The Tastes and Tales of the Caribbean with Cindy Allman from Book of Cinz

As your host for Paradise Perspectives, I am thrilled to bring you a new episode rich with Caribbean culture, flavor, and literature. Our special guest, Cindy, the creator of Read Caribbean Month and the Bookstagrammer behind Book of Cinz, Caribbean Girl Reading the World, invites us into her world of books, providing a literary travel guide to Caribbean authors.

Get the books recommended by Cindy as well as some of my favorite reads so far this year here.

Follow Book of Cinz on Instagram and visit her website to sign up for her Read Retreats and Book Club.

Get in touch with me with your questions and suggestions for Podcast content you would like to listen to:  hello@thetravelingislandgirl.com

Chapters

• 0:02 Discovering Caribbean Books
• 9:42 Caribbean Food and Reading Retreats
• 24:21 Retreat Planning and Book Club Details
• 38:32 Caribbean Travel Podcast With Cindy

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:02

Welcome to Paradise Perspectives, a podcast about Caribbean travel from the locals perspective, and get ready for some authentic Caribbean travel tips, recommendations and more from the people who live where you vacation, Straight from Paradise. I'm your host and island friend, rae Zau, the Traveling Island Girl. Why, hello you and thank you so much for being here today. Look at you listening to me chat away about a Caribbean again while doing whatever it is that you're doing at the moment. What are you doing while listening to me anyway? Are you in the car? Are you taking me jogging? Are we cooking or are we just hanging out? What are we doing? Let me know. Now, before I introduce my guests to you today, I want to remind you that if you are listening to Paradise Perspectives on Apple Podcast, please, please, go ahead and leave me a review.

Speaker 1: 0:59

Your review makes it possible for this podcast to reach more people and grow in the world of podcasts. My goal is world domination. No, actually, my goal is to become one of the most listened to travel podcasts out there, and you can help me get there by sharing this podcast, but also by reviewing it and by email me at hello at thetravelingislandgirlcom. Which questions or your requests, whatever it is that you want to tell me about. I would love to receive your inputs that we can talk more about Caribbean travel and about Caribbean travel subjects and how to travel to the Caribbean authentically, whatever it is that you are interested in when it comes to Caribbean travel subjects. All right, let me know. And, of course, you can find a link to my email in the show notes. So, as soon as you're done listening to this episode, run off to the show notes and send me a message. I will, honestly God be sending you a little shout out on the next episode. So I'm really looking forward to that. We're kind of like finally having you in the conversation On today's show. We are talking about books, books, books, books. So, yes, if you are bookworm or you just enjoy reading a good book while on vacation or really whenever it is that you need to escape to another world, which girl right now, let me tell you. It's often, you know, with everything going on. But okay, let me help you navigate your way through some of the must-reads by Caribbean authors and I cannot do it by myself because, as much as I read, I don't know much about Caribbean authors. I know I know what to say, but as I'm doing this podcast, I'm learning together with you. We're learning as we're going. So I invited my friend, cindy Almond from Book of Sins, caribbean girl or reading the world, and I've been so excited to have her on the show because I've been a big fan of her content for about some years now. For real, I was so excited that I completely botched the first attempt at recording this episode. I mean, really talk about embarrassing moments. So the conversation you're about to listen to is actually our second attempt. Now, thankfully, that one went well and well enough that this time you are about to listen in on our combo.

Speaker 1: 3:28

Now, cindy Almond is a Jamaican living and working in Trindale and Tuego. She's a book blogger, book reviewer, book club host and content creator, and she is a very active member of the Bookstagram community. Now, of course, as somebody who reads a lot, you see what she did there with the words right, I love it, bookstagram. Now she freelances full time as a digital marketer and spends half of the year being a digital nomad. Now, if that is not the kind of life that we all aspire to have someday, then I don't know. Cindy is also the creator of Read Caribbean Month, which takes place in June, and her mission is to get people to read, read more, read widely and, of course, read Caribbean.

Speaker 1: 4:14

So, without much further ado, get your pen and paper ready to write out all of the book suggestions coming your way in a few seconds and let's listen in on this conversation I had with Cindy. So, in this show today here on Paradise Perspectives, we are having a conversation today we have a good friend of mine, and that is Cindy Allman. If you are not aware of who this is, maybe you know her by her name on social media, and that is Book of Sins. Now, I've been following her for some time and I am so, so in awe of the information that she shares about books that she've read, but also about how honest she is with her reviews, especially that one of those last ones that you did. I was so impressed with it. Cindy, before we go into that, why don't you just introduce yourself to?

Speaker 2: 5:04

the listener today. Hi, thank you so much for having me. It's been lovely just to be here. I am Cindy. I'm also known as Book of Sins, Caribbean Girl Reading the World. I do traveling. I also do a lot of reading and I have a book club. I'm a bookstore grandma and I love all things bookish, especially Caribbean books. So, yeah, nice to be here.

Speaker 1: 5:28

Oh my gosh, I love how you called it the books to gram. I love that. I'm going to write that down because I'm going to use that more frequently. Books to gram. All right, so you live in Trinidad and Tobago, but that is not where you're from, and I thought that was quite interesting, although you see a lot of people moving about within the Caribbean region, you know, from one island to another. I'm a transplant myself, so I was just wondering what was your reason for moving, or, first of all, where are you from and what was your reason to move into, for moving to Trinidad?

Speaker 2: 6:03

I'm originally from Jamaica and I moved to Trinidad I think nine years ago. I moved just mainly for work and I found community so I decided to stay and I guess it's kind of hard to go back once you kind of like cement yourself somewhere. But I do leave a lot. I mean, trinidad is a great jumping off point for a lot of things and places to go to.

Speaker 1: 6:28

I think it's so interesting because it's like you said, it's once you've lived somewhere else, you're I don't want to say that you never feel at home again, because you do, but there's always like a part that's like oh, I missed that of that country or I missed this about that one. So I think it's quite difficult not difficult, difficult but sometimes you know you do get to miss parts of that other life, let's say, or that other country you used to call home, right.

Speaker 2: 6:57

Absolutely.

Speaker 1: 6:58

Yeah, but I think we are lucky enough that we get to go back home wherever that is, wherever often we want to. So it's great. But you know, you said you're a bookstore, but I've noticed now in your Instagram especially that's or your bookstore that you have been doing more and more Caribbean content, which I so appreciate, because, as a Caribbean content creator myself, I love to see other Caribbean women do this and share the Caribbean region, because nobody can really do it or tell the stories like we can.

Speaker 2: 7:32

Right, I absolutely agree. I know it's been like a I feel like because I switch. Well, I started like posting on TikTok and I see how much, how well received it is. I mean, let me see if I could like kind of like branch off into more Caribbean lifestyle stuff on Instagram and so far I think people do appreciate it. So I do love that for me and for them.

Speaker 1: 7:57

Yes, absolutely. I think it's so true. It's like people really appreciate it coming from locals, which is the whole point of Paradise Perspective Podcast, you know, to give locals a platform where they can then tell us more about the Caribbean region and how to experience it in a better and more authentic way. So my next question, of course, will be what are your favorite things and what would you recommend to somebody who has never been to Trinidad before, like myself? I know I keep calling myself a Caribbean content creator, but it's shameful how many islands I yet have to visit. So, if you know, for people like me that have never been before, what would be just some of those highlights that you say oh, you got to do this when you're in?

Speaker 2: 8:42

Trinidad. Well, I will start with the obvious carnival, but that's a beast in and of itself. So if you're like you know I really can't do the carnival then I would say, come for the food. Like I feel like Trinidad has a very big, diverse food that you can go on a food tour and like eat for like the entire day. I would recommend going to Maracas for bacon shark. I absolutely always say you have to go to the Twin Island to be go. It is so different from Trinidad, it's laid back and, yeah, those are some things you have to try doubles and roti. They have a lot of hiking and like great spots to see. So those are some things that I would definitely recommend. If you're like you know, I'm not really a carnival person, I want to do a soul travel and go to Trinidad. That's what I would recommend.

Speaker 1: 9:37

Oh, fantastic. Thank you for those recommendations, and I cannot agree more. And I don't know if we had this in like the personal conversations that we've had before. I may have told you that I didn't discover Trini Trini food until when I moved to St Martin, and now I'm like obsessed, obsessed with things like doubles and bus up shots and all of those good things. Pelori, you know, I stopped eating meat a while ago, so now doubles are my go to for everything or vegetarian bus of shot.

Speaker 2: 10:12

You know, I know I'm not a big doubles banner, but I can see why it has such a big hype, for sure.

Speaker 1: 10:20

Oh my gosh girl, you can't say that out loud, I know.

Speaker 2: 10:24

I know they're going to double. Fans will come and get you. I know You're like, how can he not? And I'm like, I know I know something is not you, it's me.

Speaker 1: 10:33

Yeah, yeah, love that, it's not you, it's me. But yeah, it is one of those things. I had to get used to it because you know where in Curacao, how I was, I grew up we never ate so heavy in the morning and and doubles is especially something that you eat in the morning. There's a, there's a roti shop here that everybody loves. It's called Cindy's, and Cindy makes a mean everything, trini really, and she's the one the reason why I got obsessed with the whole genre of food anyways, but what she? She is completely sold out by eight o'clock, eight 30 in the morning when it comes to doubles. So I just had to get used to the idea of doubles in the morning.

Speaker 1: 11:16

Of getting up early to go insert of doubles or to get exactly to get up early in the morning to go and get it in the first place. Cindy, thank you so much for the recommendations. I loved it. Now you know what's coming up next, and I hate to ask this question because I know you get it like every single time you probably do one of these interviews, or if you are just having a conversation with somebody, your inbox must be full of this same exact question. But I'm going to doll it up a little bit.

Speaker 1: 11:46

I'm going to ask it in a different way, as I can imagine everybody's like what's your favorite book. Oh my God, oh my God. I am not going to ask you that. What I want to know, though it what is your favorite book that so impressed you so far in 2023?

Speaker 2: 12:13

Oh, I love the specificness of this question.

Speaker 1: 12:15

Yes, yes, I'm trying to go as specific as possible, because you know I like you. I get the same question about and you probably get this one too which one is your favorite Caribbean island girl? That's something I cannot answer.

Speaker 2: 12:27

Like don't set me up like that. Why would you do that? Exactly you know what I mean. So, true, I think my favorite, I guess, book for the year so far is how to Save Babylon by Sapia Sinclair. It is a she's a Jamaican author that wrote a memoir, and it's just truly one of those books that I cannot stop talking about, I can't stop recommending, so yeah, yeah, I gotta say I didn't notice that on your Instagram you were like you are gushing about this book.

Speaker 1: 13:01

I mean, it's your latest obsession, safe to say.

Speaker 2: 13:06

Actually, it's like I'm, like I know, the unofficial publicist for this book.

Speaker 1: 13:10

Oh, my gosh, and I think it was. If I read correctly, it is now out, so everybody can go and get it.

Speaker 2: 13:18

Yeah, it is now out everywhere where books are sold. Definitely Also, I think it would make a great gift for anyone who's looking for a Christmas gift for anybody.

Speaker 1: 13:29

Wow. So this is like not just people that are interested in Jamaican culture or in the Caribbean culture, but just in general, go read this book. How to say Babylon? Yeah, please, alright, fantastic, I'm already adding it on my read list. And you know, girl, if you see the books that are now that you inspired me to read and I have like a big stack of books on my nightstand and I'm like I don't know how I'm going to get all through this, but at least I'm getting to read again, which is good. So thank you for that.

Speaker 2: 14:06

That is the first step.

Speaker 1: 14:07

Have the book, yes, have the books and then start to read them. Now, of course, you know, since this is mostly catered towards the travelers and I'm not only talking about the travelers that are coming down to the Caribbean from the mainland, but also the Caribbean travelers like ourselves to like to go to other islands in the region I want to know like you know, when you go into the Caribbean, the first thing you're thinking is oh, what book am I going to read when I'm lying down in the sand, you know? Or when I'm sunning and tanning and all that good stuff? What would be one of those reads that you say somebody needs to read when on vacation in the Caribbean?

Speaker 2: 14:47

I will go for something very light, I would say, where the rhythm takes you. It's actually set in Tobago, which I love, and it's a romance. It's kind of like a light beachy read that I think a lot of people will enjoy. So that's the one that I think I will always recommend.

Speaker 1: 15:04

What's the name?

Speaker 2: 15:05

again when the rhythm takes you.

Speaker 1: 15:08

Where the rhythm takes you. I'm writing it down because obviously this is going on my book list too right? I?

Speaker 2: 15:13

love that.

Speaker 1: 15:14

Oh, wow, okay, fantastic. Listen, I just saw that and I think, before we started rolling, you confirmed you are still in Dominica, which, if I'm not mistaken, is one of your favorite islands. It is what are you doing there?

Speaker 2: 15:32

I just completed a reading retreat, my second reading retreat here in the New Jersey. I'm from the Caribbean, so I just spent like five days with nine people from all around the world. So when came as far as Belgium? When she told me that she took a oh my gosh Insane Like I was, like this is absolutely I mean insane in a great way. She took a train to Paris, a plane to Martinique and a boat to Dominica.

Speaker 1: 16:02

Oh my gosh. Yes, of course I can imagine that that would have been one of those only connections, either that or through Guadeloupe. I go to Belgium every year, so I know what. Oh my gosh, it's a pain in the butt to certain parts in Belgium and connected to the different islands in the Caribbean. Absolutely, oh my gosh, she came from far, she came from far.

Speaker 2: 16:28

But honestly, we were joking and saying that she had the best time because everything she was like oh, my word, this is so amazing. She really loved every single thing. So I think she said it was oh, that's amazing, oh wow.

Speaker 1: 16:42

So tell me a little bit more about these read retreats that you do.

Speaker 2: 16:47

So this is my second time having one and it's the second time in Dominica. I had the first one last year and we had a turnout mostly Caribbean people. We had a few people from the UK, so that turned out good and I think there was a market for it. So let me try it again this year and we were completely sold out, so next, time I did to Jamaica, back to Dominica, Anguilla and St Lucia. So we'll see if the other destination oh, my goodness, we're really looking forward.

Speaker 1: 17:22

Such fun destinations too. This is going to be amazing. While going to me I mean, you've already tried it out a couple of times, like you said, so you know this is something that a lot of people are interested in doing, that you have, that. You need to have a. How many people can you take in one of these retreats?

Speaker 2: 17:40

Generally, we do no more than 12 persons, just because I don't want it to be too big and people get lost. So, like, I think, 12 is a solid number. So yeah, 8 to 12 persons.

Speaker 1: 17:54

Okay, 8 to 12 persons Lovely, lovely. Yeah, that sounds about a good size for a retreat in the Caribbean. For sure you can get more connection with the people. It's a little bit more intimate than with a big group. I love that and I'm loving that you're going to one of my favorite islands, which is, of course, anguilla, which is just a hop in a scotch away from where I live on St Martin. So I am going to be standing at the airport when you. Are you going through St Martin or are you flying direct?

Speaker 2: 18:25

No, I think I'm going to go through St Martin.

Speaker 1: 18:27

For sure I'm going to be standing there with a big board saying welcome St.

Speaker 2: 18:33

Martin, yeah, I'm absolutely excited you know what.

Speaker 1: 18:39

I'm going to take it further than that. I'm actually going to be in that retreat. But if Anguilla is one of my favorite places where I've never been to Dominica and Dominica is so high on my list, so I'm actually thinking of you, can add one person from now. I swear I'm going to be in that Dominica retreat next year. No, I'm serious. Mark it down. When is it anyway? I'm not even asking when it is.

Speaker 2: 19:04

Dominica is July 26th to the 31st 2024.

Speaker 1: 19:11

Okay, okay, all right, that's it. It's going in my schedule. July 26th to 31st, I am going to be in and in Dominica reading books. Mark my words, I'm serious. As long as you can take me to at least one river, I'll be forever thankful.

Speaker 2: 19:32

At the airport, like when you land in Dominica. There is a river running right beside the airport, so we can literally go one time.

Speaker 1: 19:41

I am river obsessed and waterfall obsessed. You're telling me that there's like that's the first thing I see when I'm landing. First thing, oh my gosh. Okay, that's it July 26th, do the 31st. I don't know who else is listening, who is going to join me, but mark my words I'm going to be there on Dominica with Cindy. I can't wait. Okay, so we've had your favorite books for a leisurely read by the pool order or the ocean, and we've talked about your absolute favorites for 2023. So far, are there any books that you know are coming out soon, that you are literally just waiting impatiently for it to come out so you can read?

Speaker 2: 20:25

it. No, I haven't started my 2025 research yet. There's one book, oh my gosh wait, wait, wait, wait, 2025?.

Speaker 1: 20:34

We're not even in 2024.

Speaker 2: 20:35

2024 research.

Speaker 1: 20:37

yeah, Okay, I was like oh my gosh, is this girl living in the future already, or what?

Speaker 2: 20:47

No, I do need to do my research, but there is a book by Donna Haman she wrote Tea by the Sea that I'm looking forward to reading.

Speaker 1: 20:54

So yeah, nice, okay, all right. So I've already gotten two books out of just this short conversation with you and I'm trying to go on to number three. But before we do that, I told you about this before how much I appreciate how honest you are about your reviews of the books that you read, and I was floored by one video that you posted on your bookstagram, like you call it, not too long ago, and that was brutal, but I loved it. And that was the books that you said. You read them already. You don't need to read them. Avoid these books if you can.

Speaker 2: 21:40

I mean books are expensive. It should come with a warrant.

Speaker 1: 21:46

Really so. These were just absolutely no. Those are big no's for you.

Speaker 2: 21:51

Yeah, yeah, absolutely. There's some books that I'm like you know what, maybe it can pass, but you have some that you can. Absolutely no, and that was in it.

Speaker 1: 22:00

Oh yeah, I just. I just loved how you even went into details about why the no's. So if anybody is interested in you're listening to this, go to book of sins on Instagram and check out the video that she posted I think it was a few weeks ago and she gives always honest reviews, but this time she went to the opposite side. It's like not books that she loved, but these were books that kind of like came flat.

Speaker 2: 22:26

I guess they fell flat a little right, yeah, yeah, absolutely, and I mean it's the writing, it's a plot, it just nothing worked for me and I do feel bad but I'm not in the. I think everybody agreed as well.

Speaker 1: 22:44

Okay, okay, all right. Thank you again for your honest reviews. Another thing that I love about what you do sin is that, oh my gosh, I went straight ahead and called you sin.

Speaker 2: 22:56

Sorry, cindy we're not, we're not.

Speaker 1: 23:01

We're friends, but we're not besties yet, right. So I'm going to work on that in Dominica when I come next year. What I wanted to discuss with you and I think also is so is so another thing that I love is that about what you do is that your books that you recommend are mostly, if not all, by Caribbean authors, correct?

Speaker 2: 23:26

Yeah, yeah, yeah. So I do a mix between Caribbean authors, black authors and people of color, so that's generally like where my focus lies. So, yeah, if you come on my page, you go into the same five books that you see everywhere. I do have like a wide range of books that you probably never heard of or you should be reading.

Speaker 1: 23:53

Okay, yeah, I love that because it's again. It's another way of putting the Caribbean in the spotlight and highlighting all of the talent that actually lives in our region. We have so many really remarkable authors. It's amazing.

Speaker 2: 24:10

Yeah, honestly it is, it is. And people when they find out they're like, oh, my word, how. Whenever I hear about this person, I'm like, yeah, I've been trying to tell you all.

Speaker 1: 24:21

Now, it's besides the retreat that you organize every year, and I think it's this 2024 is going to be the first one that you're going to be doing multiples or, because I know this year you did two so far Are you going to have a number?

Speaker 2: 24:35

three before the, this year was just one. So I'm okay, here's the first time I'm doing. Oh yeah.

Speaker 1: 24:43

So next year you're gonna be doing four, yeah. So as a basic content creator myself, I thought, like how do you get to time to actually do four Retreats in a year?

Speaker 2: 24:55

Honestly, like I don't know how it's gonna go next year. This is my first time actually doing this and I just want to test to see if, like, there's a market for these other countries, so we'll see. If it gets sold out, then I'm going. If it doesn't, that it's like, oh well, we just go with who we have. But I'm planning it. So I know I'm spending like the first, the second quarter of the year just do it retreats. So I kind of like love in like one bucket, except for Anguillo which is like later down in the year.

Speaker 1: 25:23

So I mean I love doing them, but it's a lot of planning, a lot of organizing and it is I I organized two retreats in my life and I'm already kind of like although I'm I'm playing with the idea of organizing one more next year I'm really like my gosh. It's a lot of work that goes into it, no matter how small your retreat is. Now can you imagine if you were doing retreats for 30 people?

Speaker 2: 25:47

Oh my god.

Speaker 1: 25:52

Yeah, exactly, you'll need like a whole team for that. But, yes, okay, so again, it's Jamaica, anguilla, dominica a missing one for next year St Lucia. Okay, these are the four destinations for next year, 2024. If you want to be part of the read retreat, I'm gonna link all of the information for how you can get in contact with Cindy almond. I'm gonna leave it in the show notes that you can go and book yourself one of the retreats and if you want to hang out with Cindy and me, I'm gonna be at the Dominica retreat. I.

Speaker 2: 26:28

Mean to be at Dominica. Just I'm gonna be in.

Speaker 1: 26:31

Dominica. I'm probably gonna be coming in like a week before, leaving a week after. It's a no already, I'm gonna fall in love with that place.

Speaker 2: 26:38

Yeah, and also like Martinique's, that is a ferry rider. We go out a loop is a ferry ride away, exactly.

Speaker 1: 26:46

Yes, yes. So did you? Did you manage to do some of that this time when you were in and run what? You're still in Dominica at this time. Where you did you get a chance to hop on a ferry and go visit one of the nearby?

Speaker 2: 26:59

islands. I wish Colonialism is still life in the Caribbean. So as a Jamaican, I need a visa to go to an island I'm actually are you kidding?

Speaker 1: 27:12

Oh my gosh. Okay, that sucks.

Speaker 2: 27:18

I'll be leaving from St Lucia, so I'll definitely go and see if I could get the visa, and they had a little there during that time.

Speaker 1: 27:27

Fantastic good, good Good. That's a good one. Um so one my last questions. It's a no. We've spoken about your favorite books and we've spoken about the retreats that you organize, your favorite parts about Training, that and Tobago, the food. We've spoken about so much already in just half an hour. But what I want to Want you to tell the listener is I was just see that you also do a book club, so I wanted, like, how can one become part of that? What is this book club? How many times do you meet?

Speaker 2: 27:59

Yeah, for sure. So basically, all you have to do is go to wwwcombooker since wwwbooker sincecom, I do a monthly book of book book club. We meet the last Tuesday of every month. We read one book and we all come together and discuss. It's a great time. I do it online so you could join anywhere in the world and I do if I'm interested that I have a In person meeting so we read Caribbean authors, black authors, authors of color, and it's just always a good time. If you're looking to read more, come and join book club. You'll read 12 books for the year and yeah.

Speaker 1: 28:37

No, that is fantastic, but this book club is like okay, so if you're focusing on People of color or writers of color, doesn't mean that only people of color can join, right.

Speaker 2: 28:51

Absolutely not. Everyone is welcome. Once you read the book, I mean, please read the book, then you're good to get access and it's a great way to like meet other people, to talk books and, yeah, have a good time.

Speaker 1: 29:06

And I love that you hold some. You hold everybody accountable as well, because you're telling them it's like if you don't read the book then there's no point if you come into converse about anything.

Speaker 2: 29:16

Yeah, no, no, cuz I've had people were like I'm just gonna come and I'm like can you read the book please?

Speaker 1: 29:25

Have you had that some of these conversations can get? I have they ever gotten heated because of different opinions about books?

Speaker 2: 29:33

etc. Absolutely all the time. Like people are very firm on their stance with a lot of things, so I they've been very heated conversation all the time. It's something that happens I'm so used to right now, oh.

Speaker 1: 29:47

I love that, though, because that means that people invest they really invest in the characters of the book and you know they get attached to it in a way, possibly to that is so, so, so interesting yeah yeah, they do, they do, they really do love their characters.

Speaker 2: 30:04

I'm like guys remember it's not real, but Speaking of real versus not real.

Speaker 1: 30:12

Is there any of those books that were in autobiography that you are saying, and I think? I'm not quite sure, but how? How to say Babylon? Is that one actually an autobiography or not?

Speaker 2: 30:26

I know that's a memoir, so yeah, it's nonfiction.

Speaker 1: 30:29

Okay, okay, so it is nonfiction. Is there another one that you're saying, oh my gosh. This one was really, really deep. And because I guess? Why I'm asking you is I'm trying to remember the title was. I know you did a review of on it, which is about slavery and Barbados. Do you know which one I'm talking about? I think it was something about River, yeah, river. Seeing me home, yes, oh my gosh. Okay, so I am in the in the present moment. That is the one that I'm trying to read, because I did not know this book was going to affect me so much.

Speaker 1: 31:08

It is a hard read because of all the pain and all of the it's. It's deep, so it's that. That is why I'm asking that question Is there has there been any of these books before that you read it? That would like a hard read. It was just difficult to get through, not because it was badly written, but just because it was just deep content.

Speaker 2: 31:32

Oh, yeah, for sure I feel like I people are like see me please. These books are so heavy, but I do try to give them light reads in between. So it's like okay, if we read a very heavy this month, let's read something light. So I do try to, I guess, manage people's emotions and stuff. But I mean we do read heavy topics but I try to like there's some like joy and light in between.

Speaker 1: 32:00

Right, so it's not too heavy all the time. Yeah, but have there been one of those books that have really impacted you that way that it was really heavy but beautiful at the same time that you're like, oh, this book, but if I don't read it again would be a good thing?

Speaker 2: 32:17

Yeah, I think how the one arm sister sweeps her house is one. A spell of good things is also very, very heavy, and that's our book club for this month. So there's some that we read and I'm like, oh my word, this is heavy, but we love it, that one that we're gonna, let's pick this up and take it to the beach.

Speaker 1: 32:37

So good, good, good, good. Okay, I'm loving that. I like how you're. You're variating between light and heavy. That's that's a good way to go. And you're giving your readers or the members of the book club get an entire month to read one book. I mean that's, that's that's. I mean most book clubs that I know of only give you a week.

Speaker 2: 32:58

Well, no, no, no, my book clubbers would rebel, they would actually rebel. Because it's too little time right, yeah, and also I do want them to just have it, have it as a book they take her own and that they want to read.

Speaker 1: 33:15

So yeah, yeah, okay, really, really good, I love that. Thank you so much again, cindy. And I'm saying again because what the listener doesn't know is that we actually attempted to record this podcast with you once before and we did the entire show and then, when I clicked on stop and I went back and started editing it for the, you know, to get it out, it was just technically impossible.

Speaker 2: 33:47

I love that oh my gosh.

Speaker 1: 33:49

I was like I cannot believe this happened with the one person I was looking so forward to having the conversation with and the conversation was great. But, yeah, technical difficulties just really decided that we're not going to have a show in Cindy that week, so hopefully this time it goes very, very well and well I know it will and I'm so, so grateful that you were able to come to you know, to be on Paradise Perspectives again. Thank you, I honestly, honestly thank you for that, especially because you're still traveling. You're in Dominica now.

Speaker 2: 34:21

Yeah, I'm still here, but thank you so much for having me. We did have a great conversation, so, fingers crossed, this one goes well and I'm looking forward to seeing you in Dominica next year.

Speaker 1: 34:32

Oh, yes, you can, you are. You're going to be holding me accountable for that and I swear I am not. I'm already put it down in my schedule. I am going to be part of that Dominica trip. I'm going to go to your website right now or register. I'm serious, I love it. I love it. I'm going to be like I don't know if I am. I going to be the first one if I do it today?

Speaker 2: 34:51

Um well, I have an interest forum and we only have 12 spots for Dominica and we have like almost 40 persons that signed on. Yeah, people are very interested in oh my gosh, so I need to hurry up.

Speaker 1: 35:07

Yeah, I don't only need to get on that interest form, but I need to like is there a way to secure your spot?

Speaker 2: 35:14

yet. Um, no, we spots don't open until end of November, so you still have a few times, a few.

Speaker 1: 35:20

Oh my goodness. So it's going to be. It's going to be a first one, yeah. First one there, first one to grab a spot there we go.

Speaker 1: 35:28

Okay, I'm loving this. More and more competition Awesome. Thank you again, cindy. Thank you so much and continue to enjoy Dominica. I'm looking forward to all of what you're posting on your books to gram and I'm going to be checking it out again for some extra tips on some of the books that we discuss today and some of the well that I'm definitely going to be putting in my card somewhere online to get them here in Samaritan and start reading them. Thank you so much.

Speaker 2: 35:58

Yay, thank you so much, absolutely appreciate it.

Speaker 1: 36:03

So what did you think? Which of the books did you suggest that you are running to add to your Amazon card right now? I don't know about you, but my Amazon card is super full, especially now, with Christmas just being shy away of a month. So, yeah, I am definitely looking forward to that, and we have Black Friday that's happening like soon too. So you, my friend, need to do yourself a favor and run off to my show notes as soon as I close this episode and I finish this episode because I am leaving a link to my personal reading list, and in that reading list you're going to find some of Cindy's or all of Cindy's suggestions as well. So I just made it easy. I left a link just so you can click on it once and get yourself into a whole list of book suggestions that you need to read or at least add into stockings this year for Christmas.

Speaker 1: 37:00

Alright, so what have we learned in today's episode? Obviously, you need to follow Book of Sin on Instagram and the link is, of course, in the show notes and we also need to now sign up to attend one of the four read retreats Cindy is organizing in 2024. You know, while recording this episode with Cindy, and while we were having this conversation, I was like gong ho on Dominica. But I don't know. I'm kind of like looking forward to seeing Lucia or Anguilla. Even though I visit Anguilla like eight times a year. I'm thinking maybe Anguilla read retreats would be the one for me. I don't know which one are you going to? Let me know, because then we can go together, right? Alright, so we also know that Cindy's popular book club meets online every month, and we totally need to be a part of that, and so I've linked her website in the show notes as well. And you've also heard us gush about Trinidadian food, like roti and oh my gosh, doubles, and so I don't care. Wherever it is that you're in the world, do yourself a favor and go. Get yourself some Trinidadian food, some doubles or some pass up shot. Believe me, your taste buds will never be the same again, and they will thank you. Now we've also learned about some of Cindy's favorite experiences in Trinidad, so now we need to go and get ourselves tickets to TNT as well, and we need to do that, too sweet immediately, because you know we need to get our asses there.

Speaker 1: 38:32

Thank you again to Cindy for taking the time out of her busy, busy schedule to sit with us today, and thank you, my friend, for spending some time with us. I know that you have so many options when it comes to podcasts and you chose Paradise Perspectives today, so I am so, so grateful for you lending me an ear and allowing me to convince you to travel to the Caribbean authentically. I hope you take the time to leave a review after you're done, if you're listening on Apple Podcast, and if not, it's okay. I just, you know, really, really grateful that you are listening to me chatting away and maybe you can take some time and send me your input, your requests, your questions, and you can send that to hello at thetravelingislandgirlcom so that I can record the next episode of Paradise Perspectives based on your input. Now, how dope would that be right and how, why not? I will even give you a shout out, so make sure that you email me and thanks again for listening. I'm your Caribbean friend, reselle, signing off. Apan, forgotten, lost your educator.