This Genie's Bottle is a Boba Shop
Jan Flynn
Oct 12
6 min read
A Q&A with guest author Jordan Ifueko
One of the pleasures of having a book on the market is connecting with other authors at conferences and events. Last March, not long before my book Griffin Speaker debuted, I attended the Texas Library Association annual conference where I participated in a panel discussion with five other authors of middle-grade fantasy.
One of those authors, Jordan Ifueko, was on hand to talk about her release last spring of The Genie Game. I had the good fortune to be seated next to her for the panel.
Since its launch, The Genie Game has already garnered starred reviews from Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, and Booklist, among others.
Her description of her book had me nearly bouncing in my seat with excitement. The Genie Game addresses themes of social justice, climate change, and the destructive power of runaway capitalism —along with the more personal yet universal challenges of early adolescence — all couched in adventures set in a vividly imagined world that exists parallel to our own.
Which very closely resembles what I’d hoped to achieve with Griffin Speaker, despite our stories being wildly different.
Jordan is already a New York Times bestseller, having penned the Raybearer series.
Raybearer was named one of the best books of the year by People magazine, Buzzfeed, the New York and Chicago Public Libraries — along with Kirkus, School Library Journal, and Publishers Weekly. Jordan is also the author of comics for Marvel and Jim Henson, and is the winner of a Nebula Award, an Ignyte Award, as well as being a Hugo Lodestar finalist.
Jordan is therefore a heavy hitter — but she’s also warm, friendly, and gifted with a personality as sparkling as her book. So I was delighted when Jordan agreed to join me on my newsletter for a Q&A. Here goes!
Jan: The Genie Game is one of the most wildly imaginative books I’ve come across. Can you give us a genie-eye view of its setting?
Jordan: Yes! I tell kids, “Imagine our world, but with magical retail buildings stuffed with beautiful things. What if you got to live in that fancy store? What if all those cool magical things were yours? Now… What if you weren’t allowed to leave? What if every item you have—your breakfast cereal, your bed, your left sock, your smartphone—depends on how well you can grant the wishes of other people?”
Jan: Right on page one, your main character Valentine bursts onto the page with energy and life. She describes herself as “a future feared and fabulous film director,” so we very quickly get a sense of who she is. Immediately I was rooting for her. But not everything in her life is as cheery as it seems at first blush. What’s the initial problem that Valentine faces, the one that drives her?
Jordan: Valentine realizes that her big sister Mango has gone missing . . . but her parents have forgotten that Mango exists. Valentine is the only one who can save her sister, and deep down, she suspects that she could be forgotten, too. That’s part of why Valentine creates such a diva personality for herself. She fears that she will be left behind unless she’s unforgettable.
Jan: Without giving too much away, once Valentine accepts becoming a Genie in the Game, what is she up against — and how do those obstacles you as the author throw in her path serve the story’s themes?
Jordan: The first thing she discovers is that the Genie Game doesn’t give her any magical powers. The corporations that own her “bottle” hoards magic for itself, so she has to figure out how to grant people’s wishes using nothing but her smarts and confidence. I was very much inspired by stories like Harriet the Spy and From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. As a kid, I loved adventures in which smart kids solve big, complicated problems.
Jan: One of the delights of reading Genie Game is the artwork. The text is interspersed with bright, super-cheery ads for products that, on closer look, have a much darker edge, like “The Yum-Yum Meal Inhaler” or the “Fytebrella from Farefyte Technologies, with guaranteed protection from booger hail and snot rain.” What can you tell us about those, without giving too much away, and what does that say about the world of “Gloss Angeles?”
Jordan: The ads were so fun to dream up! Each kooky product tells you a little bit about the three evil mega-corporations that run Gloss Angeles: Bumblebell (mass food production), Farefyte (technology and social media), and Gloss & Gleam (beauty and entertainment). The ads interrupt the story just like ads interrupt our everyday lives.
Jan: Every author who invents a world ends up with problems to solve, and I love the way you address the issue of how Valentine moves around in the Game without having to use standard transportation. One very cool element is that, as a Genie, she of course has a “bottle” or container — but in her case, that bottle is a sentient boba shop and its location isn’t exactly fixed. How in the world did you come up with that?
Jordan: Once I decided that the genies in my story are full-sized people, it was easy to think that their bottles might be buildings! The bottles became retail stores when I started thinking of how private corporations take over cities. I loved coming up with different personalities for each bottle. Bubby the Boba shop is cheerful and childlike, and Theo the Theater is jovial and formal, like an old-fashioned carnival barker.
Jan: You aim your story at a tween-to-teen age group while demonstrating a lot of respect for your readers. That’s something I really admire. How would you describe your intended audience, their interests, their concerns, their sense of the world they inhabit?
Jordan: Every kid, from age 2 to 18, fantasizes about having more agency. Making decisions, going on adventures, having special powers to make those decisions come true. Once we become adults, it’s so easy to forget how much it sucks to lack agency. When I write for younger audiences, I try to empathize with how frustrating that is, and give them as much agency in my stories as possible. In big ways, like adventures, but also in small, fun ways, like getting to decorate your “bottle” with furniture and cool gadgets. Games like The Sims franchise influenced the shopping parts of The Genie Game quite a bit.
Jan: What do you hope your readers take away from The Genie Game?
Jordan: I hope young readers realize, very early, that true power comes from community, creativity, and empathy. I hope they realize that no matter what shiny reality, algorithms, and for-profit companies promise you as an individual, standing together as a community makes a better future for everyone!
Jan: I’m sure you’re busy promoting Genie Game along with your other books — that’s the reality for authors — so where can people find you?
Jordan: I can be found at @jordanifueko on Instagram, and encourage people to sign up for my mailing list at jordanifueko.com! I send out emails very sparingly, but it’s the best way to keep up with me directly!
Jan: So, what’s next? Do you have another project or projects in the pipeline?
Jordan: The sequel to The Genie Game, City of Stars, releases spring 2027! (Available for preorder now!)
Jordan: And I’ve got a few more projects for kids and adults in the works, but they are a secret for now. Also, I absolutely love school visits, and I’m still booking for 2026 and 2027. I’m teaching a kid-and-adult-friendly workshop about how to write the first lines of a story. More info on that is available at https://www.jordanifueko.com/authorvisits.
Jan: A big, sparkly, boba-infused thank you to Jordan Ifueko! If you’re looking to escape into a sparkling, creative adventure with a just-sharp-enough edge, The Genie Game is a chef’s kiss read for fall and would make a perfect holiday gift.
And for another take on big societal questions couched in a fantasy adventure with hope and heart, Griffin Speaker, the first book in my series, is on sale in hardcover now — or you can preorder the paperback, available on April 6, 2027 — but wait, there’s more . . .
The sequel, Griffin Rider, comes out on May 4, 2027 (Star Wars Day!) and is on preorder now!
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