Food! (Re-Post)

Happy Almost Thanksgiving to all of my American readers.  I will be at the station, bossing my ambulance for the next couple of days so this is the last post until Monday.  Here in America we are celebrating food this week, I know, I know it's supposed to be about being thankful, and it is and I am and also there is a ton of really good food :-)  I have also noticed that food plays a big role in many books.  It is a way to establish time, place and status.  Exotic made up foods let you know you are somewhere unknown, when bread crusts are mentioned you know you are probably on the lower side of the class level.  Feasts, markets, snacks all help to add dimension to a story.  Here are some of my favorite food mentions in books.

Little House Series- This is probably one of my first full on book/food experiences. Food plays a huge role throughout the series and shows just how hard one had to work just to have food to put on the table.  I loved all of the descriptions on how food was grown, butchered, processed, prepared and consumed.  I must have driven my family crazy trying to mimic it all.  Some of the foods I wanted to try after reading this series- Vanity Puffs, cracklings, fresh churned butter, apple pie for breakfast, fresh maple syrup candy.

Harry Potter Series- These books are a great example of using food to help define a different world and different classes.  In the beginning just the ability to eat as much food as one wanted for each meal was one of Harry's biggest delights after arriving at Hogwarts.  The addition of variety and the novelty of wizard only foods just added to the atmosphere.  Of course after learning about the house-elves the immensity of these meals took on another meaning entirely.  One of my favorite scenes is still the first time we are introduced to Honeydukes and all of the delicious variety of magical candies seen within.  Some things that sound like fun to try- Berties Every-flavor Beans, butterbeer, chocolate frogs, Fizzing Whizbees, Ice Mice, Pepper Imps.

Chronicles of Narnia-My first introduction to books, also my first introduction to the importance of food.  From the turkish delight that tempts Edmund, to the mysterious feast on the outmost island at the end of the world, food in this world can have some serious consequences.  Food is also used to show community as when the Beavers feed the children a simple yet hearty and warming meal.  Food is used to mark the different cultures, people, and places within the realm that Narnia dwells.  To this day I still want to go to a giants kitchen and swim in a big cup of coffee!  Some food from my favorite realm that sound worth a try- Sticky marmalade roll, turkish delight, toffee candy plant fruit, buttered toast, frothy hot chocolate.

The Girl Who series- I have not finished this series yet (it's not even completely written yet) but the food in these stories is just so imaginative and descriptive that I have to include what I have read about already.  This is fairy food and by eating it our hero September must come back to Fairyland every year.  Again food is used to highlight the various regions and peoples that September meets along her journey and they are as varied and creative as one can get.  These stories also play on the Greek stories of Persephone and how eating the pomegranate seed compels her to return to the Underworld for a set amount of time each year. Some foods that I would gladly get stuck in Fairyland for- Pumpkin soup, The Elephants Fiery Heart Coffee.
So many many many many more that if I start naming them I will never stop!

The Candymakers- Ok so this one may have less to do with food as a whole and be more about candy, but in my family we eat dessert first so that makes it food!  The candy plays a pivitol role in this book as a way to teach, comfort, enjoy, amaze...well pretty much everything.  I think the main thing about the candy in this book is the way that each character goes about making his or her candy.  Some are methodical, some go for looks, some for taste, some just throw stuff pel-mel and hope for the best.  Each style, flavor, and design represents so much about each character in the book that you end up learning more from the candy then you do anything else.  Some tasty treats that I would like to try- Bubbletastic ChocoRocket, Pepsicle, Neon Yellow Lightining Chew, Oozing Crunchorama.

Ok so those are just a few books where food plays a role in defining the book, I know there are zillions of others, but these are the ones that made it on this year.  Next year we will add some more. On that note as much as I love the food aspect of Thanksgiving, I am also very thankful for so many things this year.  My whole family on both sides have been making progress in work, health, family and general awesomeness, Hubbin has been doing great in school, I have been having an awesome time at the station, and my bookshelves are full.  Most of all I am thankful for the sheer amount of loving family I have.  I have my friends who may as well be family, my station brothers and sisters, my inlaws and outlaws, my blood family and my adopted family and most of all my amazing Hubbin who loves me, spoils me, encourages me and makes me feel like the smartest, sexiest, most amazing person on the planet on a daily basis.  Happy Thanksgiving Everybody!

Winter Storm Warning...How To Make Sure You Are Stocked Appropriatly (Re-Post)

So us East Coasters are supposed to get hit with a Snowmageddon II tonight...yep we like to name our weather events all kinds of awesome names.  This means one of two things, either we will be trapped in our homes for the next three weeks...or it will all be gone by 5am.  Of course just the mention of snow sends my fellow East Coasters into panic mode and they all go racing for the stores to stock up on bread, milk and crackers.  I bet you anything if I walked into any local grocery store those shelves would be completely empty and there would be a line of frantic angry people freaking out 'cause they need to get all their bread, milk and crackers home before the snow starts...in 9 hours.  YEAH!  All kidding aside though it is important to be prepared, so I started my preparations yesterday by going to the most important store when it comes to storm stocking, that's right folks my local Barnes and Nobles.  Lucky for me they also knew a storm was coming and had all the books I wanted just waiting for me to pluck of the shelves...my bank account maybe not so prepared :-)  Here is my all important list for getting through most major weather events.

1) Books!  This is the most important item on the list because they are useful in so many ways.  You can of course read them, you can get survival tips from them, you can build and igloo out of them, you can use them as a way to spell out HELP or SOS so the helicopters can find you, you can use them as weapons, you can use them as a reward or punishment in the post apocalyptic society that will naturally come about after three days stuck in the same house as that stupid person (people) over there!  Things you may not do with your books no matter what the emergency or you will go straight to book-less hell where the only entertainment available to you will be Keeping Up with the Kardashions and Tiger Beat.  You must never burn your books no matter how cold you think you are, you must not use them to build a raft, even if you think you can see land, you must never never never never leave them behind, they are your children and must be taken care of.

2) Coffee, so much coffee, lots and lots of coffee. Coffee is a miracle substance, it keeps you warm, alert, and contains most homicidal urges.  Coffee can be brewed, iced, rewarmed, added to, or just eaten straight from the bag/bin/tun it comes in.  Coffee makes you feel full so even if food is scarce you will survive, coffee cures almost all ills so no one in your group will every fall prey to stupid little diseases, coffee will revive the dead...just ask my Hubbin any given morning.  Make sure you have enough coffee for everybody in your group, about a pound a day per person should be enough...unless there is a super bookworm in your bunch, then you had better double it.  Make sure everybody consumes their full ration every hour, no matter what and you will survive.

3) Duct Tape-Need I say more?

4) Mad-Libs, this easy simple hilarious game can keep ANYBODY entertained for hours and hours and hours.  You can do a zillion variations, make up rules, themes and all kinds of fun stuff.  You can reuse them, play them by yourself, play with others, build a society around them.  If you have Mad-Libs you may survive this hellish ordeal with some of your sanity intact.

5) A sense of humor.  For some reason even the most prepared person seems to forget to pack their sense of humor.  Stuff if gonna go wrong, toilets are going to stop working, the laptop will lose it's charge, and the roads will be impassable the day you finally agree to watch your baby nephew...Deal with it!  A sense of humor will not only make life bearable for your fellow trapees, but for yourself as well. A well prepared sense of humor will make you the hero of any weather related disaster.

I hope this list serves you well as you hunker down for Snowmaicemonsterwindsofdoomageddon II!  I will be at the fire station answering the calls of the poor trapped souls in need of my crew and our magic ambulance, rescuing people who seem to close their eyes and drive if you even mention snow, and join into the never ending snowball fight that we have going between calls at the station.  I was not kidding however on stocking up on books yesterday and will be bringing them all to the station for in case we get stuck their (along with extra socks, you always need extra socks). I hope everybody has enough books to survive.  Happy Reading Everybody!
PS In all seriousness, please try and keep a path to your door for emergency crews should you need their help, it will make it safer for everybody, including the patient.  If you know a neighbor is house bound, or sick, or has a newborn baby, show some of that awesome Olympic spirit that has been going around and clear a path to their door.  Mark your fire hydrants and keep your address visible hopefully you won't ever have to see me, but if you do we will both be glad that the prep work was done.  Stay Safe!

Rainbow Bookshelf (Re-Post)

In celebration of spring hopefully arriving soon, here is a rainbow of bookshelves for your every growing library (note to self:  How cool would it be to change out your bookshelves every season!).

Red

Orange

Yellow

Green

Blue

Indigo

Purple

All of this has made me want to install all new bookshelves and paint them all kinds of awesome colors.  Maybe they have inspired you to add a pop of color as well.  Happy Reading Everybody!

Getting On The List (Re-Post)

As my bookshelf space gets more and more limited I like to think of my TBR list as a kind of VIP list that books are clamoring to get on. We know this is not true of course, that I am a shameless book hussy and will bring home any book with a great cover, but a girl can still pretend to have standards :-)  In all seriousness folks, it is always interesting (to me at least) to see how a book does get on my list.

Known Author/Series-as with most people, I am a creature of habit, if I recognize a name on a book I am a zillion more times likely to pick it up, or be on the look out for the that particular author.  The next book in a series is always a pretty safe bet, if I am not already rabidly waiting at the store for the next installment to come out. When I was younger this is how I got the vast majority of my books.  I stuck pretty close to series and authors I knew, only branching out when I ran out of books, or my Mamma made me (thanks Mamma!).  I will be the first to admit that these are the first shelves I go to when I hit the bookstore/library and only after I have exhausted this route do I move on to other ways of putting books on my list/in my basket. Some examples that have made it on my list (Anne McCaffery, Orson Scott Card, Robin Hobb, The Princess Series, Fablehaven, A Song of Ice and Fire)

Popularity- I used to have a thing against reading books just because they were popular (which is kinda crazy considering my penchant for certain classics, which if you think about it are probably the definition of popular books).  I was in a stage for the longest time where I only read books nobody else had heard of in some hoity toity lofty idea miasma of coolness (no seriously that is totally accurate).  The book(s) that finally broke that stupid wall down for me was of course the amazing Harry Potter series.  Of course not every popular book is a good book (I'm looking at you Twilight), but there are many many many books that are worthy of the buzz and popularity.  Since starting this blog, I will sometimes read them, just to say I have and can continue my streak of snooty superiority, snug in the knowledge that I have actually read the book.  That being said, here are some books/series that made me glad I jumped aboard the bandwagon. (The Hunger Games, The Book Thief, Anything by Jane Austen)

Movies/TV-As much as I hate to admit it movies and TV shows made from books do play a role in my book choosing.  A lot of the time I have already read the book before the movie/show is even dreamed of, but in some cases the movie actually introduces me to the book. Sometimes I hear of the movie/show, go get and read the book and even eventually watch the movie/show (my Hubbin hates it when I do this).  Sometimes I watch a movie/show and find out that it is actually a book, or it gets me interested in a book that never really held that much attraction before.  Either way several of my book choices have been directly influenced by the movie.  Here are some of my favorite books that have been bought and loved via movie/TV inspiration. (Sherlock Holmes, Stardust, The Walking Dead, Percy Jackson Series)

Recommendations/Reviews- I have found some of the worst books this way, but I have also found some of my most treasured stories through personal recommendations and reviews.  I think this is a tricky category because as I have mentioned before I feel books are like art, what person genuinely and legitimately loves, will appear to another person to be no more then splotches on a piece of canvas.  It is also really hard to get a recommendation from somebody and then hate the book and then have to find a way to not hurt the recommenders feelings.  I found the best way is to find people who share similar tastes in life with you.  My baby sis can recommend a book and 9/10 times I LOVE it.  Same with review sites, I love reviews, but find that people (as they should) always come at it with there own idea and slant...as do I.  I have however found a couple of sites that seem to sync up with my tastes and I have a 8/10 record with most of them, so that works out pretty well in my favor. Here are some awesome books I would have missed without these great recommendations. (And All the Stars, Any Tamora Pierce book, Ella Enchanted)

Covers-I know your'e not supposed to judge a book by its cover, but sometimes I can't help it.  Normally this actually works for a book.  In general if I am already gonna get a book, the cover doesn't really deter me (though I will pay a bit more for a nice cover).  Sometimes however, I am in the mood for a bit of a gamble and I will walk the stacks and let a picture, color or title catch my eye.  Oddly enough this has resulted in some AMAZING finds.  Not really much else to say about this method, so here are some books that I urge you to judge by there covers.  (Wildwood Dancing, Zombies vs. Unicorns, How to Ditch Your Fairy)

There you have it folks, 5 ways to get onto my VIP TBR red carpet list :-)  As you can probably tell there is a reason my bookshelf is full to bursting, with more books on the list, just waiting to be bought, read and shelved.  The best part is with these sources my list is essentially never ending...I should probably go get some more shelves :-)

How do you decide which books go on your TBR pile/list?  What is the oddest way you have discovered a favorite book?  What recommendations do you have for me?