May 2018 – Adventure Is Booked

S2E10: Asian Pacific Heritage Month

By booksandteapodcast | May 30, 2018

This week, Kyrie and Cori discuss books by authors of Asian Pacific decent in honor of Asian Pacific Heritage month. They’ll also discuss the history of Asian Pacific Heritage month, something neither one of them knew about until recently!! During their discussion, Kyrie and Cori drink Plum Deluxe’s special tea from Kyrie’s tea club membership–Orange Blossom, which tastes just like an orangesicle. The aromas from the bag are to die for, and once you start brewing and sipping, you can taste the orange completely, with a super smooth blend of sweetness. It is a black tea, so cream is recommended if you like cream in black teas.

Kyrie’s pick, Snow Flowers and the Secret Fan by Lisa See. Kyrie was unable to finish this book–something about too many words and too much detail, while Cori read this for the second time and fell in love with it all over again.

Cori’s selection, Hotel of Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford is a story of family struggle, immigration, asian concentration camps, and love. A beautiful story of life, struggle, loss, and eventually finding hope again.

Coming Up Next Week

Kyrie and Cori explore the genre of the underdog!

Kyrie’s Pick: The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics by: Daniel James Brown

Cori’s Pick: Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hilldenbrand

References:

Asian Pacific Heritage

Wiki

S2E9: Roses are Red, Violets are Blue, Kyrie thought these were great, Cori thought they were poo

By booksandteapodcast | May 16, 2018

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Okay, maybe not poo. But it rhymed. And Cori was less excited than Kyrie about the content.

This week, Kyrie and Cori discuss the poetry collections they selected, as well as some history on poetry! During their discussion, Kyrie and Cori drink Plum Deluxe’s Vanilla Latte Tea, which, does taste like a vanilla latte, especially when you add any sort of cream. The Vanilla is just sweet enough in this black tea that it requires no extra sweetener. A delicious tea that tastes a bit like coffee that was perfect for a chilly spring day!

The publishing schedule continues to be off by about two weeks and Kyrie and Cori continue to roll with it. April was National Poetry Month, and we read and discussed these books in April.

What We Read

First off, it should be known that there are triggers abound in both of these collections.

Kyrie’s pick, the princess saves herself in this one by Amanda Lovelace takes you on an emotional journey of what Kyrie thinks many 20-something ladies experience. There’s heartache; there’s happiness and sadness; there’s emotional abuse; there’s letting a man make you feel small and not treat you right. There are also poems that are too familiar for some that include the themes of sexual abuse, rape, and violence.

Cori’s selection, milk and honey by Rupi Kaur was, well, perhaps too similar in style and content (um, notice the lower case titles of both…). This is also a very personal and emotional collection that primarily deals with the highs and lows of family and relationships.

Coming Up Next Week

Kyrie and Cori explore books by Asian-American authors in honor of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month

Kyrie’s pick: Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See

Cori’s pick: Hotel of Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford

S2E8: The Mountains Are Calling

By booksandteapodcast | May 2, 2018

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This week, Kyrie and Cori discuss the nature themed books they selected to honor Earth Day, even though they are both firm believers that Earth Day is every day! So, it really doesn’t matter that Earth Day was on April 22. Here is a little history on Earth Day if you aren’t familiar with it already.

Tea

During their discussion, Kyrie and Cori drink Rishi’s Green Mint tea, which is a delicious cool blend of green and mint. Without either ingredient being overpowering, this is the perfect tea for cold days (or upset stomachs) or iced for summer.

Books
Kyrie’s pick, The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate—Discoveries From a Secret World by Peter Wohlleben takes us through multiple tree forests as we find out that trees, like humans, help one another, are better in a pack, have a cool kids club, and can be assholes too and let someone in the pack get sick. A fascinating examination of multiple types of trees and their abilities to warn off insects (and seduce them to come over), warn off animals that eat leaves (yes, it hurts them!), and how they make sweet, sweet, tree love.

Cori’s selection,The Nature Fix: Why Nature Makes us Happier, Healthier, and More Creative by Florence Williams is exploration of the psychological and physiological impacts of spending time in nature. Spoiler alert – it is good for your health. Williams travels the globe to investigate what research is being done and what various countries are doing to encourage people to get outside. She also starts parsing out what kind of nature and how much seems to have the most impact on the average person.

Sponsor

Indiebound is a collaboration between the independent bookstore members of the American Booksellers Association, It is all about independent bookstores and the power of “local first” shopping. Locally owned independent businesses put more money back into the economy of their local communities by way of taxes, payrolls and purchases. That means more money for sound schools, green parks, strong police and fire departments, and smooth roads, all in your neighborhood.

I did a little research and your average savings on individual books with one of those big companies is $6 to $10. I am guessing most of us fritter that away on a weekly or monthly basis. Why not pay that little extra to help that author earn a little more or help keep someone in your community employed.

By using our link, you can either purchase a book online through Indiebound or find your closest locally owned bookstore. For example, if you are listening in Flagstaff, it will tell you to visit Brightside Bookshop to purchase the books we are talking about.

Coming Up Next Week
Kyrie and Cori read poetry, which Cori might be dreading as much as Kyrie dreaded short stories.

Kyrie’s Pick: The Princess Saves Herself in this One by Amanda Lovelace

Cori’s Pick: Milk and Honey by Rupi Kaur