Julia the Reader

In which I explain...

2010-07-16T02:23:00.000-11:00

So...the silence.
So sorry about that...

Allow me to explain. No really, allow me to explain. I just started a new internship. (I'm working with dreamy books, dreamy bloggers, and dreamy digi marketing, at the dreamiest company.) I'm looking for a new apartment. I'm trying to run miles upon miles around the glorious grande manzana. And in the process of keeping it all straight, I've lost track of time.

My b. Whoops.

So, for the time being, I'll be tumbling over here. Tag along if you'd like, because I'd love to have you.

Who knows, maybe I'll be back in a week, maybe not. Just don't call it a comeback...

13 WEEKS AND 13 BOOKS UNTIL 13 MILES: Book 2

2010-06-22T17:07:00.000-11:00

The Dharma Bums by Jack Kerouac

And here we have, haiku review number two:

dreamy and tempting,

be cautious: you'll want to get

the hell outta dodge

Up next: I Was Told There'd be Cake by Sloane Crosley

Fullcodepress and Forrst: 2 awesome bits of geekdom

2010-06-19T00:12:00.003-11:00

I'd like to draw your attention to two terribly awesome bits of geekdom:

1.) Fullcodepress:

I'm borrowing words here but: "The concept is simple. Web teams take each other on, at the same location, to build a complete website (for a non-profit) in 24 hours. No excuse, no extensions, no budget overruns." I believe the two words you're looking for are: awe and some. Go USA!

2.) Forrst (or @forrst)

Essentially a tumblr-esque platform for designers and developers, Forrst has the potential to become an invaluable resource for the fancypantolones of the digital realm. PS: It's invite-only.

13 WEEKS AND 13 BOOKS UNTIL 13 MILES: Book 1

2010-06-14T08:13:00.003-11:00

Well week and book one of my 13 weeks/13 books/13 miles project has come to a close...

Let's get one thing straight: I am not a reviewer. I have consistently shied away from offering anything other than a friendly book suggestion. I know that I tend to overuse gushy adjectives and my critical eye is a not as sharp as I'd like it to be. Book reviewing is an art form and it's one that I have not yet mastered.

Now, all of that said, I don't see the harm in writing a teeny tidbit to express how I felt about this book-- something short, sweet, and (hopefully) taken with a very large grain of salt.

Blogosphere, I'd like to present, for your consideration, the book review haiku*:

Once a Runner: A Novel by John Parker, Jr.

inspiring read

I wish I'd read in high school,

read with your kicks close.

Up next: The Dharma Bums by Jack Kerouac. I'm going back to Cali, Cali...

*For this particular experiment I am merely following the 5/7/5 structure and taking "on" to signify a syllable. Don't get all haiku police on me, por favor.

Breaking up is hard to do...

2010-06-02T04:27:00.000-11:00

Sonya Chung's article on The Millions this morning ("It's Not You, It's Me: Breaking Up With Books") got me thinking a little about reading and commitment.

I'm going to come right out and say it: I do not see anything wrong with giving up on a book.

Now, my parents instilled in me a sense of duty--finish your vegetables, finish your homework, finish your sentences--and I suppose I interpreted this philosophy to also mean finish your book. And for years I trudged through fiction (and a little non-fiction) that I would have otherwise put down after the first few chapters.

But now, as I transition into my grown up years and begin to embrace grown up perks (I eat brownie batter for dinner sometimes) I think I've made peace with the fact that I will not enjoy every read I start. I abide by the "Page 57 Rule."

Page 57 Rule: One must give each book a chance up until page 57, after that, one may continue as one sees fit. The origins of this rule trace back to a cool summer roof top night shared between three friends and a pitcher of wheat beer.

I also fully agree with Ms. Chung's understanding:

"My commitment to finishing books in the past was probably related to the above – fear of ensuing guilt and shame. Failure, too, I suppose. And perhaps at this point in my reading life, I’ve finished (and more than that, really ingested into my mind and emotions) enough books so that I feel a little freer in exercising the right to choose how to invest my reading time and energy; to veer from the Canonical Path – if such a thing actually exists anymore – and forge my own highly specific map of literary experience and influence. "

So go forth and be choosy!

PS: Also check out Debbie Stier's thoughts on not finishing Commitment by Elizabeth Gilbert.

13 WEEKS AND 13 BOOKS UNTIL 13 MILES

2010-06-01T14:20:00.000-11:00

Guess what? It's summertime. How on earth is it summertime? Wasn't yesterday Christmas? C'est la vie, I suppose. I must be getting old. Summer is here and with it I'm welcoming cook-outs, short-shorts, and all good things.

I'm approaching this particular summer Forest Gump style--I will be runnin'. This Sunday will start the 13 week mark until my half marathon and my Asics and I are pumped. I've decided to tie this training in with a new summer reading project. Back in January I had all the best intentions of beginning a 52 books/ 52 weeks project. Well, now January is June and I don't see the harm in giving the whole 1 book/ 1 week concept a new spin. Feel free to send recommendations to julia[dot]forrest[dot]costa[at]gmail.com. (I read almost anything, but keep it short-ish, por favor.)

I have gigantic feet. All the better for running, my dears.

I also have a gigantic brain (not pictured).

All the better for reading, my dears.

TITLE NUMERO UNO:
Once a Runner by John L. Parker, Jr. (Scribner; 2009)
Why: Because after nearly ten years as a "runner" I've never taken the time to sit down with a copy. I believe the word you're looking for is SERIOUSLY?!

Snap, snap...

2010-06-01T07:00:00.000-11:00

My motto
as I live and learn
is to dig and be dug
in return.

--Langston Hughes

PS: Sorry this is a double post (if you follow my tumblr) but it was too excellent for just one social media platform.

A Post-Grad Survival Kit: Blogini Style

2010-05-23T10:01:00.000-11:00

I'd like to take a minute to offer up a list of my favorite go-to Gen Y blogs. A little over a year ago I found myself in a strange position. I graduated from a lovely school, in a great city, at which point I was branded with a scarlet "L" (for liberal arts), given a diploma, and sent out into the world sporting a pantsuit and an idealistic smile.

I was a total sucker.

I interviewed with advertising companies. I interviewed in non-profit PR. I interviewed for paralegal positions. Nothing felt right. Thanks to the advice of these bloggers and blogistas, I took a step back and realized what I wanted to do and how I wanted to do it, and although I'm still plugging away at the job search, I am in a really great place and am still excited about the career I'm pursuing. Now just try and wipe that idealistic smile off my face.

Gen Y Blogs:

Life After College: Jenny Blake works in career development at Google and she is far and away one of the most positive people on the interwebs. Her recent post on organizing your life via Google Docs has officially made me the most efficient human being on earth.
Life Without Pants: Now, as a life rule, I automatically subscribe to blogs with the word "pants" in the URL, but this one is really awesome all on its own. Matt Cheuvront pens this alternative look at the world of work. See "Breaking Away From Generation Now."
Lindsey Pollack: A spokesperson for LinkedIn (among a million other things), this lady has quite a way with words--she knows grads, she knows jobs, and she most certainly knows how to put the two together.
Marian Librarian: Meeting Marian was my first blogger-to-IRL meet up. Warning: she is just as cool in person as she seems on her blog...possibly cooler. This girl is doing big things with books and social media.
Sydney: Unfiltered: Sydney is an assistant account exec with Weber Shandwick and she works in emerging media. (Cool, huh?) She blogs about Gen Y, career newbs, and life (such as it is). I'm a big fat fan of her recent entry on why passion is not limited to entrepreneurship.

See also: The Happiness Project, Personal Branding Blog, "100 Blogs That Should Be Required Reading in College," "10 Gen Y Blogs to Read in 2010" (via BNET) and Top 10 College Career Center Blogs.

Money Blogs:

Fun fact alert. Thanks to this past year I can now say that I am 100% debt free! Although moving back home and seriously slicing unnecessary spending are responsible for my debtless vida, these blogs offered incredible guidelines and set me up in a major way.

I Will Teach You To Be Rich: I learned about Ramit Sethi while reading One Day One Blog. Sethi is a NYT bestselling author, a Stanford grad, and he will teach you to be rich. It's just that simple.
Broke Grad Student: The tale of one former grad student and his loans. An interesting look into passive income.
Budgets Are Sexy: ...because they are.

Hope that helps. I follow dozens of other Gen Y blogs (some are fairly unknown and some are fancypants) but these are, in my opinion, the most helpful and entertaining.

Twitter Media Unveils 'Blackbird Pie'

2010-05-06T03:20:00.002-11:00

Print screen, be gone! If you'd like screen shots of your tweets (for whatever reason) simply paste the URL into Blackbird Pie and Twitter will generate a code for your to paste into wherever you see fit.

Note: this is a rough test, the image will not work on Tumblr and works best with WordPress.

Smories. More Please!

2010-05-05T05:52:00.000-11:00

This is adorable kiddo is telling us about the time when Allanah’s favourite peppermint pink and blueberry striped sock goes missing.

Having a bit of a down Wednesday? Click over to Smories and have yourself a story hour. Started by Lisa Swerling and Ralph Lazar, Smories publishes 50 new stories each month. The stories are for kids, read by kids, and personally, I can't think of anything cooler.

A snuggie for the literary crowd...

2010-05-03T13:52:00.000-11:00

Happiness in Bed (via Swiss-Miss)

Max Hastings falls hard for his Kindle...

2010-04-29T03:09:00.000-11:00

"Delayed for three hours at New Orleans airport last month, I lost myself in the journal of Walter Scott, one of the best accounts in literature of a writer's life. I reflected wryly on what the old master might have thought, seeing lines which he penned in his house beside the stately Tweed almost two centuries ago reach me through a wizard's electronic box.

He would not have quibbled, I fancy, about the means. He would merely have been delighted to find his old words still reaching an audience in a new age and a new world."

-I can't text and adore dusty old books, but when I was given an electronic reader, I was hooked

Note: no mention of iPad...

Social Media Marketing & Publishing: A match made in absolute heaven

2010-04-28T16:03:00.002-11:00

SMM is the most natural avenue for publishers to take for one reason:

Association is what keeps social media churning--people are constantly asking: "WHO/WHAT DO YOU READ?"

Clearly the days of marketers telling consumers what to purchase, where to purchase, and how much to purchase are long gone. (And thank goodness for that--how boring!) Now marketers of consumer goods must figure out how to be the lucky one the consumer picks. Discovering how to wiggle into that position is simple*: find out who the consumer is asking. The age old tradition of asking for a book recommendation is now exactly how the masses choose shampoo, hotels, and shoes.

Inspiration: Groundswell by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff

*Prof. Sanaj (Consumer Behavior God) would probably cringe if he read that sentence. Obviously I'm oversimplifying here.

99-Year-Old Writer & The iPad: BFFs

2010-04-28T11:56:00.000-11:00

Just in case you missed it, here's a viral vid to lighten up your evening!

Spring Cleaning: Link Style (The Job Search Version)

2010-04-26T06:32:00.000-11:00

Thursday= Seth Godin + Penelope
Recommended Reading: Get a Life, Not a Job
Job Search Marketing Toolkit- Target Job Market
Exchange your verbs for nouns (when it comes to your resume, at least)
Two new entry-level blogs to follow:

Grad to Great by Anne Brown (@gradtogreat)
Ms. Career Girl by Nicole Crimadli (@MsCareerGirl)

Spring Cleaning: Link Style

2010-04-26T05:53:00.000-11:00

The Best Sites for News Roundups

2010-04-19T05:56:00.001-11:00

I'm a bit of a bloghead.

If you happen to be reading this you're probably a bit of a bloghead yourself.

I subscribe to an embarrassingly high number* of book blogs.

But sometimes I just don't have the time to sift through it all. For instance, since I nanny on weekends, I rarely read the reviews in their entirety. (Shame! Shame! Shame!) When I don't have the time I go to a few trusted sources for roundups:

The Book Bench: A long-time favorite of mine, The Book Bench is the blogging arm of the New Yorker and the "in the news" posts are always funny, always informative, and always welcomed.
Bookninja: If you like your news with a heaping side of sarcasm, Bookninja should be your bag (er, blog). The news posts are quick but also representive of the day's events.
Huffington Post: In my opinion (however weighty you think it to be) HuffPo knows blogging like the back of its virtual hand. In the olympics of social media, HuffPo is Michael Phelps (pre-scandal)--swift, effective, and always interesting. I'm a big fan of the condensed reviews.
Nathan Bransford Literary Agent: While this is a particuarly great blog in its own right, I normally head on over to NBLA for his "This Week in Publishing" posts. Say you were without power for an entire week. Or maybe stranded somewhere without cell service. Well, if your power and service managed to resurface by Friday (when these posts go up) you'd be all caught up in just a few minutes.
Omnivoracious: The blogging branch of Amazon.com, Omnivoracious produces great review roundups, daily news piles, and kidlit compilations.

*Too many to list.

Mmmmm. C'est bon.

2010-04-17T07:34:00.000-11:00

Ready For Dessert from David Lebovitz on Vimeo.

Le eek!

David Lebovitz’s new book came out a bit ago and I just had a first read.

Ready For Dessert (Ten Speed Press) is a compilation of David’s all-time favorites. (Including recipes from his first two books which are currently out of print.)

David Lebovitz knows sugar, he knows it inside and out, and I could read his sugared thoughts until the cows came home. In addition to his new book, I highly suggest reading The Sweet Life in Paris for extra insight.

PS: The video is David and his take on the chocolate chip cookie. Fast forward to around 2:30 or so to see him taste test them on Parisians. (Which is really the best part.)

Kitchen Happenings

2010-04-14T12:46:00.000-11:00

Oh my! So it's been a while.

I have a growing list entitled "but seriously, blog about this" and the list just keeps growing and growing. And the blogging? It just keeps shrinking and shrinking. Well, this...this is a start.

My kitchen has been hoppin' for the past few weeks. Here's what I caught on film:

[coffee toffee recipe via Smitten Kitchen]

What: deliciously lush toffee with a hint of coffee (topped with toasted almonds)/ Why: a housewarming fete for the record books/ When: last weekend/ Recipe review: 10! This was my third time making this. It's foolproof toffee and the coffee is pure genius.

[Caramel Cake via Lottie and Doof]

What: creamy yet fluffy buttermilk cake with an oozy caramel glaze. Yup. Creamy, oozy fluff. Can you even handle it?/ Why: because I've had this cake bookmarked for MONTHS, and truth be told, sometimes you just need a buttermilk cake with a caramel glaze. Right?/ When: a lazy Sunday night/ Recipe review: a 7. The cake is baller but it took a while to get the glaze to the right consistency.

[Black and White Cookies via Joy the Baker]

What: the best of both worlds/ Why: I needed a shippable birthday gift/ When: last night, 11pm/ Recipe review: a 6. I'd add a tsp of lemon juice to the cookie dough AND the vanilla glaze.

So that's a slice of what I've been up to. I'll be back blogging within the week. In the meantime, I've started a tumblr to house all the reblogs and photographic spillover.

Check back, por favor.

News Bites

2010-04-08T23:08:00.000-11:00

Hello there,
Happy Friday!

Le iPad: Who is it for? How well does it work? (Because I'm sure you need another iPad review like you need a big, giant hole in your head.)
Maud Newton reminds us that NYC apartments are ideal for ebook reading...
Ethics, ethics, ethics...Remember this article? Yup, the one that sparked one thousand blog posts. Remember this virtual smackdown? Well, here's some more food for thought (brought to you via eBookNewser).
"Oprah Winfrey May Host a 'Book-Club Show' on Her New Network" (via GalleyCat) Huzzah, Oprah!
iBooks on the iPhone
I know I tweeted this, but I'm reposting it because, well, it's Friday and Fridays should have fun in them..."10 Songs for English Majors"

2010-04-05T08:22:00.002-11:00

Written and Illustrated by Mark Crick

Published by Harcourt

[image via]

Today seemed like a normal Monday. Monday is my day off and normally I spend it in a coffee shop or running errands. (My life is both fulfilling and thrilling, huh?) Well, today I opted for a morning of coffee shop dwelling and an afternoon of browsing at my favorite new-to-me bookshop. An hour and $8 lighter, I emerged with two very cool titles, the coolest of which is pictured above.

Kafka's Soup: A Complete History of World Literature in 17 Recipes is an idea so great, so perfectly suited to my tastes, so perfectly produced, that upon discovering it I uttered a "whoa, seriously?" OUT LOUD.

Here's a teaser:

"Tarragon Eggs

a la Jane Austen

4 eggs
1 tablespoon fresh tarragon, or 1 teaspoon dried
4 tablespoons butter
Ground pepper
Pinch of salt

It is a truth universally acknowledged that eggs, kept for too long, go off. The eggs of Oakly Farm had only recently been settled in the kitchen at Somercote, but already Mrs B--was planning a meal that would introduce them to the neighborhood with what she hoped would be universal acceptance."

Now, not to get all girlish and predictable, but...I KNOW! RIGHT?! So dreamy.

2010-04-01T08:17:00.001-11:00

Well, I heard that Borders was having quite a lovely week and on my way home from one nanny job this afternoon I decided give the mega-store some extra moola. You know, to sock away for a rainy day. I stopped by for a some birthday shopping.

If ever I doubt my desire to work in publishing all I need to do is take a trip to the bookstore and plant myself in the children's section. Each sight and sound serves as an affirmation that I am, in fact, still madly in love with books and what they do for others. (Phew!)

Today I picked up the following:

Hug Time by Patrick McDonnell (LBYR)

"The world is so big...and yet so very small, it's time that we embrace it all. That's something that we all can do. Start with the one who's closest to you."

Oh, Baby! Go, Baby! by Dr. Seuss (Random House Books for Young Readers)

Image via

" Congratulations! Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting So...get on your way!"

Because what else does a 1-year-old need to hear on his birthday?

Kitchen Project: 1 resume + 1 muffin tin= an experiment gone horribly right!

2010-03-31T07:36:00.001-11:00

After months of receiving e-mails like this one,

[my problem]

kindly suggesting that I pay a small, small fee of $359.10 (OR $64.80 over 6 months) so that I might arm myself with a professionally written resume. Long story short, I was sick and tired of it. $350! $350?! Last month, I found tickets to Iceland for that price. I did need to revamp my resume, though. I needed a few extra sets of eyes.

Enter: tumblr.

[my plea]

I typed up a quick post on my personal tumblr, asking anyone and everyone to take a look at my resume. I promised baked goods in exchange for sage advice and a click of the "track changes" button.

I expected a few e-mails to trickle in over the next few days. What happened, however, was slightly different. I received over 50 e-mails within a few short hours. (!) Clearly I didn't send out 50+ packages, even with my post office hook up (I'm excellent friends with Shayla, the AM desk clerk at my branch) sending sugar all over the country adds up quickly.

My point being, ask and you shall receive. We live in an age of excess, you know that. Trying to put a measurement on content is just too difficult but the good news is that putting a measurement on goodwill is equally as difficult.

PS: I ended up making

Coffee Toffee
S'mores Brownies
Chocolate Caramel Crack(ers)
Peanut Butter Blondies
Coconut Macaroons (except mine were mint with a chocolate drizzle--just swap peppermint extract for the vanilla)

"Publishing books to make money...

2010-03-29T09:49:00.000-11:00

...is a little like hanging out in a singles bar if you want to get married.
It might work, but there are way better ways to accomplish your goal.
If you love writing or making music or blogging or any sort of performing art, then do it. Do it with everything you've got. Just don't plan on using it as a shortcut to making a living.
The only people who should plan on making money from writing a book are people who made money on their last book. Everyone else should either be in it for passion, trust, referrals, speaking, consulting, change-making, tenure, connections or joy."

--Seth Godin

2010-03-24T08:31:00.000-11:00

If you peek over to the left you'll see that I keep my reading list under the headline "nightstand frosting". I tend to read for multiple purposes. Let me give you an example, this week, for instance-- Here Comes Everybody for the job search, The Conscious Cook for my stomach, and Juliet, Naked for the Nick Horby-loving girl that I am.

Just a few updates, however:

1.) Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations by Clay Shirky (Penguin): I picked this up after reading through the Online Marketing Syllabus posted at Chapman/Chapman. So far so great. This read is applicable, interesting, and and insightful.

2.) The Conscious Cook: Delicious Meatless Recipes That Will Change the Way You Eat by Tal Ronnen (William Morrow Cookbooks): From what I read, Tal Ronnen is the vegan chef and after skimming through this, it seems as though Mr. Ronnen might just be able to cook even the most meat-loving of chefs right under the stove. This book includes recipes, profiles of foodies, and Tal's personal picks for vegetables, grains, and superfoods.

3.) Juliet, Naked by Nick Hornby (Riverhead Hardcover): I cannot tell a lie, I'm six pages into this sucker. I started it late last night and promptly fell asleep. I'll report back shortly.

Social Media, Demystified: Prof. Sree Sreenivasen on linking, tweeting, and earning attention

2010-03-24T03:09:00.001-11:00

Sree Sreenivasan, workshop for NBCC membership, 2010 from Sonnet Media on Vimeo.

I've become quite the little videohead. For ages I would save up my podcasts and listen to them while running, but recently I've taken to adding a little visual fun to my morning treadmill dates. This particular AM, I watched Prof. Sree Sreenivasen, Dean of Student Affairs at Columbia Journalism School (among other things), give a talk on social media at an NBCC membership meeting. It was worth the time, but if you're particularly low on time, here are some of the great points:

*Be a good pointer! Sreenivasen advises that to be successful in social media we must become "pointers". Quite often, we take on social media from a broadcast perspective, generating loads of content, and this is not nearly as important as listening and pointing (read: conducting scans and linking).
*Remember we have the attention span of a gnat. Sreenivasen joins Les Hinton in predicting that the scarcest resource of the 21st century will be human attention span. I agree.
*How to avoid becoming a social media slave. The lure of twitter is that it is e-mail without the guilt. If you miss a few tweets, so what?! Sreenivasen points out that anything with real importance is bound to bubble up again at some point.
*Twitter Tools 101. What to use and how. Sreenivasen suggests: Twiangulate, Hoot Suite, and Twittersheep.

Hope you enjoy. Oh, and happy hump day!

In case you haven't seen it--"The Future of Publishing"

2010-03-18T02:23:00.000-11:00

2010-03-15T15:18:00.000-11:00

"And editors, too, can no longer view their red pencils as the only tool in the kit. They must start thinking of manuscripts or proposals as intellectual property, a kernel of an idea that could be launched into multiple formats. Publishers should stop emulating the old music industry and start picturing themselves as movie studios and books as film development. Max Perkins, meet David Selznick."

-- Peter Miller for Jacket Copy "At SXSWi: A panel on the future of publishing"

Lots Before 5: What I've Been Reading

2010-03-15T07:24:00.000-11:00

Sorry for the pause in blogging. I'm in the middle of a week-long nanny gig (including nights).

Keywords for context: gummy vitamins, Silly Bandz, iCarly, Junie B. (Jones, that is), pancakes with sprinkles, pink toothpaste, homemade cinnabuns, conga lines around the kitchen and pony rides around the living room, bus stop meltdowns, 6am wake-up calls and total exhaustion by 7pm.

Tell me you're not green with envy...

Here's what I've been reading:

"National Book Critic's Circle prizes awarded" (via Jacket Copy)
"Apple iPad Now Available for Pre-order" (via GalleyCat)
"Continuing the conversation..." (via The New Sleakness) A rundown on Macmillan CEO John Sargent and his savvy idealism
"DBW Profile: Ryan Chapman, Marketing Optimist" (via DBW) I like marketing. I like optimism. I like this interview. eProps to Marian.
"Who Are We Really? And Why Marketers Should Care" (via AdAge-The Big Tent)
"A Q and A With Lorin Stein, the new editor of The Paris Review" (via Nal Post)
"Mark Twain on Queen Victoria" (via Jacket Copy)
"This Week in Fiction: Questions for Junot Diaz" (via Book Bench)
"10 of the best: heres from children's fiction" (via Guardian)
"I Just Ordered an iPad: Here's Why" (via AdAge)
"E-Book Readers: Will Secondary Features Win Consumers' Hearts of Leave Them Cold?" (via Tech Crunch)

And with that, I leave you, as I'm on girl scout duty this evening and need to plan...please don't think I'm kidding.

Later loves,
The Nanny

5 Before 5: YA for A, marginal musings, and crafty book tours

2010-03-10T09:22:00.000-11:00

"Young adult lit comes of age" (via Jacket Copy) Adults are crushing on YA. Check out responses from Bookninja and Bookshleves of Doom
"David Foster Wallace In the Margins" (via eBookNewser)
"DIY Touring" (via Bookninja)
"Social Media in Corporations- The pros and cons of an organizational model" (via PR Squared)
"The Tournament of Books Launches" (via Jacket Copy) Loads more bloggage about this...too much to link!

5 Before 5: Peanut butter, media overload, and acceptable mooching

2010-03-09T08:17:00.000-11:00

The baristas at Starby's must had added a little something extra to my morning coffee because throughout the day I have found myself to be overly enthusiastic about... well, everything--including the blog posts that landed in my reader/tweet deck. Of course, the more likely reality is that I am, in fact, surrounded by insightful Bloginis with lots to share. Which is it? Please take a look at let me know, will you?

"The weird and wacky in publishing (Your Questions Continued)" (via Editorial Ass) Hilarious blogger ends up in hilarious (and somewhat horrifying) book-related pickles.
"Are You the Peanut Butter" (via The 26th Story) Brad Inman claims that "getting things done in publishing is like trying to swim through a jar of peanut butter." Here are 10 warning signs that you are the peanut butter.
"Is your reading suffering from multimedia overload?" (via Guardian)
"Mooch with me" (via Book Bench) Profile of a terribly awesome bookswap site called BookMooch.com
"Old Media Monday: Reviewing the Reviewers" (via Omnivoracious)

And a few extra from the archives:

"Breaking Away From Generation Now" (via Life Without Pants)
"Steve Rubel: Digital Insights and Observations" (via Edelman Digital)
"Branding and Publishing Strategies" (via Publetariat)
"How to Give Yourself a First-Class Online Business Education" (via Copyblogger)

Fortune Mag: "The Future of Reading" (aka: my treadmill accessory of sorts)

2010-03-09T05:36:00.000-11:00

This tender, green, old-media sprout began to bloom in a curious way, however. Each month Clem was excited when Vogue arrived. She'd rip into the issue and scamper up the stairs to her chambre à coucher, with enough enthusiasm to do Anna Wintour proud. But after digesting each issue, Clem would reappear with it hours later -- only now a zillion Post-its jutted from its pages, stegosaurus-like.

Over time, one by one, those stegosauri began to stack up, spines out, in her closet. One day I decided to take a peek at the dinosaur graveyard to see what my daughter was tagging so furiously. It turned out that she was trying to annotate each issue, sorting the material by outfits, accessories, footwear, and other categories for later reference. I noticed that the more issues she tagged, the more frustrated she became. This was a lot of work. So why was she doing it?

"Don't you get it?" my wife observed. "She's trying to turn the magazine into a computer."

Et voilà! Of course she was."

-Josh Quittner "The Future of Reading" Fortune Mag, Vol. 161 #3

This magazine has been resting on my bedside, unread, for an unforgivably long period of time. I dusted off the cover and schlepped it to the gym this morning entertaining hopes that it might make the treadmill a bit more bearable. While the dreadmill may have dashed my hopes, the article was worth the once over. It's a great article that provides an outline of how the physical act of reading is transforming before our very eyes. After the outline you'll find interviews (in the print version) conducted by Beth Kowitt. Interviewees include: Kurt Anderson, Katharine Weymouth, Jimmy Wales, Steven Brill, and Marc Andreessen.

What I'm Reading: The AM Ed.

2010-03-08T04:35:00.000-11:00

Hello there, Monday. Back so soon?

"Ann Brashares's Series Under Fire" (via SLJ)
"The net generation, unplugged" (via Economist) Questioning the whether or not "digital natives" have an advantage over their predecessors
"Three lessons from the Chipotle iPhone app" (via O'Reilly Radar)
"Dave Eggers: From 'staggering genius' to America's conscience" (via Guardian)
"First Impressions: Our 30 Favorite Opening Lines in Literature" (via Flavorwire via Book Bench)
"The iPad Ad" (via eBookNewser)
"The Best Book Editors on Twitter" (via GalleyCat)
"The best and worst times for publishing" (via Guardian)
"Readers Are Fickle, Learn to Embrace Us" (via The New Sleekness)

Kitchen Project #12: Caramel Apple-Spice Cupcakes with Caramel-Penuche Frosting

2010-03-07T15:04:00.000-11:00

So, as I mentioned in this post that I have fallen in love with this book; you should consider these cupcakes the physical manfestation of that love.

First things first, this project is an absolutely perfect example of how vegan baking can be just as lucious (and caloric) as regular baking. Second things second, this project is an aboslutely perfect example of how vegan baking can be just as easy and affordable as regular baking.

{Only out of ordinary ingreds: almond milk and earth balance}

{After the frosting, the caramelized apples make these cupcakes. Oozy goodness.}

{The finished product.}

{Up close and delectably personal.}

Gracias, Veganomicon... you are pure genius.

What I'm Reading: The AM Ed.

2010-03-05T03:29:00.000-11:00

HAPPY WEEKEND, BEANS!

"A Book Designer's Inredible Vision for Books on the iPad" (via eBookNewser)
"Alice in Wonderland" (SLJ)
"Lindsay Lohan Writing a Memoir" (via GalleyCat)
"WA Teen Helps Build Libraries in Rwanda" (via SLJ)
"Chilean earthquake through a writer's eyes-- not Bolano but Kleist" (via Jacket Copy)
"Literary feasts for children" (via Guardian Books)
"New Yorker Book Bench Blog Nominated for National Magazine Award for Blogging" (via GalleyCat) Huge congratulations! Book Bench was one of the first bookish blogs I stumbled upon and it's been a staple ever since.
"Who's Holding the Twilight Apple?" (via Omnivoracious) C'mon....you want to know.
"Random House: Game On!" (via Book Bench)
"10 Out-of-print Children's Books Worth Overpaying For" (via FLW Books)

Kitchen Project: V is for Vegan

2010-03-03T05:31:00.002-11:00

I'm two weeks in on "Project Vegan" and I could not be happier with my decision to start this experiment. I initially decided to embark on 40 days and 40 nights without dairy and meat in an effort to refocus my diet. I'm not a terribly unhealthy person, but when I visit the grocery store I seem to check off eggs, milk, and cheese within the first five minutes. Why? After reading bits from Bittman, Pollan, and Schlosser, I began to wonder, could I do it? Could I make delicious food sans cheese? Could I bake without bright yellow yolks? Could I eat organically without going brizzoke? The answer? A resounding yes!

I approached this project as I do any other: with a library card and gusto. I'm a big time research kid (blame it on the liberal arts undergrad) and I believe that what's good for term papers is often good for big kid research. Listed below are five of my favorites thus far.

The best part about these books is that they are not just "vegan good" they're "good good" (which I'm discovering is the deal with most vegan food). Even if after the close of Project Veg., I decide to enjoy a steak once in a while, each of these titles has a permanent spot in my kitchen. They rock.

1.) The Bible:
The Art of Simple Food: Notes, Lessons, and Recipes for a Delicious Revolution by Alice Waters (Clarkson Potter)

Buy it. Learn it. Live it. Love it. Alice Waters is the queen and and this is her book. This book is not vegan-specific, but instead lays the foundation for eating simply, ethically, and with the use of each and every taste bud. Waters suggests "Delicious Revolution" principles (there are nine) and then claims they can: "reconnect our families and communities with the most basic human values, provide the deepest delight for our senses, and assure our well-being for a lifetime." I believe her.

See also: Chez Panisse Vegetables, Chez Panisse Fruits

2.) Vegan Eating 101:
Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero (Da Capo Press)

Never before has the term "ultimate" been more appropriately used. I was introduced to Isa and Terry during a freelance project. A friend found out that I was working as a ghost tweeter for a Vegan Bakery, and handed me a copy of Vegan Cupcakes with a post-it directing me to, "READ IT AND WEEP EAT!" The famous vegan duo has done it again. Veganomics provides pantry staples, prep techniques, and words to the wise, all in style that is unique and entertaining. Check all wackadoo (hat tip, Kelly Cutrone) ingredients at the door, this book is vegan cooking, plain and simple.

See also: Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World: 75 Dairy-Free Recipes for Cupcakes that Rule
Please try: Black bean burgers, Blueberry corn pancakes, Chewy oatmeal cookies, and Apple peanut butter caramel bars

3.) The Seasonal One:
Clean Food: A Seasonal Guide for Eating Close to the Source with More Than 200 Recipes for a Healthy and Sustainable You by Terry Walters (Sterling Epicure)

I'll admit it, I heard the buzz about this book and decided I liked it weeks before actually purchasing a copy. Thankfully, the book lives up to the buzz. The recipes are divided into seasons and each ingredient list is healthy and whole. Walters steers away from sugar and excessive oil, making it easy peasy to take her up on each dish.

Please try: The Spicy coconut pumpkin soup and the Tofu kale lasagna (really!)

4.) For a little sooooul:
Vegan Soul Kitchen: Fresh, Healthy, and Creative African-American Cuisine by Bryant Terry (Da Capo Press)

I can't find the right words to describe this book. Delicious? Glorious? Drool-inducing? Bryant gives flow and that "really, really awesome factor" to food activism and with a suggested soundtrack to accompany every dish and his blessing to "remix" any of his recipes, you're sure to find a little soul hiding right in your very own kitchen.

See also: Grub: Ideas for an Urban Organic Kitchen
Please try: Cajun-Creole-Spiced Tempeh Pieces with Creamy Grits and Black-Eyed Pea Fritters with Hot Pepper Sauce

5.) The One for Beginners:
The Complete Vegan Kitchen: An Introduction to Vegan Cooking with More Than 300 Delicious Recipes from Easy to Elegant by Jannequin Bennett (Thomas Nelson)

Newbie, meet vegan eating. Vegan eating, meet newbie. This was the first "vegan" title to appear on my library account and I believe that was a very good thing. This book is highly organized with an approachable grouping of recipes that even my cheese-loving heart fell for instantly.

See also: Very Vegetarian
Please try: The Pumpkin Bread

Obviously I am only two weeks into this, my "favorites" list will probably grow by leaps and bounds. Stay tuned!

5 Before 5: Seitan, Classic Covers, and Rules

2010-03-02T08:37:00.000-11:00

From: Me
To: You

Happy Tuesday!

"Publisher's concerns halt Hiroshima book" (via Boston Globe Books) Controversy and doubt led Henry Holt to drop Pellegrino's "The Last Train From Hiroshima."
"Barry, Hannah 1942-2010" (via Omnivoracious) Great reference to this profile written by Wells Tower
"Lunch with FT: Jonathan Safran Foer" (via FT) Talk of fork pointing and Whole Foods browsing. Check it out.
"Penguin Classics team up with (RED) for typographic covers" (via Creative Review)
"Lynn Coady's rules for writing" (via Bookninja)

5 Before 5: Gatekeepers, TOC, and Totes

2010-03-01T08:32:00.000-11:00

It's Monday and I'm so sorry about that. There is hope, however, because it's also March. On my run this morning I couldn't quite put my finger on what felt different...same road, same shoes, same tunes, and yet still, something was not right. Just as I bounded into mile 3 I realized that it smelled like spring.

It smells like spring.

Enjoy the linkage. I promise kitchen projects later on in the day.

"Math of Publishing Meets the E-Book" (via NYT Media & Advertising)
"Art Spiegelman to Judge Strand Bookstore Contest" (via GalleyCat)
"iPad and the Publishing Conundrum" (via More Intelligent Life)
"Publishing will always needs its gatekeepers" (via Guardian Book)
"Take-Aways From Tools of Change 2010" (via 26th Story) At least make sure to check out the "quick and dirty" observations near the bottom. Good stuff.

New Book Club Alert! "FUNtastic, splendidly spastic books!"

2010-02-26T05:48:00.001-11:00

I have a bit of a secret.

I'm am completely addicted to blogs.

There, I said it. Addicted and fully okay with it. I just love them. I love them with every last 20-something fiber of my being. That being said, after I started looking for a job I tried to cut out the bulk of my "just for fun" blogs and directed most of my attention to job search and/or publishing blogs. But try as I might I couldn't let a few of my favorites go.

[image via Mrs. Lillien]

Mrs. Lilien is one of my favorites. A blogger whose twitter byline reads: "designer and stylist extraordinista," Mrs. Lilien produces daily collages of a different "Mrs." My recent picks include:

The blog is a fun and light escape. Virtual dress up, if you will.

Today this announcement left me overjoyed. The Mrs. is starting a book club! Every first Friday, she will reveal the book of the month. With the promise of: ""nothing sappy, nothing sorry, nothing to make you weepy- but rather FUNtastic, splendidly spastic books you'll want to keepy," I, for one, cannot wait.

Kitchen Projects #9 and #10: A study in contradiction

2010-02-25T14:00:00.001-11:00

A week ago I made a halfway serious vow to limit my intake of animal products this lenten season. Halfway serious has morphed into fully dedicated within these past eight days. I did however, realize something by the close of day one: I simply cannot exist without sugar. I am a person who eats dessert, this is a fact. I'm also a person who like compromise. I've embarked on a new kitchen project all together--vegan baking. This pumpkin bread was one of my first attempts.

Tip #1: pumpkin always rocks. Use! It!

Tip #2: Spices are the new black

Tip #3: Share

Now, that delicious loaf is all well and good, but lucky you, I have a D.C. trip coming up this weekend and that's more than enough reason for cupcakes. So this afternoon I used my snow day to do this:

Allow me to introduce some friends:

1.) The Cinnamon Toast Crunchie: cinnamon swirl cake, cinnamon cream cheese icing, and cereal

2.) The Classic Candyland: french vanilla cake, milk chocolate buttercream and M&Ms

3.) The Heave on Earth: brownie bite, swiss meringue buttercream, and a caramel swirl

Arrange on a plate filled with gummy worms and sour patch kids and kapow (!) you have yourself a smile-inducing gift.

Happy Snow Day to one and all!

-------------------------------------------

Pumpkin Bread (via The Complete Vegan Kitchen by Jannequin Bennett)

Ingredients:

-2 T. flaxseeds

-1 1/2 c. sugar

-1 c. pumpkin

-1/2 c. applesauce

-1 1/3 c. all purpose flour

-1/3 c. whole wheat flour

-1 t. baking soda

-1/2 t. baking powder

-3/4 t. salt

-1 t. ground cinnamon

-1/2 t. ground nutmeg

-1/4 t. ground cloves

Directions:

1.) Preheat the oven to 350, grease and flour a 9 in. loaf pan

2.) In a blender or a food processor, mix the flaxseed and 6 T of water until light and frothy.

3.) In a large mixing bowl mix: flaxseed, sugar, pumpkin, applesauce

4.) Sift flours, soda, powder, salt, and spices. Add to the pumpkin mixture and combine

5.) Pour into the loaf pan and bake for 1 hour- 1 hour and fifteen minutes

6.) Remove and cool on a wire rack

7.) Dive in

5 (x2) Before 5: prizes, zombies, and Miss Piggy

2010-02-22T10:47:00.000-11:00

Sorry! Too much going on today to narrow the list down to five. Consider the 5 extra headlines a fun Monday surprise. (So exciting, right?) Luckily, it's my blog so I make the rules.

"Read This: Online Marketing 101" (via Beatrice) Additions to Ryan Chapman's list of must-reads.
"LA Times announces 2009 Book Prize finalists" (via Jacket Copy)
"Macmillan to Sell Customizable eTextbooks" (via eBookNewser)
"Be a Part of a People's Tribute to Howard Zinn: Submit Your Own Video" (via Beacon Broadside)
"David Remnick to Publish Barack Obama Biography" (via GalleyCat)
"2009 Nebula Finalists for Best Science Fiction and Fantasy Announced" (via Omnivoracious)
"Kids' Lit: Beyond Paper Books" (via HuffPo...old stuff, but I just got around to reading it today. Worth it!)
"Android Karenina" (via Book Bench) And the zombi-fication continues...
"The Exchange: Julie Klausner on Pauline Kael, Miss Piggy, and the Sexual Revolution" (via Book Bench)
"Web 2.0 is like a pyramid scheme" (via 10 Block Walk)

5 Before 5: Faux Plagiarism (?), e-Readers, and Kiddo iPads

2010-02-18T10:24:00.000-11:00

Guess what? It's nearly Friday. For all of you non-job searching-nannies out there this mean fr-fr-fr-FREEDOM! Congratulations.

"Been caught borrowing" (via Jacket Copy) "Is Helene Hegemann a guilty teen caught copying someone else's work, or a vanguard remixer of a new generation, bringing sampling to fiction?"
"Readers Respond to the 'Kids' iPad" (via eBookNewser)
"Book blogging and rotten reviews" (via A Common Reader) "I think the essence of book blogging is that the writers do it for sheer pleasure."
"A Conversation on Resonance and Responsibility" (via 10 Block Walk) "Because we do care for those we encounter, and deeply: writers care for the teens who will read their books, and editors care for those teens, too--and also for the authors, caught somewhere in the middle of this chain of connectivity."
"Are Phones More Important than E-Readers to The Future of Publishing?" (via Publishing Perspectives) (MORE ON THIS LATER!)

A Kindle in Sheep's Clothing

2010-02-18T08:56:00.000-11:00

Print or e-Reader?

Are you stuck in a house divided?

Do you pepper your life with wishy-washy decisions?

Stress no more.

New Book Smell: Smell of Books (See also: "Eau You Have Cats" and "Scents and Sensibility")

PS: Hat tip, KR Connect

Book Cover: Long Live Books

PS: Hat tip, GalleyCat

5 Before 5: News bites to read before running out the door

2010-02-17T09:36:00.000-11:00

Because I know you've nothing but free time this late afternoon, I thought I'd provide a little light reading. Just remember, the bookmarking option is your friend.

"Breaking news: The secret history of Cracker Barrel" (via MaudNewton)

I'd never read the article MN references nor had I seen the fantastic news ticker campaign created by SCAD student, Kathryn Clendinin. I've since handled that situation and recommend you do the same.

"TOC Preview: EBooks Are Here (But Print Books Are Too)" (via TOC)

A peek into next week's TOC conference...

"Kindle-rella" Story: Kindle "Bestseller" Author Lands Book Deal (via GalleyCat)
"Simon & Schuster Introduces Author Widgets" (via eBookNewser)
"Are Publishers Taking Risks Anymore" (via Kidlit)

Happy Wednesday!

Kitchen Project #8: I Ain't No Challah-back Girl

2010-02-11T10:38:00.000-11:00

Having been raised in the suburbs under two different churches (South American Catholic and Be Nice to Everyone... Especially Children) my first encounter with challah didn't occur until 2006.

I was a sophomore in college when my neighbor received a package from home just in time for a High Holiday. Everyone in our hallway rushed to room 217, eager to feast. Apparently they knew all about challah and how superior it was to other loaves. So, I did what any other nineteen-year-old would do, I lied.

"Oh, would you mind if I had a slice, too? I totally love challah!" I blurted-- imitating my hall-mates as best I could.

Mere moments after uttering that fib, I was offered a slice of the golden food of the gods, and my life, as I knew it, was forever altered.

Counting my chickens.

Pre and post-knead

I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am for the french toast that will happen this weekend.

Recipe via Smitten Kitchen

It's noon, do you know where your google reader is?

2010-02-09T06:01:00.000-11:00

I am proud to say, for the first time in weeks, my "Literary Love" folder "has no unread items."

Here are my favorites from this morning. Skim if you have the chance:

"Does literature of the homeless exist?" by Ben Meyers (via Guardian Books) Check out the comment section for suggested works.
"Top 100 Children's Novels (#90-86)" by Elizabeth Bird (via Fuse # 8)

90.) Sarah, Plain & Tall by Patricia MacLachlan
89.) Ramona and her Father by Beverly Cleary
88.) The High King by Lloyd Alexander
87.) The View from Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg
86.) Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling

"Spoiled Salinger" (via Bookfox) Reference to "Salinger's Spoiled Children" (via A More Intelligent Life)
"In the World of Facebook" by Charles Petersen (via NYRB) Consider this a primer on Le FBook--Facebook 101, if you will...with discussion questions attached.
"Rick Moody on Kindle: Know Thy Enemy, and Thy Friend" by Craig Morgan Teicher (via eBookNewser)
"Book Blogger Con 2010" (via the Olive Reader) Excellent list of BK bookstores!

"Book Cover Doppelgangers" (via Chapman/Chapman)

PS: I forgot to link "Your New E-Book Production Strategy" yesterday. Great slides! Great wake up call!

The death of "kerfuffle" and other newsworthy items

2010-02-08T09:48:00.003-11:00

Past:
Quite a bit has happened since I last posted anything pertaining to publishing. Namely:

Snowmaggedon/SnOMG, Snowpocolypse II...I'm choosing to call the whole thing Snowgate, only because studying in D.C. for four years left me with a tendency to attach "gate" should the opportunity present itself.
Amazon and Macmillan officially killed the noun, "kerfuffle." RIP kerfulffle, you were a fun one. My favorite two cents on the ordeal:

"A Gen Y Reaction to Macmillan's Piracy Plan" (via Digital Book World/ @marianschembari) Very gutsy and very accurate (from a Gen Y perspective).
"Apple's iPad and the Evolution of Books" by @penguinusa CEO John Mackinson (via WSJ/ GalleyCat) Check out the comments!
Saturday Night Live's spoof: "Barnes & Noble" FYI: anything including Jon Hamm is fine by me.

Present:

Lengthy naptimes today allowed for loads of time to read. (tag: # nannyingoccasionallyrocks) Listed below are the headlines that caught my eye long enough to click past the jump (and were well worth the read time).

"Bud Light Superbowl Ad Offends Book Clubs, Literary Bloggers, and Readers" (via GalleyCat)
"The Real World" (via the 26thStory) A message on unplugging, getting some vitamin D, and reporting back.
"Totally Killer/TNB/ Facebook Sweepstakes" (via The Nervous Breakdown) Change your profile picture to one of you in 1991 for the chance to win an iTunes giftcard and an autographed copy of Totally Killer.
"Book World's editors on what to read during Snowmageddon" (via Short Stack) Check out Annie Proulx's The Shipping News--#3 on the list and a personal favorite.
"The past hundred reviews..." (via Literary Saloon) LS offers a statistical analysis of the last 100 reviews. Congrats on topping 2400 total!
"Frightened, clueless, or uniformed?" (via Seth's Blog) Godin claims that in the face of great change all of us are one of these three.

Future:

I will be making this carrot cake, which I will then frost with this dulce de leche buttercream. Who doesn't love a birthday?

Kitchen Project #7: Lone Star Lovin'

2010-02-07T04:42:00.000-11:00

I've only set foot on Texan soil once in my life. I spent five days in Dallas during the 2003 NCA Cheerleading National Championships.

(Go ahead, take a few minutes. Wrap your head around that one. Get back to me when you've ceased laughing.)

Okay, are we good? I suppose what I'm trying to say is that my opinion of Texas was shaped by five days of spankies, curlers, and glitter, and that I realize I may not know the Lone Star State all that well. Although I may not know Texas, I do know Texas Sheet Cake...it's genetics. You see, I inherited my sweet tooth from my mother, who was gifted with the very same affliction courtesy of my grandmother. This recipe has been passed down through women in my family, I believe, as a means of coping with a bottomless need for sweets.

Essentially, the recipe goes like so: cake= boil, combine, pour, then icing= boil, combine, pour. What you're left with is a vast, expansive cake, fluffier than the imaginable, topped with a hardened icing that is crunchy to the teeth but melts in the mouth. Did I mention this thing is huge?

Sure, you could try to halve the recipe, but where's the fun in that?

I added red sprinkles for a Valentine's effect. About ten minutes after cooling, this cake was sliced, packaged, and placed in a box for shipping. On Monday I'll ask UPS to deliver the package to my baby sister who is currently playing college in Boulder, Co.

I think Pat Green would be proud.

Unusual Chocolate Cake (aka: Texas Sheet Cake) by Granny Forrest

For the cake:

2 cups sugar
2 cups flour
1 cup water
1 cup butter
1/4 cup cocoa
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 eggs (slightly beaten)
1 t. vanilla
1 t. baking soda

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
Sift the sugar and flour and set aside
Combine the butter, water, and cocoa in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Pour over the sugar/flour mixture.
Combine the buttermilk, eggs, vanilla, and baking soda in a separate bowl and add to the cocoa mixture.
Pour into a 15" x 10" pan and bake at 400 for 20-25 minutes.

For the icing:

1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup cocoa
6 T. milk
1 lb. powdered sugar
1 t. vanilla
1 cup chopped pecans (optional)

Directions:

Prepare when the cake has 5 minutes left to bake.
Combine the butter, cocoa, and milk in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from heat.
Add sugar, vanilla, and pecans to the mixture and combine.
Spread on cake while cake is still hot.

Weekend=Pancakes

2010-02-06T06:00:00.000-11:00

Rainbow Pancakes

Photo and recipe via Kitchn...via I Am Mommy...via Swiss Miss

Kitchen Project #6: You catch more flies with honeycomb...

2010-02-04T07:43:00.000-11:00

Pictured above: pandora’s box. Consider it opened.

When I was fourteen I had the chance to spend a summer in and around London. Twenty-some students from the Robert Mays School flew over in the spring and we (los Americanos) paid them a visit that summer.

It was a blast. Can you imagine? Forty fourteen and fifteen-year-olds, feeling cooler and older than they should? Ri-diculous. Our poor chaperones.

Most importantly, that summer was when I met my dear friend, the Cadbury Crunchie bar. It was a warm afternoon in Reading when I opened my lunch to find an unknown candy bar. I remember feeling indifferent to the new piece of sugar, but even at fourteen, I wasn’t one to pass up dessert. It was chocolate, bite size, and I couldn’t find the word “coconut” anywhere on the label, so I bit in. Oh sweet lord the world stopped on a dime with that first bite. Chocolate and honeycomb. Repeat. Chocolate and honeycomb. Crunch. Sweet. Crunch. Sweet. Heaven.

I returned home with a pair of overpriced baggy jeans (all the rage that summer—never worn stateside, thank goodness), 15 rolls of undeveloped film, and 11 extra pounds resting around my midsection.

Since I put a few thousand miles and an ocean between myself and my beloved crunchie bars I've managed to escape my fate as the first female great American sumo wrestler, but when I found this post on Cupcakes & Cashmere I knew I was doomed. What's even more ominous? Last night, around 11pm, I discovered that honeycomb is super simple to make--easier than cookies! I'm completely done for!

Recipe via About.com: Chemistry

Lost!

2010-02-03T02:51:00.000-11:00

Lost: Time for reading
Last seen: Washington, D.C. (fall semester)
If found: Please return to Julia F. Costa
Reward: Um, free childcare services for month and brownies. How does that sound?

I have a few things I'd like to discuss here today but alas, I'm running out the door to a lovely 4-year-old named Danny and his younger sister, Georgia. While the snow is breathtaking it does add a little time to travel and definitely adds a significant chunk of time to preschool pick up/drop off.

So instead of a few things I leave you with this article that the Guardian Book Blog dropped into my reader this morning. It's called "Who stole our reading time?" A fun, inspiring, quick read reminding us all of what's been said before and what should be said again. A potential rebranding of reading? Maybe more on that later.

Here's a taste.

"Obviously media such as the internet offer enormous benefits to (you wouldn't be reading this otherwise), but they also glide easily into the surface world of sleek illusions and infinite chatter which surrounds us. And have you seen Avatar? Have you seen what they can do now? Call me melodramatic, but I am beginning to feel like the protagonist in some SF dystopia myself, having his own thoughts erased, and liking it."

I'm off now. Should you need me, I'll be reading each and every Maisy book to an enthralled 2-year-old who's heard them all before. Oh, and I'll be dreaming of my sophomore year literature classes when time to read was never an issue.

Kitchen Project #5: Birthday Brownies

2010-02-02T05:27:00.000-11:00

Peanut Butter Brownies (via Smitten Kitchen)

Everything is fine in moderation, right? Sure. This rule, however, flies out the window when a birthday comes to town. It's my personal belief that on one's birthday one should throw caution to the windiest windstorm and act with reckless abandon. It's your pick: sky dive, eat an entire chocolate cake, ignore your Blackberry...you've been given a 24 hour hall pass and I believe it should be put to good use. Three of my nearest and dearest are celebrating birthdays this week and since the squandering of birthday magic is a Cardinal sin in my book I decided to ship a little sugar out to each of them. I suppose I'm what you'd call an enabler, huh?

I don't think anything screams indulgence more than chocolate and peanut butter. With a little help from Deb (of the famed Smitten Kitchen) these cakelets came to be. I can't really call them brownies, but I can't really call them blondies or cake, either. I think I'll just call them delicious.

And a happy Tuesday to you.

A News-y Monday

2010-02-01T07:23:00.000-11:00

"This ain't your father's publishing industry--really, it's your screen-fixated nephew's."

-Craig Morgan Teicher (eBookNewser)

Macmillan v. Amazon News:

"Social Media and Macmillan vs. Amazon: A Lost Opportunity" (via eBookNewser)

Reference to this post by Ami Greko at The New Sleekness

"Macmillan v. Amazon: Customers Weigh In" (via eBookNewser)
"Amazon, Macmillan, Agency Models, and Quality (Oh My)" (via Booksquare)
"Publisher Wins Fight With Amazon Over E-Books" (via NYT-Technology)
"The Kindle Missile Crisis" (via Nathan Bransford)

iPad News:

"In Pictures: Apple iPad Device" (via BBC News)
"Rumor No More: Apple Unveils iPad Tablet" (via NPR)
"iPad Reaction Roundup" (via eBookNewser)
"Publishing Experts on the iPad" (via GalleyCat)
"Random House Responds to the iPad" (via GalleyCat)
"iCountry News" (via Opinionator)
"iPad Reviews: The Critics Weigh In" (via PC World)
"Conde Nast and Time Inc. Cheer iPad; Others Have Doubts" (via Media Decoder)

Salinger News:

"J.D. Salinger, a mystery man in photos" (via WaPo)
"Salinger: An Influential Voice, Even In 'Silence'" (via NPR)
"A Brief History of J.D. Salinger Reviews" (via GalleyCat)
"Taking a Walk Through J.D. Salinger's New York" (via City Room)
"Bunch of Phonies Mourn J.D. Salinger" (via The Onion)
"Remembering Salinger with The New Yorker" (via Book Bench)

Weekend=Pancakes

2010-01-31T15:20:00.000-11:00

And because it's the weekend for a few more hours...

Coconut Macaroon Pancakes

Photo and recipe via Heidi of 101 Cookbooks.

Four Eyes!

2010-01-30T07:39:00.000-11:00

Since it's Saturday and since I boarded a bus this morning and am currently sprawled out on a bud's couch in the heart of DC prepping for this evening, I'm going to put any serious book talk on the back burner. Instead I leave you with this piece of wonderful.

Ten of the best pairs of

glasses in literature.

(via Guardian)

This bespectacled reader wishes you a very happy weekend!

((Photo via))

Hey, Babycakes (Kitchen Projects 3&4)

2010-01-28T10:00:00.000-11:00

On Saturday I'm off to DC to attend a "Too Young to Feel Old" party. The plan is to have an old school sleepover and I'm sure it will be a fete for the record books. I tend to shy away from baking cupcakes unless I have an event to bring them to because, well let's face it, no one really wants cupcakes lying around the house just waiting to be eaten. Lucky me, because this event is practically begging for cupcakes.

Keeping in theme with "old school," I chose strawberry jam-filled cakes topped peanut butter icing and cookies & cream cupcakes frosted with creamy, oreo icing.

Recipes: PB&J (via BGSK) and Cookies & Cream (via How to Eat a Cupcake)

T-Day.

2010-01-27T06:06:00.000-11:00

In a few short minutes I will be heading out the door to a nanny job--separated from my beloved Internet until 11pm this evening. Before I leave, I would simply like to acknowledge that it's T[ablet]-day and not a day I want to miss. Check out this lovely tidbit in which Kate of The New Sleekness applies the 5 stages of grief to the Apple Tablet.

"For those not familiar, the 5 stages of grief are the typical steps one goes through when dealing with a stressful event. Usually it’s applied to grief over the death of a loved one. I argue that it can be applied to the birth of the Apple Tablet.

Denial: “Pfft. It’s just an iPhone on steroids. How could you possibly want to read on that thing? No one reads on an iPhone anyway.”
Anger: “What the hell are these secret ‘big six’ meetings about?! Why isn’t Apple meeting with us?! And now, waitaminute, Amazon has APPS TOO?”
Bargaining: “Ok – we’ll wait for the announcement. We’ll see how many people buy it. Maybe Pogue’s review will help us make a decision.”
Depression: ::Sigh:: “What’s the point of it all? Can’t we just keep doing what we’ve always done? This whole digital thing is confusing.”
Acceptance: “Ok. The announcement came through. Let’s grab one for the company, tinker around with it for a bit and keep an eye on the reviews. Our eBook vendor apps are probably going to be available on the Tablet, so let’s give them a buzz and confirm they’re going to work with Apple on making our books available. There might be some money here…”

For extra reading see below:

"Will An Apple Tablet Heat Up the E-Book War?" (via NPR Books)
"The Long And Winding Road To Apple's Tablet (or whatever it's called)" (via Techland)
"Apple Tablet Rumor Roundup Countdown: Final" (via eBookNewser)
"Jumping the gun" (via Seth Godin)
"Apple Tablet: What You Should Know" (via PC World)

Pssssst: Tune in at 12:30 for a livestream show hosted by Crunch Gear's John Biggs and NonSociety's Meghan Asha

The Digital News Pile

2010-01-26T07:49:00.000-11:00

I awoke this morning to a nanny cancellation. For those outside of the childcare industry (read: all of you) this means Child X came down with a contagious something or other and any and all who wish to remain in good health should stay far, far away. Poof! 4 free hours I hadn't planned on having. Lovely.

Considering that today is day 1 of the first annual Digital Book World conference (#DBW) I spent my morning sorting through a bevy of digital news. Below are my favorite news bites from the last few days.

"HarperCollins Adds InkPop, A Teen Social Publishing and Social Site" (via eBookNewser)

A terribly cool idea. A platform for teens to submit writing and receive critique from peers and possibly editors. The idea is that it will be the teen version of Autonomy, a social network for writers.

"Digital Book World Keynote: Shiv Singh" (via eBookNewser)

A summary of Singh's keynote, which hammered home the idea of connecting with social influencers.

"Finding Your Digital Blindspots" (via Chapman/Chapman, @chapmanchapman)

Chapman lays out three potential digital potholes. Publishers, take heed.

"Why Mobile Will Win: eReaders are Sustaining, Mobile is Disruptive" (via Tools of Change for Publishing)

Consider the customer! This post addresses the concept of valuable attributes and the future growth of mobile reading.

A little glam for your bookshelf and a little afternoon cheer for your Tuesday

2010-01-26T06:47:00.000-11:00

Look! Design*Sponge featured a round up of fantastic book ends--all under $100.

Click here for the article (including purchase information).

photo via

Kitchen Project #2: Popovers with strawberry butter

2010-01-26T04:42:00.000-11:00

Popovers with Strawberry Butter

Inspiration via: Cupcakes & Cashmere

Behold! How I occupy my worried mind.You see, late night baking is my vice. The kitchen seems like a much calmer place after 10PM. Many an evening I've found myself inching toward the kitchen well after bedtime, unable to rest, too much on my mind, intent on producing something caloric and good. Last night was no different.

Writing for Kiddos vs. Writing for Grown-ups: the experts weigh in

2010-01-25T07:09:00.000-11:00

Like many of my fellow Gen-Yers I've filled many a quotation book with interesting bits and pieces. Blame in on our abysmal attention span. Blame it our need to find purpose in each and every sentence we read. Regardless of the root, as a generation we like our insight like we like our Starbucks order--delivered in 5 minutes or less. That being said I was beyond thrilled when I found these gems at the end of the most recent post from Collecting Children's Books.

The question posed: Is there a difference between writing for children and writing for adults?

Essentially, though, when I am writing for children, I feel a certain responsibility toward them and the kinds of stories I find myself wanting to tell them likely reflect that. When I’m writing for adults, the characters are old and seem to curse a lot. - Gabrielle Zenvin

I love writing for kids because I'm a person with an agenda usually. I should've been a preacher. I usually have something on my mind that I want to talk to people about, change their mind about and writing for kids, you still have that opportunity. You don't have much opportunity when you write for adults of changing their minds. - M.E. Kerr

I guess one thing that is handy about writing for children is that books tend to be shorter, so I've written a large number of books in a short amount of time, and that's good training. - Lemony Snicket

Writing for children brings you down to basics.- Kevin Brooks

I don't really believe that writing for children is very different from writing for adults. What makes good children's books is putting the same care and effort into them as I would if I were writing for adults. I don’t write anything—put anything in my books that I'd be embarrassed to put in an adult book. - Louis Sachar

Happy Monday afternoon!

Kitchen Project #1: Sunday granola

2010-01-24T11:54:00.000-11:00

Generally speaking, I believe Sunday is the best day to make granola. Not only will the end result provide breakfast and snackage for the week(s) to come, the warm, sweet cinnamon notes always allow even the most stressed of job seekers to forget that Monday is looming on the horizon.

Tonight I stirred together a combination of several recipes. SK's pepita granola, Steph Chow's pumpkin ginger granola, and little bits from Mama Doctor's recipe (mother to the one Jill Doctor, former roommate extraordinaire).

Here is my take on an age old snack.

1.) Mix the dry.

In this case: oats, cinnamon, allspice,

cloves, ginger, nutmeg, almonds, and brown sugar.

2.) Add the wet.

In this case: honey, canola oil

a smidgen of maple syrup and a vanilla

3.) Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes.

Chop up fruit while the oat mixture works.

In this case: figs (look at how beautiful they are!),

apricots, and raisins.

4.) Mix in the fruit. Bake for 10 more minutes.

Allow to cool on a rack for 40 min-1 hour.

Grab a book and leave the room. If not you'll

eat the entire batch in one sitting. I might

be speaking from experience.

Additional ideas:

* Other fruit: dates, dried blueberries, strawberries, etc...

*Other nuts/seeds: walnuts, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, cashews

*Add orange juice in with the wet and chocolate chunks at the end.

Happy Sunday to one and all!

Weekend = Pancakes

2010-01-24T07:34:00.000-11:00

Lemon Ricotta Pancakes with Sauteed Apples

Photo and recipe from Deb's Smitten Kitchen

Mind-Blowingly-Great

2010-01-23T09:23:00.000-11:00

I may be late to the party but at least I showed up...

The Book Seer.com...where have you ben all my life?

It's simple and simply perfect.

You enter what you read last and the book seer tells you what to read next.

Example: The Book of Other People, edited by Zadie Smith=

The Loudest Sound and Nothing by Clare Wigfall
Selected Stories (Penguin Classics) by D.H. Lawrence
No One Belongs Here More Than You: Stories by Miranda July
and many, many more

(Photo via NYMinute)

14 days!

2010-01-23T08:59:00.000-11:00

It's been 14 days since I've stopped in to say hello. Two weeks! A fortnight! Sort of ridiculous if you really think about it. What have I been up to? Hm, I think I'll employ a bullet point summary:

Cruise: I jumped on a ship and twirled around the Caribbean. It was just as wonderful as it sounds. I read and slept and took full advantage of the 24-hour soft serve.
Work: This week I logged 32 nanny hours and 13 hours with my other odd jobs. Conclusion: Max for President by Jarrett Krosoczka (Knopf Books for Young Readers 2004) is pretty great. 4 hours of sleep a night? Not so much.
Illness: A byproduct of nannying is that I am constantly sort of under the weather. I am currently suffering from what may or may not be an ear infection/throat thing/ something resembling the black death.
Reading: I returned home to find an inbox in the 100s and Google Reader that left the 1,000 mark around two Tuesdays ago. Well, this morning I plopped down with a pot of coffee and sifted through all of my articles. No, I did not read all 3,238 of them, but I am nothing if not a grade-A skimmer (hat tip, liberal arts education).

Since I've been gone for 14 days, here are my favorite 14 articles (from the last 14 days):

The coolest way to read undercover. Sa-weet book jackets. (via Book Bench)
"30 PR Experts You Should Follow on Twitter" (via E.Releases)
"Gen Y, Stop Doubting Yourself and Start Taking Action" (via AdAge by Adrienne Waldo, one of my favorite marketing bloggers)
"Meeting Blog Friends" (via MarianLibrarian) I had an abso-effing-lutely lovely meet and tea with Marian. So great!
"How Writers and Publishers Can Use Formspring.me" (via GalleyCat) Personally, I've found this tool to be annoying but I do recognize the potential.
"Where Digital Marketing is Heading in 2010: Part 1" (via AdAge)
"Where Digital Marketing is Heading in 2010: Part 2" (via AdAge)
"Top 10 Librarian Blogs to read in 2010" (via LISNews via Fuse #8)
"Top 10 Publishers of 2009" (via Michael Hyatt)
"Best Picture Books of the Last 10 Years" (via Omnivoracious)
"Publishers: boost your viral marketing with digital galleys" (via Follow the Reader)
Stuff Hipsters Hate scores a book deal and the blogger's agent Jason Ashlock explains why this blog-to-book might be different. (via GalleyCat)
"Werner Herzog Reads Curious George" (via eBookNewser) Hi-larious. "Don't get into trouble said ze man."
A new to-read that I wasn't expecting: "The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right" by Atul Gawande (Reviews: NYT, New Yorker, NPR)

Alright, I'm off to more coffee and a stab at my e-mail inbox. This evening I'll be spending time with a sweet 9-month-old and a Curious George-loving 3.5-year-old. I know, I know, please try to contain your jealousy.

(Photo via)

Oh, and because it's the weekend:

2010-01-09T09:02:00.000-11:00

And the weekend means pancakes.

Raspberry Oatmeal Pancakes

Photo and recipe by Joy the Baker
For additional joy, check out her pancake section

Vacation Reading:

2010-01-09T07:42:00.000-11:00

I am heading out of the country for 5 long, wonderful, and hopefully sunshine-filled days. A stop in Mexico! A stop in Belize! I'm taking my very first cruise.

Almost immediately after booking our tickets my thoughts turned to reading materials. "What will I read" I pondered, probably aloud. Well, turns out that thought was fleeting because my mind wandered over the next few weeks to Christmas and job searching and general, everyday life bites. Last night I found myself in a panic with two days to go and not a reading list in sight. Well, 30 minutes later and I've got a book bag packed. Thank you public library! Thank you Conde Nast!

Clockwise, from the upper-left-hand corner:

The Sweet Potato Queens' Books of Love by Jill Connor Browne (Three Rivers Press 1999): This was a hilarious and perfect Christmas present from my friend B. For months she would say "Have you read the Sweet Potato Queens books yet?" When I answered with a sheepish "no," she would exclaim, "Well you should. I think if you wrote a book it would sound like these do." I'm a hundred pages in and not entirely sure how to interpret her comment. I will say that these books are funny from page 1--give them a go.
The Maples Stories by John Updike (Everyman's Library, 2009): I read "Snowing in Greenwich Village" on a bus ride from Granada to Valencia. After Valencia the bus made two more stops before ending up in Madrid. Fittingly, I read the story two more times as well. Hopefully I'll finish learning about the Maples before I dock in Miami next Saturday.
The Book of Other People edited by Zadie Smith (Penguin, 2008): Zadie Smith, Nick Hornby, David Mitchell, Dave Eggers and Aleksandar Hemon...that's why.
This week's New Yorker
W Magazine: Fun fact alert. When I was younger I thought W Magazine was only sold in airports. I suppose it's because my bookshops didn't have magazine sections and the newspaper stands of suburban Illinois did not seem to want for the pages of W. For this reason I began to think of the oversized leaflet as special. Reserved for those with places to be and planes to catch. I think that's why I pick one up almost every time I'm in an airport. It's all about the cheap thrills.

Cross you fingers to keep away the rain clouds!

PS: Book jacket photos from Barnesandnoble.com; Magazine photos from newyorker.com and wmagazine.com. Thanks!

Wait, Wait! Did I tell you about?

2010-01-04T10:35:00.000-11:00

Just like the rest of you, I am looking ahead, hoping for a bright and shiny tomorrow. But just for a sec, would you hold off the resolutions and forward thinking? This wonderful list slipped through my attention last week and I would really like to share it with you.

Click on the linked title to see Ms. Lamy's descriptions.

Nicole Lamy's "10 unforgettable books of the decade"

“White Teeth’’ by Zadie Smith

“Interpreter of Maladies’’ by Jhumpa Lahiri

“A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius’’ by Dave Eggers

“The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay’’ by Michael Chabon

“A Problem From Hell: America and the Age of Genocide’’ by Samantha Power

“My Name Is Red’’ by Orhan Pamuk, Translated by Erdag Goknar

“The Known World’’ by Edward P. Jones

“Gilead’’ by Marilynne Robinson

“The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals’’ by Michael Pollan

“2666’’ by Roberto Bolano, Translated by Natasha Wimmer

Okay, phew. Thank you for letting me get that out of my system.

On Change:

2010-01-03T18:07:00.000-11:00

"This is the decade when book publishing will (finally) be transformed from a business that chops down trees and puts returnable books into bookstores... into one that finds ideas, funds the writers that need it, and uses their (authors' and publishers') leverage and skills to promote those ideas to people willing to pay for them, in whatever format is the most efficient way to get that transaction to occur.

If that doesn't happen, and the industry (led by reactionary old-school CEOs) persists in defining itself as being in the book business, it will be 15% the size it is today by the end of the decade. It's our choice."

- Seth Godin What Changes Will We See in Book Publishing in the Next 10 Years?

(via GalleyCat)

PS: I thought this might be a nice way to ring in a brand new decade of reading.
PPS: Here here, Mr. Godin!

News Bits

2009-12-29T05:14:00.000-11:00

The literary blogosphere has been abuzz this holiday season. In an effort to organize a little (my thoughts as well as my bookmarks) here are a few of the most interesting tidbits.

End of the year wrap-ups:

Carolyn Reidy on the "Cheap" digital marketplace (via GalleyCat)
"The Year in Publishing" (via Nathan Bransford)
Random House CEO on an "uncertain" future (via GalleyCat)

E what? eBooks:

The iPhone bulks up in an effort to compete with eReaders (via GalleyCat)
Don't fear the eReader (via KR Connect)
Weblogs on your Kindle (via Literary Saloon)

Misc. Fun:

11 of the COOLEST bookcases (via HuffPost)
Bookish art (via n. design studio)
25 "Lost Treasures" (via Jacket Copy)

A Christmas Feast:

2009-12-25T12:01:00.000-11:00

If nothing else, in our house, Christmas means the best food of the whole, entire year. We're not really Thanksgiving people so we lavish our kitchen love on Christmas Eve and Day. The results tend to be pretty memorable.

If it's alright with you I'll go in chronological order:

Christmas Eve is for appetizers, champagne, and magic.

Here we have tomato bruschetta.

Recipe from Big Girls Small Kitchen (inspired Julie & Julia)

Verdict: Oh my lord these are a mess. A garlic-y, delicious, perfect-beyond-words mess.

Baked Brie in Puff Pastry

Recipe from: A Grandmother at an event I cocktailed for last week. She was slightly tipsy and shared her secret with me, "It's ALL about the chutney. Use chutney, dear, NOT jam."

Verdict: Yum. If you've had baked brie, it tastes like that. If you haven't, run to the store and get baking!

Christmas Day is for eating, laughing, smiling, and drafting thank you notes.

Christmas Morning Cinnamon Rolls

Recipe: Rolls from Pioneer Woman/ Icing from Kitchn

Verdict: Easy! Easy to make and easy to eat!

Pumpkin Bourbon Cheesecake

Recipe: Smitten Kitchen

Verdict: Rich and cheesecake-y good. This was my first cheesecake and certainly a welcomed addition to the 2009 Kitchen Projects.

Not pictured, by still great:

Roasted Beef Tenderloin
My sister's famous baked macaroni and cheese (a staple since the year she went Veg)
Tomato/Onion/Basil/Balsamic Salad
Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Maple Roasted Butternut Squash

Happy Holidays, from my home to your's!

Cozy, in excess:

2009-12-21T09:39:00.000-11:00

When Christmas rolls around, when snow falls, when going outside requires the applying of clothing in rounds--these are the the times to overdose on cozy. This afternoon, while I was nannying for a sweet 1 year-old, I began to think about what creates the perfect cozy wintertime reading spot. 20 minutes of searching during naptime produced the images above.

From the top:

Hand Knit Wool Wrap Sweater from Brook Farm General Store
Pride and Prejudice Mug from Brookish (detail: "How shall I bear so much happiness!")
Sibley Floor Lamp from Anthropologie
In the Library (scent) from CB I Hate Perfume
Personal Library Kit from Fredflare.com
Eco- friendly firewood from Dirt Works
La Cafetiere Pura Orange Ceramic French Press from Central Chef
Brahms Mount Linen Day Blanket from Brook Farm General Store

*Note: I realize I'm missing, um, a chair/couch/bed as well as actual reading material. What can I say? 1 year-olds have been known to take short naps on occasion.

2009-12-20T16:10:00.000-11:00

The Economist: The Harry Potter economy

"Great media products start trends. “Star Wars” showed studios there was money in toys. Harry Potter has educated publishers about appealing both to children and adults. It has taught studios how to make and sustain blockbuster franchises and how to deal with fans. Perhaps no children’s book series will match Ms Rowling’s for many years. Given the rise of digital media and piracy, Harry Potter may be seen as a high-water mark in the industry."

This was one of my train reads last night. Interesting bits and definitely worth a glance.

The Sweetest 5 of 09:

2009-12-20T14:26:00.000-11:00

This weekend, with the gorgeous snowstorm and 2010 creeping closer by the second, I couldn't help but feel slightly sentimental as I thought back on the decade that took me from braces through college. To help keep things on the sweeter side, I complied a listing of my absolute favorite kitchen projects of '09:

What: Peppermint Oreo Cheesecake Truffles

Why: a work soiree of sorts

What: Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes

Why: a graduation celebrations

What: The Best Apple Crumb Coffee Cake (EVER!)

Why: well, just because

What: Pumpkin Brownies

Why: A care package for the froshy little sister

What: Caramel Apple Cider Cookies

Why: a belated birthday treat (oops)

Click here to see step-by-steps of each endeavor.

The ULTIMATE Holiday Book Guide for Kiddos:

2009-12-20T12:32:00.000-11:00

I know! I know! Only 5 days left. Well, I'm re-posting this for all of you out there who may be in need of a Christmas Hail Mary pass of sorts.

To: Any and all
With Love: One part-time nanny with a penchant for adventure and imagination. Happy Holidays!

10 Pre-Naptime/ bedtime picture books that will inspire cool dreams:

1.) 14 Cows for America by Carmen Agra Deedy and Thomas Gonzalez and Wilson Kimeli Naiyomah (Peachtree Publishers): After reading Nicholas Kristof’s review, I sped right over to B&N and spent a few minutes in the adjoining cafe, devouring this one. A wonderful introduction to foreign aid, I advise pairing a reading of this with a discussion on sharing.

2.) All the World by Liz Garton Scanlon and Marla Frazee (Beach Lane Books): These 40 pages tell the tale of one day, one family, and one beach. I promise you this: you and your kiddo(s) will find the extraordinary in the ordinary before the final page.

3.) A Penguin Story by Antoinette Portis (HarperCollins): One day a little penguin named Edna decides to venture away from her norm, and upon doing so, she discovers new friends and new possibility. Consider this for the munchkin who is constantly asking “why not” or “what if.” Plus, it’s funny.

4.) Buying, Training, and Caring for Your Dinosaur by Laura Joy Rennert and Marc Brown (Knopf Books for Young Readers): Obviously, this one’s a hit with the prehistoric crowd. Beyond the dino-heads, however, this story will find a spot in the imaginations of any kid who might be teetering between overusing the word “mine” and learning the full responsibility of caring for a pet, a toy, or a baby brother or sister.

5.) Julie Andrew’s Collection of Poems, Songs, and Lullabies by Julie Andrews, Emma Watson Hamilton, and James McMullan (Little, Brown): This collection (compiled by the famed Andrews and her daughter, Emma) is a literary treasure trove. In the last two weeks, I’ve spotted it on bedside tables in six different homes. After you purchase, I recommend that you keep it within reach at all times.

6.) The Little Prince Pop Up by Antoine de Saint-Exupery (HMH Books): A classic goes 3-D. I cannot tell you how beautiful this is.

7.) Otis by Loren Long (Philomel): I suggest gifting this to the child who hums “Bob the Builder” under his or her breath all morning long…or the one who asks, “Handy Manny?” upon waking up for a mid-morning nap. This is a story of the friendship between a tractor and a calf, a story that would make Bob [the Builder] proud.

8.) The Peace Book by Todd Parr (Little, Brown): To a child, one definitive answer to a question can often be helpful. When explaining abstract concepts to wide, questioning eyes, however, one size does not always fit all. Parr offers many definitions of peace. A helpful and sweet book.

9.) Redwoods by Jason Chin (Flash Point): I found this stuffed in a couch cushion. The couch belonged to a family that had recently switched coasts. I grinned from ear-to-ear when the five-year-old owner of the book explained to me that, these pictures would help him if he ever forgot how “way cool” the redwoods looked in person. (A good one for the Magic Tree House crew.)

10.) Yummy: 8 Favorite Fairy Tales by Lucy Cousins (Candlewick): Greatness strikes again. Maisy creator, Lucy Cousins, brings fairy tales to life by removing the training wheels and swapping sugar-coated for hilarious.

5 Books to gift the pre-tween (ages 6-8.5):

1.) Allie Finkle’s Rules for Girls by Meg Cabot (Scholastic): I have linked the most current edition (Stage Fright) but suggest the whole series. If you read quietly (and between the lines) you’ll hear the approving voices of Junie B. Jones, Ramona, and Anne with an E.

2.) Flat Stanley’s Worldwide Adventures: The Japanese Ninja Surprise by Jeff Brown and Macky Pamintuan (HarperCollins): I have yet to read Ninja Surprise, but have had such fondness for its predecessors that I have to recommend it. My best friend (and current Kindergarten teacher) also is a fan…and that’s saying something.

3.) Ivy and Bean Secret Treasure Box (books 1-3) by Annie Barrows and Sophie Blackall (Chronicle): I’m borrowing words here, but I feel they do the trick. “Meet Ivy and Bean two friends who never meant to like each other. This boxed set is a delightful introduction to these spunky characters. It includes the first three books in the Ivy and Bean series and a secret treasure-hiding box with a cool surprise inside!” -Amazon

4.) The Magician’s Elephant by Kate DiCamillo and Yoko Tanaka (Candlewick): Again, borrowing a better summary: “Peter Augustus Duchene goes to the market square of the city of Baltese. Instead of buying the fish and bread that his guardian, Vilna Lutz, has asked him to procure, he uses the coin to pay a fortune-teller to get information about his sister, whom he believes to be dead. He is told that she is alive, and that an elephant will lead him to her.” (You want to read more, huh?)

5.) Scat by Carl Hiassen (Knopf Books for Young Readers): A mystery, eco-suspense, and fun, all packed into just under 400 pages of incredible.

3 Books for the kitchen. These will be a welcomed addition to, “and YOUR job is to open the Annie’s cheese packet” :

1.) Gastrokid: Feeding a Foodie Family in a Fast-Food World by Hugh Garvey and Matthew Yeomans (Wiley): This may just be my favorite kiddo cookbook out there. That’s a statement, because I am a person who has organized multiple bakery crawls throughout multiple countries. These recipes are easy, healthy, and adaptable. A must-gift for any foodie family.

2.) The Silver Spoon for Children: Favorite Italian Recipes (Phadion Press): Buono appetito! This book could be a how-to on training your tot to cook like Grandma (as long as Grandma is famous for her rigatoni with meatballs).

3.) The Usborne First Cookbook by Anglea Wilkes, Rebecca Gilpin, Stephen Cartwright, Sally Griffin, and Carrie Armstrong (Usborne Books): This is one of the best in terms of an introduction to cooking. This book can really be his or hers—to keep next to his or her bedside leaving mom and dad out of the picture until it’s time for the measuring and oven stuff.

1 Book to Bring on the ride (plane, car, train or otherwise) to Grandma’s:

1.) A Really Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Byrson (Delacorte Books for Young Readers): I really believe the title says it all with this one.

**Full disclosure: Since I do not work in children’s publishing (nor am I a librarian or parent) I thought it might be a good idea to provide you with a little reassurance that I am, in fact, a moderately decent judge of kidlit. There are two reasons:

I’m a nanny. A nanny who studied literature as an undergraduate. For the past few months I’ve worked as a temp. nanny with a wonderful agency. Read: when the normal nanny needs a siesta or catches a bug, I head on over and act as a temporary Mary Poppins. I read with children every single day. I read with different children every single day. Since signing with the agency I have sat for nearly 65 children. Last week, I read 423 pages…aloud…in one day. I do voices—soft ones, loud ones, snarly ones, and cute ones. I’ve developed a system where each child has a special sign, signaling him or her to turn the page (a sprinkle of fairy dust, a tug on the nose). Having said this, children definitely crawl out of my lap from time to time and I’ve been told once or twice that my Grinch voice is too scary.
Furthermore, I made most of my picks after consulting the gift guides of many, more qualified than myself, so you’re in good hands. Here are a few other guides for your shopping pleasure:

HAPPY READING AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS,
J

Gameday Grub: Shrimp and Corn Chowder

2009-12-20T12:25:00.000-11:00

I am a girl who loves her chowder. Didn’t taste the stuff until after leaving home but once I dipped my spoon into that first bowl of onions, cream, and spice, I never looked back. My first taste of clam chowder was consumed (appropriately) in Boston, after rowing in The Head of the Charles. My first bowl of corn chowder? In the dining hall at school with my cream-based-soup-addicted roommate, Molly.

With snow on the ground and football on the television, this evening seemed like a perfect time for a pot of soup. The trouble is that I have a hard time making chowder because of all the heavy cream. Unless it’s a special occasion, the “glug glug” of pouring cream into a pan gives me the shivers. This recipe swaps fat free evaporated milk for cream and it tastes just the same. Swear!

Deliciously yours,