What Are You Reading?

After food, my favorite thing to talk about is books.
I am so lucky to have the job I do - two days a week in our local, independent book store, Royal River Books. We get a new shipments of books almost every day and opening that box is like Christmas. Pulling out fresh copies of bestselling fiction, kids' classics, new releases and old favorites makes me feel like I hit the jackpot, even though they don't really belong to me. I stack them high on the counter as I enter them into inventory. Most days there are a few special orders and they're often books I'm not familiar with. It's such fun to see what other readers are interested in. Sometimes I end up ordering a copy for myself.

The past six moths or so I've been lucky to read one great book after the next. Here are some of my favorites...

This character driven novel tells the story of a young college baseball star, his mentor, the college president and his daughter during a time of awakening and change for them all. Loads of great dialogue, a sense of humor and a good feel for its location.

You probably know Ann Patchett as the author of the bestseller Bel Canto. State of Wonder again takes us to an exotic location (the Amazon River) where the main character is completely out of her comfort zone. She confronts both her past and her future as she searches for a colleague deep in the heart of darkness.

Loved this story of young New Yorkers in the 1930s! A chance encounter brings a young woman of modest background into a wealthy and sophisticated circle. She learns that things are not always what they seem.

A twisted psychological thriller that was impossible to put down. Gone Girl will make you dizzy as your sympathies swing from one character to the other. I mean that in the best possible way. Worth the price of the hardcover.

All the action takes place in one day (although there are flashbacks) during the Victory Tour for a young soldier fresh from the battlefield . His stream-of-consciousness is alternately hilarious, poignant, innocent, worldly and definitely eye-opening. An interesting commentary on American heroes.

And last but not least, the latest from my all time favorite author, John Irving. It has all the usual themes of his work - older women, wrestling teams, sexual confusion, prep schools, Vermont and more (although I can't recall a bear and he often includes bears). There's something about the Irving style that is so appealing to me. Part humor, part empathy and some other indescribable quality that's hard to name.
 And that's why I'm a blogger and not a novelist.

So tell me, what have you read lately? What have you loved? Couldn't finish?
And if you're ever in the area, come see me at the store so we can talk books and food.

Sicilian-style Spaghetti - Food for Thought 3

Check out more Food for Thought here.

There are other things, beside food, that make my mouth water.

The anticipation of a good book can actually do it.
From the moment I brought home Last Night in Twisted River by John Irving, it's been calling softly to me, day and night.

Read me. Read me. Read me. Read me. Read me!

I put it off for a few weeks, for a couple of reasons. One, I had a pile of other books that weren't exactly begging to be read, but deserved some attention due to how long they've been on my nightstand.
Two, I had a feeling Twisted River would be the perfect vacation book so I wanted to wait and take it to Arizona with me last week. And three, once I finished it, I knew it would be a long time before another John Irving book hit the shelves. It's like money in the bank, having one sit there, unread.
Just thinking about reading it made me salivate. Truly.

I have been a John Irving fan since I first read The World According to Garp back in high school. His style is incomparable. It's not just storytelling; it's stories within stories within stories, each one crazier, more outrageous and more compelling than the last.
(Please note the semi-colon. It is an homage to Mr. Irving who enjoys using them frequently.) His tone is comic even when the subject is not, and it is this, perhaps, that draws me in more than anything. Life is bizarre and John Irving simply states the fact more charmingly than any one.

There are themes that you'll find in almost every one of his book. Bears. Wrestling. New England. Exeter. Iowa. And deadly accidents.

Last Night in Twisted River has them all, and much more.
It's the story of a young cook and his son (who later in life becomes a famous writer), an accidental murder and their 37 year run from the local constable who wants the cook dead. They are aided by Ketchum, the gruff friend and ex-lover of the cook's wife. That is putting it very simply.

We get to know the world of logging and river driving  in New Hampshire before roads and technology. The North End of Boston, full of Italian immigrants and restaurants. Southern Vermont. The University of Iowa. Toronto and its rural, wind-swept islands.

Photo by JoshMaz

Oh and the food!
Dominic, the cook, has red sauce in his blood. His mama was Sicilian and taught him well. Even when he was cooking for the loggers in New Hampshire, he showed talent and creativity. Roasted, stuffed chicken with homemade cornbread, lamb hash with poached eggs, venison stew and pizza were menu staples.


The section set in Boston's North End takes place largely in a restaurant, Vicino di Napoli. In Iowa, Dominic works in an Asian restaurant, called Mao's. (The scenes where the cook and the owner's brother drive back and forth to New York's Chinatown are hilarious). And in Vermont, Cookie, as he is affectionately known, opens first a pizza place, then an Italian fine dining spot called Avellino.

There are many delicious descriptions scattered throughout the book -  Chinese braised pork buns,  calamari over penne, pizza dough sweetened with honey. Clearly, the author has eaten well!

Given Dominic's Sicilian background, I opted to make a pasta dish with typical Sicilian ingredients.

It has pine nuts, golden raisins and a touch of anchovy ( I promise you won't even know it's there). It cooks up quickly and has a that perfect mix of sweet, salty and spicy.

Yes, it's squisito!
But nothing will ever be quite as mouth-watering to me as a new John Irving novel.

Sicilian-style Spaghetti
from Tyler's Ultimate by Tyler Florence


1 head of cauliflower, broken into small florets

1/3 cup olive oil

2 anchovy fillets, mashed to a paste with the side of a large knife
(I used 1 Tbsp. anchovy paste instead)

1/4 cup golden raisins

1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted

1/2 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)

1 lb. spaghetti

1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped

juice of 1/2 lemon

freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

dried red chili flakes (optional)


Bring a large pot of salted water to boil for the pasta. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Pour olive oil into a large saute pan set over medium heat. Saute the anchovies and cauliflower until the oil is very hot and the anchovies are sizzling. Add 1/4 cup water and season with salt. Lower heat to a simmer, cover pan and let cauliflower steam for about 5 minutes. Uncover and cook for about another 5 minutes more until the water has evaporated and the cauliflower is starting to brown. Add the raisins and pine nuts and toss through to warm. Remove pan from heat and cover to keep warm.

Meanwhile, sprinkle panko onto a small baking sheet, drizzle with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Toss to coat and spread out in a thin layer on the pan. Bake about 10 minutes or until lightly browned and crunchy. (Be careful - it can burn quickly!)

Cook the spaghetti to al dente.

Drain the spaghetti and and place in a large bowl. Add about 1/4 cup olive oil and toss. Add cauliflower mixture, lemon juice and parsley. Sprinkle with bread crumbs, cheese and chili flakes to taste.