A Virtuous Woman

I am dipping into my to-be-read pile for my V entry for the A-Z Wednesday reading challenge. For ages, I have been meaning to read Kaye Gibbon's A Virtuous Woman and I just never seem to get around to it. Maybe this is the push I need.

Here's what Publishers Weekly had to say about A Virtuous Woman:
Jack Stokes and Ruby Pitt weave this strong, tightly knit love story in alternating chapters that begin when Jack, grieving over Ruby's death four months earlier, evokes the past. In flashbacks, the two richly cadenced Southern voices explore their vastly differing backgrounds, troubled histories and their unlikely but loving marriage. Born into a proud, prominent country family, coddled and adored, Ruby stuns her parents and two brothers by inexplicably running off with John Woodrow, a migrant worker who savagely abuses her. When John is killed in a brawl, Ruby, too proud to ask her family for help, begins doing housework for the wealthy Hoover family, where she meets Jack, a laconic, immensely capable tenant farmer on the Hoover land. He is 40; she is 20. Both lonely and vulnerable, they regard each other cautiously, carry on a wary courtship and embark on a firmly grounded marriage. The union is enriched by a small, supportive circle of friends, who, like the couple's landlord, Burr, are sharply etched and convincingly drawn.

This is the type of book I really enjoy -- great characters who face their share of troubles, with a love story at the heart of the novel. Good stuff. Now I just have to move it to the top of my TBR pile!

U is for undomestic

A few years ago, my sister-in-law (hi, Heather!) was reading Sophie Kinsella's Confessions of a Shopaholic while we were all enjoying a family vacation on the beach in Florida. She was constantly laughing out loud and when she finished it, she passed it on to me. I instantly became a fan of Kinsella's breezy chick-lit style. So for this week's A-Z Wednesday reading challenge, where we are now at U, I chose one of my Kinsella favourites, The Undomestic Goddess.

I have to be honest here. To enjoy this novel, you must suspend all rational thought. The plot is implausible, plain and simple. Simply sit back, grab the book, and prepare to enjoy a lighthearted, amusing story in the classic fish-out-of-water vein. Here's what Publishers Weekly had to say about The Undomestic Goddess:
Samantha Sweeting, the 29-year-old heroine of Kinsella's latest confection is on the verge of partnership at the prestigious London law firm Carter Spink — the Holy Grail of her entire workaholic life. But when she finds she has made a terrible, costly mistake just before the partnership decision, she's terrified of being fired. In a fog, she stumbles out of the building and onto the nearest train, which drops her in the countryside, where she wanders to a stately home. The nouveau riche lady of the house mistakes her for the new housekeeper — and Samantha is too astonished to correct her. Numb and unable to face returning to London, Samantha tries to master the finer points of laundry, cooking and cleaning. She discovers that the slow life, her pompous but good-hearted employers and the attentions of the handsome gardener, Nathaniel, suit her just fine. But her past is hard to escape, and when she discovers a terrible secret about her firm — and when the media learns that the former legal star is scrubbing toilets for a living — her life becomes more complicated than ever.
 
Chick-lit this is, but it's chick-lit at its finest. If you're looking for a great book to take on vacation or read while you're hiberating by the fireplace, you won't go wrong with The Undomestic Goddess. Or any of Kinsella's other novels, for that matter.

T is for terrific

The A-Z Wednesday reading challenge seems to be flying towards the end of the alphabet; we're already up to T. It just so happens one of my favourite books begins with this letter: Two for the Road, written by the husband-and-wife team of Jane and Michael Stern.

I love this book. You will too, if you're at all a fan of road trips or even travelling in general. And eating. The catch? You have to be willing to forego the chain restaurants and try the local fare. When the captain and I travel, this is something we always do. If you also do that -- or you haven't but you'd like to -- then please read this book. It'll make you want to hit the road, pronto.

Here's what Publishers Weekly had to say about this gem: The authors of Roadfood are crazy for American local food, that often informal, inexpensive cuisine that's not especially healthy but sure is tasty. The husband-and-wife team has traveled the country since the 1970s, seeking out the sort of food found in "unlikely restaurants in small towns and off two-lane highways," which, naturally, leads to all manner of fish-out-of-water scenarios, which they relate in this endearing chronicle. The Sterns' adventures are funny, if not quite perilous; the car breaks down in Enigma, Ga.; six jugs of iced tea bought at a South Carolina restaurant leak all over the car's floor, which the Sterns don't realize until days later, when they're nearing the Mojave Desert and could really use a refreshment. Their enthusiasm is inspiring; they regularly consume 100 meals in 10 days or less, but that only makes them more passionate for road food. Their descriptions of their grail are the book's highlights: baby back ribs at Carson's, in Skokie, Ill., for instance, are "sensuously sticky with a baked-on sauce that [is] striated red-gold as if it had been painted by an artist of the Hudson River School"; caramel rolls at North Dakota's Havana Cafe are "light and fluffy, swirled with veins of caramel frosting."

And here's a small excerpt:
"Long before GPS and Mapquest, getting lost was our lifestyle. As we drove through the east Tennessee hills on a road that twisted into a realm of primitive otherworldliness, we felt like strangers in a strange land. Through a tunnel of trees, we passed preplumbing log homes with dilapidated La-Z-Boy recliners on their front porches for the residents' relaxation. As foreign as it seemed, it wasn't scary, for every porch-sitter we drove by waved hello as if the passing of a car were a happy event."

This is one of the few books I've read more than twice. The Sterns are so crazy about what they do and they tell their tales of the road with such passion and enthusiasm, it's contagious. I highly recommend this book and I also suggest you check out the Roadfood web site. Happy travelling and happy eating!

Still Alice

Have you ever really wanted to read a book, but at the same time dreaded it? That's how I feel about Still Alice, written by Lisa Genova. Leslie recommended this book to me earlier this year and I've been on the library's waiting list for it ever since (it's a long waiting list). Still Alice is my S pick for the A-Z Wednesday reading challenge.

This is a novel about early-onset Alzheimer's Disease, told from the point of view of Alice Howland, a Harvard professer in her early 50s who begins to notice an unusual forgetfulness in her day-to-day life. As her memory worsens, she receives the horrible diagnosis of early-onset Alzheimer's. Reviewers have called this book "a work of pure genius" and "heartbreakingly real". The Alzheimer's Daily News wrote, "A masterpiece that will touch lives in ways none of us can even imagine....the best portrayal of the Alzheimer's journey that I have read." The book even has its own web site.

This, from Amazon: Still Alice is a compelling debut novel about a 50-year-old woman's sudden descent into early onset Alzheimer's disease, written by first-time author Lisa Genova, who holds a Ph. D in neuroscience from Harvard University.
Alice Howland, happily married with three grown children and a house on the Cape, is a celebrated Harvard professor at the height of her career when she notices a forgetfulness creeping into her life. As confusion starts to cloud her thinking and her memory begins to fail her, she receives a devastating diagnosis: early onset Alzheimer's disease. Fiercely independent, Alice struggles to maintain her lifestyle and live in the moment, even as her sense of self is being stripped away. In turns heartbreaking, inspiring and terrifying, Still Alice captures in remarkable detail what's it's like to literally lose your mind...
Reminiscent of A Beautiful Mind, Ordinary People and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, Still Alice packs a powerful emotional punch and marks the arrival of a strong new voice in fiction.

When I was a teenager, one of my father's friends, an extremely intelligent, sophisticated man in his mid-40s, began to lose his memory. Within a short time, he went from being a vibrant, outgoing individual to a confused recluse. It was so hard on his family. For me, only 15 at the time, it was terribly confusing. Alzheimer's again touched my life, about 20 years ago, when the mother of my boss at the time was stricken with it. She too suffered a rapid deterioration. It's a horrible disease and I do hope this book will make me better informed about it.

The Road, by Cormac McCarthy

There was no decision-making to be done in choosing my R book for this week's A-Z Wednesday reading challenge. I could choose no other than Cormac McCarthy's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, The Road. This is one of the most haunting novels I have ever read -- bleak, chilling, yet in the end, in its own way, uplifting. A true literary masterpiece.

The Road features a father and son, travelling south through the eastern United States, on foot. The setting is post-apocalyptic, barren and ashy. Few people have survived. It is late fall or early winter and it is very cold. There are constant dangers, including other survivors who have adopted evil, cannabilistic lifestyles. These two, father and son, should have no hope, but yet they do, yet they continue on. The novel highlights a world that has almost destroyed itself, yet you come to realize that it also highlights love. McCarthy dedicated this book to his son and although it is a chilling, harrowing tale, it also illustrates the unending devotion a parent can have for their child. When all else is lost, that love is not.

I sought out this book after watching McCarthy being interviewed by Oprah Winfrey. It was an awkward interview; clearly the man did not want to talk to her yet both he and Oprah soldiered on. It was fascinating and I wanted to know more about him, and about this book. The only other McCarthy novel I have read is No Country for Old Men, a violent tale that left me unsatisfied. But this book? This one I loved.

I must warn you though, The Road is not an easy read. You will care about the well-being of the father and son but still, this is not a light, feel-good book; it is only after closing the pages the final time does the message really sink in. However, McCarthy also writes with a beautiful, lyrical prose; in that sense, the book is a true joy to read.

While I highly recommend The Road, I do recognize that many will want to pass it by. Personally, it is a favourite of mine and I also look forward to seeing the upcoming movie and only hope it does this book justice.

Here's a small excerpt:

He woke before dawn and watched the gray day break. Slow and half opaque. He rose while the boy slept and pulled on his shoes and wrapped in his blanket he walked out through the trees. He descended into a gryke in the stone and there he crouched coughing and he coughed for a long time. Then he just knelt in the ashes. He raised his face to the paling day. Are you there? he whispered. Will I see you at the last? Have you a neck by which to throttle you? Have you a heart? Damn you eternally have you a soul? Oh God, he whispered. Oh God.

They passed through the city at noon of the day following. He kept the pistol to hand on the folded tarp on top of the cart. He kept the boy close to his side. The city was mostly burned. No sign of life. Cars in the street caked with ash, everything covered with ash and dust. Fossil tracks in the dried sludge. A corpse in a doorway dried to leather. Grimacing at the day. He pulled the boy closer. Just remember that the things you put into your head are there forever, he said. You might want to think about that.

You forget some things, dont you?

Yes. You forget what you want to remember and you remember what you want to forget.

Quickies: Ten Quick Ways with Everyday Foods

When you participate in an ongoing activity like the A-Z Wednesday Challenge, you can't help but think ahead to the more troublesome letters and wonder what books you'll choose when the appropriate week rolls around. As of now, I don't know what book I'll blog about when X and Z are featured, but I never doubted for a moment what I would post about during this week, Q week.

Chatelaine is one of Canada's most popular women's magazines and their cookbooks are terrific. Quickies: Ten Quick Ways with Everyday Foods was the first in the series of "Quickies" cookbooks; I have several of them and this one is quite possibly the best of the bunch. It's certainly the one I use more than the others. Written by the magazine's then food editor, Monda Rosenberg, the book features pages and pages of food items with 10 quick recipes for each. In total, the book features 1,000 ideas! The food items are presented alphabetically, making it easy to look up something for which you need inspiration -- perhaps asparagus, broccoli, chicken thighs, all the way through to zucchini. It's a great resource and some of my favourite recipes are from this book. In particular, the spiced nuts (I have the recipe posted HERE) -- they're a Christmas staple for me. Other "nut" suggestions from the book include "Sugar Snap Peas & Cashews" and "Chili-Lime Peanuts", along with 7 others including the aforementioned spiced nuts. Yum, yum.

I believe this book is out-of-print, but I found it listed at Amazon with used copies available. Since this is a Canadian book, I doubt my American friends will be able to find it in their local libraries, but here in Canada it shouldn't be too hard to locate.

Push: a novel

When the A-Z Wednesday Challenge rolls around each week, I usually post about a book I have read, but not today. Instead, for this week's letter P, I'm highlighting a book I hope to read soon: Push: a novel, by Sapphire. You may have noticed all the media buzz about the new movie Precious.....that movie is based on this novel. It's apparently a slim read, but packs an emotional powerhouse of a punch. One reviewer on Amazon warned that it is "not a fun book" and said she felt like taking a bath after reading it, she felt she had waded through so much mud. She also said it's a book she'll never forget.

Here's the novel's description: Claireece Precious Jones endures unimaginable hardships in her young life. Abused by her mother, raped by her father, she grows up poor, angry, illiterate, fat, unloved and generally unnoticed. So what better way to learn about her than through her own, halting dialect. That is the device deployed in the first novel by poet and singer Sapphire. "Sometimes I wish I was not alive," Precious says. "But I don't know how to die. Ain' no plug to pull out. 'N no matter how bad I feel my heart don't stop beating and my eyes open in the morning." An intense story of adversity and the mechanisms to cope with it.

I don't mind reading books that are disturbing and have been on the library's waiting list for this novel for weeks. I hope to read it before seeing the movie.

One for the money

I didn't even look at my bookshelves when I realized we were up to O in the A-Z Wednesday Challenge; I knew immediately what book I would choose. One for the Money, by Janet Evanovich, is the first in a series of books about bounty hunter Stephanie Plum -- this series is an absolute favourite of mine.

I don't even remember who recommended these books to me, but after I read this first one, One for the Money, the captain and I began a quest, visiting numerous second-hand book stores until I was up to date. This book has suspense, it has romance, it has laugh-out-loud moments; heck, that describes the entire series. The characters are quirky and you'll fall for all of them.

You should be able to find plenty of copies of this series at your local library as well as bookstores, but I do recommend you read them in order. There is definite character development as you move through the series and new characters are introduced along the way; some story lines also develop in one book and then continue on. If you don't read in order, I fear you'll be a bit out of the loop.

From Janet Evanovich's web site, here is her description of One for the Money:
Watch out, world. Here comes Stephanie Plum, a bounty hunter with attitude. In Stephanie's opinion, toxic waste, rabid drivers, armed schizophrenics, and August heat, humidity, and hydrocarbons are all part of the great adventure of living in Jersey.
She's a product of the "burg," a blue-collar pocket of Trenton where houses are attached and narrow, cars are American, windows are clean, and (God forbid you should be late) dinner is served at six.
Now Stephanie's all grown up and out on her own, living five miles from Mom and Dad's, doing her best to sever the world's longest umbilical cord. Her mother is a meddler, and her grandmother is a few cans short of a case.
Out of work and out of money, with her Miata repossessed and her refrigerator empty, Stephanie blackmails her bail bondsman cousin, Vinnie, into giving her a try as an apprehension agent. Stephanie knows zilch about the job requirements, but she figures her new pal, fearless bounty hunter Ranger, can teach her what it takes to catch a crook.
Her first assignment: nail Joe Morelli, a former vice cop on the run from a charge of murder one. Morelli is also the irresistible macho pig who took Stephanie's virginity at age sixteen and then wrote the details on the bathroom wall of Mario's Sub Shop. There's still powerful chemistry between these two, so the chase should be interesting.
It could also be extremely dangerous, especially when Stephanie encounters a heavyweight title contender who likes to play rough. Benito Ramirez is known for his brutality to women. At the very least, his obsession with Stephanie complicates her manhunt and brings terror and uncertainty into her life. At the worst, it could lead to murder.

One last thing. Two years ago, the captain and I were cruising for our anniversary and one of our dinner companions was a retired teacher from New Jersey. She asked me if I'd read these books and when I told her I was a fan, she told me how much she also loved this series and also that Evanovich has the New Jersey neighbourhoods absolutely nailed, that she felt "at home" when she read the books. She said Evanovich's descriptions of both the Trenton area and the local people were bang-on. One day, I want to check out the area for myself!

Next, by Michael Crichton

The late Michael Crichton was responsible for one of my all-time favourite television shows (ER), so for this week's A-Z Wednesday Challenge -- we're up to the letter N -- I decided to acknowledge his considerable talent by choosing one of his novels, Next. Not his best, but I did find it a real page-turner.

Crichton, perhaps best known for Jurassic Park, released this book back in 2006, with the paperback coming out about a year later. It was to be his last novel. I eagerly looked forward to reading it and while I would agree with some of the criticisms levelled at the book -- too many characters and sub-plots, for example -- I still most definitely recommend it.

The novel is based on genetics. At Harper Collins, the book's publisher, I found this description:
Is a loved one missing some body parts? Are blondes becoming extinct? Is everyone at your dinner table of the same species? Humans and chimpanzees differ in only 400 genes; is that why a chimp fetus resembles a human being? And should that worry us? There's a new genetic cure for drug addiction—is it worse than the disease?
We live in a time of momentous scientific leaps, a time when it's possible to sell our eggs and sperm online for thousands of dollars and to test our spouses for genetic maladies.
We live in a time when one fifth of all our genes are owned by someone else, and an unsuspecting person and his family can be pursued cross-country because they happen to have certain valuable genes within their chromosomes . . .
Devilishly clever, Next blends fact and fiction into a breathless tale of a new world where nothing is what it seems and a set of new possibilities can open at every turn.
Next challenges our sense of reality and notions of morality. Balancing the comic and the bizarre with the genuinely frightening and disturbing, Next shatters our assumptions and reveals shocking new choices where we least expect.
The future is closer than you think.

I couldn't tell you how accurately the science of genetics is presented in this novel, which parts are the creation of Crichton's imagination and which are based in fact. All I can say is that I enjoyed the book, especially Gerard, the intellligent grey parrot. If you're interested, your local library likely has several copies.

Midwives

Another week, another book selection for the A-Z Wednesday Challenge. We are up to M and I had a few books make my short list: Stephen King's Misery, one of the rare books where I couldn't help but cheat and read ahead, almost sick with anticipation of what might occur, then backtrack and read through; Carson McCullers' The Member of the Wedding, a novel I read long ago and loved; Mostly True: A Memoir of Family, Food and Baseball, an excellent autobiography written by Mollie O'Neill. I had cookbooks on my short list too, including Mrs. Wilkes Boardinghouse Cookbook, a fascinating book by Savannah's Sema Wilkes. As well, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, the Julia Child gem, had to make my short list.

But I went with a novel I read a few years ago, one that captivated me from first page to last, Chris Bohjalian's Midwives. I saw Bohjalian on The Oprah Winfrey Show, talking about his novel after Oprah picked it as one of her book club selections. After watching the show, I knew I just had to read it. Midwives is a gripping page-turner, a provocative book that features both courtroom suspense and domestic drama; a novel that challenges your sense of right and wrong and the moral decisions that sometimes must be made.

A book that stays with you. Even now, many years after reading it, I still consider it a favourite of mine.

I found this description of Midwives on the web and it sums up the plot perfectly: On an icy winter night of 1981 in the rustic community of Reddington, Vermont, seasoned midwife Sibyl Danforth is forced to make a life-or-death decision that will change her world forever. Trapped by the weather in an isolated farmhouse, cut off from the hospital or even the emergency squad, she takes desperate measures to save the life of a baby, performing a cesarean section on a woman she believes has died of a stroke during a long and painful labor. But what if the woman was still alive during the surgery? What if Sibyl herself inadvertently killed her? The hair-raising story of Charlotte Bedford's death and of the subsequent trial of Sibyl Danforth is hauntingly told by Sibyl's fourteen-year-old daughter Connie, now an obstetrician. She is remembering, and it is through her intelligent and watchful eyes that we witness the tragic effects of Charlotte's death and Sibyl's trial. And as Sibyl faces the antagonism of the law, the hostility of the medical establishment, and the nagging accusations of her own conscience, we are compelled to confront questions of human responsibility that are fundamental to our society.

Like I mentioned, the book captivated me from beginning to end. I highly recommend it. Here's an excerpt:

   The morning the judge gave the jury its instructions and sent them away to decide my mother's fate, I overheard her attorney explain to my parents what he said was one of the great myths in litigation: You can tell what a jury has decided the moment they reenter the courtroom after their deliberations, by the way they look at the defendant. Or refuse to look at him. But don't believe it, he told them. It's just a myth.
   I was fourteen years old that fall, however, and it sounded like more than a myth to me. It had that ring of truth to it that I heard in many wives'--and midwives'--tales, a core of common sense hardened firm by centuries of observation. Babies come when the moon is full. If the boiled potatoes burn, it'll rain before dark. A bushy caterpillar's a sign of a cold winter. Don't ever sugar till the river runs free.
   My mother's attorney may not have believed the myth that he shared with my parents, but I sure did. It made sense to me. I had heard much over the past six months. I'd learned well which myths to take to my heart and which ones to discard.

I heart kitsch

It's Wednesday again and you know what that means: time for my weekly contribution to the A-Z Wednesday Challenge. We're up to the letter K and this week I have a fun book to share -- Kitschy Crafts, written by Jo Packham and Matt Shay. I haven't read it yet, but I've requested it from the library and it should be in my hot little hands in a day or two. When I discovered it online, I just knew I had to have a look!

Along with the great retro cover art, it was this description of the book that captured my attention: "It's fun, it's retro—and it's back in style. Take a fond look back at the kitschy crafts of the 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, and 80s, from crocheted doilies to shell-art nightlights. All these nostalgic creations appear in appropriately fashioned period settings that will captivate browsers, and come with instructions for those who just can’t resist creating their own string-art pictures, pink flamingo items, far-out tie dyes, kooky candles, macramé plant hangers, and the one-time must-have on every coffee table: a resin-cast grape cluster. And, of course, who can live without the hottest toy of all? The Sock Monkey Doll. Everyone will have a blast poring over these—even those who have never made a craft in their lives."

Doesn't that sound amazing? Tie dye, macramé, sock monkeys! I can't wait to read this one.

J is for Jamaica Inn

I had five books on my short list for this week's A-Z Wednesday Challenge: one of my favourite Canadian novels, Margaret Laurence's A Jest of God, Peter Benchley's Jaws, and the three "joys", Amy Tan's The Joy Luck Club, Joy of Cooking and The Joy of Sex. Wondering if I'd overlooked a book or two, I browsed around the Toronto Public Library's web site. There I saw it. Jamaica Inn. This classic by Daphne du Maurier should definitely make my short list, I thought.

Then it dawned on me. I had no idea if I had read this book or not. Still don't. Here's the plot summary according to the library: "The coachman tried to warn her away from the ruined, forbidding place on the rainswept Cornish coast. But young Mary Yellan chose instead to honor her mother's dying request that she join her frightened Aunt Patience and huge, hulking Uncle Joss Merlyn at Jamaica Inn. From her first glimpse on that raw November eve, she could sense the inn's dark power. But never did Mary dream that she would become hopelessly ensnared in the vile, villainous schemes being hatched within its crumbling walls -- or that a handsome, mysterious stranger would so incite her passions ... tempting her to love a man whom she dares not trust."

This sounds soooo familiar. And it makes me curious. Here's a book I might have read, but I'm not sure. Has this ever happened to you?

I feel bad about my neck

Okay, I actually don't feel too bad about my neck. Not yet, anyway. But after reading Nora Ephron's thoughtful (and funny!) collection of essays/opinions on getting older, I Feel Bad About My Neck and Other Thoughts On Being a Woman, I suspect that soon enough, I'll be worrying about my own neck and likely other body parts as well. At least I'll be able to laugh about it all.

This favourite of mine was the first book I thought of when I realized that we were already up to the letter I in the A-Z Wednesday Challenge. It's a book packed with Ephron's witty outlook on life, on being a woman, particularly an older woman. With her dry humour at the ready, she touches on topics recognizable to many -- how she can't read the instructions on pill bottles, how much she appreciates hair dye. How she hates her purse. Some chapters have been previously published as magazine articles, so when reading the book, you might get a flush of recognition.

Her commentary throughout the book is a delight to read. For example, this little piece about lunching with friends. "Sometimes I go out to lunch with my girlfriends -- I got that far into the sentence and caught myself. I suppose I mean my women friends. We are no longer girls and have not been girls for forty years. Anyway, sometimes we go to lunch and I look around the table and realize we're all wearing turtleneck sweaters. Sometimes, instead, we're all wearing scarves, like Katharine Hepburn in On Golden Pond. Sometimes we're all wearing mandarin collars and look like a white ladies' version of the Joy Luck Club."

If you're over 40, you'll read this book and laugh a lot, and some topics will be familiar to you already. If you're over 50, the familiary factor will dramatically increase. And I suspect that if you're over 60 you're going to recognize Ephron as a true kindred spirit. This is a book you'll be tempted to give to all your girlfriends, er, women friends.

H is for Homicide

When I started participating in A-Z Wednesday, I thought to myself, "it's possible to go from A to U just reviewing Sue Grafton's Kinsey Milhone novels." But I resisted. Until now.

You see, I have read them all, save the newest book, U is for Undertow. I am on the waiting list for it at the library though. But the first one I read -- and the reason I am tackling Sue Grafton today -- is the excellent H is for Homicide. Many years ago, not long after this book came out in paperback, I was at my son's school's fun fair in May and spied this gem on the book table. I had not read Grafton's previous books but snapped this up anyway. Often, it is confusing to read a book in the middle of a series -- you don't know the characters, you don't know their backstories -- but I decided to risk it. With this book, it didn't matter. A few pages in and I was captivated by both Kinsey Milhone, the sassy private investigator I instantly adored, and the adventurous job and life she leads.

H is for Homicide finds Kinsey investigating auto insurance claims. She ends up spending a night in jail as she hangs out, undercover of course, with a suspect. Anything for a case! Since she's befriended this woman so she can further investigate her, Kinsey then finds herself in a Los Angeles barrio, living in slum conditions with this woman as she continues to secretly spy on those around her. It's quite a predicament. You'll laugh a lot, but you'll also be at the edge of your seat too. A lot. The suspense in this book is, at times, intense.

After I finished H is for Homicide, I began a library quest to find A is for Alibi, the first book in the series, as well as the other books between A and H. That summer, I read my way through all of them and, when I got to H, I re-read it.

Grafton is an excellent author and I highly recommend this series. I also recommend that you start with the first novel, A is for Alibi, and read them all in order. That way, you can appreciate both the character development and the changes Kinsey experiences as the years go by. With the cool nights upon us, I suggest settling in with these books and a mug of the hot beverage of your choice....what a great way to spend an evening!

Could you, would you

Could you, would you read a book?

Could you, would you have a look?

You can read it in your house,

You could read it to your spouse.

You could read it in your yard.
You can read, it's not hard!

The book is called Green Eggs and Ham,

Green Eggs and Ham, Sam-I-Am.

It is a classic, it is the best.

It is better than the rest.

You will like this book, you will see

And it begins with the letter G.

(With apologies to Dr. Seuss fans everywhere. Posted for A-Z Wednesday.

And no, next week I will not be tackling Horton Hears a Who.)

Fall on your knees

The A-Z Wednesday Challenge has rolled 'round once again and we're now up to the letter F. What a dilemma! I had so many choices, old and new: Erica Jong's Fear of Flying, Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique, The French Lieutenant's Woman by John Fowles, Mitch Albom's The Five People You Meet in Heaven, Janet Evanovich's newest Stephanie Plum novel, Finger Lickin' Fifteen, as well as Fannie Flagg's Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe, one of my favourite novels. If I wanted to turn to cookbooks once more, two of my favourite Canadian cookbooks are Edna Staebler's Food That Really Schmecks and Kay Spicer's From Mom: With Love. But in the end, I just had to go with Ann-Marie Macdonald's Fall on Your Knees.

Truth be told, I'd rather advise you to read The Way the Crow Flies, also written by Macdonald and one of my absolute favourite books of all time. But we have a lot of weeks to go before we get to W and I just couldn't wait. So, please, head to your local library and get yourself a copy of both books.

Fall on Your Knees is one of those novels both profound and a humdinger of a page-turner. The Chicago Tribune wrote, "This big, bold, epic shocker of a novel reads as if John Irving met Joyce Carol Oates. It is history told with a thumping, complex narrative." Perfectly put.

This is the story of the confused and troubled James Piper, who marries the 13-year-old daughter of a wealthy Lebanese family at the start of the 20th century, and the daughters they have. The Piper sisters are the heart of the novel, a group of young women whose lives follow wildly different paths as the novel progresses. The book takes you from Cape Breton to Harlem during the Jazz Age and touches on issues as diverse as racial tension, religion, family secrets, incest and murder. This book will captivate you; every page offers new suspense, another surprise. Trust me...you won't want to put it down.

Everyday Italian

In my home, Italian food is very popular. I don't think I could stomach a no-carb diet since it would mean giving up pasta! Good olive oil, garlic, gorgonzola, proscuitto, parmesan ... these are all things I love. I remember the first time I caught Everyday Italian on the Food Network; right from that first episode, I thought the show was a winner. The host, Giada De Laurentiis, was a bit awkward in front of the camera -- a fault she quickly overcame as the show went on -- but I wanted to make her food. I still do.

This was also the show that turned my non-foodie sister-in-law into a foodie. Heather was housesitting for my mother-in-law and we popped by to visit her. "Is there anything on television?" she asked. Heather didn't watch the Food Network, but I did, and I told her there was this italian cooking show I had started to watch, not expecting her to be interested. But she changed the channel and, well, the rest is history. Giada's Chili-Infused Oil became a staple in her home and a Food Network expert was created. Her kitchen has never been the same.

For this week's A-Z Wednesday Challenge, I have chosen Everyday Italian, which is the first cookbook -- and, I believe, the best -- Giada has created. I have them all but this book is the one I pull off the shelf more than the others. Besides the aforementioned Chili Oil, don't miss the Orecchiette with Toasted Bread Crumbs, the Ziti with Asparagus, Smoked Mozzarella and Prosciutto or the Chicken Piccata. All good. Giada's Basic Risotto is also a favourite -- a simple, straightforward recipe. This book also caused my girlfriend Lori and I to go on a quest for farro (a grain similar to barley) to make her Farro Salad. We never did find it.

My favourite recipe in this book, one I've made several times, is the Classic Italian Lasagna. It's by far the best lasagna I've ever made. The Pizza di Spaghetti is the only recipe that has been problematic for me. The recipe calls for too much olive oil; I found the finished dish too greasy for my tastes. But one miss in a string of hits is perfectly acceptable and I highly recommend this cookbook.

D is for disturbing

Jacquelyn Mitchard's The Deep End of the Ocean is one of the most heart-wrenching books I have read. I immediately thought of it when I realized today was Wednesday and that it was once again time for another book recommendation -- we're now in week four, the letter D -- for Reading at the Beach's book challenge, A-Z Wednesday:

While I heartily recommend The Deep End of the Ocean, I must tell you that it was one of the most disturbing books I've read. The plot of this novel centres around every parent's nightmare: the disappearance of a child. Beth, the book's main character, is reluctantly at her high school reunion with her family and, for a moment, leaves her children while she tends to other business, her son watching his toddler brother. But seemingly in a mere heartbeat, her 3 year old son disappears. Police are called, minutes and hours and days agonizingly pass by, and still no sign. How does a family cope with this tragedy? How do Beth and her husband deal with the uncertainty of not knowing where their child is, if he is even alive? How to deal with the overwhelming guilt? The novel touches on all this and more.

I recall that I was actually so disturbed by the whole concept that I put the book down for several days, refusing to finish it. Eventually, I did. I was glad I picked it back up again, glad to read through to the end.

If you want to read a book that totally tugs at your emotions, give this a look.

A dog named Cujo

Stephen King is one of my favourite mainstream authors. Now, that is. The first time I tried to read a King novel, I was not impressed at all. The book was The Shining and I just could not get into it. I dismissed King as not my cup of tea. And then along came a novel called Cujo. Everyone was talking about it, raving about it. I liked dogs so I thought I would give King another chance. (Looking back, "liking dogs" as a reason to read Cujo -- a horror novel about a rabid St. Bernard -- is almost hilarious.)

Cujo was out in paperback and so I bought it. It was 1983 and I was pregnant.

The book hooked me in from the beginning. The terror ripens slowly in Cujo and reaches the point where it becomes unbearable. Is it a good book to read while pregnant? Um, no. Absolutely not the ending a pregnant woman wants to read. (I'm sure you've read it but I'll refrain from giving the ending away in case you haven't.)

I devoured the book, reading it as quickly as I could, and went on to become quite the Stephen King fan. But I still have never read The Shining. Great movie, though.

Cujo is my "C" choice for this week's A-Z Wednesday. If you have never read it, you should be able to find the paperback in any good second-hand bookstore for a small outlay of cash; your local library will have a copy as well. I highly recommend it.

B is for Barefoot Contessa

The Barefoot Contessa and I did not get off to a great start. It was many years ago, shortly after Ina Garten launched Barefoot Contessa on the Food Network. My girlfriend Lori was raving about her, her show and her new cookbook (pictured above). I had never seen the show or the book; it's odd, given that I'm such a foodie, but I really had never heard of her. Lori explained a bit about who she was and that she was a friend of Martha Stewart. Somehow that equated in my brain to a show I had watched a few times that aired in the morning before Martha came on. I really disliked that show, thought the woman hosting was pretentious and phony-casual. And I thought she was Ina Garten. I couldn't understand why my friend liked her so much.

Fast forward a few weeks and I discovered I'd made a big error. The woman in question, the one I disliked, was not Ina Garten. I hunted down the proper show, watched one episode of it, and was hooked. The next time I was at Lori's, I had a look at The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook, which Lori had and loved. Hooked again.

Fast forward to now. I have all six of Ina Garten's cookbooks, I believe I have seen every episode of her show, I have her web site bookmarked, and I count many of her recipes as personal favourites, including Rum Raisin Rice Pudding and Broccoli & Bow Ties.

So for this week's A-Z Wednesday Challenge over at Reading at the Beach, how could I not say that B is for Barefoot?