Podcast

From the Amazon to the Chinese Diaspora: Rowan Jacobsen on WILD CHOCOLATE & Karissa Chen on HOMESEEKING

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In this episode of Writer’s Voice, we explore two fascinating books. Rowan Jacobsen takes us deep into the Amazon in Wild Chocolate, uncovering the origins of cacao and the ethical challenges of the chocolate industry.

Then, Karissa Chen discusses Homeseeking, her powerful novel tracing the Chinese diaspora through generations of displacement, love, and longing for home.

“We’ve been eating a shadow of what chocolate once was— and wild chocolate is bringing back its soul.”* — Rowan Jacobsen

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Key Words: Rowan Jacobsen, Wild Chocolate book, wild cacao, ethical chocolate, cacao biodiversity, Big Chocolate, Karissa Chen, Homeseeking novel, Chinese diaspora.

You Might Also Like: Rowan Jacobsen, AMERICAN TERROIR, Tessa Hulls, FEEDING GHOSTS, Ava Chin, MOTT STREET

Summary

Rowan Jacobsen shares the hidden world of wild chocolate, from its Amazonian roots to its ethical and environmental implications. He contrasts mass-market chocolate with rare, wild cacao varieties and explores the industry’s dark side, from worker exploitation to Big Chocolate’s market manipulation.

Next, Karissa Chen discusses Homeseeking, a novel spanning decades of displacement, war, and migration, following two star-crossed lovers through the upheavals of modern Chinese history. Chen reflects on themes of identity, memory, and what it truly means to find home.

Key Topics

Segment 1: Rowan Jacobsen on *Wild Chocolate

  • The Amazonian origins of cacao and its discovery in Mesoamerica
  • How wild chocolate differs from industrial chocolate in taste and genetics
  • The exploitation of cacao farmers and labor conditions in West Africa
  • The rise of ethical chocolate and sustainable harvesting efforts
  • The role of indigenous communities in preserving wild cacao biodiversity

Segment 2: Karissa Chen on *Homeseeking

  • The inspiration behind the novel: a family history of displacement
  • The impact of war and political upheaval on personal identity
  • How the novel’s dual timelines reflect different perspectives on memory
  • The evolving definition of “home” in the context of migration and diaspora
  • The role of fate, fortune-telling, and personal agency in shaping the characters’ lives

About Francesca Rheannon

Francesca Rheannon is an award-winning independent radio producer. In addition to hosting Writer's Voice, she's a freelance reporter for National Public Radio and its affiliates. Recipient of the prestigious Nancy Dickerson Whitehead Award for reporting on substance abuse issues for her news series, VOICES OF HIV, produced for 88.5 WFCR public radio in western Massachusetts. She is also finishing a book on Provence (PROVINCE OF THE HEART) and working on a memoir of her father, THE ARGONAUTS.