Relaxing Reads

This month hosts Deb, Simone and Tanya discuss Superfan: How Pop Culture Broke My Heart: A Memoir. For most of Jen Sookfong Lee's life, pop culture was an escape from family tragedy and a means of fitting in with the larger culture around her. Anne of Green Gables promised her that, despite losing her father at the age of twelve, one day she might still have the loving family of her dreams. Princess Diana was proof that maybe there was more to being a good girl after all. And yet as Jen grew up, she began to recognize the ways in which pop culture was not made for someone like her—the child of Chinese immigrant parents who looked for safety in the invisibility afforded by embracing model minority myths. Jen is a master at weaving together key moments in pop culture with stories of her own failings, longings, and struggles as she carves her own path as an Asian woman, single mom, and writer.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hosts Deb, Simone and Tanya discuss our latest read (December 2022) - The Sea Between Two Shores.  A powerful novel that follows two families brought together to reckon with what it means to make amends—for historic wrongs and the wrongs we commit against the ones we love. One family comes from a small island in the South Pacific nation of Vanuatu, who are mourning the death of their son in the aftermath of a devastating cyclone, while worrying over the looming departure of another. The other family is from Toronto, who are also locked in mourning after the accidental drowning of their youngest son. The two come together sharing in the healing process, both from their own losses and those from their ancestors and how they might be able to move forward to create a better future for that younger generation.  Plus a Q & A with the author Tanis Rideout.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our latest read is a holiday romance, “All I Want For Christmas” by Maggie Knox. When Sadie and Max are selected as contestants on the famed reality singing show Starmaker, each thinks they've finally gotten their big Nashville break. But then they're paired up for duet week and stun the world with their romantic onstage chemistry. Fans go wild for #Saxie and the network demands they remain a duo on and offstage, or exit the competition. Faking a relationship until their final performance in the Starmaker holiday special shouldn't be too hard, except for one small problem--Sadie and Max can't stand each other. But with their dreams just within reach, they agree to the ruse. Will their fake relationship be exposed before they can win? Or will an unexpected trip to Banff spark real feelings by the Christmas finale? Plus we speak with authors Karma Brown & Marissa Stapley who make up the duo Maggie Knox!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This month hosts Simone, Deb and Tanya Discuss “Run Rose Run” from America’s most beloved superstar Dolly Parton and its greatest storyteller - James Patterson.  A young singer/songwriter on the rise and on the run, who’s determined to do whatever it takes to survive. 
Nashville is where AnnieLee Keyes has come to claim her destiny. It’s also where the darkness she’s fled might find her. And destroy her. 
There’s music, mystery, love and a little danger, of course. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This month hosts, Simone, Deb and Tanya discuss "Counterfeit" by Kirstin Chen. Ava Wong a strait-laced Chinese American lawyer and her former enigmatic college roommate Winnie reconnect after 20 years and become entangled in a scheme that involves importing counterfeit luxury handbags.   When trouble arises, Winnie disappears, leaving Ava to deal with the consequences.   It’s a con artist story, a pop-feminist caper taking us through the world of dreamy handbags.....fun right? Except nothing in this novel is what it seems.  This book gives great insight into identity and self discovery, and the ever-elusive American dream. Plus we have a Q & A with Kirstin herself.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our latest read A Bit Much by Sarah Jackson takes us through the complicated journey that is a female relationship with young women who are fully determined, yet overwhelmed, full of love but sometimes not knowing how to love and trying to determine how to truly socialize. Alice is twenty-four and falling apart. She's lost her job, her appetite, her ability to sleep. And now she's worried she's going to lose Mia, her closest friend, who's being treated for a serious illness.  Still focused on Mia, while trying to convince others she's a stable, happy person, Alice meets her neighbour James--someone she used to try to avoid. This book is an intimate look at female friendships, new relationships, and the disorienting times in which we live.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Where The Crawdads Sing, by Delia Owens gives us mystery, romance, loneliness and beauty. For years, rumors of the “Marsh Girl” haunted Barkley Cove, a quiet fishing village on the North Carolina coast. Kya Clark is barefoot and wild; unfit for polite society. So in late 1969, when the popular Chase Andrews is found dead, locals immediately suspect her.

But Kya is not what they say. A born naturalist with just one day of school, she takes life's lessons from the land, learning the real ways of the world from the dishonest signals of fireflies. But while she has the skills to live in solitude forever, the time comes when she yearns to be touched and loved. Drawn to two young men who are each intrigued by her wild beauty, Kya opens herself to a new and startling world—until the unthinkable happens.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our latest read by Amy McCulloch is a high-altitude thriller that will truly take your breath away, it's called Breathless. Cecily Wong is in over her head. She’s come to Manaslu, the 8th-highest peak in the world, to interview world famous mountaineer, Charles McVeigh on the last leg of a record-breaking series of summits. She’s given up everything for this story–her boyfriend, her life savings, the peace she’s made with her climbing failures in the past–but it’s a career-making opportunity that could finally put her life back on track. When one climber dies in what everyone else assumes is a freak accident, she fears their expedition is in danger. And by the time a second climber dies, it’s too late to turn back.  She's stranded on a mountain in a remote region, and has quite the battle for survival against a killer who is picking them off one by one!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This month's book, our latest read is a debut rom-com novel by Sonya Singh, where we are taken on a journey of letting go, self-discovery, a woman's journey of connecting to her South-Asian roots, culture, food, family, feast and fun in "Sari Not Sari"!! Manny Dogra is the beautiful young CEO of Breakup, a highly successful company that helps people manage their relationship breakups. As preoccupied as she is with her business, she's also planning her wedding to handsome architect Adam Jamieson while dealing with the loss of her beloved parents. Manny has never understood why her parents who were both born in India, always wanted her to become an "All-American" girl. But that's what she did and all she knows.. She knows next to nothing about her South Asian heritage, and that's never been a problem — until her parents are no longer around, and a Photoshopped image of her that makes her skin look white appears on a major magazine cover. Now the woman who built an empire encouraging others to be true to themselves is having an identity crisis.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This month's book is a thrilling rollercoaster ride about a heist gone terribly wrong, with a plucky protagonist who will win readers’ hearts - “Lucky" by Canadian author Marissa Stapley.

Lucky Armstrong is a tough, talented grifter who has just pulled off a million-dollar heist with her boyfriend, Cary. She’s ready to start a brand-new life, with a new identity --- when things go sideways. Lucky finds herself alone for the first time, navigating the world without the help of either her father or her boyfriend, the two figures from whom she’s learned the art of the scam.

When she discovers that a lottery ticket she bought on a whim is worth millions, her elation is tempered by one big problem: cashing in the winning ticket means she’ll be arrested for her crimes. She’ll go to prison, with no chance to redeem her fortune.

As Lucky tries to avoid capture and make a future for herself, she must confront her past by reconciling with her father; finding her mother, who abandoned her when she was just a baby; and coming to terms with the man she thought she loved --- whose dark past is catching up with her, too.

This is a novel about truth, personal redemption and the complexity of being good. It introduces a singularly gifted, multilayered character who must learn what it means to be independent and honest...before her luck runs out.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.