Women on Wednesday – Kim Edwards

I had heard alot of talk about Kim Edwards’ book, The Memory Keeper’s Daughter while traveling around the forums on Goodreads. I decided to check out the book for myself and see if it looked interesting to me. In the meantime I found a collection of short stories by her called The Secrets of the Fire King. These looked intriguing and I thought they might be a good introduction to her writing. I purchased the book and brought it home. As usual, my TBR grows faster than I can read, so book has been on my shelf for awhile. I recently picked it up and began reading. I was completely blown away by the first story. I paused a bit letting the words sink in and thinking about the tale. I soon read the next story and was again blown away. Each story thus far has been amazing. Her writing is extraordinary and I am in love. I can’t wait to read the next story and yet, I want to savor each one and not read too quickly. I don’t want the book to end. I haven’t read The Memory Keeper’s Daughter just yet, but I have the book and am looking forward to it. I am glad to have it waiting for me when I do finish the collection of short stories. This author and her writing have quickly moved to top of my list of faves. I’ll be rereading her work for years to come!

You can visit Kim Edwards’ site by clicking here. Also, I found a lovely interview at BookBrowse. You can read it by clicking here.

 

Author’s note: Women on Wednesday is hosted by West of Mars’ Rocks ‘N Reads. This is an opportunity to highlight women authors. Click here to learn more and join in the fun.

The Alchemist

The Alchemist
by Paulo Coelho

This is a beautiful story about following one’s dreams and becoming the person God intends us to be. It is a story about love and the power of love. It is a story about choices. It is a story about life.

Vintage Vogue Charm

My Vintage Vogue is a lovely sight dedicated to vintage fashion. Someone has been kind enough to share with the world an awesome collection of photos from vintage magazines. These date from the 1920’s through the 1960’s and so much fun to peruse. I could spend days just admiring all of the delicious eye candy like the above picture. I urge you to visit My Vintage Vogue and enjoy the view. If you haven’t the time for hours of window shopping then visit the My Vintage Vogue blog for a smaller dose of gorgeous vintage fashion.

While I’m discussing vintage fashion I must mention Digs Books and Frocks. I found this through the My Vintage Vogue blog and just adore it. It’s lovely blog full of vintage fashions and of course books. What’s not to love? Sally Jane Vintage is another lovely fashion blog. I love the outfits that Sally Jane puts together. She shows us how to combine vintage and modern pieces for a beautiful look.

Good Bones and Simple Murders

Good Bones and Simple Murders
by Margaret Atwood

Inside Flap: “In this collection of short works that defy easy categorization , Margaret Atwood displays the trademark wit and virtuosity of her bestselling novels, brilliant stories, and insightful poetry. Among the miniatures gathered here are Gertrude offering Hamlet a piece of her mind, the real truth about the Little Red Hen, a reincarnated bat explaining how Bram Stoker got Dracula all wrong, and the five home economist methods of making a man. These are parables, monologues, prose poems, condensed science fiction, reconfigured fairy tales, and other diminutive masterpieces–punctuated with charming illustrations by the author.”

My thoughts: I thought I’d try a little something different with this book review. As you have guessed from the above synopsis this is a difficult book to describe. It was rather like reading stream of consciousness, only more beautiful phrased and written than my own clumsy and often awkward thoughts. I did enjoy this book and as I hoped it was a good introduction to Margaret Atwood’s writing. I can certainly see myself reading more of her work in the future.

Fun with Vintage Hankies

I love vintage hankies. They are so delicate and pretty. In the past few weeks I discovered some fun uses for these pretty treasures. Nikki over at Whimsy Love made a Hanky Scarf which is so cool and unique. I have recently rediscovered how much fun scarves can be and so want one of these.

Amy at Design Sponge shared this lovely, cute pillow made from vintage hankies. I love throw pillows and firmly believe that it is impossible to have too many pillows. These are pretty and just about perfect.

Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict

Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict
by Laurie Viera Rigler

In this story Courtney wakes up in Regency England as a Miss Jane Mansfield. At first, she thinks its only a dream, but soon discovers it is all very real. I did enjoy this book. It was interesting to see the Regency Era through the eyes of a girl of the twenty-first century. I also enjoyed seeing her grow and learn and discover new things about herself. My only real issue came with the ending. It seemed a bit vague. I’m unclear as to whether Courtney returned to her own time or if Courtney was just a manifestation of Jane’s imagination. I like to think that Courtney found her happily ever after in Regency England with Mr. Edgewood.

Thanksgiving Menu for Two!

In the beginning we spent Thanksgiving with my husband’s family and Christmas with my family. My sister was the only one with kids and Christmas is more fun with little ones who still believe in the magic of it all. One day my brother-in-law announced that he and his wife would be having a little one. Now we had to find another solution. We trade off every other year. Last year we spent Thanksgiving with my family and Christmas with his. This year we stay home for Thanksgiving and spend Christmas at my mom’s house. The first year we spent Thanksgiving here I realized that there would be only the two of us. (My brother-in-law works for the fire department and often works holidays. The family schedule gets a little mixed up from time to time.) I wanted a traditional feast and yet a whole turkey for two seemed a bit much. I finally came up with a perfect menu and this year thought I would share with the rest of world. We can’t be the only ones who have ever found ourselves in such a predicament and others may find this helpful. First, the turkey became turkey sandwiches. My husband loves leftover turkey and cranberry sauce sandwiches, so I bought turkey from the deli and, of course, cranberry sauce. My husband’s other favorite is sweet potatoes with the marshmellows. I called his aunt and sweetly requested the recipe he grew up with and added yummy yams. Finally, I suggest adding a green veggie like my favorite, a green bean casserole. This rounds out the feast quite well and is somewhat simple without having too many leftovers. I like that with this menu I still feel like it’s a traditional meal. I do hope someone finds this simple feast helpful. I wish everyone a happy and safe Thanksgiving!

photo courtesy of Flicker

Celebrate It Christmas Elves!

Last night, Hubby suggested we take our Olive Garden giftcard into town and go on a little date. Thinking this an awesome idea, I said, “Let’s go!” After a wonderful meal and a delicious dessert of pumpkin cheesecake we headed to Michael’s. Hubby headed for the yarn/knitting section and I headed to the Christmas part of the store. I am meandering up and down aisles while oohing and aahing every few minutes when I turned the corner and found myself face to face with the most adorable Christmas elves. I couldn’t resist bringing one home(see above photo).  I just love the pointed ears and shoes, the bell on little red hat, and most of all that perfect, delightful smile.  There are nine different elves in the collection. They are so cute, don’t you think? I simply couldn’t wait to come here and share this fun Christmas find! And if you hurry you may catch them while on sale like I did!

Book Challeges!!

I have thinking about my ever growing TBR pile and what kind of reading I want to do in the coming year. I decided to set a personal goal of reading 50 books in the coming year. I have also found several challenges that sound like such fun. I enjoy these challenges. Joining with others who like reading some of the same things and seeing what they are up to is quite fun. I also love meeting new people in this way. While looking at various challenge opportunities, I discovered an upcoming Holiday Reading Challenge hosted by bookwormygirl that I am joining.

I am planning to read three books for this challenge. December is such a busy month. I hesitate to make too big of a commitment.
The Legend of Holly Claus
A Christmas Carol
The Handmaid and the Carpenter

Now, for 2010, I am joining the Year of the Historical Reading Challenge, the Read’n'Review Challenge, the Reading From My Shelves Project, the 18th & 19th Century Women Writers Reading Challenge, and the Marple Poirot Holmes Challenge. These all sounded quite exciting and fit perfectly with my ever growing TBR pile. Hopefully, by the end of 2010, I’ll have a much smaller pile and room for more books! I’m working on a Book Challenge 2010 page with everything outlined. So, check to back to see exactly what literary adventures I’ll be embarking on in the coming year.

Mr. Darcy’s Dream

Mr. Darcy’s Dream
by Elizabeth Aston

This was a lovely book. Louisa and Phoebe are of marrying age and spending the summer at Pemberley. These are the nieces of Lizzy and Mr. Darcy. They are lovely girls and it was fun to join them in their quest for love and happiness. There is, of course, an elaborate, beautiful ball and many intriguing characters. This is a light read and a wonderful journey into the world of Austen. Ms. Aston did a great job of recreating Jane Austen’s world. I recommend this for anyone whether you enjoy Austen or not.