Episode #116: Love in the Time of the Pandemic
Welcome to a very special episode of the Book Friends Forever podcast! Grace welcomes Alvina and her new husband Stephen as guests on this episode to celebrate their wedding and relationship. They will share details of their wedding day and also how they met during challenging times of the pandemic. Alison Morris also shares her latest book reviews!
Grace ask Stephen and Alvina some great questions about their relationship:
What it was like to date in the pandemic?
What was it about each other’s dating app profiles that intrigued you?
What was it like to video date?
Were you nervous about meeting each other in person for the first time? (“What if he smelled bad?!” )
Was there a moment when you “just knew”?
What was your proposal like?
How did the pandemic effect your relationship?
You mentioned Alvina, that you weren’t looking for another “great love” after Greg died, how do you feel about that now?
“I feel so lucky and blessed” -Alvina
“It sometimes feels miraculous.” -Stephen
Alvina and Stephen were recently married in a treehouse in beautiful Burlington, Vermont.
A Newlywed Game!
Before the podcast, Grace gives Alvina and Stephen some newlywed questions to answer about each other… find out how they did!
Questions for Stephen:
What’s your favorite ice cream flavor?
What would you choose for a super power?
What is one thing you will not throw away?
Questions for Alvina:
What’s your favorite color?
If you were going to be in a reality TV show, which one would you be in?
What smell can you not stand?
For both!:
Who hogs the blankets at night?
Who turns out the light at night?
Who takes longer showers?
Which candy best describes your first kiss?
Alison Morris Book Reviews!
Alison picks out some great books with the theme of LOVE! These books are about love as it relates to weddings, marriage, family, and pride month! Here about some wonderful Love and LGBTQ books that she recommends:
Two Grooms on a Cake: The Story of American’s First Gay Wedding, by Rob Sanders and illustrated by Robbie Cathro.
Unbound: The Life of Judith Scott by Joyce Scott and Brie Spangler, illustrated by Melissa Sweet
Dear Librarian by Lydia M. Sigwarth and illustrated by Romina Galotta
Alison Morris is a nationally recognized children's book buyer with an infectious enthusiasm for reading and 20 years' experience matching books to readers. As the Senior Director of Title Selection for nonprofit First Book, she oversees the curation of children’s and young adult books on the First Book Marketplace, hand-selecting a diverse range of titles that speak to and address the needs of kids in underserved communities, with a keen eye to inclusion, authenticity, and kid-appeal. She previously served as Senior Editor at Scholastic Book Clubs, Children's Book Buyer for Wellesley Booksmith and The Dartmouth Bookstore, and was the founding blogger of the ShelfTalker children’s book blog for Publishers Weekly. She'll be joining us from her home near Washington, DC where she spends LOTS of time discussing books with her husband, illustrator and graphic novelist Gareth Hinds.
Thank you for tuning in! Thank you to Hachette Audio, Little Brown Books for Young Readers, and Alex at Pacyworks Studio for producing and editing this podcast. Be sure to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts and tell a friend about us. (Use the hashtag #bookfriendsforever.)
You can find Alvina @Planetalvina on Twitter and TikTok and @Alvinaling on Instagram
You can find Grace @Pacylin on Twitter and Instagram and @gracelinauthor on TikTok and @authorgracelin on Facebook
You can find Stephen on https://www.thestevecolman.com/ on on Instagram @stephenarchercolman
Don’t Forget!
*If you’re a patron, don’t forget to check out this week’s Random Questions feed! Grace Lin with Ali Benjamin answer, “What are you freakishly bad at” Click here to listen! If you’re not a patron already, join today!
