I Love To Read

One of my favorite things about our yellow house are the bookcases we built in our family room. They're packed with books, mostly of the cooking variety-arranged by subject. I treasure them all and use them daily. In an age when finding recipes online is so easy, holding a book can't be beat. I jot notes on the recipes about when it was made and for whom. A cookbook falling open to a page, smudged and sticky with remnants of the previous preparation brings comfort.

For as long as I can remember I have been a reader. As a kid I went to the old library in town often. An old historical home full of nooks and crannies and ornate detail it has since been replaced twice, and I am still wistful for the original. I loved the way that library smelled. Sometimes with an old edition, that smell rises from the pages and takes me back to those stacks.

These are fiction or biographical in genre that have enjoyed or am enjoying this summer. Plan Bee by Susan Brackney was a birthday gift from a thoughtful friend. It's the first year with my hive so I need all the insight into bees I can get so it was a perfect gift. Made From Scratch-Discovering the Pleasures of a Handmade Life is a collection of essays by Jenna Woginrich. A young woman longing for a simpler life and the the trials and tribulations of her search. Coop by Michael Perry is a another great read. His wit and observations make me chuckle every night. Also The Birdhouse Chronicles by Cathleen Miller, another back-to-the-country life story (there seems to be a theme here), set in rural Pennsylvania. Emily Franklin's Too Many Cooks - Kitchen Adventures with 1 Mom, 4 Kids, and 102 Recipes caught my eye and I couldn't rest until I bought it. It chronicles a year in her life and kitchen and efforts to raise her children to be good eaters. Many laughs especially if you live with children. Finally, the classic, A Tree Grows In Brooklyn by Betty Smith, is my summer novel pick. It'll be the perfect way to while away hours reading under the shade of a tree.