February 2016 Cookbooks

The New Slow Cooker Cookbook by Adams Media

I love using my slow cooker because you only have 1 main pot to clean at the end and dinner can be ready when you get home. I liked how this cookbook was organized with types of recipes together - soups, stews, and chili, then sauces/condiments, chicken recipes, pork recipes, etc. There were also quite a few recipes I'd like to try. My only complaint was that some of the recipes only used the slow cooker for an hour - you basically cooked everything and "finished it" in the slow cooker. To me that didn't really seem like a slow cooker recipe because you could "finish" something like that on the stove or in the oven too. Overall, a good cookbook especially if you want to expand your slow cooker horizons.

America Farm to Table by Mario Batali

Mario Batali talks about how in the 1980's chefs started coming into the spotlight and now famous chefs are like rock stars in our society with TV shows, cookware lines, cookbooks, etc. He counters that the REAL rock stars are the farmers who provide the high quality food that chefs cook with. In this book he explores some of the best restaurants and chefs across America and the farmers who grow and/or raise their food. Each section has information about the chef/farmer relationship and about what that farmer is known for and then Batali creates recipes using those best-of-the-best ingredients. It is a unique concept for a cookbook and I really liked it. There were also quite a few recipes I'd like to try myself. Overall, I would recommend this one for anyone who loves their local farmers and farmers market or anyone interested in growing your own food.

It's All Good by Gwyneth Paltrow

My friend gave me this cookbook last year for Christmas because when we were in college I was a huge Gwyneth Paltrow fan. I'm not as much of a fan, but I figured since she gave me the book I would read it. It's more a cookbook for someone who's vegan or trying to do a detox diet (neither of which is me), but there are some recipes that could be adapted to not be gluten free or you could use regular sugar instead of a substitute. I do appreciate Paltrow's introduction where she talks about some of the health issues she was having and how changed her diet fixed them. I'm a big believer in that what you eat can definitely help or hurt your health in huge ways, but I'm also a big believer in eating REAL food. I don't like all the vegan substitutes like fake mayo, cheese, etc. Fake stuff is just created food and I'm not into that. But, whether you're going vegan or not there are some good recipes in here that I'm planning to try out.

The Year of Cozy by Adrianna Adarme

I really like the concept of this book - it's not just a cookbook, it's more of a homemade book. The author gives lots of recipes, but also homemade decor and gift ideas, and just ideas of better ways to enjoy your home. I really like a lot of her lifestyle type tips - Do Nothing, Write Handwritten Notes, Start a Good Habit, etc. While there weren't many recipes I really wanted to try, I did like her ideas for a Meal in a Box gifts. This is just a nice, cozy book to read and look through.

The Culinary Herbal by Susan Belsinger, Arthur O. Tucker, and Shawn Linehan

This book is more of a gardening book than a cookbook. The majority of the book is an alphabetical listing of dozens of herbs - some I'd never even heard of. There is a very small section at the end of the book that talks about growing and preserving herbs and then a few recipes. While I do grow some herbs in my garden, I was hoping for more about best ways to preserve and use herbs while they're fresh. It's great if you want to find out about all kinds of herbs, but not much of a cookbook.

February 2016 Reviews

Thinner in 30 by Jenna Wolfe

Most people want to jump in and start a drastic plan of diet and/or exercise and then either burn out or don't create some sustainable. Jenna Wolfe's plan takes you through small changes over 30 days to transform your health. Some of her tips are easy - drink 20 sips of water as soon as you wake up, disengage for 5 minutes a day, etc. While also addressing eating habits and adding exercise too. But all the tips build on each other so you're not overwhelmed the first week. I really like the idea and all the changes seem pretty easy to incorporate while also being challenging over time. Even though I did manage to hurt myself in week 2 (really.) I'm still working on doing this 30 day challenge. I really think if you commit this would be an easy way to jump start a workout plan.

Blood Will Out by Walter Kirn

I thought this was going to be a really interesting book. The author Walter Kirn delivers a rescued dog to a member of the Rockefeller family in New York City. The meeting turns into a friendship and Kirn hopes that Clark Rockefeller might inspire some characters in some of future books. But, Kirn quickly realizes that Clark if often off-putting and selfish, but just charming enough to keep pulling him back in. In 2008 Clark is accused of kidnapping his daughter and during that investigation it comes out that he is really Christian Gerhartsreiter, a German immigrant who is linked to a 1985 unsolved murder and dozens of fake identities. Kirn is unsettled and wonders how he fell for the fake Rockefeller's act. After digging into Gerhartsrieter's past, Kirn realizes that he hasn't created new identities, but taken on existing ones - either from real people or characters in books and films. Many of Gerhartsrieter's stories and exploits are taken directly from old noir films that as Kirn watches them during the murder trial he begins to unravel Gerhartsreiter's lies.

I didn't like this book as much as I thought I would, but it should make for an interesting book club discussion. The second half is MUCH better than the first half in my opinion. Honestly neither Kirn or Clark Rockefeller are very likable and I was surprised that Gerhartsrieter conned so many people for so long. Overall, it was OK, but not great.

Where They Found Her by Kimberly McCreight

In the small university town of Ridgedale, NJ the body of an infant is found on the edge of the university campus. Molly Sanderson is new in town and working for the local paper. She is assigned to cover the case even though she is still struggling with the loss of her own baby. Sandy Mendelson is a high school drop out who's looking for her missing mother. Barbara Carlson is the wife of the Ridgedale Chief of Police who is dealing with her son's sudden behavioral problems. Molly, Sandy, and Barbara all have a different connection to this crime and while they don't know it at first, they are all connected to each other as well. This case will unearth some deeply buried secrets in Ridgedale and change each of these women's lives as well.

Overall, I wasn't super impressed with this book. I guessed who had the baby in the first few chapters. I wanted to see what happened so I kept reading, but it wasn't great. I also don't like when an author makes a character super vulgar for no reason. The first chapter with Sandy was so over-the-top that it was ridiculous and then was much more toned down in the rest of the book. Even though I finished it I wouldn't really recommend this one.

Bittersweet by Shauna Niequist

Bittersweet is about finding the beauty in pain and brokenness and knowing that without the dark things we wouldn't appreciate the light as much. Each chapter is a personal essay from Niequist mostly about how she managed to still find beauty and good things during one of the darkest seasons of her life - mainly through real connections with friends and family. I really LOVED this book. She does a great job of turning her personal stories and situations into things almost anyone could relate to. I will probably end up buying this book because it just really spoke to me. I would highly recommend this one!

Some of the MANY quotes I really liked:

"I'm able to see now that what made that season feel so terrible to me were not the changes. What made that season feel so terrible is that I lost track of some of the crucial beliefs and practices that every Christian must carry with them...Looking back now I can see that it was more than anything a failure to believe in the story of who God is and what he is doing in this world. Instead of living that story - one of sacrifice and purpose and character - I began to live a much smaller story, and that story was only about me...I believe that faith is less like following a GPS through a precise grid of city blocks, and more like being out at sea: a tricky journey, nonlinear and winding, the wind kicking up and then stalling. But what I really wanted in the middle of it all was some dry land and computer-woman's soothing voice leading me through the mess." (p. 17-18)

"I remember sitting around the table with the housechurch and my parents on my thirtieth birthday, long after we'd finished eating, telling stories and laughing together. At one point my dad said, 'You know this doesn't happen over and over in your life. You don't get that many experiences of friendship like the ones you all share.' We nodded, thankful in that moment. But I think we wanted to believe he was wrong, and that friendships like these would pop up all over our lives like dandelions. Now having said goodbye, we know that he was right, and that the richness and connectedness of that season was indeed rare." (p. 32)

"That's why travel is so important, among other reasons: to get far enough away from our everyday lives to see those lives with new clarity." (p. 79)

"I've been in what seems like a thousand groups that never really came together, and then just a very few that really did. And I'm learning a few things about both kinds of groups. First, I think a lot of groups, church-based or otherwise, fail because they can't find themselves under the weight of expectations placed upon them. Sometimes, with the best of intentions, when we start small groups or accountability groups or life groups, we saddle them with the idea that they have to be deeply intimate and transformational right at the first meeting. We force connections that aren't there, fumble through topics and conversations and routines that feel forced and hollow, and then we wonder why we don't actually want to go that often...There have been a few times - two, to be specific - when I've been a part of an official small group that's really connected and become what a small group should be...But I've been a part of a whole bunch of official groups that felt forced or awkward, where one person's expectations weighed down the whole, or it felt like a bad first date, or someone shut down every time things got a little honest. I know so many people who are just done with the whole official small group thing, and I understand why. This is what I would say to them: find connection and community wherever it already is, even in tiny ways, in your life. Take a risk and cultivate the tiniest possibility of connection, even in the unlikeliest of places. Sometimes it does work to set out together for intimacy, honesty, truth-telling. But more often, in my experience, you find those things by going through the back door - serving together, cooking together, reading together." (p. 177-9)

"But when you're stuck, all you see are the ones that make you feel tiny and grey, like dryer lint." (p. 207)

"You don't know what the story is about when you're in the middle of it. You think you do, but you don't. You make up all kinds of possible story lines: this is about growing up. Or this is about living without fear. You can guess all you want, but you don't know. All you can do is keep walking. There is nothing worse than the middle. At the beginning, you have a little arrogance, loads of buoyancy. The journey, whatever it is, looks beautiful and bright, and you are filled with resolve and silver strength, sure that whatever the future holds, you'll face it with optimism and chutzpah...And the end is beautiful. You are wiser, better, deeper. You know things you didn't previously know, you've shed things you previously clung to. The end is revelation, resolution, a soft place to land. But, oh, the middle. I hate the middle. The middle is the fog, the exhaustion, the loneliness, the daily battle against despair and the nagging fear that tomorrow will be just like today, only you'll be wearier and less able to defend yourself against it. The middle is the lonely place, when you can't find words to say how deeply empty you feel, when you try to connect but you feel like thick glass is separating you from the rest of the world, isolating and deadening everything." (p. 216)

"I'm coming to think there are at least two kinds of pain. There's the anxiety and fear I felt when we couldn't sell our house. And then there's the sadness I felt when I lost the baby or when my grandma passed away. Very different kinds of pain. The first kind, I think, is the kind that invites us to grow. The second kind is the kind that invites us to mourn...It's sloppy theology to think that all suffering is good for us, or that it's a result of sin. All suffering can be used for good, over time, after mourning and healing, by God's graciousness. But sometimes it's just plain loss, not because you needed to grow, not because life or God or anything is teaching you any kind of lesson. The trick is knowing the difference between the two." (p. 234-5)

Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard, vol. 3 by David Petersen

I always love the Mouse Guard books just because the illustrations are so fantastic. In this book it's time for the Winter Solstice storytelling contest to see who's bar tab at the June Alley Inn will be wiped clean with the best story. Each character's story is created and illustrated by a different author/illustrator with David Petersen's Mouse Guard illustrations tying everything together. It's a really quick read, but you could spend hours going back and studying the beautiful illustrations that often tell a better story than the written words. I just love David Petersen's work and this one is no exception!

A Bone to Pick by Mark Bittman

I was familiar with Mark Bittman and love a good food-related book, but I was pretty disappointed with this one. It's basically a collection of Bittman's food columns from The New York Times organized into 6 sections. While a lot of his writing makes good points, I just don't agree with his fundamental food beliefs. He goes on and on AND ON about how useless and terrible the USDA and FDA are at regulating our food system, then in the next breath he talks about how we NEED legislation to fix this corrupt and broken food system. So, where exactly are we going to find these un-corruptible legislatures to make everything great for everyone? I COMPLETELY agree with the fact that our food system is horrible and the government agencies supposedly responsible for it useless, but I'm on the Joel Salatin team of opting out of that shit. When you grow your own food and buy most of the rest from local farmers you KNOW there is no need for the government to get involved. He also talks a LOT about "changing" food/farming subsidies from supporting industrial monoculture and giving them to smaller farmers and even subsidies for people to cook at home - seriously?! Joel Salatin, Forrest Pritchard, and many, many others prove that you don't need government subsidies to be a successful farmer who can support yourself and others financially. So, since I just do NOT agree with his basic views I just wouldn't recommend this book. There are many other MUCH better food/farming/cooking books out there!

Here are some quotes I particularly did NOT agree with:

"Encourage and subsidize home cooking...We should provide food education for children (a new form of home ec, anyone?), cooking classes for anyone who wants them, and even cooking assistance for those unable to cook for themselves." (p. xiv) - Subsidize home cooking - WTF?!

[In speaking about New York's mayor Michael R. Bloomberg's proposed ban on the sale of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB's) over one pint (16 ounces).] "The arguments against this ban mostly came from the 'right.' (There actually is no right and left here, only right and wrong.) (p. 74) - So basically he's saying if you disagree with Bloomberg's soda ban you're WRONG!

"Preventing chronic diseases - for the first time in history responsible for the majority of deaths - would not require massive public works programs like building water delivery or sewer systems but simply regulating the quality of our food and the quantity of nonfood we allow ourselves in ingest. It is not a matter of technology or of miracles, but of policy. Minor inconveniences and infringements that benefit everyone - like seat belts, gun control, and limiting our 'right' to smoke or drink - should take precedence over our 'right' to kill ourselves and one another." (p. 155) - "minor inconveniences" like not being able to decide what I want to eat or drink and buy with my own money!

"For all of the personal choices (like cooking, or supporting responsible farming) that can have a positive impact [on] our food system, the kinds of sweeping changes that many of us hope to see can't be accomplished without decisive action at the top. Whether we know it or not, federal and local governments, which are all too often beholden to special interests, are largely responsible for deciding what we eat, because they refuse to restrict the behavior of producers and marketers, who then infallibly choose the most profitable - not the most healthful or even least destructive - paths...While attempts to regulate our food choices are often decried as 'nanny-statism,' the consequences of insufficient (or misguided) government intervention are significant." (p. 189) - Does anyone else see the contradiction here?! The government is in the industrial food system's pocket and have f*%ked up the food system, but we need more government involvement to fix it - that sounds like a great plan to make things EVEN WORSE.

We Never Asked for Wings by Vanessa Diffenbaugh

Letty Espinosa is a single mom of two children, 15-year-old Alex and 6-year-old Luna. But, Letty's parents raised her children while she worked multiple jobs to support them all. Letty's life was so promising in high school, but she felt like she ruined her future when she got pregnant so young, then it was just a downward spiral into drinking to escape her feelings of failure. When Letty's father goes back to Mexico her mother follows, leaving Letty to finally be a parent to her children. At first Letty freaks out, but she soon realizes that she doesn't have a choice other than to jump in and start trying to be a parent. After a rough start Letty finally starts to find that she does have what it takes to really be there for her kids and make better choices. When her son Alex gets into trouble, Letty really steps up and takes care of things. This is a beautiful story of what it means to be a family and really make the hard choices in order to make a better life. You will fall in love with Alex who is so smart and tries so hard to create a different path than his mom and by the end you have a great deal of respect for how much Letty stepped up to the plate with her kids. It's also an eye-opening look at the vast differences between the "haves" and the "have-nots." 

I really liked Vanessa Diffenbaugh's previous book The Language of Flowers, so I was really looking forward to her next book and she definitely didn't disappoint! I liked We Never Asked for Wings even more than her first book and can't wait to see what she comes out with next.

Mess: One Man's Struggle to Clean up His House and His Act by Barry Yourgrau

I LOVE shows like Hoarders and I've read other books about hoarding that were really good, so I was excited to read this one. Barry Yourgrau realizes he has a problem when his long-time girlfriend locks herself out and shows up at his house - but he won't let her inside and she hasn't been inside for over 5 years because of his clutter/hoarding. After that she gives him an ultimatum about cleaning up, which he recounts in this book. Reading this book must be what it feels like to be inside a hoarders mind because it was kind of all over the place and he is CONSTANTLY getting derailed anytime he attempts to clean. But, after 2 years he finally has his place cleaned up and can finally have people over again. 

I found Yourgrau VERY hard to relate to - I'm not a hoarder, but he seemed very neurotic and scattered. I'm glad he finally got motivated to clean up, but the book was very slow and meandering. I didn't love it. I'd recommend Coming Clean by Kimberly Miller or Stuff by Randy Frost as much better books about hoarding - or just watch the TV show Hoarders.

The Guest Room by Chris Bohjalian

Richard Chapman offers to host his younger brother's bachelor party at his house because that way it's less likely to get out of control. He assumes there will probably be a stripper, but thinks it will be pretty tame. He was wrong. At the end of the bachelor party multiple guests have had sex with the "entertainment" and two people are dead. While Richard didn't cheat on his wife, he is still associated with a wild orgy gone that turned into murder. The aftermath of the party is devastating for Richard - his wife is contemplating leaving him, he is suspended from work, his house is now a crime scene, and one of the other party guests is trying to blackmail him. But Richard doesn't have the worst of it - the two girls who were the "entertainment" are now running for their lives. Told in alternating viewpoints from Richard and Alexandra, an Armenian teenager who was kidnapped into sex slavery, you see how both of their lives are profoundly changed from this one fateful night.

Homegrown Honey Bees by Alethea Morrison

This is a great overview for the beginning beekeeper. My mom gave me this book because she knew we eventually wanted to get bees and now that we're taking a 9 week beekeeping class I figured it would be a good time to read this book. The book definitely goes over much of what we've already covered in the class, but it's got LOTS of detailed pictures which help everything make more sense. There is a LOT to learn with beekeeping, so anything that can help it make more sense is worth checking out. I think the chapters on The First Month, The First Season, and The First Harvest will be good to refer back to once we've gotten our bees. Overall, I would highly recommend this book, but with anything like this I would also recommend a class too. We went through our county extension office and the class was affordable and VERY informative and helpful. The author also gives a few pages of resources that would be very helpful too.

January 2016 Reviews

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins (Books & Banter and Evening Edition book clubs)

I will never understand the comparisons of this book to Gone Girl. This book was like a bad made-for-TV Lifetime movie. Rachel takes the same commuter train into London every day and on the way she passes her old neighborhood where she lived with her ex-husband Tom. A few doors down from her old house Rachel makes up names and a life for a couple she sees regularly on her commute. One day she sees the woman with another man, not her husband, then a few days later the woman Megan goes missing. Rachel thinks she has information about the case because she was there the day, but was drunk and doesn't remember the details. While trying to work out her memory of that night Rachel inserts herself into this missing person case and becomes a little too involved. When she does remember what happened that night it might be the end of her too. 

While I did want to see what actually happened that night, this was a TERRIBLE book. If it hadn't been for both of my book clubs reading this book I would have quit after the first few chapters. And while I didn't guess the ending after the first few chapters, it was pretty clear well before the end. And the end was so over-the-top that I literally thought, did the author totally rip this off from some Lifetime TV movie?! Ugh. Don't waste your time on this one.

Anne of Green Gables, My Daughter & Me by Lorilee Craker

When Lorilee Craker is reading the picture book version ofAnne of Green Gables with her daughter Phoebe, Phoebe asks her what an orphan is. This inspired Lorilee to explore what it means to be an orphan. Lorilee was adopted and adopted her daughter Phoebe, but she didn't want Phoebe growing up feeling like an orphan. Lorilee also LOVED Anne of Green Gables and so she decided to combine all three - Anne, herself, and her daughter Phoebe and what it means to be an orphan. The book explores many aspects of adoption and how they were explored in the Anne of Green Gables books, as well as her own experiences with her adopted and birth families and then adopting her daughter Phoebe. She also ties this all in from a Christian perspective and the belief that God is always "our Father [who] is waiting for us, reaching out His arms. And we are orphans no more." (p. 223)

Even though I have no personal ties to adoption, this was an interesting book and it definitely made me want to re-read the Anne of Green Gables series!

The Way Life Should Be by Christina Baker Kline

I LOVED Orphan Train by this author, so I was excited to read this one thinking it was new, but when I got it I realized it was published in 2008. The story follows Angela who's working as an event planner in New York City. After a catastrophe at an event she planned, Angela is fired. Around this same time she connects with a guy on an online dating website who lives in Maine. On a whim Angela decides to go visit him for a few weeks and see what happens. What happens is completely predictable - he's a jerk, but she finds that she loves the small-town life in Maine and ends up accidentally doing what she really loves which is cooking. While the story was OK, nothing was so awesome that I just HAD to keep reading to see what happened next like with Orphan Train. I would be willing to read a new novel by this author, but I wasn't super impressed with this one.

The Life-Changing Magic of Not Giving a F*ck by Sarah Knight

This book is laugh-out-loud-while-reading HILARIOUS! After the author read the organizing book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo and it helped her organize her belongings, she realized that she could help people in a similar way by helping them organize and prioritize their fucks - or things they invest time, money, energy in. Knight's plan is simple 1) Decide what you don't give a fuck about, then 2) Stop giving a fuck about those things - she calls her plan the NotSorry Method and it will work! While you can actually change your life by caring less about stupid stuff/people and owning who you really are and what you really care about, this is obviously a hilarious parody of Marie Kondo's best-selling book. It should be obvious from the title, but there is LOTS of bad language throughout this book - but it's still hilarious! Here are some quotes that were particularly funny to me:

"In our society, Sorry! is used as shorthand for anything from 'I'm not really sorry, I'm just saying that to smooth over whatever I just did/am about to do to you.' all the way to a nail-biting 'Oh shit, what have i done???'" And not to put too fine a gender-biased point on it, but women, especially, tend to say it way too much in an attempt to preemptively or actively defend themselves against perceived slights in the workplace, among friends, or in relationships. When you've actually behaved badly, you should be sorry, and you should say so. And if you're about to behave badly and think that a quick Sorry is going to ameliorate it, you're wrong. Maybe stop being such an asshole for a change. But if you've done nothing to be sorry about, you can (a) stop feeling sorry and (b) stop telling people you are! In other words, the NotSorry Method achieves eponymous results. Following it encourages and enables you to act in a way that doesn't require your saying - or being - sorry at all." (p. 33)

"We all know these people. You can be as honest and polite as the day is long and they just don't get it. They can't stop themselves from arguing with you, coaxing you, and trying to change your mind. Whatever it is that you don't give a fuck about, it is so important to them that they can't accept your difference of opinion. It could be anything from SEC football to improvisational jazz to the fact that you don't participate in your family's religious rituals. They won't be swayed by honesty or politeness. These people are begging for confrontation. IT'S LIKE THEY WANT THEIR FEELINGS HURT. In cases like these, you have to consider the long-term drain on your Fuck Budget. It may actually be beneficial to be/look like a bad person if it means you can put an end to this conversation once and for all. Hey, if somebody has to tell them to fuck off, it might as well be you." (p. 37)

[From the author's personal list of things she does not give a fuck about]
4. Being a morning person. For most of my life I was ashamed of being useless in the early hours, of not wanting to schedule anything before noon, and of frequently arriving just in the nick of time to morning meetings. Society really seems to value morning people and look down on those of us who don't (or can't) fall in line. Once I embraced the freelance life, I stopped giving a fuck about being a morning person once and for all. Snack on it, morning people.
5. Taylor Swift. Everybody be all, 'Tay-Tay!' and I'm like 'Nope.'" (p. 53)
I agree with the author on both of these counts!

"Steve Jobs had strong opinions about meetings too, including the use of PowerPoint in said meetings. In Walter Isaacson's biography Steve Jobs, the late Apple CEO argued, 'People who know what they're talking about don't need PowerPoint.' He's right. Fuck PowerPoint." (p. 63)

"It is a truth universally acknowledged that family members tend to think other family members have to give a fuck about their lives just because they share DNA. Think about that for a second. Does it make any sense at all? No, it does not. One of the central tenets of fuck-giving is choice over obligation...And as we all know, you don't get to choose your family. So at the very least, you should get to choose how and why you interact with them. Right?" (p. 103)

"Remember what I said about choice? Well, unless you are born into a culture that enforces arranged marriage, you do get to choose your spouse, but you do not get to choose your in-laws...Yes, by getting married, you've essentially doubled your family fuck-giving in one fell swoop. It's sort of like when you get a bonus at work, and you're like 'Awesome!' and then the IRS proceeds to tax it at 50 percent, and you're like, 'WTF?'" (p. 115)

"Don't give a fuck about your friends' children? First, you need to make it clear that it's not just their children - it's all children. In that way, it's somewhat of a personal policy. (And if you're a parent yourself, 'all children except mine' works too.) However, literally saying the words 'I do not give a fuck about your children' is unlikely to yield positive results. You may never have to deal with those kids again, but you've also probably lost a friend...An occasionally lollipop or So cute! shout-out on social media can be very effective. It's the whole 'spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down' philosophy. (Mary Poppins: NotSorry since 1934.)" (p.133)

"At the time of this writing, more than 10 percent of responders singled out the Kardashians or a specific member of the Kardashian family (I'm looking at you, Kimberly) as something they don't give a fuck about, with another 10 percent responding reality TV, reality-TV stars, or people famous for being famous. I don't know what to tell you guys - this problem is bigger than all of us. I've spent a little time pondering the existential question If so many people don't give a fuck about the Kardashians, then why are they all over my television set? but I quickly concluded: I don't give a fuck. Moving on." (p. 138)

Who Do You Love by Jennifer Weiner

Rachel Blum and Andy Landis first meet by chance in an ER waiting room. Rachel is in the hospital following another surgery for the heart defect she was born with and Andy has a broken arm. Rachel grows up in an affluent Florida suburb, while Andy grows up poor in Philadelphia with a single mother. While their lives and circumstances couldn't be more different, Andy and Rachel formed a bond in the ER that night and over the next 30 years their paths will cross for a variety of reasons. While Andy and Rachel grow up and create their own lives, they still think about each other and wonder what things would have been like if they had stayed together. This is a beautiful love story that shows that no matter how much time and circumstances change true love never changes. This might be my new favorite book by Jennifer Weiner!

My Organic Life by Nora Pouillon

Nora Pouillon grew up in Vienna and even during WWII her family managed to have access to fresh food from a local farm. After she was married and moved to the US in the early 1970's, Pouillon was appalled to discover the lack of available fresh food in grocery stores. She was used to buying fresh food daily in Europe. Soon she started teaching cooking classes out of her home and finding ways to locate fresh, local food. She was eventually asked to work as the cook for a new local restaurant. After a year doing that she decided to open her own restaurant with a partner. Over time Pouillon managed to find more local farmers to support her vision for fresh, locally grown food and in the late 1990's even had her restaurant certified organic - the first in the nation to do so.

While I applaud her drive to find and serve local, fresh food, I don't agree with the certified organic movement. I'm with Joel Salatin when it comes to that kind of stuff - getting the USDA involved with food is always a mistake and will make things MUCH harder for smaller farms to meet their criteria. So, the end of the book was a little disappointing to me when she was going on and on about certified organic everything.

I also wondered about her children. She had 2 children with her first husband Pierre and she rarely mentioned them in most of the book. Then she went on to have another child with her partner Steven and later adopt another child with him - all while still married to Pierre. After 30+ years with Steven he had a long-term affair and that ended too. Her personal life seemed like a disaster and I felt sorry for these 4 children who were left in the wake. I do wish there had been a little more about her family life and how she did manage that along with her obvious success in the restaurant and organic food worlds. Overall, still a good book that highlights the importance of eating good quality, local food.

Emma: a Modern Retelling by Alexander McCall Smith (Books & Banter book club)

I've never read the original Emma by Jane Austen and after reading this retelling I don't think I've missed out. Basically Emma is a bitch who thinks she SO much smarter than all her rural neighbors that she MUST help them out by subtle matchmaking - even after she claims to have no interest in love herself. She even compares herself to God! "There was, she decided, a very particular pleasure in bringing two people together and seeing what would happen; in a way, it was rather as God might feel - if he felt anything." (p. 140) Then of course all her meddling backfires and she actually realizes that she's been a bitch and tries to make some amends. If not for book club I would have NEVER read this one and I just don't like Alexander McCall Smith. He is too cutesy and everything works out a little too well in the end. Also, this was supposed to be a modern retelling, but it could have just as easily been set 100+ years ago. Except for a few mentions of cars and laptops there is NOTHING that makes you think it's set in modern/current times. While I didn't like it at all fans of McCall Smith will probably love it, so it's not without merit - just NOT at all my taste.