Ready for another great set of reads? Here is the announcement of the next four selections of our book club. Drum roll, please!
Deb (Kahakai Kitchen) opens the series with Miss Cecily’s Recipes for Exceptional Ladies by Vicky Zimmerman
(June 2020) for the December 2022 / January 2023 edition
Cook the Booksters, it’s time to help me whittle down my foodie TBR stack. According to Amazon, I purchased the e-book in October of 2020 so two years is actually not bad given the number of books I have yet to read! Besides that, I like something light for a big holiday month and the slowdown of the month after, and this book tagged as women’s fiction and friendship fiction seems like it will fit the bill.
From the publisher:
An unlikely friendship between two stubborn, lonely souls anchors this big-hearted book and dares us all to ask for more.
When her life falls apart on the eve of her 40th birthday, Kate Parker finds herself volunteering at the Lauderdale House for Exceptional Ladies. There she meets 97-year-old Cecily Finn. Cecily's tongue is as sharp as her mind, but she's fed up with pretty much everything.
Having no patience for Kate's choices in life or love, Cecily prescribes her a self-help book...of sorts. Thought for Food: an unintentionally funny 1950s cookbook high on enthusiasm, featuring menus for anything life can throw at the "easily dismayed," such as:
- Breakfast with a Hangover
- Tea for a Crotchety Aunt
- Dinner for a Charming Stranger
As she and Cecily break out of their ruts, Kate will learn far more than recipes.
It has some good reviews, so I am hoping we find it enjoyable and it provides some fun inspiration in the kitchen!
Aloha,
Deb, Kahakai Kitchen
Deadline for contributing your post is Tuesday, January 31, 2023
For the February / March edition, Claudia (Honey from Rock) chose The Kitchen Front by Jennifer Ryan (February 2021)
From the publishers
Two years into World War II, Britain is feeling her losses: The Nazis have won battles, the Blitz has destroyed cities, and U-boats have cut off the supply of food. In an effort to help housewives with food rationing, a BBC radio program called The Kitchen Front is holding a cooking contest—and the grand prize is a job as the program’s first-ever female co-host. For four very different women, winning the competition would present a crucial chance to change their lives.
For a young widow, it’s a chance to pay off her husband’s debts and keep a roof over her children’s heads. For a kitchen maid, it’s a chance to leave servitude and find freedom. For a lady of the manor, it’s a chance to escape her wealthy husband’s increasingly hostile behavior. And for a trained chef, it’s a chance to challenge the men at the top of her profession.
These four women are giving the competition their all—even if that sometimes means bending the rules. But with so much at stake, will the contest that aims to bring the community together only serve to break it apart?
This novel is an inspiring winner for sure. I just finished it and believe you all will enjoy it as well.
Aloha,
Claudia, Honey From Rock
Deadline for contributing your post is Friday, March 31, 2023
For the April / May 2023 edition, Debra (Eliot's Eats) has chosen Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus (April 2022)
This past summer Lessons in Chemistry showed up on my radar. I think I was first made aware of it from a "Summer Reads" section from one of my culinary magazines. Nephew II and I were visiting an independent bookstore in July and I bought the book there. It's been sitting in my TBR stack since then. I have started it and I do love the ironic humor. The 60s fascinate me (the whole Mad Men vibe) so I'm looking forward to finishing it.
Here's the abbreviated book blurb:
Elizabeth Zott is a trained chemist. In the early 60s, this is a man's world but she makes a place for herself and finds love (but maybe not acceptance). Fast forward a few years and Elizabeth is now a single mother and surprisingly enough, a television star with a beloved cooking show. Her approach is unique, “combine one tablespoon acetic acid with a pinch of sodium chloride." As "Supper at Six" (the title of her show)The publisher's blurb promises "Laugh-out-loud funny, shrewdly observant, and studded with a dazzling cast of supporting characters, Lessons in Chemistry is as original and vibrant as its protagonist." From the first few pages, this has promise.
Debra, Eliot's Eats
Deadline for contributing your post is Wednesday, May 31, 2023
Deadline for contributing your post is Wednesday, May 31, 2023
To round up the list of selections, for the June / July 2023 edition Simona (briciole) chose Food Americana by David Page (May 2021)
As we co-hosts confabulated about the next four selections for our long-running club this book was mentioned and I chose based on the subtitle "The Remarkable People and Incredible Stories behind America’s Favorite Dishes." It reminded me of an earlier choice I made for the club, Twain's Feast by Andrew Beahrs, which looked at foods popular in Twain's time. I thought this would be a way to jump forward to the present and look at foods popular today.
The remarkable history of American food. What is American cuisine, what national menu do we share, what dishes have we chosen, how did they become “American,” and how are they likely to evolve from here? David Page answers all these questions and more.
I'm looking forward to reading stories of foods that are common around me but weren't a short while ago.
Simona, briciole
Deadline for contributing your post: Monday, July 31, 2023.
Remember that membership in our book club is open to anyone and we hope you will join us by reading these selections and creating inspired recipes. For more information about participating, click here.
As always, specific announcement posts can be found at Cook the Books at the beginning of each two-month period and the current selection is always shown on the right side of the homepage.
To recap:
