Latest Kingsolver Book

I look with a touch of sadness at my coffee table...

... because there are no more pages left for me to read in this book. I was yearning for a good read, one that mixes nonfiction with everyday life with a touch of inspiration, and this compeltely fit the bill. I've been more conscious of food since moving here. My budget requires it. I also am more picky about how things taste. This is Kingsolver's look at her family's choice to eat locally for a year and it fit very well with my current mental wanderings. It of course doesn't hurt that it is penned by one of my favourite authors who somehow makes me long for childhood while being inspired to reach for tomorrow.

I highly recommend it and find myself refering to it constantly in conversation - you have been warned. Read it, becuase it sounds much better coming from her than when I attempt to talk about what I learned myself.

I reckon that my motivations might not be what you are looking for in your next read, but this book has truly a bit of everything... so if you are interested in gardening, cooking, Italy, turkey sex (this is when the book became a page turner for me - honest!), the things kids/younger people say... there is probably something for you. warning, you may suddenly develop an interest in seeds and heirloom breeds of cattle. trust me, it is actually a possibility with this book, and you will be glad of it in the end... If you want a glimpse of the book, here is a link to an excerpt from NPR.

While not particularly local or seasonal, here are some of our kitchen adventures from the past week.

Traveler created a very tasty califlower soup, which not only used up some of the linger white wine in our fridge but the entire head of califlower we scored at the farmers market.

He also has been experiementing with his chai tea recipe. Definetely not 1369's, nor local in ingredients, but very lovely nonetheless as he perfects his recipe- particularly as the nights get darker sooner and the draftiness of our windows add a chill now and then.

And for any of those who wondered about the bright red sticker on the cover of the book, no this isn't a sticker from the local bookstore (e.g., Borders with its standard 20% sticker on the top right corner), but shock of shocks is that its from the city library. Here there is a custom where the most popular books can only be checked out for 1 week AND cost $4. On one hand, it means that you don't wait forever to see books that came out and you don't have to pay $40 for a paperbook at the local bookstore that you then have to store on bookshelves you haven't saved up to buy yet, but it still seems odd to pull money from your wallet before you even the library your book. I vowed I'd never do this and would just wait until it was shelved with the other free books... but just like that new release DVD you've been waiting months to see, I grabbed it and raced to the check out line for fear someone else would tackle me and take my precious loot... okay maybe the world isn't as batty as me, but they should be over good books. as winter sets in for me, feel free to pass on the books you've been enjoying, I'll be eager for some good reads.