A Separation. It's brilliant.

After reading my post about The Color of Paradise, my friend Katy suggested I watch The Separation, another Iranian film. It's directed by Asghar Farhadi. 

It's brilliant. It's just brilliant. You've heard the phrase, "All hat, no cattle." Well this is all cattle, no hat.

Not showy. Low budget. All plot. All character development. The plot revolves around an Iranian family dealing with the stress of caring for an aging father with Alzheimer's. And what happens when a caretaker is hired to take care of the father. 

This movie would be fabulous for a movie group who wanted something meaty to discuss. It would be great in a forensics class to talk about motive. I would also love to see it with someone schooled in Muslim religious law and Iranian civil law---there was so much to this movie than I didn't totally understand because I don't know the Koran as well as I'd like to. 

Watch this with someone intelligent so you can talk about it. Or by yourself on a night when aren't in the mood for P and P* or S and S* (nothing wrong with those) or when you don't want something funny or action-packed. But when you want a drama of all dramas, find this film.

And one final note. The last scene, the way it's done . . . wow. I just sat there for a long time. Wow. 

Let me know if you like it. And thanks Katy for a great recommendation! 

*This is Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility. Of course. 

Genetics books for kids?

So I know this kid who has basic questions about genetics. Basic questions, but more complicated than I can answer.

Anyone found any book written on about a 6th grade reading level about genetics? . . . Something interesting preferably.

Just thought I'd ask.

Update in 2015:

This is the post on my blog that gets the most hits. I did review the book mentioned in the comments below and here's the link.

The Color of Paradise. It's lovely.

I'm really getting into these Iranian films. I'm not sure than any of my (very few) followers even like foreign film, but if you do . . . try The Color of Paradise, about a blind Iranian boy.

The cinematography is so beautiful. Most movies I'm just as happy to see at home, especially since I'm not into blowing up movies. You know "Blow up the car, blow up a building. Ooooh, cool, blow up a car AND a building . . ." Not really into those, but I talk to people who are impressed with these on a big screen. Me, not so much, and there's really nothing that's a big draw for me on a big screen. But occasionally a movie comes along where the colors are so vivid and the scenes are so lovely that I long for a theatre and a really big screen. This movie is one of those. It's art---and just as Vermeer is better in person versus via a print in a book, this movie was meant to be viewed on a big screen.

There's this scene with an old peasant woman walking through feathers that completely changed my view of artistic filming.

One of the things I like about these films is that they are not French. With French film, you're viewing something completely harmless and then the scene shifts into something sordid. No warning. There you are---you thought it was clean and now it's not. AH!

But these Iranian films are mostly about Muslim women. Modest and covered. It's just nice.

So I liked the movie. Just about broke my heart. I wasn't a big fan of the ending, but it was well-filmed. Watch it. You'll see.

Mel, do you and Quinn and do foreign film? Laura? Anyone?

The Language of Flowers by Diffenbaugh

As I'm coming out of my fog, it's been a welcome distraction to find some really great writing.

As with Vanessa Diffenbaugh's The Language of Flowers, about Victoria Jones, just emancipated from the foster system. The writing is stellar and truly a great first work for Diffenbaugh. At first glance, the plot's not complex: Victoria has to figure out how to live on her own as an adult. But the story that unfolds, about Victoria's past, about mothers and daughters and longing for family; about forgiveness and mercy and anger and healing; about love and being a mother and being a daughter----it's brilliant.

There might be one questionable paragraph (I skipped it :)) but this would be great for a book club. I wasn't completely satisfied with the "now everything is happy and peachy and look it's fine" ending, but that's just me. The book had to end somewhere and Diffenbaugh didn't kill off her characters to get there, so that's an accpetable first-novel ending.

Because there really were moments of brillance. At one point, there's a character who has just had a baby and for five or six pages Diffenbaugh gets into her head: the exhaustion, the fear, the weariness that comes from a baby who wants to nurse for twelve hours straight, the mind-numbing crying spells, and women who swoop in and say "Oh you're doing great, everything is fine" and then swoop out and the new mom (who isn't doing fine, everything isn't great) doesn't know what to do . . . it's accurate, that's what it is. It's painful to read it's so accurate.

I'd recommend it. Love to know what someone else thinks about it. Mel? Laura? Meg in Sheridan? Sarah? Anyone?

Finding the words for thanks

Thank you, all, for your kind comments about the loss of our little one. I am healing. Still mourning, but healing. We truly wanted another child. It was heart-breaking to witness this child pass from us. 

Someday if I can find the words, I will write more about my heart and what it has learned through this experience. At my 12 week ultrasound we knew that baby would not make it to term, and I choose to carry her knowing this pregnancy would not end in a birth. It was truly a privilege to carry our daughter even knowing her little body couldn't make it.

I have had so many loving and kind women succor and love me through this journey. Miscarriage is world I knew nothing about and so many loving women shared with me their stories of losses and longings of their own. A long-time friend told me (she lost her baby to stillbirth) about the sisterhood between women who shared their stories of loss with her: "It's the sweetest sisterhood I wish I was never a part of." 

My thoughts exactly. So thank you. 

A heavy heart

July. It was the end of July when I posted last. I was hideously morning sick.

Can't-get-out-of-bed sick.

When-will-it-end sick.

Good-thing-I-want-a-baby sick.

Someday-I-will-do-more-than-stare-at-this-bucket sick.

I wish I were still sick.

Because I wish I were still pregnant.

There are no words to convey the joy I feel when I make the announcement that I am expecting another child. As there are no words to convey the sorrow when the pregnancy has ended too early and the longed-for, much wanted, much adored (already!) baby is gone. I carried our little girl for 17 weeks and then learned (via ultrasound results) that our baby had passed away.

Un-met. Un-cuddled. But loved all the same.

Flutter home, little butterfly. Loving arms send you back. And loving arms will receive you there.

So here we go again

Don't expect much from this blog for a while.

Baby number four is expected in Feb 2013 and he or she is making his or her presence known.

I am so sick. More sick than with baby three and THAT is saying something.

Kid Two came into my room this morning (as I was lying in bed, trying not to move) and he said, "Are you going to get out of bed today, or is someone else going to have to come and give us lunch?"

Funny, I was wondering the same thing.

The winner is What Alice Forgot

So the winner of the 2012 Books and Beaches Best Discovered Book of the Year is What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty. It's good. Funny. Well written. Witty. Touching. Memorable.

Bet you didn't even know there was a BAB BDB of the year award. But there is. Guernsey's on it. These is my Words is on it . . . and now What Alice Forgot.

Find a copy. You will like it. All of you will like it.

Laura, yes on book club read. I think your mom will like it, too. Jenny, this is another good book worth reading for one of the very last paragraphs . . .

You'll all know when you find THE paragraph. It's at the end. It's about marriage, and what having a good marriage is. You'll know it when you find it because you will think, "YES! That is true."

Great recommendation, Mel. I can see why your book club discussed it for two hours. Wish I would have been there.

French Kids Eat Everything by Le Billon

I've long been a fan of the book French Women Don't Get Fat by Mireille Guiliano. Guilino offers a common sense approach (the French way) it turns out, to eating and enjoying food. Not a diet, but a healthful way to eat that's full of flavor. Love it.

So I was intrigued by French Kids Eat Everything, in which Le Billon, a native Canadian writes, "How our family moved to France, cured picky eating, banned snacking, and discovered 10 simple rules for raising happy, healthy eaters" . . . her journey, literal and figurative, into French foodways and raising kids.

I think I will buy a copy and keep it on my shelf next to Mireille's book. Although I don't agree with everything in the book (French women don't nurse their babies for long, turns out), I think there are some good, basic tips and tricks about how to get kids---families, really---to eat better. Again, not a diet, but an attitude of enjoying healthful food and teaching kids to enjoy healthful food as well.

And since I've read it, I've been more aware of what/how often my kids snack and what/how much I'm giving them at meals. Good reminders. And Le Billon is a good writer, witty, and not preachy. Real. She writes conversationally, peppered with current research and cultural commentary. Just very well done.

The Willow Tree

If you like foreign film you should try The Willow Tree, a lovely Iranian film about a blind man whose sight is restored.

I found it profound, quite frankly.

But foreign film REALLY has to be your thing if you are going to like this. There's no violence or "scenes"---about as rough as it gets is that a man throws some papers off his veranda (but he does it intensely!) . . . it's all about character development. So if no/low action and low/no humor and low/no fast-paced anything is your speed, and you can handle long scenery scenes and long episodes of a man's grieving face (which I fast forwarded through, I can only handle so much grieving face), try it.

If not. Pass. You will think this movie is weird.

Bake the Bread, Buy the Butter by Jen Reese

I liked Bake the Bread, Buy the butter by Jennifer Reese. It's a cookbook, but it's a fun read. She examines what to cook from scratch and what to just go ahead and buy.

By "read" I mean I read the parts that I was interested in. Not so interested in curing meats, didn't go there.

She's a good writer, recipes look interesting. Might even buy a copy to keep on my shelf.

My other favorite cookbook to read is Fannie Flagg's Original Whistle Stop Cafe Cookbook. Good Southern cooking and good solid writing. There are days when I have no intention of cooking any recipe in the book but I'll pull the book off my shelf for a good laugh.

Courageous, the movie

So I'm on a Christian movie kick . . . it came after my British mystery kick . . . my Monk phase . . . my foreign film phase . . . after I saw The Shunning, I was intrigued to watch more movies by the same filmmakers.

Courageous is the latest on my list. And I would recommend it. It's about four police officers, fighting crime and saving the day. But the real heroes they become are when the decide to make fatherhood, and being good fathers, the priority in their lives.

Yes the script is sometimes cheesy. Yes the acting is occasionally too forced.

But the message is fantastic. Fatherhood is important---man up, take responsibility and be a good dad. Inspiring to see a movie with this message.

It's police work, so there's some violence. A true PG-13, too much for kids. But I thought it was worth watching for adults.

The Covenant by Beverly Lewis

I read The Covenant by Beverly Lewis because I couldn't find The Shunning in our library.

Lewis weaves beautiful dramas about life in the Amish community. I really liked The Covenant, about four daughters of marriageable age. Usual conflicts: what to believe, who to marry, when to rebel, when to submit. Nice! Lewis isn't Wilde (or wild for that matter) as far as word choice and description, but she tells a good tale and keeps the story moving.

Part of the appeal was the "otherness" of the Amish, and Lewis neither grandizes them or demeans them. Not a complex work, but good for readers who want a good story.

Good for a church book club? Maybe. Clean enough. Good pick for a book club that wants a non-Twilight "YIKES-what was that two pages of kissing?"benign read. Not a stellar choice if you have a book club looking for the next Jane Austen.

But. I liked it. This is the first in the series and I'd read the rest if the mood struck me.

The Family Nobody Wanted by Helen Doss

I breezed through The Family Nobody Wanted by Helen Doss, who writes about her journey as she and her husband adopt 12 children into their family during the 1940's. Doss and her husband are unable to conceive children on their own, so they adopt the "unwanted" children of the time---children of different races and ethnicities.

It's a lovable story about acceptance in a time that was unaccepting. There are very, very dated references to old ideas about color of skin and race. It was almost laughable in parts where I knew Doss was being very, very serious, when she talked about how un-white children were viewed. Ah, times have changed. Or have changed in many places.

I thought about my son attending school, now in 2012, where he's the minority because he's one of two white boys in his class. When I ask him about his friends, he doesn't see color or race. He just sees his pals. Black hair, brown eyes, udon for lunch, light skin, blue eyes, PBJ, it's all the same to him. To my son, there is no "them" and "us". There are just kids.

But I think the story of family love here is timeless. Families who are considering adopting children would be especially endeared.

Great recommendation, Meg in Sheridan!

More 8-12, especially girls

Thanks for your comment, Michelle! It reminded me about my new batch of books I needed to post. My mom cleaned out her books and let me take what I wanted. Treasurers! Here are some more for girls 8-12. I'm not good at judging grade level, but these are innocent fun reads for this age group.

1. Daddy Long Legs by Jean Webster
2. Borrowers (I think it's a series) by Mary Norton
3. Mixed-up Files of Basil E. Frankweiler by Konigsburg
4. Behind the Attic Wall by Sylvia Cassidy
5. Five Little Peppers and How They Grew by Margaret Sidney
6. Tom's Midnight Garden by Phillipa Pearce
7. Lisa and Lottie by Erich Kastner (I just re-read this. It's darling.)
8. The One of a Kind Family series by Sydney Taylor . . . completely endearing

Good luck!

Mother Hubbard Summer Book List 2012

The idea cupboard is bare.

Throw me a bone.

The Shunning

Not much reading going on around here, it's May and it's crazy. This week, for instance, we attended school open house, a trip to the zoo, preschool at our house, and the school carnival. We also had one mom (me) who was in charge of the teachers' luncheon, a PTA meeting, our family's turn to clean the church, a trip to get fitted for glasses, and soccer practice. Eric had early mornings at work and nights spent with church work. Tomorrow we have a soccer game (we are in charge of treats) and two birthday parties (not our kids).

Not much reading going on here. Not by me at least.

But.

I did see a good movie. After finding Arranged, I've been looking for good movies that depict well (and not sensationalize or demonize) other religious and belief systems. I saw The Shunning, directed by Michael Landon Jr, and I liked it. The plot deals with a young woman in the Amish community and her emotional journey as she is shunned by her community. Low budget movie, but good acting. Drew me in. I like that wasn't about a young woman struggling to get out of her community, but about her struggles as she tried to stay in it. All sorts of juicy sub-themes: community needs vs. individual needs; non-mother mentor figures; mother needs vs. daughter needs; room in a strict religious community for people who row their boat their own way; growing up, etc.

Marcie, this would be great in a high school homeschool comparative religion unit in a language arts class. Completely clean and rich with themes for writing and discussion. I think sophmores maybe, juniors definitely.

Or, this would be a great movie for a book club full of women who didn't have time to read an entire novel, but wanted a good movie to discuss. Not objectionable, but rich in conflict.

Someone watch this. Then I want to talk about it with you. (Which reminds me of one of the most flattering ways I was ever asked out on a date . . . a PhD candidate in my church congregation said to me, "So there's this movie I just saw with all of these Jane Austen parallels. . . I need an intelligent woman to see it with me so then we can talk about it. How about Friday?")

That was another movie, and I don't need a date  . . . but watch it, and we'll chat.

The Beaver IMAX movie

Seen it yet? My kids love it and we stream it right in with Netflix.

(Ah, Netflix streaming. A blessing and a curse. It was here that my boys discovered 66 episodes of Go Diego Go! To think I had heretofore been able to avoid the chirpy theme song by saying, "Oh, it's just not on right now." Ah, the good old days.)

Hey Michelle, hope I can find that list for you. Check the May 2008 posts---I was transferring all my book posts from the family blog onto this blog because Kristen C said she wanted all the book stuff in one place and I thought that was a good idea. There's a Age 10-14, especially for girls, and one especially for boys. Is that "the list"? If not, I'll keep looking. I just looked at the list and it seems rather small actually, but maybe it was grander when I posted it.

And then we also had a bunch of people chime in when I was looking for my friend Amy's 1st grader in Dec. 2010. Might be a little young, depending on where your daughter is, but there might be something there for you. But that was post-family blog posting, so that might not be it.

Oh! That Michelle!

Well, I'm flattered. So nice to have you coming by! I'll see what else I can find for you, then. I'm in a bit of a book lull---no reason really, just one of those ho-hum, what I'm reading really isn't worth recommending. But I'm sure to get to something good soon.

Yeah! Michelle in Colorado! Identified!

Hey Michelle in Colorado

Hi.

You've commented twice and I just wanted to say that's so nice of you.

Who are you? Have we met in person? Or do you know Meg in Sheridan? Because Meg in Sheridan also comes here and I think she's great even though we've never met except for here.

So welcome. You are one of 2, maybe 3 people who actually read this blog who aren't related to me genetically.

:)

Hail to the Chef by Hyzy

Just read the second in the series, Hail to the Chef, which followed Hyzy's State of the Onion.

Not bad. Couldn't analyze it in a lit class, but a fun read, and I'll cruise into the third book shortly.

Life After Magic Treehouse, Take One

I gave my oldest son the Magic Treehouse books, the complete set, for Christmas. Along with all the A to Z Mysteries by Rob Roy. There you go, 75 books. That should hold ya.

He came to me around Valentine's Day and told me he had read them all.

Drat. Now what do I do?

So I begin my Life After Magic Treehouse quest. Started him on Magic Schoolbus and Boxcar Children and the Puppy Place series. And started asking around for what do after that. So here's a list from my friend Kristen, who has five children older than my Jacob. She's a good source. Here are her suggestions as to what her oldest son liked. She wrote:

He was reading Harry Potter by the first grade. He liked mysteries, so he read a lot of Boxcar Children, Hardy Boys, Cam Jansen, Secrets of Droon, Bailey School Kids (I think that's right), maybe some Geronimo Stilton. Maybe not quite 6th grade, but there are a lot of them to keep him busy. He liked the Choose your own adventure books too and Encyclopedia Brown. He also liked the Redwall books -- very long books and he liked them so much he dressed up as one of the characters for Halloween in 1st or 2nd grade ( which of course no one knew who he was.) Maybe more for girls, but the Ramona books and Junie B. Jones are fun.

Life after Magic Treehouse, Take Two

Here's the response I received when I asked my cousin, who was reading Michener's novel Space by the time he was 12. He said,

" Is he old enough for A Wrinkle In Time? Tennis Shoes Among the Nephites? Watership Down? The old Hardy Boys are total fluff but harmless and fun for a kid. I'm not sure about the newer versions of Hardy Boys, but the ones available in about 1980 were great. I'll have to think on this some more. I think you are smart to keep him off the computer for a while. I personally think it's better to let a young mind and brain develop its connection to people, and the written word, before being rewired by computers."

and

"The Great Brain! (very fun series set in pioneer Utah no less.) Encyclopedia Brown. My Side of the Mountain / Far Side of the Mountain / Frightful's Mountain. (those last four are from his wife)."

Life after Magic Treehouse: Take Three

And here's the list from my friend Kristen H, who has two boys older than Jacob. She admits some are more pulp fiction than others. I put stars next to those that she says are particularly pulpy.

*1. Junie B. Jones

2. The Ramona Books by Beverly Cleary

*3. Bad Kitty series

4. Boxcar Children

5. Flat Stanley

6. Geronimo Stilton. We just borrowed a bunch of these from the library and they are a hit in our house!

7. The Littles. (Ah, nostalgia. I loved the Littles.)

*8. Beast Quest series

9. Arthur's chapter books by Mark Brown

10. Dick King Smith's animal books: Babe the Pig, etc.

11. Jigsaw Jones

12. Choose Your Own Adventure . . . until the reader figures out that you always either a) get the treasure, b) die, or c) disappear forever

13. Encyclopedia Brown

14. the old Hardy Boys

15. Cam Jansam's books

So we'll start there. That should take him to say, 4th of July. I hope.

Miss Julia Speaks Her Mind by Ann Ross

Miss Julia Speaks Her Mind was on my bookclub list, so I read it. Nice contrast to Abbie Deal in Lantern in Her Hand.

Abbie Deal did what was right. What was necessary. What was expected.

And so does Miss Julia, the character in Miss Julia Speaks Her Mind. But then her husband dies and Miss Julia adapts to her new life where she doesn't feel that she needs to play a role for anybody. So she's in her later years, learning to be opinionated and independent, because she finally feels like she can be.

Funny. Ross is good at dialogue, developing characters, and situational irony. The tale Ross weaves around this character is charming.

My favorite thing about reading Miss Julia is that I KNOW women like Miss Julia who feel they have to play a role, but really are feisty and sassy underneath. They say, "Whatever works for you," when they really want say "No, that doesn't work at all." They say, "I'll have to ask someone else before I give you my opinion," when they really have an opinion of their own. Truthfully, I don't know what to do with these polite, ever-pleasers. I want to say, "Let it out! Level with me! Just tell me what you want!" Maybe it's because I married OLE-DUR and had an opinion plenty long before I got married. So it's incredibly satisfying to read about Miss Julia, finally coming to her own. It's about time, Sister. Sing it.

This is the first book in the series and I'll probably pick up the others eventually if I can find them in the library. Not sure that I need to One Click it buy it on Amazon, but still, fun to keep on my "go back and read the rest of the series" list.

Lantern in her Hand by Bess Alldrich

I found the suggestion for Lantern in her Hand, by Bess Alldrich, on the blog Memories on Clover Lane, which I occasionally peruse (the blog, not the book). The book got such a great review that I read it.

Lantern in her Hand is about the life of Abbie Deal. Born in the mid-1800's, the story is about her life. She is young, she marries, she raises her kids, she sees Oklahoma start from wilderness and be tamed, she grows old. She dies. She sacrifices---she never learns to paint or sing, but her children do. She never has lots of money, but her children do. She is never famous, but her children become so. And it's worth it, the sacrifice, of course it is.

The book would be rated G. It's squeaky clean. It's Little House on the Prairie all over again. I should buy a copy and put it next to Limberlost. It's sentimental, it's meaningful. It does have some nice moments. I could teach it in any class and no one's parents would email me about the content. It would probably be a nice, clean, appropriate book for a book club.

But personally, I found it troubling. Haunting really, and the themes have taunted me as I've been doing the dishes or dropping kids off at school, or trying to find where Lego Mater is so that my youngest could stop pining for him. (MAY-TER! I want MAY-TER!) Through all these mom tasks, I've been thinking about Abbie Deal.

One of the main themes in the book is sacrifice---Abbie never wears her heirloom pearls, always saving them for the lovely, wealthy bride she wants in her posterity. She makes sure her kids have music lessons and art class, but never takes them for herself.

Couldn't Abbie have both? At least eventually? Couldn't she nurture herself and her kids, especially when she wasn't taking care of babies anymore? It was annoying---in her 40's Abbie finally had the chance to take piano lessons, but no, no, no, she said she was too old. Later, she had the chance to go to Europe, but oh no, she couldn't bring herself to go. And, of course, she never wore the pearls. I wanted to call to her: ABBIE DEAL! TAKE PIANO! ABBIE DEAL! GO TO EUROPE! ABBIE DEAL! WEAR THE PEARLS!

But she didn't.

I think what the author intended for me to get out of the book is that, "Oh, yes, it's all worth it. As a mother, I make sacrifices and it's noble to never set myself a place at the table even if I'm setting a banquet for everyone else."

But I got something else out of it. I think there's value in taking care of the mom of this family---me. Seeing if there's anything I can do that will make HER happy.

I am not Abbie Deal. So I wore my pearls to church on Sunday to remind myself of this. As I was putting on my pearls, my oldest son came into the room. "Are those REAL pearls, Mom?" And I could tell him yes. And what I saw on his face was the realization: his mom is worth real pearls.

So I wear the pearls. I think Abbie would have been a lot happier had she worn hers every now and then.

8th grade essay grading

Occasionally my old school district, where I used to work pre-mom, will hire me to grade essays. This week I have been wrestling with a batch of 8th grade expository essays. It has been delightful! It's good to flex the mental muscles that I once trained to do this sort of work and good to interact with my former colleagues at my school. And I am reminded why I liked teaching junior high---these kids are funny and clever! I have entertained Eric with passages that are just too good to be kept to myself. Wish I could share them here . . .

So I told my sister that I've been grading 8th grade expository essays this week and she said, "You realize you are describing my own personal version of hell---having to grade 8th grade essays."

I laughed. And told her that sadly, I'm actually good at it.

We all have quirky talents to contribute. Of this I am sure.

Flipped and American Experience: Dolly Madison

Two good movies to check out. I found these on Netflix.

1. Flipped. Cute, innocent, clean little coming-of-age romance. This is what I will watch with my daughter when she's 12 and is home on the weekends because 12 is too young to have a social life, and still young enough to enjoy Movie Nights With Mom. Put it right next to Anne of Green Gables and Ever After. Just such a nice movie with universal appeal. I recommended it to my sister and she watched it and loved it. This is one of those movies people mean when they say, "There are good, clean movies out there, I know there are." Good. Clean. Funny. Delightful. Great way to spend an hour or two.

2. American Experience: Dolly Madison. I knew nothing about Dolly Madison, wife of president Madison. Fascination little documentary, interesting, clever, informative. Really good for anyone who has any inkling of interest in American history. Had I been able to watch this instead of hearing a lecture about the War of 1812, I may have actually been interested. This is how history should be taught and learned. Great stuff.

State of the Onion by Julie Hyzy

I had a bad attitude about this book when I saw it on our book club list for this year. I'd tried other culinary-based fiction and came away wishing I'd tried another place to feast. So far, the only one would could pull of writing with a foodie twist was Reichl's Garlic and Sapphires, but that was non-fiction.

So food mystery? Please.

But I was wrong! I love it when I'm wrong and the book is good! State of the Onion is a pleasure. No Pulitzer necessarily, but a fun, breezy, escape-y, "ooh, that sounds yummy", good plot, decent writing, nicely constructed foodie mystery.

My library doesn't have the rest of the series and that makes me sad. So I wrote them a nice note on their website and suggested they purchase the rest of the series. Usually they take my advice (it's nothing personal, I think they are just glad someone has a suggestion) and I hope they do. If not, I'll have to find another library or treat myself to buying the rest of the series.

Nothing sketchy. Well, not really. It is a murder mystery, so don't be shocked when there's shooting. But it's such a nice little murder mystery . . . think Poirot, but with more food, in the White House, with a female protagonist.

Yes. Think that. Then roll your eyes that I'm trying to compare Poirot to a White House food chef and go find yourself a copy of State of the Onion.

To Mormons with Love by Chrissy Ross

It's the English major in me that likes to clump books together: maybe the grad student, actually, looking for a fun class to teach. But along the same lines as Mirvis's portrayal of insider/outsider in Jewish culture, a great read is Chrissy Ross's To Mormons with Love. Not about Jewish culture, but about Mormon culture, specifically Happy Valley culture, which is grandly different than Mormon culture at large.

Ross, not a Mormon, moves into a community that is predominately (OK, about 95%) Latter-day Saint. Ross is devotedly Christian, as are her husband and three sons. And Ross talks honestly about what she experiences.

There are two things I really liked about this book. 1) Chrissy Ross is funny! It's a delightful read. Her intent is to explain and entertain, but not to lecture. And 2) There's no agenda here. There are no sides. It's just one woman trying to get her footing. And she actually does become friends with her Mormon neighbors (Imagine!) and they become friends with her. She never says it outright, but the gist of her writing is, "They aren't perfect. I'm not perfect. We can still be friends and not agree. I drink wine. They don't let their kids play on Sundays. We can still be friends."

I liked it. She's honest. She calls it like she sees it and it's not always perfect. It's human. That's what I liked. It's human.

And my very favorite, part, I have to admit, was when she talked about going to her (Mormon) girlfriends at 39, wanting another child and wondering if she's too old. Their response . . . "Girlfriend, this is UTAH. You can be pushing your grandbaby in a stroller and nursing your own baby at the same time. You are not too old!"

See? Foibles and all, you gotta love girlfriends like that.

And I think that's Ross's point.

I think this would be great for any book club, whether you have Mormon readers, non-Mormon readers, or a blend of both. It's a short read, though, so I think you could easily pair it with Mirvis's The Ladies Auxiliary and have one great discussion about insider/outsider religious culture.

Laura and Liz, have you read this one yet? You can get it on Amazon. Worth the money, and then it can be one of those books that's fun to loan out.