Finished my audiobook, The Miniaturist, by Jessie Burton. The ending was sad and sober but befitting the themes laid out in the book as well as the story's cultural context--seventeenth century Amsterdam, a city of both wealth and oppressive religious edicts. This tension was mirrored in several of the characters which made the journey feel contained and of a piece, as though both the city and its people were coming face to face with questions of the soul, of destiny and purpose. It was well done and moved at a leisurely pace and the narrator was very good, always a plus with an audiobook. I've got several other print books on the go but am not sure which one I'll devote my full attention to next.

This recipe for dark chocolate clusters is about as simple as it gets. I haven't made them for years but this is pretty much exactly how I remember them though we doubled the amount of butterscotch chips. They'll disappear in no time.

I don't really eat them...so you're safe with me Stacia as far as mayo and bananas go :cheers2: When I prepare them for ds or dh I do the circle dance.

Thoroughly enjoying The Miniaturist. The story gets more and more complex, or rather the characters do and those I thought rather one dimensional are turning out to be quite compelling after all. The plot thickens, too. I am loving the pace, the time taken to describe landscape, nuances, and the stillnesses and silences passing back and forth between the various characters.

Ugh, did not know this. I've not read the books only seen the series with Maury Chakin as Nero and Timothy Hutton as Archie. Thank you, ladies, for pointing this out.

Yes, she's another good one! And we can't forget Nero Wolfe, that erudite, armchair detective and gourmand. I see there's even a Nero Wolfe cookbook that reproduces a lot of the recipes mentioned in his books.

Elizabeth David is my absolute fave food writer. I used to read her books the way I'd read novels. Her writing is elegant and yet full of luscious culinary details. She doesn't separate the food from its source so her descriptions of the surrounding landscape are equally wonderful. This one is a classic of hers but, really, they're all worth a read. Claudia Roden is another favorite. They've updated her classic and Arabesque, too, is not to be missed. I'm a plodding reader of late and I haven't finished any books this week. Very much enjoying The Miniaturist though. Beautifully written and slow moving which suits me very well these days.

Growing up it was bread sauce. No one else I knew had ever heard of it but for us it was standard accompaniment to both Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners. The magic is in the cloves.

Ds and I are going to start The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss. It's not my preferred genre but it is ds's and he does love a good book discussion. I was quite taken with the poetic style of the writing in the excerpt I read plus I believe it was here that I first heard of it, Jenn perhaps recommended it? He's a bit of a speed reader though so our plans for tandem reading usually end up with him finishing way before I have and waiting for slow-poke mama to catch up for discussion In my own reading I've been switching back and forth between the audio and written version of The Miniaturist which I'm enjoying. I'm appreciating the feeling of being in 17th century Amsterdam which right now feels comfortably removed from current issues. Yesterday was a day of textures. Gratitude for family and community and the blessings of health, ample food, clean water, electricity at the flip of a switch, among other things. But those who are standing for and with Water are much in my heart and on my mind these days and Water itself was an inner focus yesterday. I found this lovely poem by poet and mystic, John O'Odonohue, which speaks so eloquently and simply to this integral element of our lives. Let us bless the humility of water, Always willing to take the shape Of whatever otherness holds it. The buoyancy of water, Stronger than the deadening, Downward drag of gravity. The innocence of water, Flowing forth, without thought Of what awaits it. The refreshment of water, Dissolving the crystals of thirst. Water: voice of grief, Cry of love, In the flowing tear. Water: vehicle and idiom Of all the inner voyaging That keeps us alive. Blessed be water, Our first mother.

I'm a galette kind of girl. This recipe for a Rustic Cardamom Apple Galette with Marscapone Maple Sauce takes this humble dessert to a new level. And this recipe for a Salted Caramel Apple Galette is truly decadent. I like to mix in dried sour cherries with my apples if I'm making a plain apple galette.

Thanks, Jenn :D I've missed hearing about your fiddling adventures :nopity:

Just finished listening to a fascinating interview with the Congolese writer, Alain Mabanckou. Stacia, Jane and perhaps Nan, you may be interested in one of his most popular books, Broken Glass. I realized, as I listened to the interview that my time spent hearing about these artists speak of their vision, their creative interface with the world, their childhood influences, that my spirit feels buoyed with something akin to hope. Knowing there is this kind of consciousness at work in the world is a refuge these days.

I read Some Kind of Fairy Tale a couple of years ago and really enjoyed both the story and his writing. I went on to read, The Limits of Enchantment. And am currently making my way through The Facts of Life also by Joyce. Still on the roster, The Sisters Weiss and the audio version of The Miniaturist. I listened to a charming interview with Muriel Barbary, she of The Elegance of the Hedgehog fame. Stacia, I believe you read this a few years ago, yes? And enjoyed it? She has another book out, The Life of Elves, and I was so taken with the creative way her mind operated that I've put both of these on the tbr list. And lastly, I just bought book two of The Steerswoman series. I read book one a few years ago and have been meaning to get back to it. Rose, I think you might like this.

Thank you, mumto2, for this sweet post. :D

Book Awards...no comment. Reading to keep sane these past two weeks. Listened to a fab interview with Zadie Smith, she of White Teeth fame, done by Eleanor Wachtel. If y'all want a great literary podcast series to subscribe to the CBC's, 'Writers and Company' with Eleanor Wachtel is wonderful. A full day ahead with various doctor's appts for dh and keeping the surge of despair over our the political situation from rising too far out of the gullet.

Popping back in to say hi. Ds and I finished reading The Paper Magician. It's been likened to The Night Circus but I don't see the similarity, really. Night Circus was written to an older audience, too. I'm currently reading The Sisters Weiss. It's middling. Listening to The Miniaturist. It's good. Feeling Leonard Cohen right now. What a heart!

Christians don't have a monopoly on Jesus. Nor does any religion for that matter. How could such ineffability be contained?

These might help.

I agree, this company you linked, Thorne, is one of the best.

This is a good place to start if you're not getting professional help. It might create some inner space for you and a tiny bit of distance between the ED and your identification with it. Because, of course, you're more than your ED but when it's chronic it tends to be how we identify ourselves and giving that up can feel very disorienting and downright scary. There is a companion workbook coming out in the Spring though this book contains lots of exercises to do as well. Hugs to you on your recovery journey.

Pretty much daily.

This is a great idea. Thank you! That was our experience with TC. We started with Pre-Alg and the same progression...good at first then boredom etc. I haven't seen Math without Borders and will check that out. AoPs has a couple of courses in between Alg and Alg2/Geometry that ds is interested in so we have some choices to make before he finishes up Alg1 next month. Thank you both for taking the time to respond. It's been helpful. :001_smile:

Seventy views and no opinions to share :confused1:

I posted a few weeks ago about looking for 'the perfect' math curriculum for my math-loving ds. He's currently 2/3 of the way through AoPS Algebra 1. It's an ok fit. He's challenged enough by the course material to keep it interesting for him and I've seen his math muscle grow. However he doesn't love it, something about the format, I think. I've not ruled it out but I'm also looking around. Can anyone whose dc has done TC Geometry speak to its rigor? Ds did the Pre-Alg class a couple of years ago and did not feel challenged enough by it. Looking over the Geometry description it seems like perhaps this would be more rigorous. ETA Also wondering about Derek Owens for Geometry. Thoughts? Experience? Suggestions?

Though it's gentle Floradix is the one my acupuncturist recommends highly because it's also a blood builder and tonic. Rather than just zooming in on and isolating the symptom it works with the issue in the larger bodily context, focusing on the hemoglobin that carries the iron. Plus it's highly bio-available.