I had fun in the kitchen this past weekend when I made my first successful batch of flakey buttermilk biscuits. It was my third attempt and third recipe. The one I finally used (from Baker Bettie) resulted in tender, flakey, buttery and beautiful biscuits, and they were gone pretty fast. Baker Bettie – who is my online baking teacher – makes it so clear in her video all the things I’ve been doing wrong. Plus, she explains the scientific reasons for things like cutting the butter into the flour. I’m in baking heaven!
Another big win for me has been reading Percival Everett’s new book “James.” I liked it so much that, now that Eddie is listening to it, I’m taking it in a second time. I’d heard from friends that listening to it was the way to go, and I think I might agree, even though I don’t usually listen to books. Hearing the dialogue is really an important part of this particular book. Whatever approach you take, it's a great read - a reimagining of "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" told from Jim's point of view. I highly recommend it.
I asked my Facebook friends for suggestions for a new book to read. I’m lucky to have a lot of interesting and well-read pals over there! I've already read several of these, but immediately started one I haven't. I think the suggestions comprise a great collection of titles. I've added some of my own recent favorites and thought it'd be nice to share the list with you!
The Women, Kristen Hannah
The Reading List, Sarah Nisha Adams
Frozen River, Ariel Lawhon
The Louise Penny series
Covenant Of Water, Abraham Verghese
Lessons in Chemistry, Bonnie Garmus
How To Know a Person, David Brooks
The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog, Bruce D. Perry
North Woods, Daniel Mason
Bee Sting, Paul Murray
Long Island, Colm Toibins
Demon Copperhead, Barbara Kingsolver
Pachinko, Min Jin Lee
The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane, Lisa See
Lady Tan’s Circle of Women, Lisa See
The Wager, David Grann
The Wrong End of the Telescope, Rabih Alameddine
The Gift of Rain, Tan Twan Eng
Miss Benson’s Beetle, Rachel Joyce
Harlem Shuffle, Colson Whitehead
Crook Manifesto, Colson Whitehead
Deacon King Kong, James McBride
Heaven and Earth Grocery Store, James McBride
Yellowface, David Henry Hwang
Horse, Geraldine Brooks
Braiding Sweetgrass, Robin Wall Kimmerer
The Overstory, Richard Powers
The Five Star Weekend, Elin Hilderbrand
Little Fires Everywhere, Celest Ng
Our Missing Hearts, Celest Ng
Wrong Place, Wrong Time, Gillian McAllis
Murder Your Employer, Robert Holmes
The Yellow Envelope, Kim Dinan
The Backyard Bird Chronicles, Amy Tan
The Dutch House, Ann Patchett
Tom Lake, Ann Patchett
These Precious Days, Ann Patchett
Wandering Stars, Tommy Orange
Wellness, Nathan Hill
Shrines of Gaiety, Kate Atkinson
Take My Hand, Dolen Perkins-Valdez
Lincoln Highway, Amor Towles
Lincoln in the Bardo, George Saunders
The Searcher, Tana French
The Hunter, Tana French
Dogtripping, David Rosenfelt
The Eyes and the Impossible, Dave Eggers
The Collected Regrets of Clover, Mikki Brammer
The Berry Pickers, Amanda Peters
The Book of Lost Names, Kristin Harmel
The Bohemians, Jasmin Darznik
Crying in H Mart, Michelle Zauner
Bye-Bye Bakersfield, Jan Baross
West with Giraffes, Lynda Rutledge
