Freedom

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Happy Monday!  This has been a summer of good books at my house, and I am at various points in about nine books at the moment.  However, I will be setting them all aside tomorrow to begin the much-anticipated Freedom by Johnathan Franzen.  Book lovers everywhere cannot help but be drawn into the hype, as Franzen's soon-to-be-released novel is being touted as the great American novel of our time, profiled in articles from The New York Times to Vogue.

I'll be picking up my copy at Barnes & Noble tomorrow morning.  What are you reading during these final days of summer?

How Did You Get This Number?

Last summer I spent several days in hysterics while reading Sloane Crosley's, "I Was Told There'd Be Cake".  Crosley can best be described as a younger, female version of David Sedaris, with a self-depricating wit and a penchant for getting herself into precarious situations.

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This summer, Crosley followed up her debut with "How Did You Get This Number", a second book of non-fiction humorous essays about her life.  While I didn't love it quite as much as the first book, I found it funny and easy to identify with her tales of a sometimes rocky journey into adulthood. 

Crosley is definitely a voice of the female in her late twenties and early thirties, old enough to know better but cool enough to sometimes go ahead and do it anyway.

Book Review: Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

Have you read The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo? 

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I realize that millions of people are already in on my secret, but this book, and the two others in the trilogy, are some of the most entertaining and exciting novels that I have ever read.   Written by the late Steig Larsson and translated from Swedish, the Millennium Series books are brilliantly written thrillers that feature one of the most compelling characters in modern literature in the form of computer hacker Lisbeth Salander.

Give the first book a try, and hang in there for a few chapters.   It starts a little slow and the Swedish names and places take a bit of getting used to, but eventually you will be hooked.

Book Review: The Carrie Diaries

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Have you read this yet?  If you're a Sex And The City fan, you'll enjoy The Carrie Diaries.  This prequel, written by Candace Bushnell, gives us a peek into the Carrie Bradshaw's high school years.  The book doesn't follow all of the details that we learned from the show, but the essence of Carrie is defintely present.  Geared to a teenage audience, this is a quick, fun read.  Perfect for a day at the beach!

Book Review: Born Round

Wouldn't it be amazing to be a food critic?  To dine at the finest restaurants in New York City with friends and to write about your experiences?  That's exactly the job that Frank Bruni had for the New York Times, and his memoir, Born Round, details this experience and much more. 

Bruni is a fantastic writer, and his lovely command of the English language made up for the self-loathing low points of the book.  My favorite parts were those that described his experiences as a critic, detailing the tedious process of maintaining anonymity under the watchful eye of NYC's top restauranteurs.

This book is an enjoyable read for anyone with a love of good food, or simply a good story.

Book Review: The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner

Okay, I'll admit it.  I totally caved in to Twilight Madness.  Last summer, I read all four books in the Twilight series upon urging from my co-workers and friends.  And I LOVED them.  Sure, they weren't literary masterpieces, but they were fun and entertaining. 

Last week, Stephenie Meyer released a novella, The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner, told from the point of view of a character that had just a sliver of a part in Eclipse.  This book, was a lightning-fast read, not particularly compelling, but had a few interesting morsels for fans of the series.  You can actually read the book online free for a limited time.

Bottom line, if you're a Twilight fan, you'll probably read it.  If not, it won't make much sense to you or be particularly interesting.

Commencement

Packing for a weekend at the lake house, I threw together a stack of reading materials that a speed reader couldn't possibly get through in just two short days.  Glossy design magazines, a few sad-looking New Yorkers begging to be read, every potty training how-to guide published in the last decade, and a new book called Commencement, by J. Courtney Sullivan.

I am often overwhelmed when searching for a new book to read, digging through old NYT book reviews that I've set aside to signal a future read, scrolling through my Amazon wishlist and considering their recommendations based on my reading history (seriously? some of their choices make me seem insane.), and poring over online reviews in hopes of hitting the proverbial literary jackpot.  After reading a handful of glowing reviews, I ordered Commencement with little internal debate.

Unfortunately, I didn't hit the jackpot with Commencement, which turned out to be a frustrating coming of age story chronicling the lives of four women at Smith College, during and after their graduation.  While the writing was compelling at points, Perhaps my college experience at a massive, co-ed Big 10 school was so vastly different from one at a private women's college that it was impossible to identify with the characters enough to invest in them.  Their incessant rehashing of feelings, strange tales of women's college antics, and endless pages of alcohol-filled bad behavior had me threatening (to nobody in particular) to put the book down and move on to something else. 

I did eventually finish the entire thing, thanks in part to a plot twist later in the story and part to a stubborn hope that the reviewers knew something I didn't, but in the end I was left wishing for my $20 and 9 hours back.  I have a great appreciation for authors and complete respect for a difficult craft that a good writer can make seem easy.  Commencement was not a bad book, but it didn't live up to its reviews and it wasn't the book for me.

A Homemade Life

I just finished reading another recipe-filled memoir (my newest literary obsession), this one by the fabulously talented Molly Wizenberg of Orangette.  Her book, A Homemade Life, is a blogger's inspiration.   When I stumbled upon it while perusing the shelves at Borders, I immediately had to take it home and dive in.

As a blogger who also has a full-time gig completely unrelated to my domestic ramblings, I often struggle with sharing enough personal information to give my writing meaning and revealing myself completely, flaws and all.  Wizenberg is refreshingly open and forthcoming as she beautifully articulates her love for her late father, chronicles meeting her husband, and shares everything in between while feathering in simple, delicious recipes that flow brilliantly through the story of her life.

I loved the book and am working my way through the amazing recipes, starting with the chocolate banana bread with crystallized ginger.  Yep, it tastes as good as it sounds.

What The Dog Saw: And Other Adventures

I would venture to guess that most everyone who reads nonfiction on a regular basis has read at least one book by Malcolm Gladwell.  He is a brilliant writer, presenting true life stories in a way that the reader has probably never looked at them.  What The Dog Saw: And Other Adventures, his latest work, is a collection of his best essays that have been published in The New Yorker over the past 15 years.

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Some of the essays in the book are riveting, and a few I could have lived without.  I found the profiles on Cesar Milan, "The Dog Whisperer" and Ron Popeil, the celebrated pitchman to be completely fascinating.  Gladwell consistently forces the reader to look at things in a different way, and consequently I always feel challenged after reading his work.

If you're a Gladwell fan, this book is a must.  If you haven't experienced his unique, thought-provoking writing, What The Dog Saw is a great way to start, in the form of easily digestible essays that will exercise your mind and leave you hungry for more of his fascinating brand of writing.

Book Review: Await Your Reply

I'm totally bummed.  I just finished reading Await Your Reply by Dan Chaon, and it has left me in a bit of a funk.  The book, which deals with the theme of identity theft through a series of three stories running concurrently, is beautifully written and completely and utterly depressing at the same time.

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I don't typically shy away from serious themes, so I dug into this book right away despite its dark plot.  I was captivated immediately and finished the book a few days, but it has left me feeling uneasy.   Chaon has the ability to write so vividly that his sentences leave the reader with haunting images long after the story is over. 

 Perhaps my next two or three reads need to be fluffy and uplifting to counteract some of the darkness I am left with.

A Night With My Favorite Author

I am so excited.  For our wedding anniversary in December, my husband bought us tickets to a David Sedaris reading.  Mr. Sedaris just happens to be my favorite author on the entire planet.  His books consist of hilarious essays recounting his somewhat unusual life experiences.  At the readings, he tells stories, introduces new material, and reads from his books in a way that makes you think that listening to an author read their own material is the only way to go.

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I've been anxiously counting down the days until the show, and it's finally here.  Tomorrow night!  I am giddy!

If you haven't read anything by Sedaris, I recommend you start with this.

And follow it up with this.

And to get you in the mood for the holidays, you MUST read this.

Heck, just go buy his entire library.  I promise you will eventually.

Book Review: The Help

After a few false starts, I just finished The Help by Kathryn Stockett.  Although it took me more time than usual to get into the story, by the halfway mark I couldn't put it down. 

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The Help was a fantastic story about the Civil Rights Movement told by a group of women living in Mississippi in the 1960's.  It gives a brilliant and thought provoking look at the moral and ethical implications of pre and post-movement race relations. 

I love the feeling of finishing a good book and being satisfied of the time you devoted to the process.  The hard part is finding a new story to captivate your attention as much as the last one did.  The search is on.  Any recommendations?

Kid-Friendly Cookbooks

I've fallen in love with a new genre of books.  It's sort of a hybrid cookbook and parenting guide, with real-life anecdotes mixed in.

Last year I started with Hungry Monkey by Matthew Amster-Burton.  This is such a well written book, filled with short, hilarious vignettes written by a food writer/dad who is trying to foster an appreciation of wide spectrum of foods in his young daughter.  The sharp, witty writing is almost as delicious as the recipes, which have become some of my favorite meals during the past year.

I enjoyed Hungry Monkey so much that I picked up a similar book that Amster-Burton recommended called Too Many Cooks: Kitchen Adventures With One Mom, Four Kids and 102 Recipes by Emily Franklin.

This book is a little bit more serious, but equally compelling and filled with simple, clean and absolutely delicious recipes.  A few of my favorites are buttery apricot bars and a crisy roasted chicken.  Franklin's anecdotes about motherhood and cooking were so engaging that I devoured the book in a few hours and had to read it again.

I would recommend both books to any parent who has struggled with what to cook for your kids.  Now I'm on a search for any new writing in this genre.  Any suggestions?

Book Review: Food Rules

This book review seems a bit hypocritical, as I recently wrote a post declaring my love of FRIED JELLY DONUTS. However, am a big fan of Michael Pollan’s writing, and am thoroughly enjoying his latest book, Food Rules: An Eater's Manual.

This lightweight little tome is a lightning fast read, filled with simple, practical advice on how to eat for your health and longevity. Pollan makes points that we sometimes need to be reminded of, like the importance of avoiding processed foods and the art of grocery shopping.

As a working mom who never feels like I have enough time to devote to my kids, one thing I feel very strongly about is feeding them balanced, healthy foods. Good food makes for happy, healthy, energetic kids and has made an amazing difference in our household.

Food Rules is brilliant in its simplicity, and reaffirms the benefits of good eating habits, while still advocating the importance of special treats on occasion.  Mr. Pollan, I didn't see a rule involving jelly donuts.  Thoughts?