Books, dessert, wine, and Friday.
If you are among any or all of these things, you are among good company. Add in some comfy pants and you might just be in heaven. This week has been pretty good on my end, how about yours? Anything exciting? Along with working on blog stuff this week, i have been reading a book that got a lot of acclaim and even-gasp-won the dreaded Pulitzer,
Tangent alert: (I swear I don’t hate the Pulitzer. It just always puts me in to a state. As in, if the book isn’t amazing I start wondering what the hell the PP committee was thinking when they chose it over so many other more deserving books, and then I think literary prizes are just all going to hell in a hand-basket. Overly dramatic, I know).
Anyway I’ve been reading this book and I completely love it. What’s interesting, at least to me, is that two people who I feel not only are wonderful friends and also huge bookworms with great taste, have professed their profound dislike of this book. I almost put it in my trade pile (without reading it) because of their opinions. There really is only one reason I decided to give it a try, but I’ll get to that in a future post, so keep your eyes out for it some time in November.
When Friday rolls around it’s time for my favorite posting of the week. Every Friday on themostconstant I post a book, a dessert, and a drink.
So far for the month of October I have had a weekly theme.
Week 1: American Horror Stories
Week 2: True Crime
and
Week 3:
Ending this week’s theme is:
The Witches- Suspicion, Betrayal, and Hysteria in 1692 Salem by Stacy Schiff. When I first heard of this book I knew I wanted it. I came across this wonderful trade copy at a used book store out of town. It was in such good condition and such a beautiful book that I paid $12 for it. That’s high in my book (no pun intended), but sometimes you do what you gotta do.
This comes in at just under 500 pages and as of yet I’ve not read it. The Salem witch trials and all of the chaos surrounding that time is almost unbelievable. Below is the Amazon synopsis:
• It began in 1692, over an exceptionally raw Massachusetts winter, when a minister’s daughter began to scream and convulse. It ended less than a year later, but not before 19 men and women had been hanged and an elderly man crushed to death.
The panic spread quickly, involving the most educated men and prominent politicians in the colony. Neighbors accused neighbors, parents and children each other. Aside from suffrage, the Salem Witch Trials represent the only moment when women played the central role in American history. In curious ways, the trials would shape the future republic •
Next up, dessert:
This is one of my old faithfuls. I wanted to make something new, but time did not permit this. These are my Almond Butter Blondies. The only sad part is now I am officially out of the almond butter I use for these. I use Trader Joe’s almond butter and the closest TJs is an hour away. I usually buy 7-8 jars at a time, and because I’m a bit of a hoarder when it comes to this stuff (and books). The recipe is posted on another post of you are interested.
Last, but certainly not least, the wine:
I chose this dark red called Black Forest by Cupcake because the Black Forest part made me think of the Salem witch trials for some reason. The bottle is empty, so I do recommend it. Add a few frozen berries and you will be good to go!
Bonus Book:
A sweet friend, who knew about all about the witch theme this week brought me this book tonight, so I had to share it with you all! It sounds great to me!
Here is the Amazon synopsis:
• In this tale of passion and obsession, Diana Bishop, a young scholar and a descendant of witches, discovers a long-lost and enchanted alchemical manuscript, Ashmole 782, deep in Oxford’s Bodleian Library. Its reappearance summons a fantastical underworld, which she navigates with her leading man, vampire geneticist Matthew Clairmont •
One of the reasons I chose the witches theme is because, other than The Witching Hour by Anne Rice, I am not familiar with good books in this genre. I spent the last two weeks looking up books to post to you. In all honesty I had a book and picture ready to post yesterday and after really reading about it I realized I wasn’t as in to it as I had thought.
I am not opposed to posting about books I have read and subsequently did not like, but I am not going to post books I haven’t read that don’t fully grab my attention. Did I say that right?
Well it’s late and I’m tired, but I’d still like to eek out a few minutes of reading before I hit the hay.
I wish you all a goodnight and even better weekend. Check back for a new theme next week 📚
“I’ll get you my pretty, and your little dog, too.” -The Wicked Witch of the West, The Wizard of Oz
The Most Constant 