books – Page 4 – Peaceful Reader

Let's catch up…

September is flying by and I had the crazy thought today; I can understand the appeal of a ghost writer to very busy authors. I feel like I could use one every now and again.

What’s happening in my world?

School:

I’m having a magical year so far. This is my fourth year and I feel much more confident overall. This class of 6th grade students were 3rd graders when I arrived and we have a unique and trusting relationship. Even kindergarten this year has impressed me with their amazing excitement for library.

Home:

Japhy has settled into her high school classes and dance started last week. She is busy, happy, and still filled with so much love for me that our life together is smooth. She loves to lay with me and just hang out. My husband just finished directing an amazing play, The Man who shot Liberty Valance, which I knew nothing about until he picked it for this current season. I’m not a fan of westerns but this one, never having read the book or watched the movie, struck me with it’s very modern issues of good vs. bad.

The only part of my idyllic home life that is not going as planned is how difficult it is for Anton to understand how to be part of a healthy, high-functioning family. It is literally an every day struggle which is a major impact on the rest of us. He doesn’t understand why he needs to check in with us, he doesn’t understand about keeping regular hours, about respect or graciousness, about empathy for other humans and as of yesterday how to talk to another person after a fender bender. (Clue: YOU DO not yell at the person you just rear ended) He has not been able to save a single dime even though he only has two bills to pay. It is mind-blowing and heart-breaking to watch someone struggle and continue to lose any momentum mostly because he flat out doesn’t want to listen as a 22-year-old. The poverty cycle is hard to break. He’s never had anyone “parent” him per se or have expectations for him to follow. On the plus side he loves the community college and the digital media program he is enrolled in and loves taking and editing photos and videos. We hope and pray that he will get over a major hump and realize the gifts he is being handed and how far he can actually go if he listens and learns.

Books:

I hosted book club last night and we discussed The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead. Excellent read. I loved the magical realism, making it an actual train with stations. It helped me to experience the claustrophobia and fear of traveling to someplace better than where you came from hopefully. We had a good discussion, delicious food, and lots of wine. The extra bonus of hosting was that I deep cleaned many corners of my house that spiders had otherwise been living and dying in.

I’m almost finished with Eowyn Ivey’s new book, The bright edge of the world. Love it. Written in journal entries, it tells the story of Colonel Forrester as he explores the Wolverine River into Alaska, and his wife as she restlessly waits for him to return. She begins taking photographs, which in 1885, was quite a process. Set against the beautiful backdrop of Canada and Alaska their stories are captivating. I loved The Snow Child and this one uses a touch of magical realism as well through several Indigenous tribal legends and myths.

I hope you are having an amazing September as well! Life is good.

A trip to bountiful…

We signed our young dancer up for a dance intensive in Madison and I have to admit it was something I was equally excited about it because I would have to spend the week there with her.

(James Madison Park)

We felt like we were in the land of plenty; surrounded by our people. Everyone seemed quirky, a bit earthy, polite, and healthy; bike riders and walkers were evident in every neighborhood. Traffic was expected to make way for pedestrians and bicyclists which was so refreshing. Plus we had many diverse cuisines to choose from. We made a pact to eat only local and found a lot of suggestions from this post. In order we ate at all these fabulous restaurants which showcase much of what Madison has to offer.

1. Maharana Restaurant: We found this gem after we stopped at Target to get a few things we forgot (like bread for her lunches-whoops) and through the magic of our GPS this Indian restaurant came up and it was just around the corner. She had Chicken Tikka Masala and I had vegetable somosas and a cup of coconut soup. At the end of dinner our waiter brought out complimentary ice cream. This restaurant, for the first night of our adventure, was amazing.

2. Monty’s Blue Plate Diner: This was number one on the list and after we left the dance studio it was POURING/HAILING on us and the Prius. We made it into this bright blue beacon and were greeted by friendly staff as we shook off like wet dogs. I had a delicious artichoke sandwich and the starving dancer had a roasted chicken, bacon, and herbed goat cheese sandwich. There were about 12 menu items I was interested in so I’ll have to go back and it shows what a diverse menu Monty’s offers. (I mean lots of vegan and vegetarian choices)

3. Ha Long Bay: Vietnamese and Thai combo in an eclectic neighborhood and it was packed on a Tuesday evening. We ate dinner almost every night right after dance class at 4:30; she was starving after a long day of exercise. We shared tofu spring rolls and two excellent main dishes. We both thought it was comparable to our favorite Ginger Thai here.

4. Fair Trade Coffee House: After three such amazing meals we opted for something smaller on Wednesday. Each day I hung around downtown or at James Madison Park, writing, reading, napping, exploring, walking, and researching our next meal but on this day I walked up and down State St. just looking in windows and checking the downtown scene. The smells from this shop lured me in and I sat and enjoyed an iced chai tea. On the daily chalkboard a chickpea curry soup was advertised and I knew that’s what I wanted for dinner.

5. Alchemy: Everyone picks a dud at some point. I read about this one and dragged her there and she was dubious-it wasn’t on our list and the name didn’t speak to her. I told her they had sweet potato fries and we agreed if she didn’t like anything on the menu we would just get the fries and be done. We had the fries, which turned out to be chips, and while the sauces were amazing, many of the fries were burned. I also ordered a cocktail here b/c it sounded refreshing (fresh blueberry kombucha mojito) and it sadly tasted watered down. We looked out the window and I spotted Tex Tubb’s Taco Palace that I’d also read about and we hopped over there instead. Groovy Girl had an amazing burrito and we know we’ll go back to the Taco Palace again.

6. Taste of India: We liked the first Indian restaurant so much but found this one and decided to give it a try. It was equally as good and by this time Greg had joined us for one night and he is a connoisseur of Indian food and he was thrilled they had Lamb Korma and Groovy Girl had another chicken dish. I tried the sauce for both and liked the spice. I was happy that both Indian menus had extensive vegetarian choices.

(Madison Public Library-downtown)

It was a great week of food and fun, living out of a suitcase with my favorite 14-year-old. I spent time enjoying the lakes, the views and the literary scene via the Madison Public Library and two bookstores, Mystery to me and A room of one’s own, all independent and thriving reading communities. After every adventure it is always wonderful to be back home, in my own bed, my dogs and my house projects to finish.

Happy February! Here's my January book list…

I am so good at making lists and checking them off. I learned to make small lists a few years back (3 items about) which is helpful but it also means I make a new list every couple of hours. I looked at my January books on GoodReads and thought it made a pretty good list of interesting titles.

1. I survived the Chicago Fire, 1871 by Lauren Tarshis (2015) This is an early elementary fiction book so pretty easy to read and in fact I read it over my lunch hour one day. It is on the list for our Iowa state awards and I wanted to get it back out there circulating so I just sat down and read it. It was an exciting story and I can see why kids keep coming back to this series created by Tarshis to bring history to young readers. It works; I learned and was captured by the excitement.

2. Girl waits with gun by Amy Stewart (2015) This was our January pick for book club and I really enjoyed this charming mystery. Three eccentric sisters live out in the country and have problems with a rich factory owner who hassles them with a group of thugs. This book has a few interesting twists and is a quick read.

3. The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead (2016) I have a love/hate relationship with this book. Most of it is so real, brutally real, make-you-cry-and-put-the-book-down cry. I loved the actual train and train stations created by Whitehead. The characters are vivid and were real to me. It is an incredible read and should be read by many Americans. Especially now. I’d like to send a copy to @potus so he could brush up on some black history.

4. Pax by Sara Pennypacker (2016) This is an amazingly sweet tale by Pennypacker about a boy and his pet fox. Reading the back of the book I didn’t quite know about how the story was going to work but it did-it won my heart. Peter rescues this small kit and the two have been inseparable until bad things begin to happen in his young life. This has an unknown setting with a bit of a dystopian feel to it; a war is happening over water but it is subtle and well-done. This is a wonderful story of friendship on many different levels.

5. Sugar by Jewell Parker Rhodes (2013) Sugar is a captivating main character born into a life of sugarcane. She hates almost all of her life but she has a sense of simple joy about her. Her mother has passed on and she is left on her own during this time of Reconstruction in the South. She wants her life to be bigger and bolder, she has dreams, and they don’t include working for the man for pennies. One of her dreams is to be friends with the plantation owner’s son Billy. Rhodes created a very spunky character in Sugar; one that can teach us more about ourselves.

Put any of these on your reading list. And then check them off!

Cooking keeps me sane

Recently I’ve made some amazing recipes that I should share. It’s been a wild last couple of days. My brother visited last week. Inauguration. My husband’s performance of Rocky Horror opened on Friday night. And our son came back from school for the weekend to see last night’s show.

I’m much like my grandmother in that I cook for people when they come to my home although I was caught a little unprepared when my brother and his family hung out with us last Sunday morning. I didn’t let the same thing happen for this morning’s brunch. The show was very late last night so Tristan and Heather slept in which was perfect. It gave me the time to do some morning yoga and then prepare food without a rush. Heather’s vegan and my son follows suit when they are together. I found several new recipes that I was happy to try.

My initial inspiration came from this post, 30 Vegan Breakfast Recipes, by Sam at It doesn’t taste like chicken. Breakfast is one of our favorite meals and it was great to have so many wonderful choices all in one spot. There are several more on this list that I plan to try like the breakfast sandwich but for today’s breakfast I picked the biscuits and gravy and potato hash. I served those two with grits, grapes, sliced oranges, and fresh orange juice. I’m terrible about snapping pictures of my plated food; trust me that the food looked delicious.

{Source}

Simple Vegan Breakfast Hash-This recipe was very filled with flavor. Peeling the potatoes and cutting them into bite-sized chunks took some time but they roasted to such hot perfection that I was pulling the crusty parts right off the pan. Mine had a more prominent mixture of sweet potato!

{Minimalist Baker}

Best Damn Vegan Biscuits- I thought I’d get ahead of the game by preparing these last night before I went to bed. I must have been overtired as I mixed up the measurements for baking soda and baking powder. They baked up beautifully and it was lucky that I tried one hot out of the oven. They were H-O-R-R-I-B-L-E! Really heavy flavor of soda. So I redid the recipe this morning and they turned out just right. This is a very easy recipe to follow with minimal ingredients.

{Minimalist Baker}

If you’re going to have biscuits then you should probably whip up some vegan gravy. I’ve made vegetarian gravy many times but had no clue how to make a vegan recipe that would taste good. Again I turned to Dana’s recipe at the Minimalist Baker. Her gravy is packed full of mushrooms giving it a hearty quality. I even wonder if I could pass this recipe off on my husband instead of that jarred gravy he sometimes uses in a pinch. Give it a try: Vegan Breakfast Gravy

I didn’t get to march yesterday but was there in spirit. I did manage to slip in some reading; My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante and Pax by Sara Pennypacker, both interesting stories of friendship.

I host book club on Monday night and I’ve made another great recipe for that: Sweet Potato Coconut Curry Soup, a very easy and flavorful recipe. I love soups and this one has a nice kick to it.

Happy Week! February is truly just around the corner. We are at the halfway mark for winter. One step closer to spring is what I think.

December reading

Ah December. I’m almost done Christmas shopping-YES! I’m in the process of decorating; the tree is up but not one ornament hangs on it yet. I’m crazy with homework; this Google advanced class is far more work than I expected. I am learning a lot so that does make it worth it.

With all the homework I’ve still managed to read two books so far this month and both were “thrillers”. I think I have to move away from this genre though for bedtime reading. One of the books gave me pre-sleep jitters…I got so involved with the characters and would continue to think about the situation while I trying to go to sleep.

Before the Fall by Noah Hawley (2016); This is the one. Something about Scott’s character appealed to me because he was someone who was flawed and admitted it. The first scenes of him in the water with the young boy as they attempt to swim to shore were agonizing for me and I had to keep reading even though it should have been time to put the book down and get some sleep. Each section was a little like that. I appreciated Scott’s philosophy throughout the book and felt attuned to the message that we all have a purpose here. So many interesting characters held together by an excited story line and the political commentary fits so well with what we are experiencing now! Chapters are done in alternating POV so you get to hear and understand from a variety of characters.

Zero Day by Jan Gangsei (2016); I picked this out one afternoon with Groovy Girl at our local library. We were there on a mission to find some good books for her to read, not an easy feat, as she is a picky non-reader. Also she has an English teacher right now who is taking the joy out of the written word. But I digress.

Zero Day takes place in Washington DC and Virginia and is focused on the political scene. Addie Webster, the then Virginia governor’s 9-year-old daughter, is kidnapped one day right out of the governor’s mansion. Eight years later she resurfaces. Her DNA checks out and she is reunited with her family in the White House. It’s not an easy transition and it is difficult for Addie to realize that her family moved on even without her. Her kidnapper still has a hold on her though and so while she attempts to fit back into her family she also has to do some weird undercover assignments for her “father/kidnapper” who is the head of an international terrorist group. I like both Jan’s writing style and the main idea but it all got a little far-fetched for me.

My good reads (fall addition)

What I’ve read…

The Wild Robot by Peter Brown (2016): Perfectly oddball story of a shipwrecked robot who learns to survive on an island with no humans, assimilating into animal culture and ultimately becoming the kindest being there is on the island. I loved this first chapter book by Brown and hope he has more in the works. I love his picture book The Curious Garden as well! Thinking about holiday gifts…

George by Alex Gino (2015): debut author Alex Gino writes a beautiful tale of a young boy struggling to be the girl she knows she is. The vehicle Gino uses is George’s desire to play Charlotte in their school production of Charlotte’s Web. His best friend Kelly helps to make it happen. This is a quick read and there were tears by the end. Gino has written a near perfect intro to the transgender world for elementary students.

Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson (2016): Woodson is one of my favorite authors and Brown Girl Dreaming is one of her best. I felt like this was a continuation of the author’s desire to share stories of what it means to be brown-skinned in America in different eras. I loved the description of the New York time period with the hair and the shoes and the young friends spoke to each other.

Saving Lucas Biggs by Marisa de los Santos (2014): Time traveling plot twists! This book delves into one family’s struggles with being honest about fracking. The issue could be one of many hot bot issues right now and how it’s not healthy for people. Pipelines going under rivers are in my mind right now. Margaret’s father has come out on the wrong end of his former employer about fracking and now has been charged with murder on “trumped” up charges. Margaret has a secret weapon she’s been told not to use but her gut tells her it may just be the only way to save her dad. This book had me cheering for both Margaret and her ancestors.

The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater (2016): I’ve loved this Raven Cycle series. Blue, her family, Gansey, and Adam and Ronan feel like real people to me as I’ve followed every step of their quest. I know she says this is the last but I would still love to know how the gang is faring in say 2-3 years as they adjust to life with out the forest and their quest. If you haven’t read this fantasy series, you must.

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce (2012): Book club choice and a quick read. I loved Harold’s journey. Yes it was far-fetched (who leaves home without their mobile or good walking shoes) but he was just headed out to the mailbox not a month long journey. I thought Joyce did a wonderful job of feeding us information a little at a time. Harold, his wife, and many of the people he meets along the way were interesting every day characters and every one has a personal quest; Harold and his wife affected me by how much they’d experienced behind the scenes.

The Magician’s Lie by Greer Macallister (2015): I picked this one up at a recent book sale because the title and the cover intrigued me. As I paged through it the names Janesville and Waterloo, IA flicked past as chapter headings and I knew I had to read it. We read about Ada Bates’ life in alternating time-period chapters. Through her childhood on a farm with her mom and stepfather she escapes to the famous Biltmore house to be a maid. She is looking for a different life and as soon as someone offers her the chance to head to NYC she takes it. Along the way she is abused and lied to by men she meets. Eventually she meets Adelaide who makes her the star of her illusionist show. Life has a way of circling back on her though and life doesn’t go as planned. Ada’s voice and the hardships she struggles with kept me reading. I had to know more, just one more chapter.

I’ve been a busy reader this fall. Now I’m reading Before the fall by Noah Hawley on my Kindle, All the Answers by Kate Messner at school, and Zero Day by Jan Gangsei from the library. What about you?

Books and food and so many other tidbits

Dance has taken over our life and when we are not at dance Groovy Girl is on my computer working on homework. 9th grade honors classes are pushing her and keeping her busy.

School has me super busy as I’m constantly tweaking lessons and working with our young leadership team. In between and sometimes because of school I’ve been reading some great books. Hansen’s 6th grade book club just finished The Birchbark House by Louise Erdrich. This book is underappreciated. A few libraries in our district don’t even have copies!

It is a beautifully written story of a young Ojibwa girl and her family as they rotate through the seasons. The accelerated kids in my book club thought it was interesting and the book brought forth a lot of discussion.

At home I finished The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by Katarina Bivald; a fresh fun story about a young Swedish woman who travels to Broken Wheel, Iowa to meet her bookish pen pal. By the time Sara arrives her pen pal, Amy, has died. The very small town rallies around her and the results are often strange and bittersweet. I enjoyed this tale for its quirky cast of characters and all the book trivia.

My husband and I sometimes read books to each other and we recently finished The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware. This is a psychological thriller and I’ve seen a lot of up and down reviews. We enjoyed it and love trying to figure out where the story is going. This one kept us guessing for a few plot twists. Next up we are going to read a classic thriller by Nancy Price-Sleeping with the Enemy.

I made the butternut squash soup, the potato and swiss chard dish and the butternut tabbouleh from my last blog post. All were delicious. Later tonight I’m going to make my stepmother’s zucchini bread for my husband because I have two that are oversized from our school garden. First I’m going to relax with some friends, music, and wine. Just the way to spend a Friday night. Groovy Girl made me dinner also; a veggie wrap using gluten-free wraps from Aldi. Something she watched a YouTube video about…

I’ll have to work harder to wrestle the computer away from her so I can write more before the month closes out.

Enjoy the weekend!!

Back-to-Back adult novels

The Nest by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney (2016):

Four Plumb siblings: Leo, Jack, Beatrice, and Melody fight over “The Nest”, a small fortune left to them by their late father. Repercussions abound as the fortune never recovers after Leo makes a huge error in judgement and borrows money without sibling knowledge or consent. Each Plumb family member deals with this is a variety of ways and the fallout after is monumental.

I can relate to this story without the large inheritance. It seems my three brothers and I can’t get along for 10 minutes anymore so this story hit close to home. This story is better writing than ours with a very unique cast of characters. Read this one if you like someone else’s family drama.

The Guest Room by Chris Bohjalian (2016):

This tale revolves around a bachelor party gone extremely wrong from the get-go yet there is so much more to this story. Good guy big brother Richard Chapman agrees to host his brother Philip’s bachelor party without understanding that Philip’s friend Spencer has hired a service providing the entertainment. Richard’s wife and daughter are off spending the night in Manhattan with his mother-in-law. Philip’s friends have Richard’s beautiful house to themselves and are immersed in full enjoyment when the party comes to a crashing halt.

Bohjalian built a truly interesting tale around a timely topic and shows us the harsh reality of the sex slave trade. I enjoyed the alternating point-of-view as Alexandra’s character will move you.

Happy reading!

It's June, It's June! {jumping up and down}

Summer has started. School has ended. Teachers and students need to rejuvenate. That said we are all still working. Students, hopefully, are still reading something (books, cereal boxes, road signs, etc.) and teachers are truly resting but in the back of their minds they are planning. Next year always looms ahead like a beacon. What can I do differently? How can I implement that into my classroom next year?

We all do it. Well I don’t know that for sure; I just know that I think that way and I’ve heard tell from other teacher friends that they plan that way as well. As a librarian I have the whole upkeep of the library to take care of and summer is a major cleanser for me. I’m working on inventory and have just started nonfiction. I finished fiction chapter books yesterday. They are all in the right order now, inventoried and reorganized. I’m taking out old copies, weeding, as I move through the shelves. It’s thrilling stuff.

I’ve also started working out with someone named Jillian Michaels who has kind of a fast mouth and likes to push it. Working out is something that gets pushed to the back burner during school and my mission is to get some strength back and to combat all the lounge treats I ate of the year.

I have lots of other plans for the summer and the first thing up on my travel agenda is coming up this week. We are heading to the Blue Ox festival in Eau Claire, WI with some friends. Camping, music, festival food, fun cocktails, sun dresses, and possibly some rain…all sounds like the perfect way to begin summer.

I’ve been lucky to have a few moments to spend in my parachute hammock reading. I’m in the middle of three great books; The Doctor’s Wife by Elizabeth Brundage, Left Neglected by Lisa Genova, and The Marvels by Brian Selznick.
What are you reading?

Happy June!

Scholastic Book Fair's in town.

And I made muffins for the teacher all-day preview. It’s my way of luring the teacher’s in to the fair to make a wish list so parent’s will buy books for their classroom. I wanted them to be yummy and enticing (and unfortunately my idea of yummy is healthy than what the rest of the world is interested in) so I scrolled through a few cookbooks to find something that spoke to me. I found it in my King Arthur Flour cookbook; Chocolate Breakfast Muffins. I made a double batch. Groovy Girl thought they were delicious.

Chocolate Breakfast Muffins (makes 12 large)

2/3 cup cocoa, Dutch-processed or natural

1 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 1/4 cups light brown sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp salt

1 cup chocolate chips

2 large eggs

1 cup milk

2 tsp vanilla

2 tsp vinegar

8 T butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 425*

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the cocoa, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt ,and chocolate chips. Set aside.

In a large measuring cup or medium-sized bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, vanilla, and vinegar. Add the wet ingredients to the dry, along with the melted butter, to the dry ingredients, stirring to blend. There’s no need to beat these muffins; just make sure everything is well combined.

Scoop the batter into 12 lightly greased muffin cups. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Don’t let them burn-they do cook quickly and my oven cooks high. Remove them from the oven, and after 5 minutes remove them from the pan, allowing them to cool on a wire rack before serving.

I love baked goods warm. I ate a few of the mini muffins just after they’d cool a bit and they were delicious. The chocolate chunks (which is all I had) and the toffee bits (I added for fun) were perfectly melty.

When I served them on Monday I heated them up also so the first few smart teachers had warmed up muffins-melt-in-your-mouth chocolate breakfast muffins.

Check out King Arthur’s amazing website.

Enjoy!