Happy St. Patrick's Day: Green Book Covers

Carry one of these around today. You'll be safe.

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. Each Tuesday That Artsy Reader Girl assigns a topic and then post her top ten list that fits that topic. You’re more than welcome to join her and create your own top ten (or 2, 5, 20, etc.) list as well. Feel free to put a unique spin on the topic to make it work for you! Please link back to That Artsy Reader Girl in your own post so that others know where to find more information.      

The Sunday Salon: Spring Break with Grandkids, Books, and Birds

 

Welcome! I am delighted that you joined us here at the Sunday Salon. 

What is the Sunday Salon? 

The Sunday Salon is a place to link up and share what we have been doing during the week. It's also a great opportunity to visit other blogs and join in the conversations going on there. 

Spring is Migration Celebration and Spring Fling and Open House at the Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge. I will be volunteering at all of these for my Texas Master Naturalist group in March and April.

My grandkids are off for Spring Break and I am visiting them all. We hope to go on some nature walks and read some books together and have some picnics. 

What I Read Last Week:

The Astral Library by Kate Quinn (Speculative Fiction)

First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers by Loung Ung (Memoir)

What I'm Reading Now:

The Brothers Karamozov by Fyodor Dostoevsky (Classic)

Listening to Your Life: Daily Meditations by Frederick Buechner (Spirituality)

What I Posted Last Week Here at Readerbuzz:

The Sunday Salon: Spring Break with Birds and Grandkids

Book Titles Featuring Ordinal Numbers

The Art of Mindful Baking: Returning the Heart to the Hearth by Julia Ponsonby

Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present by Ruth Ben-Ghiat: Book Beginnings on Fridays, First Line Friday, The Friday 56, and Book Blogger Hop

I began to list 3 Good Things every day during the pandemic. Now I've established a regular routine of writing down my 3 Good Things. Because I am off in East Texas with limited Internet, I shall share a few old Good Things from previous visits:

Good Thing #1:

G-kids Lucy and Bailey.

Good Thing #2:

G-kids Annie and Wyatt.

We made a cake together.

Good Thing #3:

The beauty of an East Texas morning.

Weekend linkup spots are listed below. Click on the picture to visit the site.

        

I hope you will join the linkup for Sunday Salon below.

Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present by Ruth Ben-Ghiat: Book Beginnings on Fridays, First Line Friday, The Friday 56, and Book Blogger Hop

  

Today's Featured Book: 

Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present

by Ruth Ben-Ghiat

Genre: History

Published: November 10, 2020

Page Count: 384 pages

Summary: 

Ruth Ben-Ghiat is the expert on the "strongman" playbook employed by authoritarian demagogues from Mussolini to Putin―enabling her to predict with uncanny accuracy the recent experience in America and Europe. In Strongmen, she lays bare the blueprint these leaders have followed over the past 100 years, and empowers us to recognize, resist, and prevent their disastrous rule in the future.

For ours is the age of authoritarian rulers: self-proclaimed saviors of the nation who evade accountability while robbing their people of truth, treasure, and the protections of democracy. They promise law and order, then legitimize lawbreaking by financial, sexual, and other predators.

They use masculinity as a symbol of strength and a political weapon. Taking what you want, and getting away with it, becomes proof of male authority. They use propaganda, corruption, and violence to stay in power.

Vladimir Putin and Mobutu Sese Seko’s kleptocracies, Augusto Pinochet’s torture sites, Benito Mussolini and Muammar Gaddafi’s systems of sexual exploitation, and Silvio Berlusconi and Donald Trump’s relentless misinformation: all show how authoritarian rule, far from ensuring stability, is marked by destructive chaos.

No other type of leader is so transparent about prioritizing self-interest over the public good. As one country after another has discovered, the strongman is at his worst when true guidance is most needed by his country.

Recounting the acts of solidarity and dignity that have undone strongmen over the past 100 years, Ben-Ghiat makes vividly clear that only by seeing the strongman for what he is―and by valuing one another as he is unable to do―can we stop him, now and in the future.

 

BOOK BEGINNINGS ON FRIDAY is hosted by Rose City Reader. What book are you happy about reading this week? Please share the opening sentence (or so) on BOOK BEGINNINGS ON FRIDAY! Add the link to your blog or social media post and visit other blogs to see what others are reading.

Happy Friday and welcome to the FIRST LINE FRIDAY, hosted by Reading is My Superpower! It’s time to grab the book nearest to you and leave a comment with the first line.

From an early age, the first man to transform a democracy into a dictatorship showed the qualities that have marked strongmen of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries: a violent temperament, opportunism, and a way with words.

Ben-Ghiat, Ruth. Strongmen: Mussolini to the Presentm p. 1. Kindle Edition. 

THE FRIDAY 56 is hosted by Anne of Head Full of Books. To play, open a book and turn to page 56 (or 56% on your e-reader). Find a sentence or two and post them, along with the book title and author. Then link up on Head Full of Books and visit others in the linky. 

“Who did you say Putin was?” asked Zhenya Molchanova, a Moscow hot dog vendor, when told the news on August 9, 1999, a reaction shared by most Russians.

Ben-Ghiat, Ruth. Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present, p. 56. Kindle Edition. 

The purpose of THE BOOK BLOGGER HOP is to give bloggers a chance to follow other blogs, learn about new books, and befriend other bloggers. THE BOOK BLOGGER HOP is hosted by Ramblings of a Coffee Addicted Writer.    

Are there genres you read that you feel a little shy about? (submitted by Billy @ Coffee-Addicted Writer)

There are genres I don't read, but anything I read, I share.

Miss Eliza's English Kitchen: A Novel of Victorian Cookery and Friendship by Annabel Abbs: Book Beginnings on Fridays, First Line Friday, The Friday 56, and Book Blogger Hop

Today's Featured Book: 

Miss Eliza's English Kitchen:

A Novel of Victorian Cookery and Friendship

by Annabel Abbs

Genre: Historical Fiction

Published: November 16, 2021

Page Count: 400 pages

Summary: 

In Victorian England, 1835, London is awash with thrilling new ingredients, from rare spices to exotic fruits. But no one knows how to use them. When Eliza Acton is told by her publisher to write a cookery book instead of the poetry she loves, she refuses—until her bankrupt father is forced to flee the country. As a woman, Eliza has few options. Although she’s never set foot in a kitchen, she begins collecting recipes and teaching herself to cook. Much to her surprise she discovers a talent – and a passion – for the culinary arts.

Eliza hires young, destitute Ann Kirby to assist her. As they cook together, Ann learns about poetry, love and ambition. The two develop a radical female friendship, breaking the boundaries of class while creating new ways of writing recipes. But when Ann discovers a secret in Eliza’s past, and finds a voice of her own, their friendship starts to fray.

Based on the true story of the first modern cookery writer, Miss Eliza’s English Kitchen is a spellbinding work of culinary fiction about friendship, the struggle for independence, and the transcendent pleasures and solace of food.

 

BOOK BEGINNINGS ON FRIDAY is hosted by Rose City Reader. What book are you happy about reading this week? Please share the opening sentence (or so) on BOOK BEGINNINGS ON FRIDAY! Add the link to your blog or social media post and visit other blogs to see what others are reading.

Happy Friday and welcome to the FIRST LINE FRIDAY, hosted by Reading is My Superpower! It’s time to grab the book nearest to you and leave a comment with the first line.

Midday in the City of London, the carts and carriages rattling over the cobbles, the screech of costermongers, the jostle of barrows and handcarts, the thin-ribbed boys who are shirtless and swooping like starved birds to shovel every steaming clod of dung. It is the hottest day of the year—or so it feels to me, burning and corseted inside my best silk dress. On Paternoster Row the heat radiates from every brick, every brass bellpull, every iron railing. Even the wooden scaffolding, which props up every half-built windowless property, is stubbornly lodged with heat and creaking with thirst. 

It is the most important day of my life, so to calm my nerves that are all ajangle, I observe the scene and shape it into words: The crowds dripping along the side of the road where the taller buildings fling their shadows. The straining horses that are slick with sweat. The fans stitched from peacock feathers and fluttering from carriage windows. The wilting lash of the drivers’ whips. And the sun, like a vast golden orb in a dome of unbroken blue.

Abbs, Annabel. Miss Eliza's English Kitchen: A Novel of Victorian Cookery and Friendship, p. 1, Kindle Edition. 

THE FRIDAY 56 is hosted by Anne of Head Full of Books. To play, open a book and turn to page 56 (or 56% on your e-reader). Find a sentence or two and post them, along with the book title and author. Then link up on Head Full of Books and visit others in the linky. 

“I made it myself this morning. I’ve been experimenting and this version includes a little crushed lavender.” 

I don’t want her to think me rude, so I nod and whisper, “Yes, please, ma’am.” Just as Mrs. Thorpe told me. 

She pours a tall glass. And then I realize she’s waiting for me to drink it. Mrs. Thorpe didn’t mention anything about drinks, so I’m unsure what to do.

“Drink!” Miss Acton commands. 

I take a sip, and it’s like nothing I’ve ever tasted. Sweet and sour and sharp and blossomy all at once. 

“What do you think?” she asks. I stare at her, forgetting that Mrs. Thorpe told me never to stare. 

“Well, speak,” she says, but I don’t think she’s cross because there’s a little smile on her lips. 

I don’t say that her question makes me tremble, that Mrs. Thorpe told me I must never have an opinion. And nor do I tell her that the lemonade tastes of something I can’t put into words, of Mam shredding lavender flowers and mixing them with the crushed leaves of verbena and lemon balm . . . Tears prick at the back of my eyes, and I reach for the table to steady myself. 

“Are you unwell?” Miss Acton comes to my side and helps me into a low chair, where I sit, hot and ashamed. 

“You need more lemonade,” she says, and pours another glass. Then she stoops beside me and holds the glass right by my face so I can see the pale cloudy liquid and smell the lemons and lavender all over again. 

“Perhaps the heat has affected you, in that worsted dress.” She puts the glass on the floor and leaves the room. 

And I know full well she’s gone to write a letter of complaint to Mrs. Thorpe, that I have done everything wrong—and shown myself to be puny and rude and a disgrace. No doubt my bad blood has shown itself. 

I drink the lemonade, and it’s like coming from a gray dream and feeling the world lift and rise around me. Calming. So that when I hear her step in the hall, I jump up and stand very straight beside the sink. As if I’m ready for work. 

“You’re better,” she declares. 

“The l-lemonade, ma’am,” I stutter. I want to make amends by telling her how delicious it is but when I pause, Miss Acton leaps in. “It made you unwell? Oh, that is terrible!” 

She frowns very severely and peers into the earthenware jug. “I think the lavender was a mistake. Perhaps cold milk and a dash of sherry would improve it . . .” 

“No, ma’am,” I say, quite desperate now. “It is the most delicious thing I have ever tasted and brought back such memories I was quite overcome. I’m very sorry, ma’am. I’m normally strong as an ox, ma’am.”

Abbs, Annabel. Miss Eliza's English Kitchen: A Novel of Victorian Cookery and Friendship, pp. 55-57. Kindle Edition. 

Eliza Acton's father declares bankruptcy and the whole family is suffering. Eliza and her mother open up a boarding house and Eliza begins to make plans to write a cookery book. Ann Kirby, poor and without many options, comes to work with Eliza, first on her cooking and later collaborating with Eliza on her book.

Sometimes historical fiction irritates me with vocabulary that doesn't fit the times or with behavior that doesn't fit the times. This book felt well researched, with strong yet believable women characters. I enjoyed reading about all the foods Eliza and Ann prepared, and I loved watching the women cope with, and eventually thrive in, a world that would have preferred to put them on the sidelines.

I downloaded a copy of the women's cookbook, and I plan to prepare food from the cookbook sometime this month or next.

The purpose of THE BOOK BLOGGER HOP is to give bloggers a chance to follow other blogs, learn about new books, and befriend other bloggers. THE BOOK BLOGGER HOP is hosted by Ramblings of a Coffee Addicted Writer.    

Which book really showcases your favorite author’s style, and what makes it stand out? (submitted by Billy @ Coffee-Addicted Writer)

 

The Art of Mindful Baking: Returning the Heart to the Hearth by Julia Ponsonby

  

I have a lot of cookbooks in my TBR, and there is nothing my husband loves more than for me to cook. To inspire me, I took photos with 24 cookbooks I have and I've prescheduled one post a month for the next two years. I'll plan to link up with In My Kitchen, hosted by Sherry's Pickings, and Weekend Cooking, hosted by Marg at The Intrepid Reader (and Baker). To further inspire me, I've created a Cooking/Baking Challenge for me for 2026 in which I read and bake from and post about one cookbook a month.

The Art of Mindful Baking:

Returning the Heart to the Hearth

by Julia Ponsonby

How long have I had this book in my TBR? Years and years and years, I know. The copyright is 2014, and it's entirely possible that I have had it since then. Where did I acquire it? I don't remember, but I'm sure it was a gift; I'm always asking for books about baking for my birthday. 

Julia Ponsonby considers the topics of mindfulness and and simplicity and Slow Cooking and using our senses as each of these topics relates to baking, and she offers a dozen recipes to give us bakers a chance to consider all of these and apply them in our baking lives.

I tried a simple bread recipe. It's not wildly different from my go-to bread baking recipe. But this recipe notably slows me down, it encourages us to see and smell and taste what we are baking, and it involves a good bit of rigorous kneading.

Here's the recipe I tried:

LIGHT-BROWN BREAD OR ROLLS

Makes 1 round, oval, or rectangular loaf or 10 rolls

Preparation time: 15-20 minutes, plus about 2 hours rising

Baking time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

1-2 Tbsp. Olive Oil

10 oz. Strong White Bread Flour

10 oz. Warm Water

1 tsp. Sugar or Honey

6 oz. Whole Wheat Flour

1-1 1/2 tsp. Salt

A little beaten egg for brushing (optional)

1. Place the warm water in a measuring jug, then stir in the sugar and yeast. Leave to froth.

2. In a large bowl, combine the flours and salt.

3. Add the yeasty water and oil and mix until you have a soft dough and all the ingredients are evenly distributed. You are aiming for a soft, elastic dough that holds its shape. It may be slightly sticky on the surface, but it should not be sloppy. 

Knead gently in the bowl for a few minutes until fairly smooth, then return to the bowl to rise. Spray the top of the dough with a little more water to prevent the surface from drying out or cover the bowl loosely with a lid or tea towel. Leave to rise in a warm place for 1-2 hours until the dough has doubled in size.

4. Tip the risen dough on to a clean and very lightly floured surface and 'knock back,' punching out the carbon dioxide. This is your chance to get the gluten working.

5. As you knead, stretch and push the dough away from you with your fists, then bring it back together. You will feel the gluten tightening and spring back. Do this for about 3-5 minutes. Then, let your dough rest for a few minutes so the gluten can relax making your dough easier to form into a loaf ready for its final proving.

6. For a single loaf, shape the dough into a long oval or round bread. Keep the joints at the bottom and make sure the top skin has not be over-stretched: loosen it with a little gentle rocking, if there is any sign of tightness or splitting.

7. Place the loaf in the prepared tin seam side down. Spray the top of the loaf with water and/or brush with beaten egg for a shiny finish. Leave the loaf to rise in a warm place for about 40-60 minutes.

8. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.

9. When the bread is ready to go into the oven, it will usually have doubled in size. It is better to put your bread in the oven when still---just---on the rise, so that its last burst of rising is stimulated by the heat of the oven. Bake on the middle shelf for about 45 minutes. Turn out and leave to cool on wire racks. 

Note: I had no brown flour so I used all white flour. Also, I used close to 3 cups of flour instead of the sixteen ounces the recipe suggests.

Ten ounces of warm water with sixteen ounces of flour? This was not bread; this was soup. I had to add and add and add flour until the dough was soft but not soupy. This recipe is from Great Britain, so maybe I am confused about the measurements? 

This book deals with problems in baking in a section called Overcoming Attachment: "Do not mind too much when things go wrong and your food gets burnt, doesn't rise, or you accidentally add too much salt. In Buddhist teachings, attachment to anything represents one of the greatest obstacles to the development of your spiritual path...(T)he pitfalls of baking help you to practise the art of severing these attachments."

I baked. I was mindful. I overcame attachment. Perhaps I have traveled a little way on my spiritual path. Not bad for an afternoon of baking.

Be a part of the friendly In My Kitchen (IMK) community by adding your post at Sherry's Pickings each month - everybody welcome!  We'd love to have you visit.  Tell us about your kitchen (and kitchen garden) happenings over the past month.  Dishes you've cooked, preserves you've made, herbs and veg. in your garden, kitchen gadgets, and goings-on.  And one curveball is welcome - whatever you fancy; no need to be kitchen-related. The link is open from the first of the month to midnight on the thirteenth of the month, every month.

Weekend Cooking was created by Beth Fish Reads and is now hosted by Marg at The Intrepid Reader (and Baker). It is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book (novel, nonfiction) reviews, cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page. For more information, see the welcome post.  

For more photos, link up at Wordless Wednesday, Comedy Plus, Messymimi's Meanderings, Keith's Ramblings, Image-in-ing, Soul and Mind and So On, Wild Bird Wednesday, and My Corner of the World.