"The older I get, the more I shrink from the frenzy and hype and the potlatch aspect of present giving. I yearn for some simpler time when people gave each other jars of homemade jam and hand-knitted mittens." -Laurie Colwin
The month of December and the holiday season with all its hoopla is upon us. Gift giving, and gift shopping, are a major part of December's activities, though I focus mostly on the food, of course. Today is the first day of Hanukkah, and though we are not remotely Jewish, we often make traditional latkes served with home canned applesauce and sour cream. With gifts being on everyone's mind now, and knowing that I always appreciate a good read, I offer here a list of the books I've read this past year and recommend for those who love stories that are either about food, a person's deep love for a place, farms and raising animals, and/or the complications within family relationships.
We Were the Mulvaneys (a re-read)
Moonflower Vine
The Year of Eating Dangerously
Alone in the Kitchen with an Eggplant
A Pig in Provence
Twain's Feast
The Secret Life of Bees (a re-read)
Little Bee
Bees and Mist
The Tenth Muse
The Threadbare Heart
Disobedience
And now I'm going to go and finish making the orange marmalade I started two days ago, and then maybe start knitting a pair of mittens to give to someone.
This is so embarrassing, but....I can't remember. I'm going to get it from the library, start reading it, and half-way through I'll probably remember. Thanks for the suggestion, either way! I mean, if I liked it the first time, I'll also like it the second time. Or the third...
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