABC Mouse, but I'm not exactly 100% sure of the difference. But yes, they're. They like those games. But I'm like, you know, this is probably more educational.
- [14:06]
B
Yeah, yeah. I've never heard of Kidopia.
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A
You said Kidopia. Ask Cassia all about it. It is her. It's her favorite thing. You can cook. You can. There's like a hundred. There's a ton of games on there. But yeah, she really, really likes that one.
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B
Nice.
- [14:26]
A
I will transition us into our mutual latest read. So as I was saying earlier in the commercial, we do a community read each month, and for March, our community read was Kin by Tayari Jones. So Hannah and I will discuss that together. We've already talked with our patrons about it a couple of days ago and it was a great conversation. I I love our community reads now because truly we just go in and like boom. All of a sudden there's tons and tons of comments. People are going back and forth and like I always try and bring a couple of questions, but I love when our patrons are just ready and raring to go to discuss. The book Kin if you are not familiar with it, Kin is about two motherless daughters named Bernice and Annie, and they were raised in Honeysuckle, Louisiana and have been best friends and neighbors since since earliest childhood. But they are fated to live starkly different lives. Vernice is raised by a fierce aunt who is determined to give her a stable home in the wake of her mother's death. And Annie was abandoned by her mother as a child and was raised by her grandmother and becomes fixated by the idea of finding her. And so the two Vernice takes more of a traditional path, ends up going to spelman College at 18 and meets families there and sort of gets her eyes opened to different possibilities for black women and for women in general. And Annie, her her sole focus really becomes finding her mom. And of course she makes friends and ends up getting into things along the way. And that's this book sort of gives you that as the setup in this moment. I know what you think, but if you would kick us off and tell us a little bit about how you felt about it.
- [16:12]
B
Yeah, so this is my first by this author, by Terry Jones. And so I didn't have a ton of expectations in terms of writing style and things like that. I think that I had. So you and I have really hardly talked at all about our feelings like with each other even before we chatted with our patrons. So I. But you mentioned when we chatted with our patrons the other night that this was different than you expected. And even though I went in with very little expectations expectations having not read anything from this author before, it was also different than I expected it too. Neither really good or bad, just different. One thing I will say is that I'm glad that I stuck with it because it has a little bit of a. I don't know if a slow start is really the right way to say it because it's literary fiction. So it's not like this is a pulse pounding, fast paced novel in general. But I think that it did take some time for me to really care for these characters and their journeys and their story. And I will say I did really care about them by the end of the story. And I think that you really like this is one that I would encourage people to stick with if they're feeling that kind of distance between the reader and the work. Like, if they're feeling that distance, to stick with it. Because I do think that while I have some qualms with exactly how it ended, I did feel differently about the story, having made myself go all the way to the end with it. So I'm trying to be vague because I don't want to give any spoilers, but tell us a little bit about what your expectations were and if it met those and just how you felt overall.
- [18:02]
A
Yes, I will. I have read Terry Jones twice before. An American Marriage is one of my all time favorite books. I read it in 2018 18. I remember it being one of those books where I was like, oh, like this is one I want to talk about. Like, it was just a really. I don't know what. It was a standout reading experience for me. So I knew going into this I was like talking to myself, like, listen, it's not going to be the same book. Temper your expectations. As we talked about in one of our previous podcasts, I was trying to work my own expectations and wrangle them. And I enjoyed it. I enjoyed this book. I don't think that I loved it as I loved An American Marriage, but that's not necessarily a bad thing because An American Marriage is one of my all time favorite books. This one, I agree with you in that it's taking some time to build. For me, what I pinpointed about that was you're with them when they're kids and when they're younger, I'm kind of. For me, I'm like, all right, get to the point. You know what I'm saying? Like, I was like, I got the sort of vibe early on and then they end up going in there, you know, at 18, they end up going their separate ways. Where it not lost me, but where it differed from my expectations was I did not think we were going to stay in that 18 to, we'll say 22 range the entire book. I thought this was sweeping in that we would follow these characters throughout their entire lives. And like, you know, you're getting a lot of stuff and a lot of this and that, and that's not it. And I kind of enjoy that because you're really leading up to this very impactful couple of years in these two women's lives and the way that one or two little choices can totally change the Trajectory of your life. So that, for me, is where it was different. You make really good points about feeling a little. Just not disconnected from the characters, but taking time to get really sucked in by them and moved by them. I never really got there. I don't know why I kept. I don't know why, honestly. And it could be just me and like, how I consumed the book. I did listen to the whole thing on audio, very well narrated. And even though I did not connect with the characters like that, one thing I said to you early on was that I love that I could just turn this book on and know that I'm gonna get a great story. I just knew it. Cause I know she's so talented. I knew I was going to enjoy it. And I just sort of let her describe what she wanted to describe. The writing is really great. It's also similar. Like I would say this for me is more similar to Silver Sparrow, which is a book. The other book that I read from her, than An American Marriage. That one was. Felt a little different to me. It had for me, more. It was more plotty. This one is more kind of historical fiction. It really felt like we were in Georgia. Or is that where they were? They're in the South. I'll say the South. They were in the south for.
- [20:58]
B
You know, I felt that Georgia sounds right.
- [21:01]
A
Georgia, yeah. Oh, well, they're at Vernice, was at Spelman. So yeah, they were in Atlanta. But anyway, I felt that the atmosphere was really good. And the other thing that I will say. I'm saying a lot, but the other thing I wanted to address is the ending. You're totally right. The ending is going to give people pause. Not in a bad way. I was on it. It was.
- [21:26]
B
It was unexpected.
- [21:27]
A
It was unexpected in the way that it was done. I'll put it that way. Right?
- [21:31]
B
Agree.
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A
Like, I think it'll ruffle some feathers and it will.
- [21:37]
B
Yeah, it'll ruffle some feathers for sure.
- [21:38]
A
But you do get it in a bad way. I necessarily. Right. I'm a gal that loves an epilogue. We know this about me. I want to be told the who, what, where, when. So I was like, I want more. I want an epilogue that is not the story you're getting. And that is okay. I will say I had some great book club questions from this. And I. It was easy for me to be like. Because I knew in my head when I was reading, I'm like, wait a minute, I want to talk about this. So this one's really easy to discuss with your Book club. If you like historical fiction, I highly recommend it. There's plenty to discuss. I will say, though, one of the reasons why I think it kept me from being full five stars was that so many issues were, yes, mention, slash, introduce, but maybe not explored in the way that I might have liked. Exactly. And one of our patrons pointed that out, and I'm like, you nailed it.
- [22:28]
B
Yeah.
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A
And. And that's okay because it sort of triggered a lot of different things for me. I'm like, oh, this is reminding me of this, this, this, and this book comp. Right. It was able to, like, sort of, like, make me make those connections. But overall, I loved. I loved reading it. I'm so glad we got another Terry Jones book. I'm giving it 4.25 stars. If anyone cares what that looks like.
- [22:49]
B
I gave.
- [22:51]
A
Yeah, just sort of maybe four is.
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B
There was, like, something there that was.
- [22:54]
A
You're tougher than me, though. I'm just a. Like 4.25. Cause it took you so long to write it. You know what I mean? Like the extra 0.25.
- [23:01]
B
Well, and what's funny about that, too. And they mentioned this when we were having our conversation, but I was listening to an interview with Tayari Jones, and I forget which show she was on, but, you know, they were talking about her writing process, and they were like, so what was your writing process for this? And she was like, describing how she basically had had kind of a contract to write a completely different book, and she'd been trying for a really long time. And I think that that's why there was so much space. And she said eventually she just kind of cleaned her slate and just started writing. And this is the story that came out of it. And she said that that wasn't even the story that she was expecting to write either. And then the. The person that was interviewing her asked and said, you know, is this. So what did you do? Like, how did you break the news? And she basically was like, yeah, I pretty much just like, set the book on their desk and ran away and for the best. And, you know, it all worked out. But then the interviewer asked, is this your. Like, would you do this process again? And she was like, no, I would never do this process again.
- [24:09]
A
I would like to not do this again.
- [24:10]
B
I would like to not do this again. But I just thought that it was really funny how she. How she talked about it. And if we can find that interview, I will put it in the show notes if I can find it, just because I feel like it added A lot of just levity to her as a person and a writer. And it's really fun to see, like, okay, these are just people that are out there writing these stories. And sometimes the stories are like, oh, this was completely not expected at all. And you're like, why did they take so long to write this book? And it's like, there's so much that we don't know behind the scenes what is happening. And she's just a delightful person to listen to in general. So if I can find that, I'll link it.
- [24:48]
A
And I always err on the side of please take your time. We don't need, you know, I'll be here, we'll wait. Right? I was talking to somebody else and they had said that somebody on threads was like, oh, I just read Kin and I wanted a different ending. Terry Jones commented and wrote and said may I help? And I was like, that is a really in a non mean way. And then she literally followed that up with oh, because of spoilers, of course. Feel free to DM me. I'm at the airport for the next 8 hours. I'd love to chat. Isn't that cool? I was like, that's a really like respectful way to engage with your readers without being like, yes, without being like, what? How would you have done it? You know what I mean? Like doing it totally, like being like defensive about it and I don't know
- [25:35]
B
what their dm may I help? Obviously. But you know, being open to be like, well, my thinking was blah, blah, blah. Like again, I don't know how she responded to this person outside of that, but I do love that coming at it from a point of curiosity instead of combativeness or just ignoring it all together. Like, if you're going to connect with readers, that's the way to do it. I completely way to do it.
- [25:56]
A
Exactly what I thought too, because there are plenty of authors that maybe don't do it as tactfully or with that curiosity. So loved that. Really enjoyed our reading experience and had a good time reading it with our patrons. That one was Kin by Tayari Jones. Okay, now we will segue into our April Books on the Radar. I want to at the top though, point out three that I think I it's fair to say you and I are very excited by and I don't think these are going to be on any of our lists, so I want to I'd be remiss if I didn't mention these ones here that I'm holding. So there's three go Ahead. Do you have any of these?
- [26:35]
B
No, I'm going to mention a different one.
- [26:38]
A
Perfect. So the three that I'm holding that I am just delighted by, of course is Yesteryear by Carol Clare Burke. That's our Book Talk etc Community Read. Our next month. Book Talk Etc Community Read comes out in April. And that's Japanese Gothic by Kylie Lee Baker. And then of course one that I personally have been waiting so long for, it's the Caretaker by Marcus Kluwer. And those I'm like, top, top tier. Do you have any top tiers that you might not be mentioning?
- [27:05]
B
Yes, I brought this as a shelf edition and I'm so excited about it. It comes out in April and that's Molka by Monica Kim.
- [27:12]
A
Yes.
- [27:13]
B
So excited about that one. It deals with voyeurism and it just sounds so good. I loved the eyes, the best part. Yes. So really excited about all of those. They're just 2026 is so jam packed and it's hard to keep up with all of them and share every single book that we are excited about that are coming out. So it's nice to be able to give little plugs to ones we might not be mentioning right now.
- [27:37]
A
Exactly. So I wanted to make those plugs first. But my first official book, on the Radar for April. Wait until you hear this. You're going to hear it and be like, wow, is that a Tina book? It is Boring Asian Female by Sean Wen Shu. And this one comes out on April 28. It is about Elizabeth Zhang, who is well aware of her place in the world. She is in the 10th percentile for likability, the 70th percentile for attractiveness, in the 99th percentile for academics. So she's like, I know I'm not the most beautiful or the most well liked, but I'm intelligent. And her dream is to get into Harvard Law School. But then Harvard rejects Elizabeth for not standing out enough. And she's like, well, obviously it's because I'm just a, quote, boring Asian female. And she, her life begins to fall apart a little bit. So what shocks her even more is that Laura Kim, a classmate at Columbia, gets in and Elizabeth's like, how on earth did this happen? Why was Laura accepted and why wasn't it me? So she begins to follow her and do a little light stalking because she's curious. She wants to know what Laura orders for lunch, where she shops, what she does for fun. And she's like kind of trying to figure out, okay, how, what is she doing that made her an acceptable person for Harvard. She can't figure it out, so. So she decides she only has one last choice, is to get the spot back. Because after all, she deserves it. And that's where I'll leave it. I can't wait for this. It reminds me so much of Julie Chan is Dead in that it's subversive and just.
- [29:10]
B
I was gonna ask you. They sound. They sound so similar. Well, not similar, but just like the same vibes.
- [29:16]
A
Yes, I cannot wait. And I am gonna read as soon as I can. That one is Boring Asian Female by Shan Nguyen. Hold on. By Sean Nguyen. Shu.
- [29:28]
B
Yeah, that sounds really good. Okay, I'm excited about this one. I hadn't heard a ton of buzz about this, but just as I was kind of doing my research ahead of this episode and trying to find some good titles, I came across this one and it sounds really interesting. So it's called Leave youe Mess at Home by Talani Akinola. Are you bringing this to me?
- [29:48]
A
That's my next one. Yeah, that's okay.
- [29:50]
B
Okay.
- [29:51]
A
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
- [29:52]
B
Coming out on April 14th from Viking. And this is about the long siblings and they are really botching their parents American dream. We have Sola, who is the eldest daughter estranged from the family and is secretly back home in Chicago for the first time in a decade. She is newly single and a recently disgraced influencer. I love influencer tie ins. And she is trying to quietly put her life back together again. The other three siblings are not doing much better. Angola is in love with her best friend who just got engaged to someone else. Karen is a college junior and the baby of the family and grappling with her sexuality and self image. And Ola, the golden child with a baby of his own on the way, is questioning his marriage and how to raise a black son in America. Sola's unexpected return sets them on a crash course towards each other. And when the four siblings find themselves together again at their Nigerian immigrant's parents Thanksgiving table, a decade's worth of secrets and a lifetime of resentment explode to the fore. In the wreckage of their fateful reunion, each family member is forced to reckon with the past and take stock of what really matters and find a way back to each other. I really hope that we get like a deep dive at that kitchen table conversation because I already want to be there. I'm already sat. I want to be a fly on the wall for those conversations. I love stories about families, especially big families, as I came from a big family myself. So I just think I love the title too. I love the title, which is Leave youe Mess at Home by Tolani Akinola.
- [31:31]
A
Yes, this was on my list as well. I love the COVID of it and the setting sounds really good. And I just love the fact that it opens with the long siblings are botching their parents American dream. And that makes me giggle a little bit.
- [31:45]
B
Okay, sure does.
- [31:47]
A
My next one is the Ending Writes Itself by Evelyn Clark. And this is a combination. This is an amalgam of two authors, Cat Clark and V E Schwab. Okay. And you've got six authors, one private island, 72 hours to write the ending that will change their lives. This one's buzzy and I am so excited to see if it holds up. The main character, if you will, is Arthur Fletch, one of the world's best selling novelists who is a reclusive genius known for his iconic protagonists and fiendish twists. When six struggling authors are invited to spend a weekend on his private Scottish island, they arrive to discover a shocking secret. He is dead and his book is unfinished. Desperate to publish the novel, his agents and editor have summoned these writers to the island to sort of have this contest where one of them is going to write the ending of this book. And to sweeten the deal, they're, you know, sort of offering this chance to ghostwrite the last chapter for a mind boggling some. And it'll also help this lucky winner relaunch their own career. The catch? They just have 72 hours. It's the perfect plot and all it needs is a killer ending. Excuse me. I accept. I cannot wait to read this one. It sounds fabulous. Comes out on April 7th. That is the ending rights itself by Evelyn Clark.
- [33:14]
B
My question is, how many pen names does Ms. V E Schwab have? Total?
- [33:18]
A
I don't know. Does she have. Does she have more?
- [33:21]
B
Well, she has Ze Schwab and then she has Victoria Schwab. If she writes. I forget which one it is. I think it's Victoria that she uses for middle grade or kids books. I think she has a different. I think she goes by a different name depending on what age range she's writing for. And then this one, it's Evelyn Clark, which is her and another author.
- [33:43]
A
Yes, she's got a lot of. A lot of pen names there. Okay. I love it. I can't wait.
- [33:49]
B
I know, me too.
- [33:50]
A
It sounds really good. I'll have you gone. There you are.
- [33:51]
B
I'm here.
- [33:54]
A
I was looking up pen names.
- [33:56]
B
Hello. Hello. My next pick is Go Gentle by Maria Semple. And this comes out April 14th from Putnam now. I have never read Where'd you go Bernadette? And I never watched the movie either, so but I know that this Where'd you go Bernadette? Was the book when it came out, I think even outside of like public book spaces. I feel like even at Barnes and Noble tables and things like that, that book was just super buzzy and so I know a lot of people are going to be excited about this one that's coming out. It is about Adora Hazzard, who has it all figured out. A stoic philosopher and divorcee, she lives a contented life on New York City's Upper west side, having discovered that the secret to happiness is to desire only what you have. She's applied this insight into blissful effect, relishing her teenage daughter, the freedom of being solo and her job as a moral tutor for the twin boys of an old money family. She has even assembled a coven of like minded women who live on the same floor in the legendary Ansonia and is making active efforts to grow its membership. Adora has carefully curated this life and is humming along brilliantly until a chance meeting with a handsome stranger. Soon her ordered world is upended by black market art deals, secret rendezvous and international intrigue, and her past, which she has worked so hard to bury, lands like a bomb in her present. Inflamed by unquenchable desire, Adora finds herself a woman wanting more and she will risk everything to get it. Says that this is a story of self discovery and it's romantic, hilarious, intelligent and bursting with the stuff. Stuff of life. Sounds really interesting. And I already want to know about Adora's backstory. I want to know how she went from Upper west side to now suddenly black market art deals. I'm just really curious what that trajectory looks like. That is Go Gentle by Maria Semple.
- [36:03]
A
Yeah, I brought this originally on my list because I was like, I know people will want to know about it, but I also did not read where you Where'd you go Bernadette. Okay, funny, because I feel like everybody read it.
- [36:14]
B
Everybody read it, but ties into our hype conversation of you ties into mentioning that, huh?
- [36:21]
A
I was like, no, it's too hyped now. I can't possibly One that I'm excited for is Love by the book by Jessica George. And I love Jessica George's debut Mama. It was one of our long ago community reads for the podcast and this one is her newest. It says Remy is Lucky, her debut novel based on her three best friends became an instant bestseller when it was released and her agent and publisher are clamoring for a follow up. Sidebar I'm just picturing Jonathan right now shaking his head because he's like, how come all books are about authors and writing? It's like, well yeah, fair enough because we like them and then you write what you know. But just as Remy's creative inspiration seems to leave her, so too do her friends. One moves to New York, one gets pregnant, and one gets back together with her awful ex boyfriend after an ill advised one night stand complicates matters further. Remy is left deeply alone and unable to find her next book idea. Simone is successful, a kindergarten teacher with a passion for kids and a well paying side hustle that affords her all the materials and comforts she desires. She doesn't have time for a robust social life. All Simone needs is her close knit family. But after the true nature of her work is revealed, they cut her off and she realizes for the first time just how isolated she is. I want to know what her side hustle is. But the two of these, the two of them literally bump into each other at a bookstore. It isn't exactly soulmates at first sight. Simone is guarded and prickly. Remy is insecure and heartbroken and each woman is harboring a secret. And yet they just might be the missing piece the other has been searching for. If only they can let each other in. I love the sound of this. I know Jessica George does really good, angsty, sort of young, not young, but new adult relationship. So I am just very excited for this one. It is Love by the book by Jessica George.
- [38:15]
B
Yes, I have this on my list also and I read Maame and really, really enjoyed it. So isn't it good? Yes, I'm really excited for this and you described that so perfectly from again, Maame being the book that I think that was her debut, the only book that she's written. She did that new adult kind of slice of life, navigating all of those new adult problems in a really realistic, tender, heartwarming. So I'm excited to see what she does with this one as well.
- [38:42]
A
Agree.
- [38:43]
B
Okay, my next pick is permanence by Sophie McIntosh and this comes out on April 2nd from avid reader Press. And this is about Clara and Frances and they are in love but nobody knows it. For months they have been stealing away from their respective lives, leaving no trace of their relationship behind. Their time together is always excruciatingly sweet and all too short. Until one day they wake up in an apartment that neither of them recognizes with no memory of how they got there. The other city is a self contained sanctuary where adulterers can live openly as couples. Here there are fountains and old town squares and perfect cafes with checkered tablecloths. Ripe fruits wait on the counter each morning and invisible threads bind each other to the other. And their primary responsibility is to just enjoy one another. Contact with the real world is impossible and the city's whims are mysterious. But now those stolen afternoons can last forever. How much would you sacrifice for a life you never thought possible? And how long can you stay in paradise before the cracks start to show? I know this book won't be for everybody and I know, like Tina, you mentioned, I don't do, you know, cheating and those kinds of books. And that is completely fair. It sounds like this is, is like all that this book is going to be about. So if that is a subject that you don't want to read about, maybe you could steer clear of this one. My question is there's gotta be a there. There has to be a catch. And I'm really curious what that catch is. And it kind of hints at that catch at the end. You know, how long can you stay in this quote unquote paradise before the cracks start to show? And I'm really curious what this book has to say about the topic of adultery and cheating and, you know, what the costs are. Ultimately, I want to know what. What the author in the book has to say about all of that. So. Sounds really interesting, albeit not for everyone. But that is permanence by Sophie McIntosh.
- [40:45]
A
Yeah, it definitely sounds provocative, which I give it credit for totally. My next one's a bit of a departure for me personally, but I'm curious. It is called the Subtle Art of Folding Space. And this one is by Tor. The COVID is beautif and it is a science fiction novel and it says Ellie's universe. And this one is falling apart. Her ailing mother is in a coma. Her sister Chris accuses her of being insufficiently Chinese between assassination attempts and a shadowy cabal of engineers is trying to hijack the skunk works or the machinery that keeps the physics of each universe working the way it's supposed to. Daniel, Ellie's cousin, has found an illicit device in the skunk works, one that keeps Ellie's comatose mother alive while also creating destabilizing bugs in the physics of the universe. It is not a good day if she can confront her mother's legacy and overcome her family's generational trauma. She just might find a way to preserve the skunk works and reconcile with her sister. But digging into her family's past is thornier than it seems. And the secret she uncovers will force Ellie to choose between her family and the universe itself. I just really like the sound of this one. The tagline up here says, come to fix the universe. I stay for the dim sum. Sorry, I don't think I said the author's name earlier. His name is John Chu and I just feel like this could be something that's doing something a little different. It's also only 226 pages, so not a huge time investment for science fiction when oftentimes we know books in science fiction can be very long. This one's a little bit of a shorter one. I am curious. It is called the Subtle Art of Folding Space by John Shoe.
- [42:29]
B
Thank you for bringing a science fiction pick for us.
- [42:32]
A
You're welcome.
- [42:32]
B
Yes. And I always like to have some variety, and I feel like I didn't bring a ton of variety today, so I appreciate you bringing that to us. However, I do have a horror novella to. So I guess I'm bringing a little variety for us. I'm really excited about this one. It's called Morsel by Carter Keene. And from what I looked at, from what, from what I saw, this does seem to be their debut. And it says that it's the Blair Witch Project meets the ritual with a generous helping of the menu, which was a movie that I did watch. It was kind of a buzzy horror movie. And I tend to be interested in books that comp themselves to that movie, even though I have my qualms with that movie. And this is a folk horror novella about Lou, who did what the children of parents with backbreaking poor paying jobs are supposed to do, which is pull up their bootstraps and go to college and get an office job with coworkers who don't stop talking about their multipurpose marketing scheme disguised as self betterment. I mean, yeah, it just sounds. It sounds so sarcastic and fun. Determines to lift her ill mother out of poverty before it's too late. And in the spirit of climbing the corporate ladder, Lou accepts. Accepts an assignment in the rural hills of Ohio. She quickly finds herself stranded in the middle of nowhere with a sabotaged truck, a dog that she's determined to keep safe, and something stalking her through the ancient Appalachian woods. If she can't escape the woods in time, she'll come to face with the fact that her job isn't the only thing that wants to eat her alive. So this just sounds. Oh, my gosh. I love, like creepy Appalachian woods books in general. Sign me up. And I was looking up a little bit about the author before I brought this. And it says that they are just really interested in all things that are creepy about Ohio. They live in Ohio. And what a great niche.
- [44:35]
A
I know.
- [44:36]
B
I'm just like, I want to know what she is going to do with this here. And I love a novella. You know, I love a novella. And I'm just so excited to pick this one up. It's Morsel by Carter Keane.
- [44:48]
A
That sounds good. Okay. My last one is Livonia Chow, Maine. And this is by Abigail Savage Luke. It's set in 1978, and two tenements on Livonia Avenue in Brownsville burned to the ground, killing one resident and displacing dozens of others. It remains unclear who set the buildings ablaze, but the survivors are convinced the culprit is Mr. Wong. Now, who exactly is Mr. Wong and what allegedly drove him to this extraordinary act of violence? That's the question at the center of this story. And you're looking at four generations of Wong family history. First is Kun Lai, an immigrant who runs a Chinese restaurant on Livonia Avenue. Second is his son, Richard, a man desperate for his own chance of the American dream. Third is Jason, a poet who seeks escape in the bohemian counterculture of the seventies, but finds himself an unwitting participant in Brooklyn's gentrification. And then in present day, you've got Jason's daughter, Sadie, who returns to Brownsville as a journalist determined to unravel the mystery of what happened decades earlier on the night the buildings blazed, raised, joining the past and present together as a community organizer named Lena Rodriguez Armstrong, who was displaced by the fire and has spent the intervening years fighting for the rights of Brownville's residents and organizing a Livonia Avenue community land trust. So this one is a debut and it really sort of unpacks how the American's pursuit of freedom relies on a collective amnesia and challenges us to consider what it would take for us to truly live in harmony. Very interesting. Sounds like there's a fair amount going on, but I. And kind of a blend. It's contemporary fiction, little historical fiction, a little bit mystery in there. So I'm certainly curious. That book is Livonia Chowmain by Abigail Savage Liu.
- [46:36]
B
Wow. Yeah, that. That does. That does sound really good. And just that collective amnesia bit.
- [46:43]
A
I like me back.
- [46:45]
B
Yes. I. We recently. I think I told you, Tina. I think I talked about it on the podcast maybe that. That Dustin and I recently watched through all of the Hunger Games movies, like back to back to back to get like the full story from start to finish and at the very end when everything kind of resolves and Katniss receives that letter and it's basically like things are good for now. But we all know we are humans that have very fickle memories and we tend to forget how we got to this really bad place in general. And you just mentioning that collective amnesia is what reminded you is what reminded me of that. And it is so true. Okay, so my last pick is one that like, I'm equally nervous about, but also kind of excited about. It's called the Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances by Glenn Dixon. And this is about sentient appliances. And I.
- [47:40]
A
Incredible.
- [47:41]
B
I know. And I'm in a place right now where I'm feeling a little bit freaked out by the rapid, you know, advances in technology right now. And I know that it's always been a thing. I mean, and I know that being afraid of technological advances is nothing new that we've experienced, but I'm just kind of in an emotional state right now where I'm feeling a little bit more like, oh than either excited or just like accepting. And this sounds like kind of a fun, adventurous story that maybe I need right now. It also kind of sounds a little bit like, like if anyone ever watched the Brave Little Toaster growing up. Listen, just wait till you listen to this synopsis.
- [48:26]
A
I'm with you. I'm with you. I just wasn't expecting to talk about the Brave Little Toaster today.
- [48:30]
B
This sounds like it. So listen, this is a self running smart house and a young sentient Roomba listens to her owner and reads as Harold, his owner reads aloud to his dying wife Edie, mesmerized by To Kill a Mockingbird and craving that human connection that she witnesses in Harold stories, the little vacuum renames herself Scout and embarks on a journey of self discovery.
- [48:54]
A
I know, this is adorable.
- [48:56]
B
I know. But when Edie passes away, Scout and her fellow sentient appliances discover that there are sinister forces in their midst. The omnipresent grid, which monitors every household in the city, seeks to remove Harold from his home, a place that he's lived in for 50 years. With the help of Adrian, a neighborhood boy who grows close to Scout and Harold, as well as Kate, Harold and Edie's formerly estranged daughter, the humans and the appliances come together to outwit the all controlling grid, lest they risk losing everything they hold dear. So you can kind of see the great little toaster element in there.
- [49:31]
A
Very cute.
- [49:32]
B
Yeah, it sounds like the wholesome thing that we need in tech conversations right now. So I think that this sounds wholesome and cute. And that's the Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances by Glenn Dixon.
- [49:48]
A
I love that you brought that. That sounds fabulous. And I demand a review. I wanna. I wanna review with this one. I just want you to read it.
- [49:56]
B
The audio from Simon Audio. It was one of their offerings.
- [50:00]
A
Beautiful.
- [50:01]
B
This month. And so I already downloaded it. I have it ready. Maybe I'll bring it to our next endr. Easily distracted.
- [50:08]
A
I love it. I love it. All right. Well, folks, that is it for today. I am sure there are plenty of April releases we haven't talked about. Can't wait to see what's coming through. But that's it for today. We thank you for spending a part of your day with us. Links to all the books mentioned can be found in the show notes. And if you enjoyed today's episode, you can help us by following wherever you listen and by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps us get our show out to new listeners and grows our audience. And don't forget, if you'd like access to exclusive bonus content and community, you can join us for $5 a month on patreon.com booktalk Etc.
- [50:43]
B
If you'd like to connect with us, you can email us@booktalk etcmail.com youm can also connect with us both at Booktalk etc. On Instagram and YouTube. You can find Tinabrec and Hannah at handpickedbooks. Talk to you next week. And in the meantime, remember, everything's better with books. To get the bangs pushed back. Today you mean business.
- [51:03]
A
Yeah, well. Cause I went to the gym and you know, I gotta go to the gym. Yes. Today and tomorrow. I'm not even gonna mess with them. They're just. They're gone for now. They're gonna.