Vintage Remix

Over the past 3 months a friend of my son's from the Navy has been living with us. After leaving the military he decided to start a new life in Chicago and moved in with us and created a new life for himself, new job, new friends, new girlfriend, new city. Last weekend he moved into his own apartment and I ran over to a local Goodwill to buy him a few plates, bowls and pots and pans. While I was there I found a beautiful leather sofa and chair which may be the best deal I've ever found thrifting...the sofa was $39.00 and the chair was $19.00. I immediately purchased them and loaned them to the young man for his new apartment which was completely unfurnished. He will likely buy them from me for the same price I paid for them and hopefully they will last him many years. Thrifting is a hit or miss and I've learned if you see a great deal you have to act quickly...turn around and someone will have beaten you to it. Sure enough as we were loading the furniture into my son's pickup truck we were told a man had wanted to buy the sofa and chair that same day and was planning on coming back after work to buy them. Too late.

When I moved into my 1950's bungalow 2 years ago I was starting from scratch, I left my former home with only my son's bedroom furniture, an armoire, a desk, my books and our personal possessions. Now my home is nearly complete and I've had a great time decorating with vintage furniture, flea market art, new furniture from IKEA and mid-century home accessories. I am currently reading a terrific book, Vintage Remix: The Interiors of Kishani Perera authored by the designer Kishani Perera. Kishani is based in LA and mixes vintage design into many of the celebrities she designs for, she is also the owner of Rummage a global and vintage furniture store in LA that I am planning on visiting when Paul and I are there next month. Kishani finds great pieces at yard sales, resale stores, vintage and antique stores and mixes them up with inspiration from around the globe. If you are looking for great design ideas that mix vintage and modern, I highly recommend this book.

A Young Lady's Life in 1764

Last week my parents visited me in Chicago and as we usually do, we spent a couple of days wandering the local antique stores. My Dad found a book for $5.00 that is a glimpse into the life of a privileged young woman in the 18th century. The Diary of a Young Lady of Fashion in the Year 1764-5 by Cleone Knox, edited by her kinsmen Alexander Blacker Kerr was published in London in 1925. The editor's forward reads, "Miss Cleone Elizabeth Knox the writer of this journal and an ancestress of my mother's, was born on May 12, 1744, at Castle Kearney, Co. Down, Ireland. Her diary, written in a fine Italian hand, in four leather-bound notebooks, was first shown to me by one of her direct descendants in the summer of 1904. I read it with interest, but it was only this year that I decided to edit it and offer it to the public." The editor goes on to explain the history of Cleone's family and describes her as such, "Miss Knox was not a stylist, and her grammar and spelling were poor, like those of many 18th century ladies. She had however, a strong sense of the dramatic and the picturesque, and her journal makes amusing reading, affording as it does a vivid picture of the gay society in which she moved". And so begins her diary, an intimate look into the life of a young woman as she falls in love, attends balls and parties, gossips about servants and friends and travels through Ireland, England, France and Italy with her brother Ned for a year nearly 250 years ago.

A few highlights:

• Ireland, March 15, 1764: "To my vast amazement I am still here unwedded and unseduced."
• March 22, 1764: "My father called me to his study this morning, and communicated to me a most amazing piece of intelligence. We are to set off next month for a Grand Tour of Europe, visiting my sister Foley and her husband in Derbyshire, proceeding from thence to London and the Continent. I realized that poor Mr. A. would most certainly not be permitted to accompany me on this journey, and my eyes filled with tears."
• London, May 22, 1764. "Carrots and Turnips Ho! This cry yelled in a hoarse voice wakes me every morning. My father complains of the noise in London and indeed 'tis something prodigious. The watchmen are calling out the time and weather all night long, and when they have stopped the vendors or oranges, brooms, matches, rat traps Lord knows what else begin. I am amazed at the vastness of this town and the bustle of coaches and chairs in the streets. Never have I seen so many pretty women in so short a time. Pray Heaven Ned will not lose his head."
• Paris, France, September 11, 1764. "The streets of this town are vile and dirty after London and monstrously narrow for the crowd of noblemens coaches and chairs that throng them. The Palais de Justice and Opera House fine, but most of the town stinks vilely, though to hear the french talk you would think t'was Paradise itself. The poor people here attire themselves in black and Lady H. says 'tis account of the mud splashed up by the coaches."
• September 14th, 1764. "Today was presented to their Majesties the King and Queen at Versaille. I attired myself in white satin and wore my diamonds, yet was not utterly satisfied with my looks, for I have grown thin of late. 

Seriously a fascinating and at times a hysterical read. Her brother attempts to run off with an Italian nun who is also an heiress but her inheritance will go to the convent, he ends up in jail briefly and the journal ends abruptly soon after. The best part, her ancestor, the editor ends the journal with an epilogue on what happens to Cleone, her mysterious Mr. A, her brother and others mentioned in her travels. Want to know what happens, I'll loan you this fragile, rare and wonderful little book.

A Favorite Book is Back in My Bag

I recently found a favorite book in a box full of my son's things in the back of his closet. I remember carrying this little paperback, dog-eared copy with me for years when my son was little. It was often found in the diaper bag, under the seat of my car, in the toy bin, in his little toddler bed, in my purse...

Written in 1955 by Crockett Johnson, Harold and the Purple Crayon is the story of Harold who creates his own world and adventures by drawing them with his purple crayon, always with the moon following him. There is a dragon who guards an apple tree, a "very hungry moose" and a "deserving porcupine" who eat pie, and Harold's adventures by sea, mountain and balloon. The drawings are simple, the story is charming and the creativity is wonderful.

I don't know why I'm carrying this little worn copy in my purse again. My son is too old to be read too but as I re-read the story I imagine my little boy as Harold all grown up now and creating his own adventures in the world and always with the same moon I can see following him.

Follow Up Read-Worth Fighting For by Lisa Niemi Swayze

Back on March 1, 2010 I blogged a book review for the audio recording of Patrick Swayze's autobiography, The Time of My Life. I was very  moved listening to Patrick's story, especially knowing that he had recorded his memoirs in the final weeks of his life.

Two years later and almost 3 years after Patrick's death from pancreatic cancer, his wife Lisa has written her story of Patrick's fight against cancer and their life together. Once I started reading Worth Fighting For: Love, Loss, and Moving Forward, I couldn't put it down and finished it within a few days. Lisa's honest and emotional retelling of Patrick's diagnosis, his strength during the brutal treatments, his final TV series (The Beast, filmed here in Chicago in 2008) and his last days is inspiring but very sad.

Lisa was Patrick's wife of over 30 years, his business partner and in the end, his full time caregiver. Upon Patrick's diagnosis, he was given weeks to live but lived for 20 months, largely in part to the sheer will of his spirit and the dedication to his medical care from doctors in California and Chicago. But it was Lisa who learned how to care for him, how to research new treatments, and how to keep him comfortable. One of the most interesting aspects of this book is the evolution of their marriage from lovers and partners to fighters, their only goal was to keep him alive.

What I wanted more of...the Moving Forward portion of the book. There is only one chapter written after Patrick's death and a short Epilogue, not nearly enough on how Lisa is doing or in fact how she is coping without her partner of 34 years. Maybe it's too soon. Maybe that will be in yet another book. Until she is ready to share those stories, this book tells of the 2 years they fought cancer together and like their first book is a true love story.

Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film-A Must See

The winner of the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film was The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore from Moonbot Studios. This charming movie is a little bit Wizard of Oz, a little bit of a fairy tale, a little bit of my childhood fantasy that books are alive all set within the magical settings of New Orleans, the countryside and an amazing library. My favorite part...the woman who visits the library all grey and sad, and walks away with a book in vibrant color. Stunning.

Absolutely one of the most marvelous and touching movies I've ever seen. I'll admit, I sobbed and sobbed at the end. Watch it and share it. "Books are alive when you read them."

And don't forget to vote for my blog, you have until March 6, the badge for Most Fascinating Librarian blog is on my homepage. Thanks!

What's on Your Reading List?

Where do you begin? Do you scribble down the books you want to read in a notebook, on scraps of paper, in emails to yourself? Do you have a pile of "to-read" books in your home library?

Do you virtually organize your library on Goodreads? (I've been on Goodreads since 2007, find me and lets compare book lists and reviews)

Well to get some book related conversations started with friends who read my blog, here is my list of "to read" books for the next few months...

1. Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty
2. Making Handmade Books: 100 Bindings, Structures & Forms by Alisa Golden
3. Do it Yourself Kitchens: Stunning Spaces on a Shoestring Budget
4. Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson
5. Salvage Secrets: Transforming Reclaimed Materials into Design Concepts by Joanne Palmisano
6. Silk is for Seduction by Loretta Chase
7. Claire DeWitt and the City of the Dead by Sara Gran
8. Simple Asian Meals: Irresistibly Satisfying and Healthy Dishes for the Busy Cook by Nina Simonds
9. The French Slow Cooker by Michele Scicolone
10. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Who's the Fairest of them All?

I LOVE fairy tales. Being a child of the 70's, I grew up with the books, not the Disney movies with 2 exceptions (the classic Snow White 1937 animated masterpiece and the equally wonderful 1950 animated Cinderella). In the last 20 years Disney has recreated animated and live action versions of many of the fairy tales we all grew up with, some I've enjoyed, many I have not. Disney has never been one to stick to the original story. Understandable for the Disney audience since most fairy tales are dark, scary gruesome tales of betrayal, death and sadness that only occasionally have a happy ending.

Years ago when I started collecting rare books I began buying fairy tales at antique stores and online auctions. I have a few wonderful books including:

• Aesop's Fables, 1887. Not fairy tales, but fables. Charming stories with beautiful illustrations.
• The Children's Blue Bird, 1913. Wonderful stories with stunning illustrations. The frontispiece illustration is of a little boy and his sister (Tyltyl and Mytyl) perched on a bed peering at the vision of a witch and a magical land, "The hat was no sooner on the little's boy's head than a magic change came over everything." You will have to read the stories to figure out what the blue bird symbolizes.
• The Fairy Mythology by Thomas Knightly, 1850. Fairies, elves, spirits, it's all here. Irish author Knightly introduces what is now widely known as the modern leprechaun in this book.
• Legend of the Rhine, 1869. This stunning book of German fairy tales is a treasure.

Fairy Tales are popping up all over TV and films right now. I've started watching Once Upon a Time on ABC and after a rough couple of episodes it seems to be hitting its potential. Robert Carlyle as Rumpelstiltskin is fantastic. There is also Grimm on NBC which I have saved on my DVR but yet to watch, I've been told it's gruesome. Nice.

In 2012 there are 2 versions of Snow White being released. Universal Pictures is releasing, Snow White and the Huntsmen. The trailer looks interesting, I appreciate that is appears they are retaining the darkness and fear of the story. Strange casting choice of Kristen Stewart as Snow White, I'm hoping her Snow White is stronger that the whiny Bella she is famous for in the Twilight films. Charlize Theron looks lusciously psychotic as the Evil Queen.

And Relativity Films has made Mirror, Mirror. Hmmm, trailer is funny and odd. Julie Roberts as a snarky Evil Queen could be great. Snow White is played by singer Phil Collin's daughter. Nice to also see Nathan Lane in the film too.

I am including both trailers below. Enjoy!

Books by Katie Fforde

A few years ago I began reading books by the British romance writer Katie Fforde and got hooked. Her stories usually follow the same loose formula: spunky English young professional female leaves her job in London and or her latest relationship and moves to a small charming English village where she buys or inherits a cottage or business, meets quirky locals and eventually finds her perfect partner.
I am currently reading Katie's latest book (US release), Love Letters and really enjoying it. I enjoy the quirky female characters, I admire how they change their lives either by choice or circumstance and things turn out the better for it. Katie creates dreamy and cozy English villages where everyone knows you by name, cottages are surrounded by lovely gardens, the pub owner pulls a perfect pint and new neighbors and colleagues become life long friends.
If you are interested in a little Anglophilia like me, here are a few of my favorite books by Katie Fforde.

• Practically Perfect Anna buys a cottage and fixes it up, new best friend neighbor and a cute guy. Oh and there is a dog. Fun read.
• Stately Pursuits Hetty "house sits" her elderly uncle's huge manor house, quirky town folk and yes a sexy guy.
• Bidding for Love Flora leaves her London life to work in the antique business, weird family members and yes, a charming cottage. I liked this book, she finds love REALLY close to home. LOL.
  
• Second Thyme Around Perdita and her organic gardening business, a gorgeous ex husband and the fun begins.
• Wild Designs Althea has a house in the Cotswolds and a passion for gardening. I have wanted to attend the Chelsea Flower Show in London ever since I read this book.
  

Must Have Book for the Harry Potter Fan

I don't know if I can begin to explain the wonder this marvelous book is. Harry Potter Film Wizardry is a combination photo album, scrapbook and memory book of everything Harry Potter film related. The book is fantastically jammed full of extras including:


Harry's acceptance letter to Hogwart's (Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone)

A sticker book from Libatius Borage's Advanced Potion Making class

Pop up candy boxes from Honeyduke's candy shop (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban)

A program from the 422nd Quidditch World Cup (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire)

A Yule Ball program (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire)

An Educational Decree Proclamation (Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix)

The Marauder's Map (various films)

A Product Catalog from the Weasley's Wizard Wheezes shop

A Ministry of Magic Identity Card (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows)

Fans will love the film photographs, behind the scenes stories and chapters on everything from casting the actors to costumes to set construction. Did you like Fleur Delacour's wedding dress in the latest film, there is a page on the wedding costumes. Interested in how they made Harry Potter breathe under water in the 4th film? Want to learn more about the Weasley's flying car, the whomping willow, Hogwart's resident Ghosts or props from the films. It's all in the book.

If you are a Harry Potter reader or buying a gift for a Potter fan, this is a must have.

UPDATE: Amazon is currently out of stock but you might find a copy at your local book store.

Monday 5-List #4

Here are the 5 most beloved books from my childhood.
I read these books over and over and still have my original copies.

1. Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson.  The book that taught me how to create your own dreams.

2. Cars and Trucks and Things That Go by Richard Scarry. Yes I still like to look for the Goldbug.

3.  Eloise at the Plaza by Kay Thompson. The beginning of my obsession with hotel lobbys and pets with strange names. Yup, this book is why my beagle is named Eloise.

4.  Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein. "I cannot go to school today" said little Peggy Ann McKay. I still find inspiration from these whimsical poems.

5. Dear Dead Days by Charles Addams. WARNING:Not a book for little kids.  This book features odd Victorian era advertisements, strange pictures of children with dead things, scary animals and even some of his Addams Family cartoons. Each image was selected by Addams, the book was an inspirational scrapbook for the gothic cartoon genius. I enjoyed the macabre as a teen and this book is seriously dark humor.

Best Travel Books of All Time?

My bestest friend Diana sent me a link to an article on the most celebrated travel books. Diana and I will be traveling to Europe together in September, I'm sure we will each have a travel book stashed in our carry-on luggage. You can read the article here.

How many have you read?

Little Books, Big Impact

17 years ago today my son was born. During the week leading up to his birthday my sister and brother in law have been visiting us with my darling 21 month old niece Lily. In preparation for their visit, I went to the library to check out books to read to her and found myself getting the same books my son liked when he was little. It's funny how books you love reading and sharing can become a family tradition.

Here are a few of the books I read over and over again to my son and the ones I share now with my niece.

Good Night Moon
Eloise at the Plaza
Once Upon a Potty
Stella Luna
Baby I Love You
Strega Nona
The Very Hungry Caterpillar
Pat the Bunny
Stop that Pickle!

Happy Birthday Baby! I miss reading to you.

Book for Animal Lovers

I'm reading an interesting book right now, Making Rounds with Oscar by David Dosa, M.D. Oscar is a cat who lives at a nursing and rehabilitation center in Rhode Island where David Dosa is a doctor at the facility. Oscar is a special cat in that he knows when a patient is dying and sits vigil on their bed during their final hours. Ordinarily Oscar is a rather solitary feline, spending his days and nights under chairs or curled up in corners. Until Oscar senses that a patient is dying, then he jumps onto their beds, snuggles up next to them and commences purring. Oscar's gentle knowledge allows caregivers the time to make the patient as comfortable as possible and allows family members a precious window of time to say goodbye. Extraordinary.

I've read about instinctive animals before. Dogs that can sense seizures or cancer. Cats that comfort sick children. Dolphins that rescue drowning swimmers. Horses that work with autistic children. The examples are endless and there are dozens of books and articles on the subject. As a former cat owner I know their quirky personalities are a blessing and a curse. I've owned cats that were so friendly as to make you crazy, the obsessive kneading of your stomach or the "cat hat" while you are sleeping. And I've owned a cat that was so feral he was only happy away from humans. I'm a dog person these days and sharing my home for the last 8 years is a temperamental, spoiled, bossy, talking beagle named Eloise (yes she is named after the Eloise at the Plaza books by Kay Thompson and of course I have a pet named after a literary character,I'm a librarian!) My Eloise is a wonderful companion who seems to know when I want to be alone (although she barks like a child for attention) and when I need a warm furry presence at my side.

Almost all pet lovers have had a "once in a lifetime"...an animal so special that you never forget them. For so many residents, their families, the doctors, nurses and staff at the nursing home Oscar is that special animal and I hope he continues to comfort them all for years to come. His story and theirs is worth a read. For more information on Oscar visit the web-page for Steere House, his home.

Great Travel Books-Back Roads by DK Eyewitness Travel

As I plan my next international trip, a 10 day European vacation with my girlfriends, I am researching both well traveled and off the beaten path destinations. I'm currently reading each of the titles below for inspiration:

Back Roads France: 24 Leisurely Drives

Back Roads Great Britain: 24 Leisurely Drives

Back Roads Italy: 24 Leisurely Drives

Back Roads Spain: 24 Leisurely Drives

Published by Dorling Kindersley (DK), these popular titles from the Eyewitness Travel series are one of my top choices for travel books. Full of beautiful color photographs, maps and travel tips, the books are lightweight, softcover and durable enough to toss in any travel bag. Each of the 4 titles above comes with a pull out laminated sheet map which is the perfect alternative to taking the entire book with you if you are packing light.

The Back Roads books takes the tourist off the more well traveled routes and into smaller villages, intimate hotels and quiet countrysides of popular destinations. If you're not interested in spending a week in the large busy cities of Madrid, London, Milan or Paris but instead in sleepy villages and coastal towns, then browse through one of the Back Roads titles. Not planning on doing any driving yourself? No problem, these books are loaded with information on hotels, cuisine and attractions at locations often accessible through tours or by bus or boat. Are you an armchair traveler like I often am between trips? Then you will LOVE DK Eyewitness Travel books for the gorgeous photographs. Happy Traveling!

Can a Book Change Your Life?

In the donation pile at my library was the book Trinny and Susannah: What you wear can change your life. Well I'm all for that theory but really...it got me to thinking. Can a BOOK change your life? Has a book changed yours?

There have been numerous books that have changed me, they've changed the way I think, act, react, travel, share and give. Books have helped me chose different paths, try different things, explore new hobbies and think outside the box. I could write daily about such books but maybe I'll just name a few and then tell you about 1 book...1 silly fluffy book that meant something to me as a girl.

Here are a few books that changed me:

The brilliant former Oxford Professor Richard Dawkins' book The God Delusion was one of the most important books I've ever read. Dawkins answered questions I didn't know I was asking.

Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. Family, strength, friendship and love. This book has it all and made me want it all.

Fairy Tales. The real ones, not the ones messed up by Disney. The dark folk tales, where parents could be mean, bad things happened and children died. But there was hope. Always hope.

The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank. Who hasn't this book changed. Innocent, tragic and beautiful.

Andersonville by MacKinlay Kantor. Read this in high school. It has stayed with me for over 20 years. The Civil War told like no history book could.

Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell. Classic. Epic.

The Story of My Life by Helen Keller. Inspiring, I still take sign language classes.

A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking. No I didn't check this out from the library. A boyfriend left it at my house and I read it....and loved it. Who knew math and cosmology could be so fascinating.

Now about my fluffy book: back in the 80's when I was a typical big haired Calvin Klein jeans wearing teenager, I received a book as a gift that I loved. The book wasn't something smart or classic, it was a book by Brooke Shields, I kid you not. Ya I really was a rather shallow teenage girl who's head was full of big dreams and pop music and my hair was teased to within an inch of my life. But I loved that book and frankly it made me grow up a little bit.

On Your Own was published while Brooke was a student at Princeton and included the usual tips on beauty, diet, dating and college. To me, that book was the big sister I didn't have. I read it cover to cover over and over again, it was like having a famous best girlfriend for a fictional sleep over. I wanted to go to college and be on my own just like Brooke Shields and damn if I didn't become a better student so I could go to college. Brooke Shields was the most glamorous teenager around during those days, she hung out with Michael Jackson, acted, modeled, went to an Ivy League school and you never read about her drinking, doing drugs or sleeping with celebrities. I was in that awkward gangly all legs and heavy eyebrows phase and for some reason, that book became my bible.

Looking back now I think it's funny that Brooke Shield became my style and college guru, but it's true. I still have that book, all dog-earred and scuffed up. I flipped through it recently and damn if she still doesn't have the best tips on eyebrows. 25 years later and that book still teaches me something.

So did any book change your life?

Wondering if this is a must read book?

So a few days ago I finished the latest novel by the author of The Time Traveler's Wife. I blogged about the story recently as a book I wanted to live in, you can read that post here. Her Fearful Symmetry is an unusual read and I've been trying to pigeon hole it as a book I either liked or disliked and I can't even seem to decide on that. I loved the locations in the book, London, Highgate Cemetery and the North Shore of Chicago but I'm not really satisfied with the book's ending. Regardless I will try and give a review but in a slightly odd way.

Two creepy identical twin sisters


move to London


after their aunt whom they've never met, the identical twin sister of their mother, dies of cancer and


leaves them her flat


overlooking Highgate Cemetery.


From there it gets even odder. The residents of the building where the twins move include a man with extreme obsessive compulsive disorder, his fed up wife and a man who was the lover of the twin's dead aunt. Oh and then there are the characters in Highgate Cemetery, mostly volunteers who keep the cemetery running and give tourists tours. But it's the strange relationship between the twins that fuels this book. They are mirror image identical twins, so where one has a mole the other twin will have it on the opposite side of the face. They are also rather opposite in personality, Julia is more outgoing and bossy but with no desire to do anything with her life other than order her twin Valentina around. Valentina is the more reserved twin who dreams of leaving the grip of her sister to go to college, become a fashion designer, marry and have children.

This strange tale includes the usual dark family secrets and the unusual such as odd requests from the recently departed. As I got farther into the book I really wanted to find someone to talk about the book with as the story started to veer off into Gothic Mary Shelley style monster stories. The author does a good job of leading up to the main twist in the story, towards the end I just couldn't put the book down. But she really has too many stories going on in the book. The OCD neighbor became one of my favorite characters but he appears tossed into the life of the twins to give one of them something to do. It's also rather a slow read until things start getting paranormal and then it ends. Hmmmm.

Here is what I like. I appreciate an author who doesn't handle death in the usual fashion. The book revolves around death and the twins inability to live. They have no lives and it's not until death literally lives with them that they start to live. Odd huh. And strangely compelling. And definitely thought provoking. And OK, a must read. See I knew I just needed to talk it over. Thanks for listening. Below is an image I think explains the book quite nicely.

The Book I Want to Live In

Right now I am reading Her Fearful Symmetry by the Chicago based writer of The Time Traveler's Wife, Audrey Niffenegger. If you've read either book you know that Audrey places her characters in the City of Chicago, the Chicago suburbs and other Midwest areas like the shores of Southwest Michigan. I love this about her books. It's so personal to me to read of her fictional characters in real life places I've been before. Henry in The Time Traveler's Wife is a librarian at Chicago's Newberry Library and visits clubs and locations I've frequented myself. His wife Clare's family home on the shores of Michigan is near the Scanlan beach house where I spend many summer weekends and holidays. In Audrey's newest books, Her Fearful Symmetry she takes 2 of her characters out of the suburbs of Chicago and moves them to London. I've only started this book and already I'm in heaven with the locations.

Back in 2001 I visited London with my Mom and sister for a girls week in our favorite city. On one of our last days in London, Mom and Stacy wanted to see Shakespeare's Globe Theater and I was more interested in finding the famous Highgate Cemetery. I set off with a map of the Tube, a small picnic, an umbrella and a camera. Highgate Cemetery is a heavily wooded, Victorian-in-style cemetery in Highgate London and is divided into east and west sections. Many cemetery junkies and/or history bugs know Highgate Cemetery as the final resting place of a few famous people such as the philosopher Karl Marx, the parents of writer Charles Dickens and Elizabeth Siddal, the wife and muse of painter Dante Gabriel Rossetti. This thickly overgrown and darkly lush cemetery is also famous for the so called "Highgate Vampire". (If you are interested in more information about Highgate Cemetery, there is a page on Facebook and numerous websites).

In Her Fearful Symmetry the author moves her characters (creepy identical twins) from Chicago to an apartment next to the cemetery in London. As she was researching her book, the author acted as a tour guide amongst the tombs (tours are organized by The Friends of Highgate Cemetery). Supposedly the cemetery was also the inspiration for Neil Gaiman's wonderful story The Graveyard Book. The more I read Her Fearful Symmetry the more I want to live inside the book. I want to live in a spacious apartment steps away from Highgate Cemetery where I could spend my free time making grave rubbings, spotting foxes and waiting for the ghosts and vampires to rustle in the trees.

Must Read Book: 101 Things to Do Before You Diet

This new book came across my desk recently and I picked it up with interest after spying the cover picture of a cupcake wrapped in a corset topped with a high heel shoe. Since it looked like my sense of humor I checked it out and not surprisingly I couldn't put the book down. The complete title is 101 Things To Do Before You Diet: Because Looking Great Isn't Just About Losing Weight by author Mimi Spencer. Written by a woman for women, Mimi writes like other popular "diet books" like Skinny Bitch with a no excuse, losing weight isn't all about what you put in your mouth style.

The author's tips include dressing for your body type, cutting back on eating out with your "fat magnet" friends, maintaining your style, have more sex, how to eat (and drink) at a variety of social functions (cocktail party, picnic etc), different ways to get fit (walking the dog, taking the stairs, parking a block away from your destination) and how to navigate through the supermarket. What I really like is her writing style, direct, funny and logical. Here are a few examples of her replies to typical excuses, "I have a sweet tooth", author's response, "No, you are addicted to sugar." "I would rather be big and happy than on a diet and miserable," author's response, "I like the second clause of this sentence, but big and happy? More like fat and delusional. Don't diet, but do be honest with yourself."

This book is a great read that demystifies the theory that dieting is all about starving yourself. If you get a chance, give this book a browse, it's packed full of great tips and most have nothing to do with what your eating.

Little Addicted to the Cook Books?

Hi, my name is Shannon and I'm a cook book addict.

Yes it's true, I can hear my dearest friends laughing maniacally, but really, it's a fact. I'm very proud to post that I've finally kept a New Years Resolution and frankly, it's changed my life. I'm learning to cook. And I'm getting pretty damn good. Well at least with cold things, veggie recipes, soups, dips and breakfast, I seriously rock the kitchen and it's all thanks to cook books.

Funny thing is I have some requirements for my cookbooks. Kinda like subscribers to Playboy, I like the pictures. The cook books I read need to have color pictures, preferably for every recipe. Oh and authored by Julia Child, they can't be. If I can't find the ingredients between 3 local stores it's a no-go.

Here are a few sitting on my counter right now, and yes... they are library books!

The Good Cook 70 Essential Techniques, 250 Step by Step Photographs and 350 Easy Recipes by Anne Willan with photographs by Alison Harris. I want to marry Anne, she is my new Goddess. This book is perfection and the cover photograph of a mussels dish made me salivate. A favorite dish, and I hope to cook my self through this book is Rapid Ratatouille, the perfect Sunday dinner after visiting the Farmer's Market. This book is kinda like having your Grandma in the house, there are step by step instructions (with pictures) of everything from how to cook a steak to how to split and cook small birds to how to peel and chop shallots. Basic but practical for those of us learning late in life.

Great Party Dips by Peggy Fallon with photographs by Alexandra Grablewski. It's always a sign of a cookbook I'll enjoy when the photographer is listed on the cover. This book doesn't disappoint. EASY recipes, great pictures and ingredients that are easy to find between only 2 places, my farmers market and the local Mexican grocery store. With recipes ranging from 24 Carat Caviar Dip to Peanut Butter Marshmallow Dip, there is something for everyone.

The New American Olive Oil by Fran Gage. As beautiful as a coffee table book this is all about American made olive oil. I love the information on choosing an excellent olive oil made by US producers. Her pesto recipe is what I used to make my own for canning.

Quick Food Gourmet Recipes in Just 30 Minutes by Jenny Fanshaw and Annette Forrest. Right now this is my FAVORITE cook book. Every recipe has a picture, the recipes include prep time, cook time, how many each dish typically serves and level of difficulty. What's not to love? A few favorites include Grilled Tuna with Tomato and Mozzarella Salad (divine in the late summer when tomatoes are bursting off the vines) and Garbanzo Bean and Feta Couscous Salad. My next attempt will be mussels, I'm a little frightened off by the debearding but I'm going to try their recipe for Mussels in Garlic, White Wine and Tarragon ASAP.

Friday evening a local chef is giving a cooking demonstration and preparing dinner for friends and I in their home. Hopefully I'll learn some great tips on debearding mussels.

Drop me a comment and let me know if and when you will be in the Chicago area and I will invite you over for a meal!

Must Read Book-Discovering the Great Masters: The Art Lover's Guide to Understanding Symbols in Painting

So I've been lost in the most wonderful book, it seems to detour me from reading anything else (with the exception of cook books, my current obsession).
Discovering the Great Masters: The Art Lover's Guide to Understanding Symbols in Painting by Paul Crenshaw is a gorgeous, oversize book with glorious photos of some of the most recognized art works in the world. Really this book is stunning and if it wasn't so big, I wouldn't put it down!
I started the book by quickly skimming through and marking each of the works I have seen personally. Not surprisingly many are housed at the Louvre in Paris, the Prado in Madrid and throughout museums and churches in Italy. What makes this book such a fun and completely immersing read is the use of cut out pages which when overlayed over a famous work allow only a glimpse of a particular section of the piece for study, including the explanation of symbolism in the work. Have you ever wanted to know what makes Mona Lisa's smile so mysterious, or what the symbolism in The Last Supper truly means...than this is the book for you.
I have created a list of the works featured in the book that I have actually seen while traveling, I will list them here for my own future reference. The remainder of the works in the book I have on a list tucked in my wallet, looks like I need to plan a trip to Florence Italy to truly say I have seen many of the greatest art works on earth.

Works I've already seen:
The Arnolfini Portrait by Jan Van Eyck, The National Gallery, London
The Deposition from the Cross by Rogier Van Der Weyden, The Prado, Madrid
Madonna della Vittoria, The Louvre, Paris
Pallas Athena Expelling the Vices by Andrea Mantegna, The Louvre, Paris
The Last Supper by Leonardo Da Vinci, Santa Maria Delle Grazie, Milan
Mona Lisa by Leonardo Da Vinci, The Louvre, Paris
The Garden of Earthly Delights by Hieronymus Bosch, The Prado, Madrid
A Banker and His Wife by Quinten Metsys, The Louvre, Paris
Bacchanal of the Andrians by Titan, The Prado, Madrid
The French Ambassadors by Hans Holbein The Younger, National Gallery of Art, London
A Christian Allegory bu Jan Provost, The Louvre, Paris
Allegory of Vanity by Jan Van Der Straet, The Louvre, Paris
Allegory of Sight by Jan Breughel the Elder and Peter Paul Rubens, The Prado, Madrid
The Education of Marie de'Medici by Peter Paul Rubens, The Louvre, Paris
The Spinners by Diego Velazquez, The Prado, Madrid
The Gathering of Manna by Nicolas Poussin, The Louvre, Paris
Les Meninas by Diego Velazquez, The Prado, Madrid
Liberty Leading the People by Eugene Delacroix, The Louvre, Paris
The Apotheosis of Homer by Jean Auguste-Dominique Ingres, The Louvre, Paris