Book Reviews

Rating System:

* Don’t!
** I could contain my enthusiasm.
*** I was entertained, but there are some problems.
**** I couldn’t put it down—a masterpiece!

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen: ****

I just read this for the first time, and I was not disappointed. In fact, it was shorter and easier to understand than I thought it would be. I hope to read many more of the great classics that I have missed and get back to you about them. It made me reflect a bit-- we live like the upper class of that day in many respects. Travel, entertainment, education, food... to name a few are American rights. Household employees, manners, and family honor are some things we have lost. I'm not condoning the class system, but it would be nice if I could have a cleaning lady. OK, more importantly, while reading the book I became more aware of my children's lack of manners, respect for elders, and general impertinence. I'm going to work on that. It also occurred to me that I could improve on some things as well. If we, as Americans, are going to live like kings, we should act like them too.

Mason-Dixon Knitting by Gardiner and Shayne: ****

Knit Lit at its best! This book is funny, informative, and inspirational. Now I just have to figure out which project to try first. Do yourself a favor and ask someone you know to teach you how to knit. It really isn't hard.

Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden: ***

A fascinating page-turner. I learned a lot about Japanese culture from this book. This is a love story with a very happy ending, considering the amount of tragedy and conflict the young geisha endures until that point. It takes place around World War 2 in Gion. It strikes me how much Christianity still affects our largely unbelieving culture when I compare it to this Buddhist culture that would sell young girls into slavery and prostitution. I learned that geishas are artists—dancers, conversationalists, entertainers. But the bottom line is: they are slaves.

The Princess Bride by Morgenstern, abridged by Goldman: *** ½

This was a delightful read. It is even funnier than the movie. Here’s the scoop on the abridgement: Goldman is the little boy in the movie whose grandpa reads the story to him. As a boy, his Sicilian father read him the ancient Italian book by Morgenstern. When Goldman’s son was ten, he found a copy (which was very hard to do and at a used bookstore), and gave it to his son. His son didn’t like it. Shocked, Goldman picked it up and quickly figured out why. His father had only read him the good parts. Morgenstern was a satirist who wove pages of often boring Florinese history into the story. So Goldman abridged it. He also wrote the screenplay of the movie, which follows the book very closely. There’s only one problem: he is way to attached to his baby. He keeps popping himself into it. Don’t you think the movie would be better if the little boy thing was cut? That’s how I feel about the abridgement, but even more strongly. He pops into it very frequently and even uses some profanity. There is none in the story-line (except when Inigo tells the six-fingered man he wants his father back, and that is mild.) So here’s what I recommend: whenever the font changes to indicate a comment by Goldman, skip it. I think I am going to reread it that way right now. Enjoy!

Anne of Green Gables by L.M Montgomery (the complete series) ****

It doesn’t get any better than this for fiction. Anne is the ultimate heroine. The language is difficult and a bit wordy at times for modern-day readers. I admit I picked it up as a teen and put it down because the vocabulary and setting descriptions lost me at times. Of course the movie changed everything. I picked it up again as an adult and devoured the complete series. I’m now reading it to the girls. The oldest two are really into it and asking me to read it to them. The series goes through Anne’s life until middle age and also offers plenty of funny scenes that didn’t make it into the movie. Highly recommended!

May Recipes

Broiled Herb Chicken with Lemon-Butter Sauce
Southern Living

1 t salt
1 t dried oregano
½ t garlic powder
½ t lemon pepper
½ t paprika
¼ t ground red pepper
1 (3-3.5lb) broiler-fryer, cut into pieces
Lemon-Butter Sauce

Combine 1 t salt and next 5 ingredients. Arrange chicken, skin side down, on a lightly greased rack in an aluminum foil-lined roasting pan. Sprinkle chicken evenly with 2 t. salt mixture. Broil 7-8 inches from heat 12 to 15 min. or until golden brown. Turn pieces, and sprinkle evenly with remaining salt mixture. Broil 8 to 10 min or until a meat thermometer registers 170 (white meat) and 180 (dark meat). Serve with Lemon-Butter Sauce.

Lemon-Butter Sauce:
3 T butter, melted
2 t grated lemon rind
2 t fresh lemon juice
1 t chopped fresh parsley

Stir all ingredients until blended and pour over chicken.

Cheese Grits

3 C water
¾ t salt
¾ C quick-cooking grits
¾ C shredded cheddar cheese
½ C scallions

Bring water and salt to boil in 2 qt. pan. Slowly stir in grits. Cover and cook on med.-low for 5 min., stirring occasionally, until thickened. Remove from heat; stir in cheese and scallions. Goes well with fish.

Cheesy Stuffed Shells

16 oz. low fat cottage cheese
10 oz. frozen chopped spinach, thawed, well drained
1 C shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
¼ C grated parmesan cheese
1 t Italian seasoning
20 jumbo pasta shells, cooked, drained
26 oz spaghetti sauce
1 large tomato, diced

Preheat oven to 400. Mix cottage cheese, spinach. ½ C mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese and Italian seasoning until well blended. Spoon 1 heaping tablespoon onto each past shell.
Pour half the spaghetti sauce into a 9 x 13 inch baking dish. Place shells, filled sides up, in baking dish. Spoon remaining sauce over shells; sprinkle tomato over top; cover with foil.
Bake 25 min. or till heated through; top with remaining ½ C mozzarella cheese. Bake, uncovered, 2 min. or till cheese is melted.

Citrus-Glazed Ham
Southern Living

1 (6-7 lb.) fully cooked, bone-in ham
30-32 whole cloves
1 (10 oz.) bottle orange juice-flavored soft drink (Orangina recommended)
1 ¼ C orange marmalade
½ C firmly packed light brown sugar
¼ C Dijon mustard

Remove skin from ham, and trim fat to ¼-inch thickness. Make ¼-inch-deep cuts in a diamond pattern, and insert cloves at 1-inch intervals. Place ham in aluminum foil-lined 9 x 13 in. pan.
Stir together soda and next three ingredients until smooth. Pour mixture evenly over ham.
Bake at 350 on lower rack for 2.5 hours, basting with pan juices every 20 min. Remove ham; let stand 15 min before serving. If desired, garnish with apple slices, orange slices, orange rind, and salad greens.