Book 'Em

Even though our tastes in literature differ tremendously, both JM and I are avid readers (yes, that's a euphemism for "severe geeks"). Yet, neither one of us has actually bought a new book since 2009. How can that be, you ask? Have we switched, so he is now catching up on my florid, relationship-based novels and I his military historic non-fiction? Decidedly not. Have we stopped reading and instead turned our intellect toward other pursuits, like chess or solving Fermat's last theorem? Um, no (and what intellect?) Have we run out of space on our color-coded bookshelves? Well, yes, but that's not the reason. The real reason is that we are now both now fully converted to reading on our Kindles ($139-379 on Amazon.com). As you know, I like to write about the things I love, and the only reason I haven't written a post on this topic before is that I thought everyone sort of already knew about them and had their own preconceived opinions, positive or negative. However, thrice in the last week, people (okay, they were all foreigners, but still...), have stopped me on the subway platform, in the airport, and walking down the street (yes, I can read and walk at the same time), to ask me what was this strange screened tablet I was staring at, and whether I liked it. Also, Amazon announced the new generation of Kindle last week (It has 3G wireless! And comes in black!), so I figured this post might be timely after all. Don't get me wrong, I still love the look and feeling of a real book -- the smell of the ink, the texture of the paper, the feeling of that first time you crack the spine -- that's all like porn to us nerdy bibliophiles.  But there are a lot of benefits to the Kindle that give real books a run for their money. Here are just some of the reasons I love my Kindle.

You Can Take It With You- at any given time, I have a lineup of five or six books waiting to be read on my Kindle (including The Fountainhead, which, in physical form is a real honker). And when I travel, I can take all those books with me, without having to actually carry six books. My Kindle is light enough to carry anywhere in my purse, but even when I don't have it with me, my books automatically sync to the "Kindle for iPhone" app, which means that I can seamlessly pick up right where I left off, right on my phone.
Immediate Gratification- I was recently talking books at lunch with a friend (we geeks band together), and as she made suggestions, I was able to download them to my Kindle right away. So much better than writing them down on a napkin I would inevitably lose.
Privacy, Please- When you read on a Kindle, no one can look over your shoulder or read your book jacket. And while there is something amusing about the communal experience of finding yourself in a subway car with eight other people all reading The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, it was a relief to me to be able to read the Twilight series without being judged by my fellow commuters. Oh, shut up, you've probably read them, too.
Easy Does It- Even if you are a technophobe, the Kindle is surprisingly instinctual and easy to use. My husband's grandfather, who has never really used a computer, picked up how to use the Kindle very quickly. It also has a screen that uses real ink, instead of backlighting, so there are no problems with glare when you read in the sun. Also, you can turn the page with the push of one thumb, which makes it much easier to read one-handed while in the bath, or while cooking, or walking the dog (yes, I do read in those places).

The only downsides I have encountered with the Kindle are that you have to remember to charge it (although the battery lasts a very long time), you have to turn it off for takeoff and landing on an airplane, and you can't lend out the books once you've finished. But that last one isn't really a problem for my husband and me, anyway. 

And, no, Amazon isn't paying me to write this (but, hey, Jeff Bezos, you can if you want to).

Cookbook Club

I've finally reached that point in my cooking career where I feel comfortable going "off book" and improvising a meal without a recipe. And, I'm proud to say, that the results are delicious almost as often as they are disastrous. But I'm not the kind of person to just jump in without instruction and practice, and to get to my extremely high level of culinary expertise, it's best to start out with a little basic instruction. Sure, I took a few weeks of cooking school before dropping out, but where I really learned the craft was from some really great cookbooks (and my epicure ancestors). If you lack the latter, that just makes the former all that more important. My favorite books are the ones that not only tell you what to do, but how to do it properly, and why it should be done that way. And I love illustrations and pretty pictures (it's helps to know what the finished product should look like). But, with so many new cookbooks popping up all the time, it can be overwhelming trying to figure out where to start. Fear not. Without further ado, I present my top 8 favorite cookbooks. Any one of these will provide you with a very good foundation in the kitchen; the whole lot of them will turn you into a master, and will provide you with a lifetime's-worth of recipes. Happy cookbooking!

The Joy of Cooking. Here's a cookbook that needs no introduction. This one was the go-to reference guide in my house growing up. To this day, I look at it at least once a week.
Martha Stewart's Cooking School. A new book from the Big M. What can I say? I'm partial to her simple instruction and beautiful photography, and this one has a little bit of everything (if she's a little didactic, it's just because she wants you to do it right the first time).
The New Best Recipe, from Cook's Illustrated. I got this one as an engagement gift, and it has arguably improved the quality of my marriage (or, at least, what we eat). This one is great at explaining the reasons behind every step you take. And it's nicely and clearly illustrated.
How to Cook Everything, by Mark Bittman. Bittman makes cooking the most complicated foods seem totally attainable with his clear, easy instructions, and provides recipes for just about anything you could want to cook.
Barefoot Contessa: Back to Basics. It's no secret that I am a huge Ina Garten fan. All her books are good as gold, but this one is my favorite, for it's simple, just-a-few-ingredients recipes using fresh, delicious foods.
Donna Hay: Modern Classics. This book wins the prize for most drool-worthy photography. I want to eat every page. And, because she's so clear and concise in her instruction, I actually can.
Everyday Food: Great Food Fast. Simple, delicious and quick recipes for weeknight meals. Even someone who doesn't know a sifter from a spatula could easily cook up something great using this book.
Julia Child's The Way to Cook. I couldn't leave out Julia, the heroine of all aspiring cooks. All her books are heaven, but this one gets down to basics in her humorous no-nonsense way. You could put it next to your bed and read it like a novel.

Summer Reads

There are two kinds of books in this world (okay, there are a lot more kinds than two, but stick with me here, folks): those that are well-suited to summertime consumption, and those that are not. Anna Karenina, for example, is best read while snuggled into a big, comfy chair (preferably by a fireplace, ideally, during a snowstorm.) Likewise, I would argue, Jonathan Franzen's The Corrections. A summer book, by contrast, should be bright and vivid and a little colorful, so that you can put it down to play Frisbee for a while, and then dive right back in where you were (when the Frisbee inevitably gets stolen by a dog), and feel like you never left. You should feel something (other than melancholia) while you read it, and you should like being around the characters. Easier said than done, not all authors achieve this -- not even all great ones (I'm talking to you, Tom Wolfe). And, lastly, it certainly helps if the book has a sense of humor. I'm not that into airport-shop thrillers, too-breezy chick-lit, or supermarket bodice-rippers (though I don't judge, if those are your tomes of choice). I like a story that sticks to your ribs a little bit, and one you'll remember after the leaves start to turn.
Here is a list of some great summertime reads -- I am not saying "top" or even "favorite" (since choosing those would be too difficult a task. But all these books pass the Frisbee test, and each one of them will take you somewhere wonderful, even if you spend the whole summer in your own backyard. Happy reading, bookworms!

A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini- The author's follow-up to The Kite Runner got less attention, but is a beautiful story about the struggles, triumphs and friendship of two Afghan women. Pretty impressive and moving stuff (and I always give props to men who write women well).
Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner- A slow-paced, but thoughtful story-within-a-story, told from the perspective of an old man writing the life-story of his grandmother. A subtly-framed reminder that we are all the products of series of events that take place long before us, and that we all do the best we can in this life.
A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole- The bitingly hilarious and surprisingly profound story of a misanthropic underachiever. You'll be amused how often you find yourself agreeing with him. This one's a classic.
Life of Pi by Yann Martell- This beautiful book tells the story of a boy who is shipwrecked and survives on a life raft with a bunch of animals. It sounds like it would be bleak, but it is really beautiful and almost whimsical.
Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez- Again, I'm sure I'm not the first person to tell you to read this one, but here goes: read it. Especially for you bodice-ripper fans, this one tells the the lovely, imperfectly romantic story of a relationship that transcends time (translation: old people in love). As an added bonus, it takes place on a lush, tropical island. Just in case you aren't.
Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides - This mesmerizing book deals with the subjects of hermaphroditism and incest, yet manages to be heart-breakingly sensitive to the subject, deftly dodging the grotesque. It simultaneously tells the stories of a young, um, person growing up in Detroit, and the character's immigrant grandparents, in vivid, imaginative language.
Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl - A quirky, charming mystery told in a truly unique voice. Some might say it borders on gimmicky, but you'll have hard time tearing yourself away from it long enough to worry about that.
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen - If you've ever thought about running away and joining the circus, save yourself the trouble and read this, instead. The rich and colorful writing will make you feel like you're there (preferably not as the Bearded Lady).
A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving - I read this one when I was in high school, and I still remember so much about it. Irving has a gift for flawed, oddball characters you love being around (take a lesson, Wolfe), and these ones will stick with you.
Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris - Sedaris's autobiographical short stories about his childhood. Touching, real, and pee-your-pants funny.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon - Another quirky (do you sense a theme with me?), unusual story, told simply and beautifully from the perspective of a boy with autism.
The Help by Kathryn Stockett- Admittedly, I just started reading this one myself, but I am already sucked in. It takes place in the South during the Civil Rights movement and delicately and amusingly explores the relationship between the white people and their black servants during the shifting social paradigm. I have a feeling I'm going to cry...

Word up! What are reading this summer/what are your recommendations?

photo credit: Cosmo Girl

Book Club...The Omnivore's Dilemma (+ Farm Shares!)

As a bit of a foodie (with a healthy appetite), I strongly recommend this book to anyone who has ever wondered where the food on their plate came from. And I recommend it even more to anyone who hasn't wondered, because this you need to know about. In The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals, Michael Pollan walks the reader through the steps that food takes to get from the farm (or ranch) to the table, and the road is a very eye-opening and frightening one. The author explains how our disconnectedness from the food we eat has serious implications for the health of our bodies, and the health of the planet and economy.
In short, most mass-purchased produce is grown using toxic petrochemical fertilizers and pesticides, and then trucked or flown across the country (or even further, in the case of the bell peppers from Spain I got at the supermarket yesterday) to distribution centers, then trucked to local stores. By the time you buy it, it has been out of the ground for many days, and has taken very costly and environment-damaging travels to get to you.

After reading this book, I felt very empowered by the information and was inspired to try to shorten the path between my food and myself. As a city dweller, my options are limited (short of turning our rooftop into a chicken coop), but I was an inspired by a friend in Philadelphia, who belongs to a farm cooperative, to try to find one in my area. The website Just Food provides a great resource for finding CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) programs in the NYC area (or you can just google CSA and your city name, and some should come up). Here's how it works: you pay a farm a certain amount of money (usually between $250-500 for a full summer of produce) upfront- literal "seed money"- and then when the season comes, you receive a box of whatever veggies and fruit the harvest produced each week. While you share in the inherent risks (drought, insect infestation) of farming, you will likely end up with super-fresh, organic local produce for lower-than-supermarket price all summer long (usually June-November). Most also have optional chicken, dairy and egg share options as well. Some CSAs deliver to homes, or some require you to pick up during certain hours each week (so choose one close to home). All in all, it's an easy and delicious way to make the food chain a little shorter.

Book Club...Ian McEwan

After Atonement-mania last year, if you haven't heard of Ian McEwan, well, I just feel sorry for you. But don't worry- you can quickly get caught up in what all the fuss is about. I recently read these two other McEwan books and recommend them both highly. Both take place over the course of one day in the lives of the characters, and in both books, the mundane details of that day are meticulously rendered but, somehow, never get boring. On Chesil Beach is a very short novel (I would call it a novelette...a novelino) about newlyweds on their wedding day in post-WWII England and their repressed fears and emotions- it is a brutal look at that period in history with a devastating ending. Saturday is the story of one man's "ordinary" day, which turns into a frightening nightmare. Even the unremarkable parts of the day (he visits his elderly mother, he plays squash with a friend) are rife with an odd tension which culminates in the end of the book. The writing is so precise that it takes on a sense of reality, and scenes from both books have stuck with me. I'm telling you, the man has chops.

Book Club...The Feminine Mistake

Boy, just when we feminists were thinking "mission accomplished"...

Leslie Bennett's book The Feminine Mistake: Are We Giving Up Too Much? addresses the debate between continuing one's career and staying home, once a woman has children. She contends that the movement which claims women can't truly have it all and are better off being home taking care of their families is false and damaging to women. She says that women who leave their children in someone else's care and continue their careers are made to feel like bad mothers, creating a societal pressure which is very detrimental. She points out the social isolation, dependency on husbands, feelings of wasted education, and tremendous barriers to re-entry into the workforce that these women face, and presents the very real dangers to them in the case of divorce or illness.

Obviously this is a very appropriate genre for me to be diving into as I enjoy my (very) premature semi-retirement. It has certainly made me reevaluate the way in which I foresee my own role and contributions to our household- this one's even kept me up at night, thinking about my own vulnerability (though not enough to actually seek out a 9-to-5, thank you very much) . Whether you agree with her contentions or not, it is a very well-written and thought-provoking read that I recommend to anyone who is thinking that they want to have children some day. I'm even going to make my husband read it (so he understands the huge post-nup I am going to hit him with). No, but seriously.
For more information, visit the book's website.