Let the Reading Begin
Many of you are familiar with the Readathon, a twice yearly event which begins today at midnight GMT and continues for 24 hours.
Hundreds of readers are participating and posting on their blogs, twitter, Facebook and Goodreads. There are lots of fun events, mini-challenges and prizes throughout the day and night.
It’s 7 a.m. here in Chicagoland and I’m still waking up, having my coffee and reading through some of the opening posts. This is be my sixth Readathon and I have yet to make a full 24 hours, but it’s always been a great time.
I will be updating this post throughout the Readathon.
Rather than fill my feed with posts that a some of you may not be interested in, I will use this one post for my updates and mini-challenges throughout the day and on twitter at #readathon.
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Hour 1 – Introduction
1) What fine part of the world are you reading from today?
I live in the USA in a suburb of Chicago. Read more…
Easy Gourmet by Stephanie Le
Publisher: Page Street Publishing | Sept 2014
Format: Paperback | 240 pages
Rating: 5 of 5
About the Book:
Stephanie Le, creator of I am a Food Blog, has written her first cookbook, Easy Gourmet. Her gorgeous mouth-watering photography, strong friendly voice, and incredibly delicious recipes come together in this easy-to-follow cookbook that belongs in every kitchen.
Beautifully depicting the foods we all want to be cooking and eating, Easy Gourmet is full of updated modern twists on your favorite classics like Chicken and Waffles, Maple-Glazed Duck, Miso Cod and Quinoa, and Sriracha Hot Wings.
My Thoughts:
Easy Gourmet is designed with the busy cook in mind with simple, yet unique, dishes. I admit, I was attracted by the word ‘easy’ in the title because the word ‘gourmet’ usually scares me away. But here I found recipes that even new cooks will appreciate. The easy-to-follow directions are accompanied by full-page, mouth-watering photos. The book is very functional with a binding created so that the pages lie flat – an important feature that way too many cookbook publishers fail to consider.
Each recipe is complete on one page and includes a description, a little background info from the author, a list of ingredients with measurements in english and metric, and step-by-step instructions. The opposite page contains a beautiful, full-color photo of the finished dish.
One caveat: A little planning ahead may be necessary. Not all of the required ingredients will be on your pantry shelf; however, I don’t expect to find them there if I am making a gourmet-style dish. Most, though, should be easy to find in major shopping markets. For example, the French Onion Grilled Cheese calls for Gruyère cheese which is not currently in my refrigerator but I know my grocery store stocks it. Many of the dishes call for fresh herbs, micro greens or Arugula which will need to be obtained shortly before preparing the dish..
The recipes are grouped into sections: Breakfast, Pasta & Rice, Meats, Seafood, Vegetables, Soups & Stews, Sandwiches, Snacks, and Dessert. The book also includes a short introduction by the author plus an alphabetical index in the back.
A Quick Peek Inside:
French Onion Grilled Cheese
This take on grilled cheese sounds delicious and I will be making it as soon as I pick up some Gruyère Cheese.
Rosemary Potatoes
Rosemary Potatoes are one of my favorite side dishes. I grow Rosemary and often add it to roasted potatoes, but I can never get them crispy like in a restaurant. Now I know what I was doing wrong: boil them first and rough up the edges before roasting. Simple and effective.
A Look Inside
For those who want to get an additional peek at the book before buying, there is a nice selection of breakfast recipe samples, photos and a look at the entire index of recipes using the Look Inside feature. The Carrot Cake Pancakes sound fantastic and will be breakfast in my house very soon.
All-in-all, this is a worthy addition to my cookbook shelf.
This post is linked to Weekend Cooking, hosted by Beth Fish Reads.
Participation is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book (novel, nonfiction) reviews, cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, fabulous quotations, photographs.
Source: Review copy provided by the publisher and AmazonVine.
© 2014 Under My Apple Tree. All rights reserved.
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Almost wordless: Shaggy Ink Caps were popping out from beneath what I believe is a patch of wild blackberry shoots in the park where I watch birds. These are edible mushrooms, but I forage only with my camera!
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More Wordless Wednesday. © 2014 Under My Apple Tree. All rights reserved.
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A Brief Moment of Weightlessness
Stories by Victoria Fish
Genre: Short Stories, Contemporary Fiction
Publisher: Mayapple Press | June 2014
Format: Paperback | 132 pages
Rating: 4½ of 5
About the Book:
A Brief Moment of Weightlessness is a collection of short stories that illuminate the beauty and extraordinariness of “ordinary” lives. Each explores the human desire for connectedness and grace.
The stories range from large upheavals to small moments. These illuminating, heartbreaking, poignant, astute stories take on serious issues of death/dying, injury, infidelity, aftermath of war, estrangement and more, but without a sense of gloom that could overwhelm them.
My Thoughts:
A well-crafted short story can have a strong impact on the reader; A Brief Moment of Weightlessness is that type of collection. It is a slim volume of only 130 pages, but each of these eleven stories offers a powerful glimpse into a slice of life of ordinary people.
I enjoyed all of the stories, but one of my favorites was Unleashed.
In Unleashed, Alison, a busy young mother pays a visit to a memory care nursing home as part of a ‘Pet Visiting Program’ with her young son, Thomas, and their dog. As the residents of the home have trouble remembering the details of their lives, or even what day it is, we see in contrast Alison’s preoccupation with her own worries and forgetfulness.
Did I take the chicken out to defrost?
Did I leave the house unlocked for the cleaning lady?
How old was Thomas when he took his first step?
Almost in a panic, Alison then imagines her own son struggling as an old man, 80 years from now. When one of the residents insists Alison is her niece, she decides not to argue with the woman’s version of reality.
What these stories all have in common is their ability to present serious topics in a thoughtful and genuine manner with rich, elegant prose. It was easy to empathize with many of these characters and to feel emotionally connected, something that doesn’t always happen with short stories. Although each story is complete, in the end they will leave the reader wanting more.
About the Author:
In addition to writing short stories, Victoria Fish is pursuing her Masters of Social Work. Her stories have appeared in numerous literary magazines, including Hunger Mountain, Slow Trains, Wild River Review, and Literary Mama. She lives with her husband and three boys in the hills of Vermont. A Brief Moment of Weightlessness is her first book.
For More Info: Publisher | Amazon | Goodreads | Webpage
Giveaway – US and Canada
Thanks to the publisher, I have one copy of A Brief Moment of Weightlessness to give away to a reader with a mailing address in the US or Canada. To enter, fill out the form below on or before October 25th. For an extra entry tweet or blog the giveaway and include the link. I will draw a random winner who will be contacted by email and have 48 hours to respond.
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For a list of tour stops click HERE.
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Source: Review copy from TLC Book Tours
© 2014 Under My Apple Tree. All rights reserved.
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Welcome to Mailbox Monday, created by Marcia of To Be Continued, a place where readers share the books that came in their mailbox during the last week.
After several years of being on tour with different blogs as the monthly host, the Mailbox Monday Blog is now the permanent home for the meme.
Last week I received mostly audiobooks, which is good since lately I’ve been doing much more listening than reading. I’ve been spending a lot of time working at the computer the past few weeks and my eyes are, apparently, demanding a rest. When I do sit down to read in the evening, I often fall asleep!
I planted a little pumpkin patch at the edge of my garden this summer using the seeds from one of last year’s gourds. I got lots of vines and flowers, but only three little pumpkins.
New Arrivals
The Children Act by Ian McEwan from Recorded Books and LibraryThing.
High Court judge Fiona Maye is buffeted by traumas both work related (religious beliefs stand between a boy and a life-saving blood transfusion) and domestic (Fiona’s husband leaves her after asking for an open marriage).
Hug Machine by Scott Campbell from Simon & Schuster and AmazonVine.
Who have YOU hugged today? Open your arms to this delightfully tender, goofy, and sweet tale.
Audiobook Downloads
From Simon & Schuster Audio
You by Caroline Kepnes.
How far would you go for the perfect love? A young man’s dark obsession with an enigmatic, gorgeous writer leads to murderous consequences in this erotic psychological thriller.
Afterworlds by Scott Westerfeld.
The Afterworld is a place between the living and the dead and as Lizzie drifts between our world and that of the Afterworld, she discovers that many unsolved – and terrifying – stories need to be reconciled…
Big Driver by Stephen King.
Stephen King’s haunting story about an author of a series of mystery novels who tries to reconcile her old life with her life after a horrific attack and the one thing that can save her: Revenge.
How was your week?
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© 2014 Under My Apple Tree. All rights reserved.
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Thank you to everyone that stopped by to enter the giveaways last week.
Winner: Vicki
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© 2014 Under My Apple Tree. All rights reserved.
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Orange-crowned Warblers have a wide range throughout North America. They spend their summers in Canada and the Western US, and they winter in Mexico and Central America. They pass through much of the remainder of the US during migration, but most people will never notice them with their olive-gray color and lack of bold markings. The orange crown patch for which they are named is rarely seen.
The Orange-crowned is one of the few warblers that is more common in the Western states than in the East. They rarely visit backyards and prefer low, dense habitats. I spotted this bird at the park in the restored prairie foraging with a flock of Goldfinches.
Warblers are incredibly difficult to photograph. They are quick moving and constantly jump from plant to plant. I was lucky this one was low enough to the ground to be in camera range, and hungry enough to tolerate my presence while he continued to forage for food.
Saturday Snapshot is hosted by Melinda of West Metro Mommy. Visit her blog to see more great photos.
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