Category Archives: Books

Review: Heartless by Marissa Meyer

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Review: Heartless by Marissa Meyer

If you’ve explored the blog before you’ll know I’m a lover of all things Alice. I’ve shouted out to Alice adaptations posted by my beautiful friend Amanda here and picked some of my favorite retellings/ nonfiction picks too! Now Heartless has exploded on the scene and I want to re-read all of them! But first let’s talk about Heartless.

Catherine may be one of the most desired girls in Wonderland and a favorite of the unmarried King, but her interests lie elsewhere. A talented baker, she wants to open a shop and create delectable pastries. But for her mother, such a goal is unthinkable for a woman who could be a queen. At a royal ball where Cath is expected to receive the King’s marriage proposal, she meets handsome and mysterious Jest. For the first time, she feels the pull of true attraction. At the risk of offending the King and infuriating her parents, she and Jest enter into a secret courtship. Cath is determined to choose her own destiny. But in a land thriving with magic, madness, and monsters, fate has other plans.”

Heartless by Marissa Meyer (you may know her from The Lunar Chronicles) is an Alice in Wonderland prequel that tells the backstory of the infamous Queen of Hearts. Meyer delves deeply into Wonderland and brings to light characters and references that will prove to be delightful for anyone familiar with Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass. But you certainly don’t have to know the original to love this book! Meyer weaves an incredible story that is all her own. I especially loved the addition of baking and Catherine’s dreams as a way to make Wonderland seem even more over-the-top and whimsical. The underlying comments on Victorian society and feminism seemed apt instead of forced and although a little slow in the middle, the end was a whirlwind of action and emotion (and it was creepy in all the ways that Wonderland should also be!) This book was both perfect and devastating.

 

#24in48: 2016

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I did #24in48 this past weekend (where you read 24 hours in the span of two days, a riff off of #24in24 where you read for 24 hours straight) and had a lovely weekend full of really great books! Here’s my haul. Reviews to come!

  • The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead (50 pages left after starting it earlier in the week)
  • A Greater Music by Bae Suah
  • The Girls by Emma Cline (listened to the audiobook and it was enthralling: creepy, seductive, chilling, all of it)
  • The Guest Cat by Takashi Hiraide, translated by Eric Selland
  • One of Us Is Sleeping by Josefine Klougart, translated by Martin Aitken

National Book Awards 2016

Posted in Books, Events, Publishing News by

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The National Book Awards were this week and they were amazing! Here’s the breakdown as far as the awards and I’ve highlighted a few of the most incredible moments from the evening:

Fiction: The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead

Nonfiction: Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi (his speech here)

Poetry: The Performance of Becoming Human by Daniel Borzutzky

Young People’s Literature: March: Book Three by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin & Nate Powell (artist)

(See John Lewis’s speech here, it is a must-see.)

Delicious Books about Food

Posted in Books, Food by

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I stumbled across this fun Book Riot list of great books about food and thought I’d add on to it in preparation for Thanksgiving next week! Here are some of my favorite books about food (both fiction and non-fiction) and some books I’ve got on my to-read list. Do you have any other favorite books about food? Comment below!

Fresh Off the Boat: A Memoir and Double Cup Love: On the Trail of Family, Food, and Broken Hearts in China, both by Eddie Huang

Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly (the first from Anthony Bourdain but you can’t go wrong with any of his books)

Blood, Bones & Butter: The Inadvertent Education of a Reluctant Chef by Gabrielle Hamilton (The chef/owner of Prune)

Mastering the Art of Soviet Cooking: A Memoir of Food and Longing by Anya Von Bremzen

Consider the Fork: A History of How We Cook and Eat by Bee Wilson

Salt: A World History by Mark Kurlansky (His other food books look great too!)

Delicious!: A Novel by Ruth Reichl (You might know her food writing and nonfiction books but this novel is so delightful!)

Chocolat by Joanne Harris (“Chocolat’s every page offers a description of chocolate to melt in the mouths of chocoholics, francophiles, armchair gourmets, cookbook readers, and lovers of passion everywhere”)

Shark’s Fin and Sichuan Pepper: A Sweet-Sour Memoir of Eating in China by Fuchsia Dunlop (One of my favorite books of all time!)

Heartburn by Nora Ephron (Who doesn’t love Nora?)

 

Boston Exhibit: Unauthorized Shakespeare

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To commemorate the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare’s death the Boston Public Library is holding a “season of Shakespeare” with various exhibits, classes, book discussions, lectures, film series, and more! I ran across one of the main exhibitions this past weekend. The exhibit, Shakespeare Unauthorized, “pulls back the curtain on four hundred years of adaptation, collaboration, and deception and exposes the many layers of mystery surrounding the life and work of William Shakespeare.” The exhibit was incredible, featuring most importantly rare editions of Shakespeare’s work (including a first folio!)  The exhibit is on display until March 31st, 2017.  Want to see a full listing of the exhibits and events? It’s available here. Enjoy!

 

Literary New England

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I loved visiting Edith Wharton’s home, The Mount, and as promised here are some equally cool literary landmarks in my loose definition of New England. There are so many others in the Northeast and all over the country and world. Check out this list from Flavorwire.

Mark Twain’s House and Museum in Hartford, CT

Herman Melville’s grave in Woodlawn Cemetery, Bronx, NY

Emily Dickinson’s House and Museum in Amherst, MA

The Mount: Edith Wharton’s House and Museum in Lenox, MA

The Scribner Building and Charles Scribner’s Sons Building in New York, NY

H.P. Lovecraft’s Providence in Providence, RI

Walden Pond in Concord, MA

Washington Irving’s grave in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, Sleepy Hollow, NY

Edith Wharton’s Home: The Mount

Posted in Books, Boston, Travel by

Drove out to the Berkshires a couple weeks ago to visit The Mount! The Mount is a turn-of-the-century home, designed and built by author Edith Wharton in 1902. It’s now a National Historic Landmark and cultural center that celebrates the life and legacy of Wharton. It’s a gorgeously maintained estate and house and I learned so much that I hadn’t previously known about Wharton―particularly her humanitarian efforts during the war and her widely varied interests (the grounds, gardens, and house were all designed by her.) Stay tuned for a post about more literary trips around New England!

“Edith Wharton (1862-1937) was born into a tightly controlled society at a time when women were discouraged from achieving anything beyond a proper marriage. Wharton broke through these strictures to become one of America’s greatest writers. Author of The Age of Innocence, Ethan Frome, and The House of Mirth, she wrote over 40 books in 40 years, including authoritative works on architecture, gardens, interior design, and travel. She was the first woman awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, an honorary Doctorate of Letters from Yale University, and a full membership in the American Academy of Arts and Letters.”

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Korean Food Cooking Adventures

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There’s nothing I love more when the weather gets colder than sour, spicy Korean food. I’ve always been daunted by the host of unfamiliar ingredients and lack of recipe books specifically for Korean food but I really sense a change in the winds, with resources like Maangchi (both her videos and her beautiful cookbook) and Korean grocery stores popping up it’s never been easier to make Korean food at home. I thought I’d give it a try!

First things first, Maangchi—this woman is so incredibly knowledgeable and her videos on YouTube are fun. Her cookbook, published by HMH, is a great resource in combination with the videos and it’s beautifully produced. I’ve recently made two of my favorite Korean recipes, kimchi jigae (kimchi stew) and pork bulgogi (a spicy stir fried pork that I love to eat with rice and tofu.) I’ve included links to those videos and see the pics below!

Looking for advice to try it on your own? Make sure you get the right kind of kimchi. The first time I made the kimchi stew I mistakenly used fresh kimchi that I purchased at H Mart in Cambridge. It was a great stew but it lost that deep, rich, sour taste because my kimchi hadn’t been properly fermented.  Now you can buy kimchi that’s been fermented or just buy the fresh kimchi and stick it in the fridge for a week or more until it starts to smell sour. Comment with any questions!