This my second official wrap-up post! This month, I've added things I baked :-)
Books I've Read This Month
Favorite Top 4 Books I've Read This Month
Okay, I can't choose just one (or three), but I definitely did have a favorite:
1. The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
Even in a month of excellent reads, The Goldfinch stands out. The 2014 Pulitzer Prize was well deserved for this exquisitely written, perfectly plotted meditation on the value of objects and the people who love them. I realized that's why I love books about art: even though paintings are not my favorite medium, I'm a person who deeply values and appreciates objects (in my case, often books), and I empathize with characters with similar sensibilities. The Goldfinch illustrates how objects can transcend and transform human lives.
2. American Cake by Anne Byrn
This is the history of American cake. From pound cake to Shoofly pie, from pineapple upside down to tres leches, this book does an amazing job of situating cake in its historical context and I literally salivated over the detailed research, not to mention the recipes and photographs of luscious cakes. This is a must-buy for anyone halfway serious about American baking traditions. Can't wait to start using the recipes!
3. P.S. I Still Love You and Always and Forever, Lara Jean by Jenny Han (yes, two books are #3, but they're part of a series, and I read them right after one another)
Both books continue the amazing character-and-family-centredness of the first book, and I just love Lara Jean as a character and enjoy watching her go through life. Like, I would just watch a TV show/continue reading a series of books about her life, with or without romance. Also, though, I do love that not only do I want to read about Lara Jean regardless of Peter, but I would also be just as happy reading about her and John McClaren, and I feel like that's pretty rare where you read a romance, and you don't really prefer one leading man to the other (in my experience, anyway. #TeamPeeta). I want to write more about the perfect cozy utopia that is Lara Jean's world, but, most importantly, she inspired me to bake again! The chai cookies below were inspired by P.S. I Still Love You, and the+ chocolate chip cookies were inspired by Always and Forever, Lara Jean.
4. I'd Rather Be Reading by Anne Bogel
Such a charming and delightful book for readers! Now it's one of my life goals to live next to a library someday!
6 Posts This Month
I had 6 posts in September!
1. Happy 10th Blogiversary To Me!
I've been blogging here for 10 years!
2. August Wrap-Up
My very first monthly wrap-up post!
3. September Goals
My first monthly goal post!
4. Top Ten Books on My Fall 2018 TBR
I'd already finished some of my fall TBR by the time this topic rolled around!
5. Top Ten Books By My Favorite Authors I Still Haven't Read
A great reminder of books I still want to get to!
6. What I'm Reading
I'd just finished American Cake and was in the middle of The Goldfinch!
Favorite Post This Month
I really enjoyed writing my first wrap-up post!
5 Things I Baked This Month
1. Chai cookies
Reading about Lara Jean reminded me how much I love to bake, and also that, like Lara Jean, I'm a stress baker. In P.S. I Love You, Lara Jean bakes chai cookies, and I literally stopped while reading it and decided to make cookies! I used My Baking Addiction's recipe and they turned out pretty well! Definitely avoid overbaking even a little though if you like the chewy center like I do.
2. Chocolate chip cookies
In Always and Forever, Lara Jean, Lara Jean searches for the perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe, as I think every American baker (myself included) does. I used this recipe from Sally's Baking Addiction, but, like Lara Jean does in the book, I used parchment paper instead of baking mats.
3. Chocolate bread pudding
We had a surfeit of leftover challah from Rosh Hashanah, so I decided to make bread pudding! We had enough to make this chocolate recipe from Sally's Baking addiction, and the savoury as well.
4. Savoury bread pudding
I wanted to make a savoury bread pudding, but I didn't have all the ingredients, so I ended up adapting this Spinach and Cheese Strata recipe from Smitten Kitchen. Basically, I made it without the spinach, and it turned out well!
5. Chess pie
I really wanted to try making chess pie for the first time, so I started out with this recipe. Although I was careful to follow the instructions exactly, mine ended up being runny and almost inedible in the middle, so I think I will try a different recipe/longer bake time next time.
3 Things That Happened In My Life This Month
1. I joined a synagogue! Technically, I joined in August, but I went for the first time as a member to High Holiday services. Now, just need to start taking advantage of the membership and doing activities/meeting people...
2. I went to the Baltimore Book Festival! I got to meet Charlie Jane Anders and ask her a question about All the Birds in the Sky, plus I got a (signed!) sampler of her upcoming new book, City in the Middle of the Night!
3. I submitted my first article for professional publication! I await further information soon.
1 Favorite Link This Month
1. Why You Need to Read Elizabeth Gaskell
The Female Scriblerian does an excellent job of explaining why you should read one of my favorite authors.
And, that's all, because I'm lazy, and that's the only thing I specifically bookmarked for this purpose last month.
Books I've Read This Month
- The Soul of America by Jon Meacham
- I'd Rather Be Reading by Anne Bogel
- P.S. I Still Love You by Jenny Han
- Always and Forever, Lara Jean by Jenny Han
- Wade in the Water by Tracy K. Smith
- The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
- American Cake by Anne Byrn
- Chasing Harry Winston by Lauren Weisberger
- Art of the Pie by Kate McDermott
- The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
How I doubted myself! I beat August's 8, no problem (including a book of poetry, two cookbooks, and a YA novel-in-poetry but ALSO INCLUDING THE GOLDFINCH at 784 pages).
Okay, I can't choose just one (or three), but I definitely did have a favorite:
1. The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
Even in a month of excellent reads, The Goldfinch stands out. The 2014 Pulitzer Prize was well deserved for this exquisitely written, perfectly plotted meditation on the value of objects and the people who love them. I realized that's why I love books about art: even though paintings are not my favorite medium, I'm a person who deeply values and appreciates objects (in my case, often books), and I empathize with characters with similar sensibilities. The Goldfinch illustrates how objects can transcend and transform human lives.
2. American Cake by Anne Byrn
This is the history of American cake. From pound cake to Shoofly pie, from pineapple upside down to tres leches, this book does an amazing job of situating cake in its historical context and I literally salivated over the detailed research, not to mention the recipes and photographs of luscious cakes. This is a must-buy for anyone halfway serious about American baking traditions. Can't wait to start using the recipes!
3. P.S. I Still Love You and Always and Forever, Lara Jean by Jenny Han (yes, two books are #3, but they're part of a series, and I read them right after one another)
Both books continue the amazing character-and-family-centredness of the first book, and I just love Lara Jean as a character and enjoy watching her go through life. Like, I would just watch a TV show/continue reading a series of books about her life, with or without romance. Also, though, I do love that not only do I want to read about Lara Jean regardless of Peter, but I would also be just as happy reading about her and John McClaren, and I feel like that's pretty rare where you read a romance, and you don't really prefer one leading man to the other (in my experience, anyway. #TeamPeeta). I want to write more about the perfect cozy utopia that is Lara Jean's world, but, most importantly, she inspired me to bake again! The chai cookies below were inspired by P.S. I Still Love You, and the+ chocolate chip cookies were inspired by Always and Forever, Lara Jean.
4. I'd Rather Be Reading by Anne Bogel
Such a charming and delightful book for readers! Now it's one of my life goals to live next to a library someday!
6 Posts This Month
I had 6 posts in September!
1. Happy 10th Blogiversary To Me!
I've been blogging here for 10 years!
2. August Wrap-Up
My very first monthly wrap-up post!
3. September Goals
My first monthly goal post!
4. Top Ten Books on My Fall 2018 TBR
I'd already finished some of my fall TBR by the time this topic rolled around!
5. Top Ten Books By My Favorite Authors I Still Haven't Read
A great reminder of books I still want to get to!
6. What I'm Reading
I'd just finished American Cake and was in the middle of The Goldfinch!
Favorite Post This Month
I really enjoyed writing my first wrap-up post!
5 Things I Baked This Month
1. Chai cookies
Reading about Lara Jean reminded me how much I love to bake, and also that, like Lara Jean, I'm a stress baker. In P.S. I Love You, Lara Jean bakes chai cookies, and I literally stopped while reading it and decided to make cookies! I used My Baking Addiction's recipe and they turned out pretty well! Definitely avoid overbaking even a little though if you like the chewy center like I do.
2. Chocolate chip cookies
In Always and Forever, Lara Jean, Lara Jean searches for the perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe, as I think every American baker (myself included) does. I used this recipe from Sally's Baking Addiction, but, like Lara Jean does in the book, I used parchment paper instead of baking mats.
3. Chocolate bread pudding
We had a surfeit of leftover challah from Rosh Hashanah, so I decided to make bread pudding! We had enough to make this chocolate recipe from Sally's Baking addiction, and the savoury as well.
4. Savoury bread pudding
I wanted to make a savoury bread pudding, but I didn't have all the ingredients, so I ended up adapting this Spinach and Cheese Strata recipe from Smitten Kitchen. Basically, I made it without the spinach, and it turned out well!
5. Chess pie
I really wanted to try making chess pie for the first time, so I started out with this recipe. Although I was careful to follow the instructions exactly, mine ended up being runny and almost inedible in the middle, so I think I will try a different recipe/longer bake time next time.
3 Things That Happened In My Life This Month
1. I joined a synagogue! Technically, I joined in August, but I went for the first time as a member to High Holiday services. Now, just need to start taking advantage of the membership and doing activities/meeting people...
2. I went to the Baltimore Book Festival! I got to meet Charlie Jane Anders and ask her a question about All the Birds in the Sky, plus I got a (signed!) sampler of her upcoming new book, City in the Middle of the Night!
3. I submitted my first article for professional publication! I await further information soon.
1 Favorite Link This Month
1. Why You Need to Read Elizabeth Gaskell
The Female Scriblerian does an excellent job of explaining why you should read one of my favorite authors.
And, that's all, because I'm lazy, and that's the only thing I specifically bookmarked for this purpose last month.
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