“Book Happy”

As a child, I was entranced by my grandfather’s study.  Grandpa and Grandma lived on a quiet leafy street in a big brown house that always smelled warm and cozy and I felt embraced by it the moment I entered.  The study was a very small room.  There were bookcases on every wall and the …

Tidy Tidbits: Women, Film & Cheese

Book of the Week:  O My America! Six Women and their Second Acts in a New World by Sara Wheeler.  This is a delightful romp through the 19th century with six middle-aged women, each of whom re-invented herself in the United States and either published a book about her experiences or journaled extensively.  Wheeler is …

Booknote: Youth and Food

This week I have two books to recommend.  One is serious and to be savored, the other fun and a quick read. All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr.  This is a magnificent book, and that’s an adjective I seldom, if ever, use to describe a novel.  Two parallel stories, two lives, one of …

Booknote: My Favorite Books of 2014

Some years ago, I started keeping a list of most of the books I read each year just for myself with some occasional comments.  I received a slew of new books for Christmas and near the end of the year purchased a few so I have an even higher stack than usual awaiting me.  You …