Tuesday, December 29, 2020

My 4 Favorite Recent Cookbook Releases


I am always cooking and I love cookbooks. Here are 4 of my favorites that have released in the last few months. I've already tried a few recipes in each of these and will be trying more in the new year--which I will definitely be posting about! ⁠

Ottolenghi Flavor by Yotam Ottolenghi and Ixta Belfrage (released 10.13.2020 from Ten Speed Press) Ottolenghi and Belfrage break down the fundamentals of cooking vegetables into three key elements: process, pairing, and produce. I am focusing on eating a more plant-focused diet in 2021 and these delicious recipes are sure to help. ⁠

The Roads to Rome: A Cookbook by Jarrett Wrisley and Paolo Vitaletti (released 11.3.2020 from Clarkson Potter) A travel book and cookbook in one, this book would be just at home on a coffee table as on a kitchen counter. Rather than a basic collection of recipes, The Roads to Rome gives background into ingredients and dishes as well as insight into the daily lives of locals who shared their specialties with the chefs.⁠

Cook with Me: 150 Recipes for the Home Cook by Alex Guarnaschelli (released 10.13.20 from Clarkson Potter) My daughter and I love ICAG! Every time she is a judge on our favorite show Guy's Grocery Games we cheer...and every time she competes as a chef she blows the competition away. Her style of cooking is simple but precise, she remains calm under pressure, and she is a patient teacher. This cookbook reads just like her personality: full of comporting recipes, heart-warming stories, and clever tips.⁠

Old World Italian: Recipes and Secrets from Our Travels in Italy by Mimi Thorisson (released 9.15.20 from Appetite by Random House) Another travel/cook book with pictures that are Instagram drool-worthy. I especially love that the recipes come from all areas of the country rather than simply northern/southern--the way so many other Italian cookbooks tend to be divided.⁠




Which one of these would you grab first? Have you been using any great cookbooks this holiday season? ⁠


 

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Monday, December 14, 2020

The 10 Greatest Conspiracies of All Time: Decoding History's Unsolved Mysteries by Brad Meltzer

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. 

Title: The 10 Greatest Conspiracies of All Time: Decoding History's Unsolved Mysteries
Author: Brad Meltzer 
Release Date: 11.10.20
Publisher: Workman Publishing Company



Publisher's Summary:
Master storyteller Brad Meltzer counts down and decodes the world’s top 10 most intriguing conspiracies stories.

Wanted: the truth. In a riveting collection, Brad Meltzer guides us through the 10 greatest conspiracies of all time, from Leonardo da Vinci’s stolen prophecy to the Kennedy assassination. This richly illustrated book serves up those fascinating, unexplained questions that nag at history buffs and conspiracy lovers: Why was Hitler so intent on capturing the Roman “Spear of Destiny?” Where did all the Confederacy’s gold go? What is the government hiding in Area 51? And did Lee Harvey Oswald really act alone?

Meltzer sifts through the evidence, weighs competing theories, separates what we know to be true and what’s still––and perhaps forever––unproved or unprovable, and in the end, decodes the mystery and arrives at the most likely explanation.


My Review:
I've not seen "Decoded" nor read any of Meltzer's previous works and while I'm not a conspiracy theorist, I used to love hearing a good conspiracy theory. Now in the age of COVID-19 and the 2020 US Presidential Election, I worry that people simply don't want to accept facts that aren't convenient to their way of thinking and thus create conspiracy theories to align with their beliefs. The conspiracies included in this book have been around for a while and have taken on a legendary, pop culture quality that makes them "fun" rather than wacky. Here's my 2 cents on the 10:
  1. John Wilkes Booth escaping capture for 40 years after Lincoln’s assassination-- Talk about a crazy tornado of a dozen conspiracy theories in one.
  2. The Missing Confederate Treasury--The Forrest Finn treasure was just found so I guess this is possible. 
  3. The Georgia Guide stones--these are only 2 hours from where I live and I had never heard of them before!
  4. D.B. Cooper-- This was a fun one to think about.  
  5. The White House cornerstone--this didn't seem very exciting or noteworthy 
  6. Hitler’s pursuit of the Spear of Destiny--this was interesting since I had never even heard of the Spear of Destiny before.  
  7. Da Vinci’s apocalypse prediction--Da Vinci was a very talented and intelligent man but this is silly.  
  8. Fort Knox's gold-- this one was worth some contemplation. 
  9. UFOs/Roswell/Area 51-- Nothing new from what most people already know. Super fun theories on this one!
  10. JFK Assassination: I have not seen Oliver Stone’s JFK but after the last few years I can totally understand how people are unable to separate fact from fiction. 
Overall, this was an entertaining and fun book that covered the basics and will appeal to a wide audience.  It would be a perfect gift for that person on your holiday shopping list who thinks everything in our current world is a conspiracy or for someone who might just enjoy learning a bit about popular conspiracy theories. At just over 200 pages with lots of pictures, pulled quotes and multi-media layouts, I would suggest you read or gift this in a physical format rather than as an e-book. 
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Tuesday, December 1, 2020

People Like Her by Ellery Lloyd



I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. 

Title: People Like Her
Author: Ellery Lloyd 
Release Date: 1.12.21
Publisher: Harper


Publisher's Summary:
A razor-sharp, wickedly smart suspense debut about an ambitious influencer mom whose soaring success threatens her marriage, her morals, and her family’s safety.

Followed by Millions, Watched by One

To her adoring fans, Emmy Jackson, aka @the_mamabare, is the honest “Instamum” who always tells it like it is. 

To her skeptical husband, a washed-up novelist who knows just how creative Emmy can be with the truth, she is a breadwinning powerhouse chillingly brilliant at monetizing the intimate details of their family life.

To one of Emmy’s dangerously obsessive followers, she’s the woman that has everything—but deserves none of it. 

As Emmy’s marriage begins to crack under the strain of her growing success and her moral compass veers wildly off course, the more vulnerable she becomes to a very real danger circling ever closer to her family.

In this deeply addictive tale of psychological suspense, Ellery Lloyd raises important questions about technology, social media celebrity, and the way we live today. Probing the dark side of influencer culture and the perils of parenting online, People Like Her explores our desperate need to be seen and the lengths we’ll go to be liked by strangers. It asks what—and who—we sacrifice when make our private lives public, and ultimately lose control of who we let in. . . .



My Review:
Picture this: a blindingly white kitchen; an impeccably groomed, athleisure-clad, 20-something mom; a cute-as-a-button toddler in a tiara and tutu; and a photogenic baby accidentally/on purpose spilling a cup of juice. The caption reads "Crazy Mondays"

This isn't a scene from People Like Her, but it could be. These picture perfect moms are prevalent on Instagram, with claims that their life is sooooo messy (ha ha, wink wink) while they simultaneously seduce followers with overly curated photos and humble brag captions. As a 43-year-old mom who has been in the real trenches of parenthood, I can roll my eyes and scroll past thinking "to each their own" but I sometimes worry about the moms out there that think they aren't "good" moms because their life doesn't look like that. You might consider yourself smart enough to see behind the facade of a "celebrity" account, but there are many who do not. This can lead to devastating results, as readers of People Like Her will learn. 

Husband and wife author duo Ellery Lloyd have crafted a debut novel masterpiece that takes readers behind the camera of an influencer account, peeling back the layers of modern society's love/hate relationship with social media. Narrated by "instamum" Emmy Jackson, her husband Dan, and a mysterious third person, People Like Her features a stellar cast of "unlikeable" characters that will have readers turning each page in jaw-gaping anticipation. Unlike the fluffy, curated BS that tends to dominate IG, Ellery Loyd is not afraid to go dark and shocking--admirable characteristics in the otherwise basic and predictable world of contemporary thrillers. I bit my tongue with telling anyone I was liking this book until I was totally finished because so many current releases have terrible "twists" at the end that make any respect I had for the story fly right out the window. This was not the case with People Like Her! I was beyond impressed with this novel and have been recommending it to everyone. Pre-order, add it to your TBR, do whatever you have to do to get this book in front of your eyeballs ASAP!



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