REPOST: Bless Me, Última by Rudolfo Anaya

The news of the death of Rudolfo Anaya hit today. He was not only a world-renowned author, he was also a dear and cherished friend, mentor, and counselor. I was fortunate to have met him 20 years ago and we developed a wonderful friendship. He encouraged my writing, persuaded me to attend graduate school, and … Continue reading REPOST: Bless Me, Última by Rudolfo Anaya

Talking To The Dead by Helen Dunmore

Helen Dunmore has such a lush style of writing that you often don't notice she's sucking you into a maelstrom of subtle discord until it's too late. Talking to the Dead is the first book by her I'd ever read and her literary style is absolutely amazing, combining the understated unease of family dynamics with … Continue reading Talking To The Dead by Helen Dunmore

The Godfather by Mario Puzo

I'm a bore on the topic of books vs. films, as I've been told many times, and I'd have to agree. Don't get me started on whether the film version is better than the book, because I will wax poetic for a good hour or two about the merits of the book and how the … Continue reading The Godfather by Mario Puzo

The Prince of Tides by Pat Conroy

This book, though incredibly beautiful and lyrical and so very funny at times, is also so heart-wrenching to read that I considered not going with it. And I've read it before, but I think sometimes when you read things at a younger age, you haven't either gone through the devastation and heartbreaks of adulthood so … Continue reading The Prince of Tides by Pat Conroy

The Homecoming by Andrew Pyper

I love being scared, although I prefer my frights to come from supernatural elements like ghosts, vampires, demons, witches, and the like. Scares that come from real-life terrors like serial killers, home invasions, break-ins, freak me out so badly that I can't read about them or watch them. It's just too close to home, pardon … Continue reading The Homecoming by Andrew Pyper

The Rules of Magic by Alice Hoffman

I didn't intend to do a blog post this week for several reasons, the main one being that my dearest and only aunt - my dad's younger sister to whom I am very close - had an unexpected triple-bypass on Friday and that has been weighing on me. She came out of the surgery all … Continue reading The Rules of Magic by Alice Hoffman

We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson

Another fun book about family dysfunction! Woo hoo! Shirley Jackson was introduced into my life many years ago when I discovered The Haunting of Hill House, which is in my top 10 favorite books of all time and also which I blogged about awhile back - here's the link if you're interested. We Have Always Lived … Continue reading We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson

Haroun and the Sea of Stories by Salman Rushdie

A very magical and whimsical book ostensibly written for children, it also translates beautifully for adults. Haroun and the Sea of Stories is, at its heart, a poignant treatise on the importance of words and stories and language and not censoring either your imagination or your voice. Written by Salman Rushdie, whose seminal work The … Continue reading Haroun and the Sea of Stories by Salman Rushdie

The Vacationers by Emma Straub

This book was previously blogged about by a fellow food blogger, Cara Nicoletti, whose page Yummy Books was one of the inspirations for starting my own food and book blog. The Vacationers is about a family's secrets and dysfunctions that come out over two weeks when they are vacationing in their house in Mallorca. I … Continue reading The Vacationers by Emma Straub

The Apprentice by Jacques Pépin

There are three celebrity cooks  - Anthony Bourdain, Nigella Lawson and Emeril Lagasse - whom I love, but who are as much shrewd self-marketers as they are cooks. Then there are the three honest-to-God gourmet chefs whose writings have heavily influenced my own cooking and writing. Julia Child, the Goddess; Clarissa Dickson Wright, of Two … Continue reading The Apprentice by Jacques Pépin