That's What Jenni Said

  It seems rather fitting that just after reading and reviewing a novel last week centered on two brothers that I would pick up The First Rule of Swimming by Courtney Angela Brkic, a gripping story of two sisters. Magdalena and Jadranka are from a small sheltered Croatian island and their lives and those of their whole family have been shaped by a war that tested the bounds of their family’s loyalty. In the Babic family, keeping secrets pushes loved ones away and years later revealing secrets proves just as forceful, propelling Jadranka to run straight into danger, her uncle Marin and her mother Ana to face emotions they’d long since buried, and Magda to begin a journey across the ocean that will ultimately change her circumstances forever. Brkic has crafted a story that is heavy with emotion and draws out our sympathy for not only the protagonist, Magda, but her entire cast of supporting characters. Each member of the Babic family has a complex persona derived from their past e...

I just finished reading In the Land of the Living by Austin Ratner. It’s powerful novel, a tale of men – fathers, brothers, and sons wherein women play the supporting background roles. The story opens on three Hungarian brothers, Burt, Isidore, and Dennis, all of whom have a difficult relationship with their father, Ezer. And so a significant portion of the early chapters in the novel focus on the tension between father and sons and Isidore is distinguished as the story’s original protagonist. Later, the novel follows Isidore through college and medical school and unfolds his romantic relationships and eventual marriage. His love for his sons is in the forefront in these chapters, while his angst for his father still bubbles to and breaks through the surface occasionally. Chapter nine showcases the notes Isidore keeps on his growing son’s toddler years and it’s beautiful to read. Eventually the focus of the novel turns to Isidore’s sons, Leo and Maxwell, and the novel shifts to the ...

I started down a rabbit hole of googling because a woman on a message board I frequent was upset that men at her workplace act chivalrous- holding open doors for ladies, carrying boxes, letting them into elevators first, lending umbrellas, etc. She wanted to know if this was actionable under a typical HR department as sexism or discrimination. Several folks who replied said it is called ‘benevolent sexism’ and is a bad thing. So I found this article that summarizes research that indicates chivalry is the carrot (positive reinforcement) afforded to women who maintain the feminine gender role and is the flipside of the stick (derision, violence, ridicule, etc) used when women step outside of the feminine gender role. I never thought about chivalry like this or that it had that sort of subconscious purpose and effect. Now I happen to enjoy (a lot) the traditional gender roles and conforming to the feminine expectations of society and while I don't support the stick to keep people in l...

I’ve always had a passion for collecting and sampling unusual jams. My pantry is currently stocked with more than 20 varieties of jam from all over the world. Recently our roommate pointed out to me how much money I could save if I just canned my own jams. And then he let me sample his homemade blackberry jam and I thought he was really on to something. So, with his guidance, hubby and I picked out a pressure canner that will work well with our flat-top ceramic stove (the common modern flat-tops rule out many popular brands of pressure canners so make sure to do your research). We also purchased several sets of canning jars in half pint, pint, and quart sizes, tools for handling hot jars, and dissolvable fancy labels for our jars. I’m getting pretty excited about our first canning session, and in preparation I’ve marked a number of recipes from Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving , Put ‘em Up: A Preserving Guide and Cookbook , and Mes Confitures: The Jams and Jellies of Christine Fe...

One of my friends on goodreads.com recommended Dana Bate’s new novel and so I thought I’d give it a read. I’m a foodie that dabbles in gourmet dinner parties, I live in the metro DC area, and I’m pretty interested in the underground restaurant scene that is all the rage lately. These circumstances and my love of breezy ‘chick lit’ meant that The Girls’ Guide To Love and Supper Clubs was sure to be a book I’d enjoy and it was. The protagonist, Hannah, is a smart and resourceful young woman living in DC and working the typical think tank job. She’s dating a handsome, wealthy, and upper crust type of fellow who is employed in the political arena. From the outside, life seems perfect, but on the inside, she’s unhappy. Like many DC types that have come before her, Hannah actually wants no part of the political policy scene and would rather spend her time on other pursuits, namely cooking. Cue a round of applause from the true life wonk who dropped out of life on Capitol Hill to open up Ca...

I am always on the prowl for the latest and the greatest cookbook. Everyone has their preferences and I lean toward cookbooks that feature fresh ingredients, gourmet preparations and presentations, and an international flair. I picked up Plenty: Vibrant Vegetable Recipes from London’s Ottolenghi by Yotam Ottolenghi with these criteria in mind about a year ago when it was making the rounds as the hot new vegetarian cookbook. The author is originally from Israel and so of course middle eastern culture, ingredients, and technique heavily influence his repertoire. He owns a restaurant in London and for several years he wrote a column for The Guardian press on vegetarian cuisine. Pretty good for a chef who isn’t actually a vegetarian. He became well known for his creativity with fresh vegetables and the recipes laid out in Plenty are those that have appeared over the years in his Guardian column. The cookbook itself is beautiful. The cover art (a shot of a row of roasted eggplants dr...

Today is Pentecost. Today marks the celebration of the Christian church as a body and the moment when the church began - when the Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples and first believers in front of a great multitude of witnesses. I give you Acts, chapter 2: 2 When the day of Pentecost came, they (from Acts 1:15 we know there were about 120 in this group here referred to as ‘they’: In those days Peter stood up among the believers, a group numbering about a hundred and twenty ) were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them…. 22 “Fellow Israelites, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among y...