Kindle Love

So I get a ton of use from my Kindle (and the free loans from the Lexington Library).  Here are some more books to add to your reading list:

Water for Elephants

I'm late on this bandwagon, but it's awesome.  Read it. 

The Book Thief

Written in Nazi Germany during World War I from the prospective of Death, the book chronicles the life of a poor family. Another astounding book that is hard to put down.

Cutting for Stone

An interesting novel about life in the face of tragedy in Ethiopia. The book draws you in immediately and truly brings the characters to life.

A Discovery of Witches

The book reminded me of a more sophisticated Twilight, involving history, science, magic and vampires.  I didn't adore the book like I did some of the others, but it was compelling enough that I will likely read the sequel once it is out.

The Night Circus

I had never heard of it before our book club, but I loved it.  A dreamy novel about a magical circus and the lives of those it touches.  I don't think it's a coincidence that I wore black and white with a touch of red almost every day to work while I was reading it.

Book Reviews

When I can't sleep at night, I read. Lately, I've been an insomniac, so I've been reading like crazy.  I've read some great books lately, so here are a few to add to your reading lists:

The Hunger Games Trilogy

I was skeptical at first because the target audience is about 13, but these books are seriously amazing.  I read all three (Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay) in one weekend--I just couldn't put them down. I can't wait to see the movie, especially since the two main actors are from Kentucky (and therefore District 12). 

The Paris Wife 

A wonderful glimpse into Hemingway's early life with his first wife, Hadley.  Very well written and interesting account of their life and love in the 1920s. 

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan  

 I knew absolutely nothing about Chinese society in the 1800s, so the book was extremely intriguing to me.  It portrays life and ideals of Chinese women from each stage of life, including growing up as an unloved daughter, feet binding, arranged marriages, the desire and need to have sons, and living/caring for in-laws. There is also an independent film based on the book, but I haven't seen it yet.

Heaven is For Real

This is a good, quick read for those interested in religion.  It is written about a pastor's four year old son who claims to have gone to Heaven during a near-death experience in the hospital.  

Read any good books lately that you want to share?  I'm always looking for suggestions (or people willing to lend me Kindle books!)

Read Me

I read quite a few books on the plane and during the down times of our cruise.  I have quite a few to review, but I'll start with my favorite: Half Broke Horses.

This is the prequel to my favorite book I read this year: The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls. If you haven't read these two books, please go pick them up. 

The Glass Castle is the author's memoir.  The book is a almost a series of short memories or stories of her childhood.  While Walls grew up in extreme poverty, she portrays her life story in wonderful way that doesn't seek pity from the reader.  Seriously, this is the best book I read this year.

Walls then wrote Half Broke Horses to tell her grandmother's story.  Written in the same way, the story explains Walls' family background of strong women.

Both of her stories are so interesting its hard to remember that they are depictions of real lives.  Okay, so I'm doing a bad job selling these books--but seriously, go read them and let me know what you think. 

Weekend

Thursday night was our Theta book club. It was a bit small this time (only three of us!) but we had a blast catching up.

Our sorority housemother (our beloved Momma J) suggested this book and we all loved it.  Go read this book. The end was a bit too cookie-cutter for me (but it was also my criticism with The Help so I'm probably a harsh critic).  Without giving anything away,  it involves an English author directly after World War II and is written through a series of letters.  I've been reading like crazy so I promise to suggest some other books I've read this month.

Cam's sister Amy, her husband and their adorable 17 month old baby boy Noah came to visit us this weekend. Bryan (her husband) had never been to Lexington so we wanted to show them around the Bluegrass.  First of all, I was a bum and took no pictures all weekend, so I'm stealing all the pictures from Amy.

On Friday we stopped by Katherine's birthday party and Noah got to play in the pool for a bit.  On our way home, we of course had Orange Leaf.  It seems like every other post on here is about Orange Leaf, so Amy wanted to try it.  Half of why I love the place is because I am addicted to junk food/sweets, with ice cream being one of my worst addictions. I love the idea of low-fat/non-fat yogurt that is still delicious.  Confession: I'll admit that their weird Japanese topping mochi was in my dream last night.  No idea why or how, but I remember hearing the word over and over.  Now that, my friends, is pathetic. But, it sure beats the Bar nightmares or baby dreams I've been constantly having. 

Cam and I borrowed toys for Noah (like a firetruck, shopping cart, horses, blocks, puppets, stuffed animals, balls, etc), but the clear favorite toy was Sophia, our cat.  Noah chased her around the whole weekend and was great about petting her gently.  She took it like a champ as well and was rather intrigued by having a tiny human around her house.

The other favorite toy were the stairs between the living room and kitchen. The firetruck also fared well. 

We went to the farmer's market Saturday morning.  Local ladies: check out Dad's Favorite spreads--we each sampled a different one and they were all delicious.

The kid in the middle-left picture was amazing. He's in middle school and has the courage to sing and play the guitar in a big crowd. He had a great, raspy voice (probably straining his voice to do this, but we all enjoyed it anyway).

He was so good that Noah even put some change in his Sponge Bob bucket (yes, that's me in the background--sorry to ruin your picture Amy!)

Bryan (Amy's husband) made a smoothie by pedaling the bike...

...but someone else got to enjoy Bryan's hard work.

We drove out Frankfort Pike to show them the horse country and ate at Wallace Station (the place in Midway from Food Network's Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives). 

I'd never been there, and it is AHHH-Mazing. Let me forewarn you-these sandwiches are definitely big enough to split. Cam was certain they were not that big, so we each ordered one.  Completely unnecessary (but they do make great leftovers). And, if the worst thing was too much delicious food, I'll take that problem any day.

We walked around Midway for a bit, headed over to Woodford Reserve's distillery, and stopped by Keeneland on our way home.  Can I just say I am so excited for Keeneland in October??! Sweet Noah passed out in the car on the way home and slept through Keeneland. 

Saturday night we went to the Chevy Chase block party.  Again local ladies: try Valentine's ice cream. It was the second time we've had it and Cam puts it right up there with Graeters. Now that is saying something because he likes Graeter's more than Orange Leaf...

The Herald Leader caught the flattering side of Mason's debut at the hot dog eating contest. Love it.

 Finally, what trip to Lexington would be complete without Spalding's donuts...two mornings in a row?

Playing Hostess

Tonight is our book club night and this month's book was one of my favorites: The Glass Castle. I cannot recommend this book enough--I literally could not put it down.  It is a fabulous memoir by Jeanette Walls.  She spins such interesting tales and portrays her impoverished childhood in a fascinating and humorous way. Seriously, go pick it up (or for you tech-snobs with a Kindle, download it, not that I'm insanely jealous or anything...). 

I'm hosting the book club this month, so I'd thought I would share my appetizer recipes for tonight. I'm not exactly known for my cooking skills so trust me, these are easy-peasy to make. 

Cam and I braved the snow tonight to go grocery shopping. for it  We  also stopped and picked up wine because what book club is complete with a bottle or three? Definitely not ours. Once I made my selection, Cam pointed out that all four bottles I grabbed were Chilean or Argentinean. Apparently, my subconscious is already on vacation. I did intentionally grab two wines from vineyards we are looking to visit, so I'm excited to try those :)
 

Any Blonde Can Cook: 

Okay, I don't know the name of these, but they are from a friend's cookbook, Any Blonde Can Cook--which I think says it all. The cookbook is full of simple recipes that are 3-4 ingredients--just my pace. And, these are delicious. 

• Slice up a baguette and bake the bread at 375 degrees until it is lightly toasted (my oven it's about 7-10 minutes).  
• Remove from oven, and spread a layer of goat cheese on the slices.  
• Sprinkle walnut pieces over the goat cheese. 
• Drizzle honey and goat cheese over the walnuts.

Olive Tapenade Palmiers
This recipe is from one of my cookbooks, Small Parties. I have never made them before, but it sounds right up my alley: I love anything with olives.

•  Unfold 1 package (17.3 oz) of a frozen phyllo sheet (puff pastry), separate the two sheets, and use a rolling pin to roll each sheet so that no folds are visible.  
• In your food processor, mix together an olive tapenade (a blend of your favorite olives). When I make tapenade, I use 1 cup black olives, 1/2-3/4 cup green olives, 1/2-3/4 cup kalamata olives, 2 cloves of garlic, a little olive oil, a teaspoon of lemon juice, and a pinch of black pepper. You can do two different ones if you wish since there are two phyllos.
• Spread this olive tapenade onto each phyllo sheet.  
• Sprinkle 1 cup of shredded parmesan cheese over the olive tapenade. 
• Roll each phyllo up halfway, starting at one end (i.e., roll to the center of one phyllo) and then roll from the opposite end so that the two spirals meet in the middle.
• Slice each roll into 1/2 inch slices and lay each side down on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Bake each roll for 425 degrees for 15 minutes, or until golden and puffed.  Allow to cool.

Fancy Brownies
I found this recipe at Big Red Kitchen, and think the picture of hers' says it all...

• Bake a box-mix brownies in a 9x13 pan according to the box's directions and let cool (leaving it in the pan).
• Spread vanilla icing over the brownies so that the icing is approximately 1/4 inch thick. I plan on making my favorite: cream cheese icing. Just cream together one 8 oz container of softened cream cheese, 1/4 cup softened butter,  1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla. 
• In a saucepan, melt 1 stick of butter and 4 oz of semi-sweet chocolate chips until it forms a smooth glaze. 
• Remove glaze from heat and pour the glaze over the icing-ed brownies evenly. Let glaze set and then slice up brownies and serve. 

Don't forget about entering the giveaway in yesterday's post!

Story Time

 1. The Help. I enjoyed Kathryn Sockett's quick read. Placed in Mississippi in the 1960s, the book portrays the relationships between the white families and their black maids: "the help." I enjoyed how the book was narrated by both the the viewpoint of the maid and the white children they raise.  Sockett did a wonderful job of making the characters (although somewhat stereotypical in nature) come to life and created great visuals of the characters and society.  Honestly, while I cannot say enough good things about 3/4 of this book, I thought the end was a little too predictable and at felt aspects ended too abruptly or neatly--it was not a satisfying ending. But, I don't think this took away from the novel too much and definitely recommend the book despite the end.

 2. Love in the Time of Cholera. This classic masterpiece by Nobel prize winner Gabriel Garcia Marquez has been on my "to read" list for a while. This book is a look into all types of love: young love, old love, everlasting love, love of country, love triangles, passionate love, lost love, familial love, love after death, love in friendship, and on and on. By including all the types of "love," Garcia Marquez creates a great comparison of true love, lust, and admiration.  It took me longer than usual to wade through the book (I was also trying to read it in a car and on the beach), but it was well worth it as the book is beautifully written. It reminded me of a Hispanic Romeo and Juliet and made the hopleless romantic in me swoon.