And Thereby Hangs a Tale

I usually do not read short stories. And here is why, I like the time it takes in a novel to develop the characters and the plot.  I like to plod slowly and gently down the path and try to figure out where the path leads.  In short stories the author really has to be good for you to feel like you know something about the characters and see the direction they are heading.

I found this collection of short stories by Jeffrey Archer on a drive by.  I drove by the library to pick up books I had on hold and there it was waiting to be plucked off the shelf.  The only reason the book got checked out on my library card is I like Jeffrey Archer and I had read another collection of his short stories entitled A Quiver Full of Arrows which I really enjoyed.  Both of these collections have stories that were both intriguing and humorous and I admit I really enjoyed them.  I would recommend both of these collections especially if you are looking to read something at night before going to sleep and don’t want to worry about getting completely caught up and unable to find a stopping point to put down the book to get some ZZZZZZZZZZZZZs.  You also may want to pick up some of his novels.  I liked Kane and Abel and The Prodigal Daughter.  You can also check out my post on his book Only Time Will Tell from June 15, 2013

Sunday Notes on Monday

So if you have been reading my blog by now you know that  every Sunday I play this little game with myself. On Sunday the first section that I read of the Washington Post is the Outlook section, it contains the book section. I go to the last page and read the Washington Bestseller list. This week the bestseller list focused on Hardcovers but it alternates between paperbacks and hardcover. You can check my scoring system on the May 6th post.

I never do well with the Hard back book list.  This week was no exception.  I have read nothing on the list and that includes fiction and non-fiction.  In fact work was so crazy this past week that I was too tired to even keep up with my usual reading pace. I did manage to finish The Rosie Project which is a humorous account of the effect of one person on another.  I also just completed The World Without Us which is an interesting non-fiction study on what would happen to the earth and all the inventions of humans if all of us were to disappear.  It is amazing when you think about it and this book makes you think about it.

For the upcoming week I have two books on my list to read.  One is the third in my foodie series called Meet Me at the Cupcake Café.  The book also includes recipes with my personal favorite The Orange cupcakes with Orange Marmalade Icing. The other book is called The Goldfinch about a boy who survives and accident in which his mother is killed.

For more information on any of this books click below.  Have a great week.


     

The Rosie Project

Don is a professor of genetics who is, let's just say different.  His brain is not wired in the usual way.  That is not a bad thing but it makes his life more challenging.  He has learned to live with his differences by creating a very rigid schedule so he stays on track.  Each day he eats the same meals which he has learned to prepare and he cooks well.   He has particular difficulty interacting with others so his circle of friends is very small.

He has decided that he wants to find a wife but he wants to do this in a very orderly way so he has developed a questionnaire for each potential wife to take.  He has put a lot of thought into these questions as well as what he considers are acceptable answers.  He is not having that much success with this method.  And then his friend decides to take over and offers to review all the questionnaires. After all he is a professor of psychology who better to evaluate these candidates.  Then Rosie shows up at Don's door and his journey begins.

This is a fun book with subtle humor.  It is interesting to see how Don Evolves and copes.  I enjoyed the read. 

 

Circle of Friends, 25 Pie, Crisp and Cobbler Recipes

I know I had talked about Meet Me at the Cupcake Café as my next Foodie series book but this book just fell into my lap. Pies use to be more of a challenge to me because of the crust.  It took a lot of work to make a decent pie crust and thanks to Pillsbury I really don’t have to worry.  I saw this book on Amazon.com and I said why not and for all you kindle owners this book is free.  Be aware these are your basic recipes but that was just what I was looking for so check it out.  Click on the book at the top of this post and it will take you right to it.  For those of you who are interested in savory pies click on the book below.

Sunday Notes on Monday

So if you have been reading my blog by now you know that  every Sunday I play this little game with myself. On Sunday the first section that I read of the Washington Post is the Outlook section, it contains the book section. I go to the last page and read the Washington Bestseller list. This week the bestseller list focused on Paperbacks but it alternates between paperbacks and hardcover. You can check my scoring system on the May 6th post.

I hit the jackpot this week.  I have read 5 out of the 10 books on the paperback bestseller list in the Post.  One of the books is Ender's Game and if you haven't read it yet,you might want to give it a try. In case you haven't seen the ads that are starting to pop up, the movie is going to be released in November.  I don't know about you but if the book is a bestseller, I like to read the book first because most of the time Hollywood takes liberties with the author's story and it is not quite as good as the actually book. Often the changes made in the movie are annoying but I guess it helps with ticket sales.  Maybe I should restate that it does not play out like the written version.

So this week I read The Rosie Project.  I started out thinking are you kidding me but the male character grew on me and the book actually turned out better than I expected. Actually it was quite humorous due to the cluelessness of one of the main characters. The other book  I read which was fascinating was the World Without Us.  The premise being what would happen to the earth if humans no longer were around.  You would think a book such as this would be dull but it really wasn't.

This week I plan to read another book in my foodie series Meet Me at the Cupcake Café: a Novel with recipes.  Maybe it will be worth it just to find a good cupcake recipe.  You know how I love cupcakes. 

One book that seems interesting that I have added to my list is The Circle about a woman hired to work for a top Internet Company. I also might added The Racketeer to the list since it is number one on the paperback list.  I haven't read a Grisham novel in a long time.  He also has another book that sounds interesting Sycamore Row. That's it for now  Happy reading. 

For more information on these books please click on the books below

         

Sips and Apps

This is my second book choice in my foodie quest. For those of you who do not know what I am talking about please see my blog post on Sept 24, 2013.

This author’s mantra and I quote is “A great drink is just as important as a great dish”.  She considers whipping up cocktails to be liquid cooking.  Don’t you just love her point of view? I am not a big drinker by any stretch of the imagination but I do like a good drink and I am clueless about pairing alcoholic beverages and food. 

Often I like inviting friends over for drinks and “heavy appetizers”.  The problem is I do the same stuff over and over.  Blah, Blah, Blah, Boring, Boring.  That is why this book caught my attention.

She starts out with advice on how to stock your bar, which spirits and which liqueurs.  Then she turns it up a notch by suggesting different ways to incorporate fruits, veggies and herbs.  She then talks about garnishes, barware and equipment.  I made the ultimate mistake a few weeks ago when I had friends over and my martini maker refused to make apple martinis because I didn’t have martini glasses. She was right of course but I thought tumblers would do.  Am I clueless or what!

I also liked her chapter on Techniques and Tricks of the Trade.  And then comes the recipes for all these wonderful cocktails.  One that caught my eye was Hot Mango Love made with a fresh jalapeno pepper and Finlandia mango vodka.  Who would ever think to put a jalapeno in a drink?  Her Grapefruit Cosmo did not look to shabby either.  Oh and did I mention the Fresh Apple Mojito?  That’s just three there are more including the old standards. 

If all this wasn’t enough, there is the second half of the book that contain the recipes for the Apps. By Apps I do not mean software you load on a computer or tablet although this book is available in digital format.  A couple that looked good were: The Bollywood Chicken Skewers with Spiced Yogurt Dip and the Chipolte Deviled Eggs.  One other that caught my eye was the Mini Scallion Biscuits with Smoked Salmon Spread.  Yum!

I have added this book onto my Holiday gift list for some of my recipients who are hard to buy for.  I think this will do nicely.

Sunday Notes on Monday

So if you have been reading my blog by now you know that  every Sunday I play this little game with myself. On Sunday the first section that I read of the Washington Post is the Outlook section, it contains the book section. I go to the last page and read the Washington Bestseller list. This week the bestseller list focused on Hardbacks but it alternates between paperbacks and hardcover. You can check my scoring system on the May 6th post.

So today I opened up the Washington Post and looked at the bestseller list and much to my dismay I haven't read one single thing on the fiction or non-fiction list and honestly there really isn't a book on the list that is screaming out saying read me.  Don't be disappointed I have many books still on my reading list.  This week for example I plan to read The Rosie Project so I will keep you posted on that book.  I will also be posting on the 2nd book in my foodie series.  Its called Sips and Apps and I think you just might like it. 

One book that caught my eye in the book section is Countdown: Our Last Best Hope For a Future on Earth. It is a non fiction work that discusses the future of our overpopulated  and abused planet.  

One other book that I have added to my list is one my daughter finished reading The Fault in Our Stars. Click on any of the books below for more info.  So enjoy your  week and stop back here again this week.

    

The Bone Bed

This is my first Patricia Cornwell novel.  I know, I am as surprised about this fact as you. The Bone Bed is the 20th novel in the Kay Scarpetta series. Now for all of you like me who are not familiar with Patricia Cornwell novels the main character is a medical examiner.  I enjoyed the book for two reasons.  One I love forensic aspect of the book.  I really believe while the body can no longer physically talk to you through a voice it still is able to communicate in death if you listen well enough. And two Kay is a lot like the character Temperance in the show Bones and I do enjoy that show.

The novel starts out with Kay receiving an email with a picture of an ear belonging to a researcher in Canada who has mysteriously disappeared after discovering a Bone Bed.  A Bone bed is a geological deposit that contains bones.  A big find if you are an anthropologist.  This email arrives on the day she is suppose to be testifying in a big murder trial.  On this very same day she is called out to a crime scene where a woman is found dead in the Boston Bay close to Logan Airport.  Removing the body from the water without damaging it or any of the evidence with the body is as big of a challenge to Kay as discovering how she died.  Throw one more body of a man who at first appeared to have died because he was drunk and fell down his steps into the mix.  And guess what some how all these deaths are related.  I didn't believe it myself but yes they all the deaths seem to have something in common. 

Because I did not read books one through nineteen of this series I feel like I missed a lot of the back story of the main characters but all in all I though it was a good crime novel. 

 

The Irresistible Blueberry Bakeshop and Cafe

In my previous post dated September 24^th I mentioned that I would be on a quest to find good books with a food type theme in the title. It just makes it more fun for me when I am picking my books.  This book is the first in that series. 

Ellen is very close with her Grandmother.  When with her dying breath she tells Ellen to make sure a letter she has written gets to its intended recipient Ellen decides to hand deliver it.  She drives from Manhattan where she is a very successful lawyer engaged to an up and coming politician, to Beacon, Maine where her Grandmother was born she is surprised to find out things she never knew. The journey literally placed her on a path she never thought she would follow.

I read this book in a hospital emergency room and it was just what the doctor ordered figuratively of course.  It was a light, fun romance novel and quite frankly, I can use some of those every now and then.

Sunday Notes on Monday

So if you have been reading my blog by now you know that  every Sunday I play this little game with myself. On Sunday the first section that I read of the Washington Post is the Outlook section, it contains the book section. I go to the last page and read the Washington Bestseller list. This week the bestseller list focused on Paperbacks but it alternates between paperbacks and hardcover. You can check my scoring system on the May 6th post.

This week I exceeded my goal.  I have read The Hit, The Casual Vacancy, The Great Gatsby and The Forgotten and my bonus non-fiction point for Into the Wild. Unfortunately, there is no other books on the paperback bestseller list that I care to add to my reading list. Not to worry I always have a stack of books or downloaded to my kindle by my bed.

This week I will blog about book one in my Foodie series on the book The Irresistible Blueberry Bakeshop and Café a story about a granddaughter fulfilling a Grandmother's dying wish and discovering things about her she never knew. I am finishing up The  Bone Bed so I will let you know about that.  Also stay tuned for book two in my foodie series.  I love it and just in case you are looking for a holiday gift, this may fit the bill. And if you missed my Post on The End of Your Life Book Club, go take a look.  The book really hit home for me. 

And on a sad note was the death of Tom Clancy.  I loved his books but my two Favorite were Hunt for Red October and Patriot Games.  If you haven't read them, give them a try.


Enjoy your week!


         

 

Quoth the Raven "Nevermore"

I did an internship at University of Maryland Hospital in Baltimore.  There were a dozen of us and we all got along pretty well.  Occasionally we would all walk to Lexington Market and instead of bringing the food back to the hospital we would go to Edgar Allan Poe's House and have lunch with him.  Well actually not with him since he died in 1849 hundreds of years before we were even born, but at his grave site. I don't know why we did it we just did.
For all those Poe fans out there if you are in Baltimore there is a special Poe celebration going on Oct 7th.  If you are around and interested check it out.  Below is the first stanza to his poem The Raven and also the link for the Poe Event.

  
Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore,
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of someone gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
"'Tis some visitor," I muttered, "tapping at my chamber door -
Only this, and nothing more."



http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/going-out-guide/wp/2013/10/04/learn-about-edgar-allan-poe-while-sipping-creepy-cocktails/

A Moment for Tom Clancey

Tom Clancy was one of my favorite Thriller/espionage writers.  I liked all his novels but the ones that stand out in my mind were The Hunt for Red October and Patriot Games.  I think both translated into equally good movies.  His new book Command Authority will be coming out in December.

He had an amazing career with seven of his novels becoming bestsellers.  Hard  to believe he was an insurance salesman before he became an author.  Below is an article from USA Today.

 

http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/books/2013/10/02/author-tom-clancy-dies-at-66/2907629/

 

 

Bibliotech No More Books How sad

No more books in this library how sad. And for that matter why bother.  Who needs to go into a storefront type "library"  filled with computers and no books.  Ok so you can borrow a reader, big deal.  Amazon has made them so reasonably priced almost anyone can have one. 

 

My question is why have something like this at all?  Why waste good retail space?  I mean I go to my local library site all the time and download books to my kindle.  Why in the heck would I want to go to a Bibliotech. I mean if we are ultimately moving away from the printed book than we can just download books from our home computers or  tablets while we are drinking our coffee and wearing our most comfy and raggedy pajamas.  And won't it be a sad day when a library as we know it no longer exists because it is not just about books.  It is all about the resources and the community that the library provides a place to gather, a place to study away from your room, house etc. .  No computer terminal in a store is going to replace that.  And you can call me a fossil but I love a book in hand and pages to turn.

 Check out the link below to see the new Bibliotech.

http://www.nbcnews.com/id/21134540/vp=53007602&#53007602

Summer was for Jams, Fall is for butters

This summer I dabbled in jam.  I had a lot of fun.  I stuck with peach and strawberry and they turned out relatively good.  Now it is the fall and pears and apples are the fruit of choice so I decided to make apple butter and pear butter and I am happy to say that both came out ok.  I will admit that the commercial brands are a wee bit better but I am working on the recipe.  All I know is that apple or pear butter tastes great with peanut butter.  And as all of you know an apple a day keeps the doctor away although I doubt eating a teaspoon of Apple Butter has the same benefits as a raw apple.

I have included a link of the recipe I used.  The only difference is I used granny smith and gala.  I think my next adventure will be to make pumpkin butter.  After all I am on a roll.

http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/apple_butter/

The End Of Your Life Book Club

This book hit a special chord for me.  My Mom is not well.  She had a bout with breast cancer and now she is suffering from Parkinson's. She has good days and she has bad days.  One thing my family and I have always shared is our love for reading.  Many evenings growing up the television would be off and everyone could be found in their own special corner reading a book.  Often a book would be the topic of conversation at dinner.  Books were always passed around between family members.  Sometimes more than one family member was reading the one copy of the book in the house and there was a small scuffle to gain ownership of the book. The adults always won. Saturday was library day.  We would stock up for the week.  Before I went to sleep I use to read at least an hour a night.  I still read before bed but often it is for several hours since sleep often eludes me.

Sometimes my Mom does not talk all day.  She just sits in a chair and reads.  I am glad she is able to do that.  It is hard to see a once vibrant woman reduced to walking with a walker and spending the majority of her day in a chair.  Two questions still get a response from my Mom.  Have you read anything good lately? or What are you reading?  We certainly do not have the lengthy conversations we use to have about books but it is nice when she responds. One of the things my Mom continues to do that drives me nuts is to read the end of the book before she is finished.  I never understood, being an avid reader, why you would bother to read a book if you know how it ends.  The best part of the book is to enjoy the journey the author is creating and to see if you can follow the twists and turns.  Also I like debating the outcome of the book with others to see if they saw the ending coming or if they felt it was an appropriate ending for the book.

I hope the question What are you reading does not become obsolete.  I am lucky to be part of a book club and I am lucky that many of my friends like to read.  But many don't.  Some would rather just sit back and watch TV or watch a movie.  Those are great things to do but they should not take the place of reading a good book.  Books take you into a special world.  They expand your imagination.  They make things less boring.  They provide entertainment and information.  There I have said my piece!

That is why I picked up The End of Your Life Book Club.  It is about a woman with stage 4 cancer spending time with her son towards the end of her life.  They formed a "book club" to have something to talk about while he accompanied her to her chemo sessions.  The books they read were just a springboard to topics about their lives and the choices they made.  If you are part of a book club than you know the drill.  Sometimes you talk a lot about a book and sometimes you talk a little about the book.  Sometimes the topics in the book get people talking about their own experiences.  It is great to hear their stories.  I remember for one of our book club meetings we were reading The Perfect Storm.  During the discussion one of the book club members revealed that she had a family member who went out on a fishing boat and was lost at sea.  She said she would be walking and see him in a crowd of people.  When she got closer she realized it wasn't him.  Being lost at sea did not give her the closure she needed to realize he was gone. 

The other great thing about discussing a book is getting a different perspective or interpretation of the book.  My Mom sees things based on her life knowledge and experience so did his.  His mother was a professional woman which in the 50's and 60's was ground breaking.  Books provided a connection to his Mom and I feel books provide me with a connection to mine.  It is nice to still have that connection.

It is a really good read.  Try it out. 

An Apple A Day Keeps the Doctor Away or so the saying goes

An Apple a day keeps the doctor away was not the original version of this saying. The original version allegedly, was from a Welsh folk proverb (1866)" 'Eat an apple on going to bed, And you'll keep the doctor from earning his bread.'.  I am all for keeping the doctor away. 

Personally I have always believed in this saying and I think I have further proof of its validity.  This past week my husband had major surgery.  Pain meds as many of you might know wreck havoc on the digestive system so I added a fresh apple twice a day to his diet.  I could do that since I was bringing the tray to his bed.  He willingly ate them and bing bang boom no more problems. 

Coincidently, I found an article in the Washington Post that  talks about the health benefits of apples.  There is also a link for recipes containing apples.  One that caught my eye but is not the healthiest of recipes was Apple Black Walnut Pudding.  I would plan to serve it for the holidays when everyone is in a merry mood.  This would certainly lift their spirits further.  I imagine it would work on someone who just had surgery as well but for now I am sticking with the more healthy version, just a plain old yummy apple.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/wellness/apples-really-can-help-keep-the-doctor-away/2013/09/24/f35837ba-1c84-11e3-8685-5021e0c41964_story.html