BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP

1 medium onion
1 medium butternut squash (peeled, seeded & cubed)
1 tbsp. ground fenugreek
1 tbsp. garlic powder
1 small carrot (scrubbed)
1 small potato (peeled)
1 thumb-sized nub ginger root (peeled)
1 bunch chopped scallions
Optional: 1 cup diced cooked chicken (I used leftover breasts)
Salt and pepper to taste

Dice the onion and saute in oil in a stock pot. When the onions begin to turn translucent, add fenugreek and toast with the onions on medium heat for about a minute. Add squash and garlic powder, stir to coat squash and add water to cover at least 2" above the squash and allow to cook on medium until squash is fork tender.

Puree the soup with an immersion blender (or in food processor or blender and return to pot) and continue cooking on medium low heat. It should be on the very thin side, but not as thin as broth. Grate the carrot, potato and ginger coarsely with a box grater, add to soup and stir. If you choose to add chicken, it should go in at the same time. Cook an additional 15-20 minutes on medium low heat, salt and pepper to taste. I used white pepper because I had it on hand. Serve with scallions sprinkled on top.

City of Stairs by Robert J. Bennett

City of Stairs by Robert Jackson Bennett
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I read this book on the recommendations of other authors, so I can't pretend to long anticipation (although I did pre-order it). Imagine my delight when the story hooked me thoroughly by the end of the first chapter. The book comes across like an historical mystery set in a mythical world, and the imagery is vivid without taking over the story's narrative. This makes me want to read other works by Bennett. If you're a fan of Paula Volsky and Roger Zelazny, I urge you read this book.

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The NBA, Donald Sterling

In part of the Donald Sterling rant tape, he says the following to his girlfriend:

“I’ve known [Magic] well and he should be admired … I’m just saying that it’s too bad you can’t admire him privately. Admire him, bring him here, feed him, fuck him, but don’t put [Magic] on an Instagram for the world to have to see so they have to call me. And don’t bring him to my games.”

Interesting, that above all else that he's concerned about what other people think of his girlfriend's activities, is whining about people calling him to comment. And that he'd rather she schtupp Magic (one of my heroes, personally), who is HIV-positive, than be seen with him in public. What a sad, sorry, pathetic creature this wealthy old man is!

Hang Wire by Adam Christopher

Hang Wire by Adam Christopher
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book was recommended to me by comparing it to a cross between Tim Powers and Erin Morganstern. Well, other than an unorthodox circus being a part of the story I don't see the Erin Morganstern comparison. But the Tim Powers comparison is right on - this book is like Powers-lite. I loved the mystery of whose body Highwire was inhabiting, and not knowing for a while whether he was the killer. The slowly evolving story of Joel, and of "Bob", as well as the contemporary story of the group of friends/co-workers in San Francisco, unfolded gracefully and naturally. A blend of urban fantasy and word mythology, I loved this book and would highly recommend it to any of my circle of reading enthusiasts.

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The Color of Light

The Color of Light by Helen Maryles Shankman
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I am torn in my opinion of this book. The characters are immensely compelling and the story is a whopper of a tale with multiple climactic events. But there are problems with the writing: certain aspects of the story are downright implausible and transitions between scenes are often confusing. For example, Rafe (the vampire/love interest of the main character) tells multiple people that a single ray of sunlight will turn him into a pile of ashes. But he frequently attends board meetings during daylight hours without any explanation as to how he avoided destruction. The bond formed between the group of students who become Tessa's (the main character) friends is portrayed as extremely tight, but as they part after graduation there is no discussion of keeping in touch and their farewells seem permanent. And of course, the final nail in the coffin is that the female protagonist gives up her dream and the prize she worked so hard for because her guy won't budge and go to Paris with her but does want to take her traveling around the world. These are only a few of the points with which I took exception, there are many more. But overall I loved the characters, enjoyed the setting and the story, and especially appreciated what I learned about art during the reading of this book.

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The Drowning Girl

The Drowning Girl by Caitlín R. Kiernan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was the most difficult book for me to read maybe ever. So much of the book could have been me in spirit: I had an Abalyn and an Eva in my life. I am mermaid-obsessed. I have struggled with depression and have had crisis events and periods in which my inner dialog, my perception of the world, and my struggle to distinguish fact from truth were much like Imp's. Reading this book was like visiting, as a tourist, a place where I was once held captive. Not only is the writing brilliant, but Caitlin Kiernan is an incredibly brave author to have written this book and I salute her with both hands. I don't think I could record those periods in my life with as much articulate and beautiful prose as she has done here.

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Curried Butternut Squash Soup

Whole butternut squash
Olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 carrots, diced
1 rib of celery, diced
2 tsp. curry powder
1 tsp. ground fenugreek
1 tsp. ground ginger
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
2 cloves garlic, grated or minced
Salt/Pepper to taste

Cut squash in half lengthways, scrape out seeds. Lightly drizzle olive oil over exposed flesh, place on a baking sheet cut side up and roast in oven at 350° for 30 minutes. Allow to cool.

In a stock pot, sweat onion, carrots and celery in 1 tablespoon of olive oil. When they have begun to soften and turn slightly brown, add curry powder, fenugreek and ginger. Continue to cook for about a minute to toast the spices. Add stock and bring to a simmer.

Scrape flesh from squash skin, mash with a potato masher or ricer and add to soup pot. I use an immersion blender to make the soup smooth, but it isn't required. If additional liquid is needed to smooth out consistency of soup, add water.  When the mixture has begun to simmer again, add garlic, salt and pepper. 

Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I admit, the title alone led me to buy this book. I had just finished reading a book that had me very emotionally invested and I expected this to be a light little romp that I could read as a kind of rebound book and enjoy for what it was worth then forget.

Man, was I wrong! Maybe its because I know San Francisco and have enjoyed time browsing obscure used-book shops in the Bay area. Maybe it was my adolescent fixation with epic fantasy. Or because I have friends and family among the techie crowd. Or that I can't resist an antiquated secret society. Whatever the alchemical combination, this book was a rare and unforseen treat to read.

As always, I refrain from spoilers or too much description. But if my recommendations have worked for you in the past, you will love this one!

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Baby got Books!

(sung to the tune of Baby Got Back)

I like big books and I cannot lie,
You other readers can’t deny
When the story opens up and sweeps me away
And I'm reading for the rest of the day
I get hooked!
Wanna devour the rest of that book!
Then you notice it's the first of a series.
Deep in the arc of the story,
Twists and turns to glory.
Oh baby, just one more chapter
That’s all I’m after!
My book club tried to warn me
And now I’m caught up in the story!
Ooh, hard or paperback
You say e-books are a sin?
Well amuse me, confuse me
I ain’t your average groupie!
Fantasy or sci-fi, oh
Historical or bio
Challenge my brain, it’s no strain!
TV pulls me down the drain!
I’m tired of blogs and sites
Saying reading is a dead art
Take a person with a brain and inquire
It’s gotta build a world and inspire!
So readers! Readers!
Has your story got the punch? (Hell yeah!)
Then read it, read it, read that epic book!
Baby got books!

2013 Reading List

These are the books I read for the first time in 2013. The list doesn't include novellas, short stories, compilations or re-reads.  One or two were forgettable and I had to look up the descriptions to recall having read them, but for the most part I chose well and listened to recommendations from the right people.

Atticus for the Undead	John Abramowitz
Throne of the Crescent Moon	Saladin Ahmed
The Shining Girls	Lauren Beukes
The Woken Gods	Gwenda Bond
This Case is Gonna Kill Me	Philippa Bornikova
Existence	David Brin
Dreams and Shadows	C. Robert Cargill
Revealed	P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast
Pirate Cinema	Cory Doctorow
The Ocean at the End of the Lane	Neil Gaiman
Odd and the Frost Giants	Neil Gaiman
Witchling	Yasmine Galenorn
Girl Unwrapped	Gabriella Goliger
Hild	Nicola Griffith
Affliction	Laurell K. Hamilton
Dead Ever After	Charlaine Harris
Hounded	Kevin Hearne
Hexed	Kevin Hearne
Hammered	Kevin Hearne
Tricked	Kevin Hearne
Trapped	Kevin Hearne
Bluedawn	Brighton Hill
NOS4A2	Joe Hill
Heart-Shaped Box	Joe Hill
Libriomancer	Jim C. Hines
Codex Born	Jim C. Hines
Shift	Hugh Howey
Southern Gods	John Horner Jacobs
Sappho’s Leap	Erica Jong
Doctor Sleep	Stephen King
Swordspoint	Ellen Kushner
The Privilege of the Sword	Ellen Kushner
Thomas the Rhymer	Ellen Kushner
A Wrinkle in Time	Madeleine L’Engle
Kiss of the Butterfly	James Lyon
Beyond Black	Hilary Mantel
Lamb	Christopher Moore
The Taken	Vicki Pettersson
The Hangman’s Daughter	Oliver Potzsch
Fireflies	Lacey Reah
Divergent	Veronica Roth
Insurgent	Veronica Roth
Allegiant	Veronica Roth
Attic Clowns	Jeremy Shipp
Tinker	Wen Spencer
Wolf Who Rules	Wen Spencer
Elfhome	Wen Spencer
Palimpsest	Catherynne Valente
The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a   Ship of Her Own Making	Catherynne Valente
The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There	Catherynne Valente
Mechanique	Genevieve Valentine
How to Discipline Your Vampire	Mina Vaughn
The Book of Blood and Shadow	Robin Wasserman
The Golem and the Jinni	Helene Wecker
Under the Empyrean Sky	Chuck Wendig

Hild by Nicola Griffiths

Hild by Nicola Griffith

My rating: 5 of 5 stars






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I'm a closet lover of historical fiction. Closet because I'm so picky - it has to be good, well researched and authentic. It also has to come alive and wrap me up in the story and the characters, blanket me in a sense of being there. Not many authors live up to those criteria, but Nicola Griffith does it beautifully. You can see a synopsis of any book online, but you have to rely on fellow readers to tell you whether it tastes good. This book is delicious.

Beetnik Sweet Bread

Wet: ⅔ cup shortening (butter optional) 2 ⅓ cup sugar 4 eggs 3 cups peeled, shredded fresh beets ⅔ cup cold coffee 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Dry: 3 cups flour ⅓ cup cocoa powder 2 teaspoons baking soda 1 ½ teaspoons salt ½ teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon nutmeg 1 cup chopped pecans (other nuts optional) 1 cup chocolate chips

Pre-heat oven to 350°.  Prepare bundt pan with cooking spray or grease and flour.

In a large bowl, cream shortening and sugar together.  Beat in eggs.  Add beets, then coffee and vanilla extract as each ingredient is combined.

Sift dry ingredients into wet ingredients a little at a time until everything is just incorporated.  Last, add nuts and chocolate chips.

Bake at 350° for 1 hour and 15 minutes.  Allow to cool, remove from pan and enjoy.

Challenge to my brother Carvin.

Since I've been writing more, this children's book keeps nagging at me.  Are you up for providing some illustrations?

*********************

The bug was alone.  Not really lonely, he had friends everywhere and anywhen.  But as far as he knew, he was the only one of his kind.  He wasn't a god, don't think that for a second.  But he had some qualities that none of his friends had.  Like detailed memories of things that were going to happen tomorrow.  Or next year, or even thousands of years ago.  And if he thought about it he could go there and, like television only better, he could touch and smell and taste along with watching and hearing.

He thought of himself as a bug because when he relaxed and just emptied his brain of being anything or anyone else he became what looked like a crab-like insect about the size of a dinner plate with 12 legs extending all around.  He had eye stalks protruding from the center of his body that could look in any direction and a mouth centered under his armored body that could eat, smell and even drink with a long proboscis, although he didn't need to breathe.  He didn't need to eat or drink either, for that matter, but he did enjoy doing so.  And he could fly and hover without wings or any visible propulsion.  He didn't know where he came from, but he could go anywhere, really.  When he was relaxing and pondering his own existence, he thought maybe he had evolved over a long, long time and that his abilities were survival mechanisms.  Like atomic powered camouflage or something.

Other creatures seemed to find the bug's natural appearance off-putting, so he could take on any appearance he wanted.  It didn't seem to matter what size relative to his natural bug shape.  He could be microscopic or gigantic as the need arose.  And language had never been a problem because once connected with those around him his mind just sort of absorbed the necessary lingo and all its rules and funny quirks.  Oh yes, and so far nothing seemed to be able to kill him.  But he did make mistakes and also learned from them.

So not all powerful, or all knowing, the bug still had impressive abilities.  But he wasn't a god and he knew it with a deep knowledge that was almost bone-deep instinct.

German Chocolate Brownies

We like to take old reliable recipes and fiddle with them.  This is an idea Mitch and I worked up together after I made butterscotch brownies on Friday, with the thought that you could combine the best of the pecan and coconut frosting from a German chocolate cake and add chocolate chips to live up to its name.  I finally made them this afternoon with delicious results.

German Chocolate Brownies

½ cup coconut flakes
½ cup chopped pecans
½ cup chocolate chips
½ cup butter or stick margarine
2 cups brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup flour
2 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 350°.  Spread coconut flakes and pecans on a 9" x 12" baking pan, toast in oven for 10 minutes.  Remove, allow to cool and set aside.

Melt butter in a saucepan on medium heat.  When melted, add brown sugar and beat until there are no lumps and the mixture is a thick consistency.  Remove from heat and allow to cool.

In a medium mixing bowl, beat eggs and vanilla extract until smooth.  Add cooled butter/brown sugar mixture and beat smooth.  Add dry ingredients and stir until all dry ingredients are incorporated.  Mix in coconut and pecans.  Last, add chocolate chips.  Pour into 9" x 12" baking pan and bake at 350° for 25 minutes.  Allow to cool, cut into squares and enjoy.