Northcoast Journal article

Interesting article about a local small publishing house, called Stark House, owner, Greg Shepard.

The Pulp Mill Crooked Cops Private Dicks And The Shady Ladies Of Stark House

The Christmas Garden Affair

Well, while I'm waiting for my library to get The Handmaiden and The Carpenter in, I'm going to read Ann Ripley's The Christmas Garden Affair. Looks like a fun and interesting book. It's mystery, (my fav!), and gardening, (my other fav!) and it's set during the holidaze! How much better can it be? Well, the librarian said Ann Ripley is one of her favorite authors. Well, there you have it. It's a must read!

This is what I know so far. Ann Ripley writes mysteries and short stories back home in Colorado, and she's an organic gardener. She has written 10 books! Mulch 1994, Death of a Garden Pest 1996, Death of a Political Plant 1998, The Garden Tour Affair 1999, The Perennial Killer, 2000, Harvest of Murder, 2001, The Christmas Garden Affair, 2002, Death At The Spring Plant Sale, 2003, Summer Garden Murder, 2005, and her newest book; Death In The Orchid Garden, 2006. Man! Who knew you could draw so much writing inspiration from gardening?!?

Being a gardener (somewhat organic) I think I'm going to really enjoy this book!

Join me if you dare....Susan, my fellow gardener, I think you should read this and post a comment on this blog.

Having It & Eating It - the review

I have to say, I really enjoyed this book. Being a mother of two, and having had a career "BC (Before Children)", I related to so much of this mother's hassles in life. For a while I felt like I was Maggie Owen, but, as the story progressed, I'm very glad I'm not. I read another review of the book and someone's comment was that Maggie's character was a bit whiney. I had read this review before finishing the book, so I took offense to the comment. I fully disagreed, but in the end, I have to say, she was right. Although, I didn't mind it. I was starting to relate a bit too much to this character, and than, I realized I was much better off than her. Thank God!

This book is full on "chicklit", so it's not going to appeal to everyone. Definitely not a "classic novel", but a fun read. Comedy, mystery, romance, just a fun read. And, you'd think with all that, that it would have a predictable ending. Nope! That's what really made me enjoy this book. I really didn't know how it was going to end until the last few pages.

This was Sabine Durrant's first published novel, and it was great. I'm definitely planning on seeking out more of her work. Ms. Durrant has been a journalist for the Gardian, the Observer, Independent, Daily Telegraph and Sunday Times. She has written two other books; The Great Indoors and Cross Your Heart, Connie Pickles.

Well, I'm almost done with Sabine Durrant's book, Having It & Eating It, which I have been thoroughly enjoying. A total guilty pleasure. Now I'm thinking I'd like to read something with a bit of a Christmas theme on the next round, being that Christmas is almost here. I happened to run onto Elizabeth Berg's The Handmade And The Carpenter. It's the story of how Mary and Joseph met and about their marriage and the birth of Jesus. This isn't your typical Christmas story though. It's told in a way that puts Mary and Joseph in a more human light, not so much as legends of a great story, but the human side of them and their story. The excerpt I read was very refreshing. A whole different perspective on an ancient story. I hope to make this my next read.

To read an excerpt go to The Handmaden And The Carpenter excerpt

Having It Eating It

I'm currently reading Having It Eating It by Sabine Durrant. I think I'll find a lot to relate to in this book...."A comic and acutely intelligent novel about how having small chldren can challenge a woman's identity and sanity" It's starting out pretty good. I'll let you know how good when I'm done reading.

Join in if you dare...

Yeah, what this guy says

I Was Placed On This Earth To Put Off Doing Something Extraordinary

The Nasty Bits by Anthony Bourdain

"The good, the bad, and the ugly, served up Bourdain-style".

This is a book where Anthony takes a bunch of his old writings from magazines and newspapers and puts it together in a book..."Collected varietal cuts, usable trim, scraps, and bones". I had been told it was just a regurgitation of his tv shows, but it turns out that is not entirely so. I have to say it's not the best writing in the world, but! I'm a rabid Anthony Bourdain fan, so I enjoyed it a great deal. It's no where as good as Kitchen Confidential, but being the fan that I am, I truly enjoyed and appreciated this book. It took me forever to read, not because it's a slow, or hard read, but because I've recently taken leave of my sanity, dropped all gardening and household chores, gone off the deep end, and added a third part time job to my life (not counting marriage and kids). So, it took me a while to get through this book with my time (and sanity) constraints. That is one reason I would recommend this book. If you have a bit of a sick sense of humor, appreciate good food, and learning about other cultures, but don't have time to sit down and read an entire novel in a few days, this book is for you, especially if you're an Anthony Bourdain fan. It's short story after short story. You can read it at your leisure and actually get through an entire story in a few minutes. Great for lunch breaks at work. It's full of Bourdain's biting wit and humor and some humility at times. It often gives you insight into his mind and you can see how his attitude and ideas have changed over the years, but don't expect him to start listening to Billy Joel with you. That just ain't gonna' happen! It's a fun read, and I recommend it to all Anthony Bourdain fans, especially those who just have time for a little taste of his writing at a time. His writing is fun, and this book does make me want to read his fiction books, Bone in the Throat, Typhoid Mary, Bobby Gold Stories, and Gone Bamboo.

The Nasty Bits

I recently finished Anthony Bourdain's book The Nasty Bits. Here is a reading from Anthony himself at a Barnes and Noble on June 18 2006. He's reading the section called "A Drinking Problem".
I'll have more to say about this book later, but here is Anthony for your viewing pleasure:

What is this?

I love books! I've always loved books! I've never been in a book club, unless you count Oprah's. So what qualifies me to create a one member book club? Nothing, except I read a lot, and I don't feel like going out in my very wet and dieing garden right now. (I'm also The Ignorant Gardener ) and I'm a frustrated writer, but every time I get the urge to write, I mix myself a drink and lie down and wait for the feeling to go away. I figured this is a way to justify reading more ( while staying dry and avoiding the mud), and a reason to put the glass down and step away from the drink, and WRITE! I'm not inspired by my garden right now, even though I should be planting a wad of garlic in it, so I'm going to write about books I'm reading for a while.