Women

The Saffron Kitchen

2007, Books in Bed, Fiction, Women /

I think TW just picked The Saffron Kitchen off of the shelf last week when we had ZERO library books and she was dying for books. These sorts of books I often just skip, I’m usually too far behind on my TBR list to even consider something that hasn’t been recommended by someone. But this time, we really had NO library books on the TBR shelf – so I went ahead and gave it a try. And it was good.

At first I assumed this was going to be “just another Iranian/British book” and it was for about 50 pages and then I was hooked. I’m not sure the bridge scene, in exactly that way, needed to happen – yes to the bridge scene, no to what happened to Sara. Other than that, I have no complaints about this book.

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Nickie’s Nook: Sharing the Journey

1 Comment / 2007, Books in Bed, Favorites, Non-Fiction, Women /

I’ve blogged about Nickie before – several times, actually. I first discovered her blog when writing a post for BlogHer about Guide Dogs. I’ve been reading her work ever since and learning something new with just about every single post that she makes.


When she announced she had written a “blook“, I bought it: Nickie’s Nook: Sharing the Journey. Not the digital download, I bought the real thing and I was thrilled when it arrived. I spent my spare time today reading it and while some of it reads like a “blook” most of it reads like a “book” – a real live, honest to goodness book. Many of the essays and entries in it, I’ve read before on her blog. But many of them were new to me – either published on her blog before I was reading it or published when I was swamped and just skimmed. Or maybe they didn’t come from her blog at all, I’m not sure. It doesn’t matter – what does matter is that once again, Nickie taught me stuff – and she got me thinking about things I probably would never have thought about. Nickie is very, very good at that.

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No! I don’t want to join a book club!

3 Comments / 2007, Books in Bed, Chick Lit, Favorites, Women /

Once again, a whole week to read a book but it’s not the book’s fault. I really need to figure out this east coast/west coast schedule thing and until I do that, my reading time is going to be pretty limited. Too bad since it means it’s taking me a long time to read a great, fun book like NO! I Don’t Want to Join a Book Club.


That is my idea of old age (and death) – I’m not going to go back to school, or learn a foreign language, or do some weird travel excursions. I’m going to enjoy doing nothing. That’s it. No clubs or volunteer work. When I’m old I want to enjoy being old and feel no guilt for not having time or desire to do what other people think I ought to be doing.


I can barely wait to be 60!

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Again with the knitting

2007, Books in Bed, Favorites, Fiction, Queer, Women /

Yesterday I blogged World Wide Knit in Public Day and today I’m back to review another knitting book. I’m still NOT a knitter.

The Knitting Circle is the best “knitting book” I’ve ever read. Loved every character and every word and I did not want the book to end.

Men and women dealing with grief and loss and fear through knitting and through relationships created and strengthened through the knitting circle. There are some happy endings. Some not so happy endings. Some endings that are both happy and not.

Loved it. Read it. (Thanks for recommending it, mom!)

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I don’t knit

2007, Books in Bed, Fiction, Women /

I just want to remind you of that. I don’t. I’m not going to knit. I do go to yarn stores and look at yarn websites. And I have attended a few of the local knitting groups and I think I’ll be at the knitting in public even this weekend. I also read knitting books. Well before this one, I had read one knitting book, the one that came before Back on Blossom Street.

Back on Blossom Street was a lot like the first one. So much like the first one that I’m not sure I really want to read the third one, which is on the shelf looking at me right now. A lot of feel good, cancer survivor stuff with a bit of cancer is bad tossed in for good measure. A lot of women bonding, which I generally like, but in this case it feels a little contrived.

We picked up with a few of the members of the first book and added a couple more for good measure. Bad things happened, there were misunderstandings (usually involving men but also mothers). Everyone lived happily ever after. Except the bad guy and the perfect grandmother (oops, spoiler!)

It was an ok book. Not great.

Guess what! I’m about to read yet another book. I’m going to start it right now! But I don’t knit.

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Kinflicks

2007, Books in Bed, Feminism, Fiction, Queer, Women /

We have a bunch of Lisa Alther books sitting on the TBR pile from the library. TW read them all last month or the month before that. When she started reading the first one, I knew right away how it appeared on our shelf – Chalice Chick was so excited about Alther’s newest book, and some of her old ones, that I headed to the library website and reserved all they had.

So, I read Kinflicks and found it as CC described – Rita Mae without the hokey (and the damn cats). I’m looking forward to reading the two that CC says are the best (though my library has neither so I’m waiting for them to appear via ILL for now).

Loved the snake handling. Loved the moving from relationship to relationship and adapting a new personality each time. The only thing that I didn’t love were the super long chapters. I prefer to break at a chapter and Alther made it difficult to do that, lol.

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