Saturday, November 18, 2023

Books, Bakes, and Netflix

The sky has been beautiful this week!

Reading

"Foster," a novella by Irish writer Claire Keegan is narrated by a child trying to understand what's happening when her father drops her off in an unfamiliar family for several weeks. Poor kid never quite gets what is going on. You, the reader, can almost guess. At the start:

"She leads me into the house. There’s a moment of darkness in the hallway; when I hesitate, she hesitates with me. We walk through into the heat of the kitchen where I am told to sit down, to make myself at home. Under the smell of baking there’s some disinfectant, some bleach. She lifts a rhubarb tart out of the oven and puts it on the bench to cool: syrup on the point of bubbling over, thin leaves of pastry baked into the crust. A cool draught from the door blows in, but here it is hot and still and clean. Tall ox-eyed daisies are still as the tall glass of water they are standing in." (Foster p. 8).


Mystery Reading List

Beginning to run out of ideas on what to read, I was happy to see a Washington Post article titled: "The 10 best mystery novels of 2023: Richard Osman, Brendan Slocumb and Elly Griffiths are among the authors who kept us happily guessing whodunnit this year." I've read and liked three of the ten selections. I'm not crazy about The Sunset Years of Agnes Sharp but I might try one or two more from this list to see if there are some good new ideas.

One of the Washington Post's 10 best mysteries of the year so far.


Leonie Swann is a pseudonymn for some German writer whose real identity seems unknown. The internet seems to have virtually no information about this author. I can't find any real reviews of The Sunset Years of Agnes Sharp. I wonder how it ended up on the Washington Post list. 

I find this novel mildly offensive because of its very ugly ideas about elderly people and how brain-dead they are, and how they try to overcome their miserable mental and physical decline. The characters int he book rarely walk: they hobble or dodder or stumble. Their minds are foggy. Maybe some readers find this funny, or at least think elderly people are a fair target for insensitive humor. I don't find it so. 

It's true that each chapter has the name of a very typical British food, and that this food plays a role in the chapter. Chelsea Buns, Cottage Pie, Curry, Victoria Sponge, Scones, Bangers and Mash, Biscuits, Gin and Tonic and on and on. But this isn't the Great British Baking Show. This foodie stuff isn't enough to make me like the book. In fact, it's sort of mechanical and annoying.

The murder-mystery plot is not terrible, but not great either, and the ending is contrived. Maybe it's supposed to be some kind of farce or satire. Not very successful...I don't recommend it.


Two Books on Bread



The Bakers of Paris and the Bread Question 1700-1775 (published 1996) and Good Bread is Back (published 2005) by Steven Laurence Kaplan: two very scholarly and excruciatingly detailed books about bread. Topics include the history of bread in France, its social implications, economic consequences, controversies over acceptable ingredients and techniques, technical baking details, and more. These books focus on the 18th and 20th century. I found them tough reading, and didn't really read every bit carefully. But if you want to know about French bread, I think Kaplan is really the world expert and there will never be another.

Actual Bread in Our Kitchen


Reading about French bread inspired a bake from the famous Poilâne book...


Len's beautiful and delicious Poilâne loaf.

New Netflix Series


In eight episodes, this animated series follows a wandering samurai (or ronin) in ancient Japan has all kinds of adventures on a quest to find their father. The art work is fabulous, with echoes or even direct copying of Japanese woodblocks and other art works. The adventures are a bit predictable, but the beauty of the scenes and the use of Japanese themes kept me watching. In fact, I will probably watch Season 2 if it doesn't descend into too much repetition. Definitely adult content! Not for prudes or the faint of heart!

Reviews © 2023 mae sander

21 comments:

eileeninmd said...

Hello,
Thanks for the reviews, I am always looking for a good mystery to read.
Len's bread looks delicious. I need more practice making bread.
Take care, have a great weekend.

Bill said...

Thanks for the reviews, I have a bunch of non fiction that I am currently reading. Ernest Shackleton is my current book, then on to Diane Arbus.

Jenn Jilks said...

Nice reviews. I miss my blog book club!
I am planning some shortly. So much going on!

Cindy said...

Do you keep a Goodreads list or anything?! I can't imagine running out of ideas of what to read. A mystery is always a good choice. Have a great weekend!

Joy said...

Your loaf is gorgeous!

I might try the Japanese series. Beautiful art sounds appealing right now.

Anne@HeadFullofBooks said...

The novella you are reading from Ireland sounds like it might be heartbreaking. Your bread looks lovely. Hope you have a beautiful Thanksgiving.

My name is Erika. said...

Your loaf of bread looks amazing. I bet it tasted great too. hugs-Erika

Mark Baker said...

Thanks for the warning on that book. I hate it when I run across older characters like that, so I wouldn't enjoy that book at all.

gluten Free A_Z Blog said...

I just finished a long series on Netflix (Call the Midwife) which I absolutely loved and will miss after 12 seasons. I've been watching it so long, the wonderful characters will be missed. Anyway I am looking for something new so I'll give your recommendation of the Blue Eye Samurai a try! Thanks.

Harvee said...

Thanks for the info on the new Netflix show. That bread looks like it's worth the work! Have a happy Thanksgiving coming up!

Harvee at https://bookdilettante.blogspot.com

dancewme said...

I'm glad you had such a great week and those bread books, Wow! I just remember the time I used to go to my Morocaan friend's house and they made homemade bread all the time. Sounds like bliss.@theglobaldig.blogspot.com

Jackie McGuinness said...

It annoys me that there is a perception that people over 50 can't handle technology! There is a cell phone company here that had an ad for a "simple" cell phone for people over 50.
I have worked in technology since the 70s, and learned to program using punchcards!

Helen's Book Blog said...

I really enjoyed Keegan's Foster, but liked her Small Things Like These even better.

JoAnn said...

Claire Keegan is quite a talent. I was very impressed with Foster and look forward to reading her new collection So Late in the Day. Gorgeous loaf of bread!

anno said...

Len's bread looks amazing! And Blue Eye Samurai sounds interesting,too.

If you haven't read Dennis Lehane's Small Mercies -- a detective/thriller set in Boston during the days of school desegregation/busing -- you might find it interesting. Some of his previous work seemed too dark to me, but this one felt pretty compelling, right through to the end.

Sarah said...

That bread looks amazing. I was just looking at recipes for making bread at home -- I have never done that before!

Deb Nance at Readerbuzz said...

I am sorry that The Sunset Years of Agnes Sharp was disappointing. I hate it when I read a book from a good books list and it isn’t that well written. But it happens.

Poilâne is a book that I have been meaning to read for a long time. That bread is a work of art.

Jeanie said...

You've been a prolific reader of late and it looks like some good ones. I really need to borrow back the Poilane book I gave Rick a couple of years ago and read it!

Literary Feline said...

Thank you for the warning about The Sunset Years of Agnes Sharp in terms of how it treats elderly people. I don't know that I would be able to get past that, honestly.

I will have to look for the Blue Eye Samurai (and make sure my daughter isn't around when I watch it!).

Your bread looks so appetizing! Yum!

I hope you have a great week. Take care!

Jinjer-The Intrepid Angeleno said...

Len's loaf is, indeed, gorgeous! I can almost smell it. Drooling!

thecuecard said...

That loaf of bread looks so good. Perfect with soup.