January's Book Shelf

The Polar Vortex has its challenges. But it brings with it time to dig into those Christmas books! Here's a look at a couple of foodie-biographies, a fiction novel (novella?), a political biography, a fun mystery and a lovely art book.

"Be Ready When the Luck Comes" by Ina Garten

I should start this out by saying that I love everything TV chef/cookbook writer Ina Garten does -- her cookbook recipes never fail, I love all her cooking shows, and I'm also a fan of her husband Jeffrey and their relationship. So, it's pretty likely that I was predisposed to finding her memoir, "Be Ready When the Luck Comes," a good one.

And, it is. If you've seen Garten's television shows, you see a competent, capable, relaxed cook, whipping up wonderful dinners for her friends, serving it at a lovely table. She seems like the kind of person you would want to know. And you'd definitely want her dinner invitation!

Fortunately, "Be Ready When the Luck Comes" feels like "real" Ina. And "real" Ina feels very much like her television persona with a couple of big differences. First, on TV, it all looks very easy, as though she'd been doing TV all her life. But it's not so simple as it seems and she has the nerves to prove it. Second, while her title may imply her life was lucky (and it was), she also worked incredibly hard to get where she is. She is a driven woman, one who couldn't settle for dull. All her life, when there was something she wanted, she worked to get it. 

She met Jeffrey when he was in college, she was still in high school. They wooed each other, he in the traditional way; she sent him brownies at college and they defied her parents, getting together. And while their relationship has always been one of the best things of her life, there was a period of separation after she left Washington and her job in nuclear energy for the government and bought Barefoot Contessa, a specialty food shop on Long Island, NY. Through the years, she grew the company from a summer food store to a year-round business, then went on to writing cookbooks and doing a series of television cooking shows. 

For Ina fans, there isn't a lot new in the book, but that doesn't make it any less enjoyable. (I had no idea, though, that she had rehabbed a number of her homes. She followed Jeffrey's rule, "do what you want as long as we can sell it for at least what we paid for it!") She was a wizard at negotiation, making very smart business deals while making the end result a win-win for both parties. One could learn a lot from her.

Written in her own casual style (with parenthetical throw away lines) it's one book that I (who do not listen to audio books) would love to hear read by the author. She also includes some wonderful recipes that I plan to try, including her "Fabulous Brownies." 

Most revealing are the sections about her youth and those related to Jeffrey, who (I've decided!) is a real winner, the kind of guy you want as a partner in life, both supportive and absolutely trusting in your abilities. She might have achieved all she did without Jeffrey, but I doubt it would have been as easy or as fun.

Readers will get a behind-the-scenes look at how a cooking show develops and is filmed, which I find interesting and what goes into developing recipes for a cookbook. (There's more to it than you think!) And when the last page is turned, you'll feel like the woman you see on TV is your friend and I promise, you'll be wishing you had an invitation to her table.

"Taste: My Life in Food" by Stanley Tucci

 

Carrying on with food-oriented memoirs, "Taste" is a delightful and delicious look at the life of actor Stanley Tucci as experienced through his passion for food, especially Italian food, the menu he grew up with. From his childhood on, he was exposed to classic Italian food from the southern Calabria region, the area of his ancestors. And he loved it. Tucci lovingly describes the food that his mother made -- course after course of fantastic sounding dishes that shaped a passion for food that would continue throughout his life.

Tucci tells us of his early years in New York and the restaurants he frequented. He takes us behind the scenes of films and tells the good, bad and ugly (mostly bad and ugly) of how the actors are fed when working on location. (It's no surprise that France got high marks!) He somewhat shamelessly name drops and owns up to it but how could an actor pen a memoir without it? After all, we want to her about working with Meryl Streep in "Julie and Julia." (At least I do!) Or be with him at a never-ending dinner with Marcello Mastroianni.

Tucci writes with gusto, generously sharing his love of food with passion while also revealing what really distresses him (don't cut your spaghetti with a knife if you are ever in his presence!). As he explains Timpiano, a remarkable dish his family always enjoyed on Christmas (and a complicated one to make), you can practically hear the excitement in his voice (and the frustration in his wife's!). 

But when every element of your life is so wrapped up in food  (cooking, shopping, visiting markets, dining out, exploring the foods of different cultures), what do you do when you can't eat any more? When every bite causes pain in your mouth, every smell makes you ill? The effects of cancer medication are grim for anyone but when your identity is closely wrapped up in all elements of food, how to you cope with both the physical and emotional ravages of the disease and its effects? While ninety percent of "Taste" is a jolly romp, most of the last chapters are about Tucci's oral cancer and its emotional impact.

You don't have to know Tucci's film work to be a fan of this book -- but you'd better like food! And, I, for one, will be trying some of the recipes he includes, most of which are pasta dishes or drinks. (Steve Reed, check out his martini recipe!) This is clearly a person who loves to eat, loves to know about food and its cultural story and revels in sharing it. I'm happy he shared it with me on these pages.

"Small Things Like These" by Claire Keegan

I'm not sure how this very short book (is it a novella?) got short-listed for the Booker Prize, but apparently author Keegan did something right because it also has become a film with Oscar-winner Cillian Murphy in the title role, so well done. 

And, it's nice. It's a nice story about a nice man who discovers an injustice in his town and decides to do something about it, despite the consequences. Although those consequences are hinted at, we never find out if they happen and what happens when they do. In other words, it's a good half of a book. But does it end on a note of hope (yes) or uncertainty (also yes). 

Set at Christmas and based on the scandal of the Irish Magdalene Laundries, which continued into the mid-1990s, the central character is Bill Furlong, a father of five girls who works as a middle-manager for a coal company. He is a man of good and loving heart, tightly bound to his family and the community he serves. 

As the holidays approach and Furlong continues his deliveries of coal to his local customers, he discovers a young woman locked into the coal shed of the town's convent, presumably locked in during a game of hide and seek. When he takes the woman back to the convent, she is welcomed warmly and with concern by the nuns, but the welcome doesn't seem sincere. When the nun gives him a cash gift as a "holiday thank you" for his services, he is disturbed. Is it a gift or a bribe?

Going against the church in a small town, especially when your daughters might want entry into their school within a year or so, is risky business. So, the story becomes an issue of conscience for Furlong, who has much to lose in terms of community respect and his own family's future. So, when this happens again, what does a good man do?

There are no surprises in this book. It is beautifully written and certainly the issue of conscience is a powerful one. But we never see beyond the ending -- and that may be where the real story lies. While it is affirming, one still wonders -- what's next?  

"Hope: Pandora Re-Visited" by Aldeburgh Arts Club/Artists Collective

Covid lockdown affected people around the world in many ways, bringing with it a lack of socialization and often a feeling of despair. Members of England's Aldeburgh Arts Club Artists Collective continued to meet and share their creativity through Zoom meetings. The group was a mix of painters, printmakers, poets, potters, herbologists, sculptors, bookmakers and sculptors. In 2021, they were able to host an exhibition.

"Hope: Pandora Re-Visited" is more than a catalog of their exhibit. It is a lovely, color-packed book, and good luck finding it, unless you want to order from the group itself (info below).

The idea of the year's theme Hope and how critical it was to both stay positive during Covid, along with the need to continue to create. One member pointed out that hope was the last thing remaining in Pandora's box. Subsequent discussions helped develop the theme of revisiting the myth and creating artworks that reversed the myth (if you recall, bad things popped out of Pandora's box.)

The result was an exhibit and this book, which includes beautiful (and occasionally disturbing) photos of the art along with poetry and essay. It appears that within the overarching theme, artists had several triggers of creation -- "Tree," "Bird," "Change" and "Water" among them. Others wrote personal stories, answering questions about their art heritage or their thoughts about the various topics.

I wish you could read this or at least thumb through the pages -- especially those of you who are my artist friends. The only spot I could find it online (and it only shows the cover, not the lovely art and words within) is HERE for ten pounds (about $13 US plus shipping.) But it is inspiring.

"Death at the Dress Rehearsal" by Stuart Douglas

"Death at the Dress Rehearsal" is the first book in the Lowe and LeBreton mystery series, assuming Stuart Douglas pens another. I hope he does. Although the title of the book is a bit misleading (no dress rehearsal here, just television production) the story does not disappoint.

Edward Lowe and John Le Breton are aging actors who star in a British comedy that is filming on location in the countryside. One day, while out shooting, Edward discovers a dead body by the reservoir, seemingly an accident, if the police are to be believed. But Edward doesn't believe that, for the very reason that the victim was not wearing socks when found and if she was to be out hiking in the moors, she would certainly be wearing socks -- especially when he and his co-star and friend John find one of her missing shoes and it is not a hiking boot. 

When the police don't believe the hypothesis the actors present, the duo decide to investigate on their own. It's not long before another body is found -- and it is one that has definite connections to the first death. When talking to the victims' families, they discover a similarity that could well connect the two.

I don't want to give away too much here, other than to say it's rather fun to watch these two older actors pursue the crime (I found myself imagining some of my British comedy favorites in the lead roles!) Just when you think you might have your own idea of who is responsible, Douglas offers a twist, then another. The result is a lively caper mystery with a surprise ending.

I hope these characters return for another adventure. Until then, this one was time well spent. 

"True Gretch" by Gretchen Whitmer

I don't read a lot of political biographies of living people. Here in the US, it is often common for politicians who may choose to seek higher office to write an autobiography that introduces them to the voting public. "True Gretch" introduces "That Woman from Michigan" to readers in a way that reveals her humor, her work ethic and her toughness, all qualities one should consider in leadership.

Subtitled "What I've Learned About Life, Leadership and Everything In Between," "True Gretch" is a relatively slim volume but a fun and interesting one. In a sense, it is a primer on leadership based on her career in politics and her life. Chapter titles include "Don't Let the Bullies Get You Down," which shows how she dealt with a degrading nickname from President Trump ("Gretchen Half-Wit" and "That Woman from Michigan") by turning "That Woman" into personal branding of a tough, dedicated leader who did not withstand fools gladly and "Half-Wit" into a family joke. (Her blended family is known as the Half-Wits). 

"Learn to Listen" tells how she developed her successful campaign slogan "Fix the Damn Roads" based on a conversation with a woman in a hospital waiting room. "Never Give Up" tells us how she went public with her own story on being raped at Michigan State University during a speech to the Michigan State Legislature related to abortion; "Run Toward the Fire" speaks to her being proactive in dealing with challenging and controversial situations, including the Covid pandemic and the collapse of a major dam in the state.

A significant part of the book deals with two major issues that happened during her tenure as Michigan's governor (which continues until 2026) -- the Covid pandemic and the actions that she took to keep the state safe, and the plot to kidnap and kill her, which continues to get news coverage even in late January of this year. 

I would encourage anyone to read this book who is interested in someone who may well be a presidential candidate in 2026 -- especially if you don't like her already. You may or may not after, but at least you will know what she's about. It's a two or three hour read at most, and whether you are a fan or not, her lessons on life are ones we should all pay attention to in our own. A young adult edition of this book has just been published that includes resources for young people on mental health and sexual assault (among other topics), a Q&A with her daughters and other insights as young people explore how to best make an impact in the world.