Sookie's Good-bye

It is with a bit of sadness that I write this blog and talk about the final Sookie Stackhouse novel.  Dead Ever After is the thirteenth novel in the series by Charlaine Harris and it ties up many loose ends.  I have enjoyed watching Sookie develop and grow into the strong woman character that she is now, and I will enjoy going back to the beginning and re-reading the first one, Dead Until Dark, in a few months.  Sookie Stackhouse is a waitress at Merlotte's, in the small Louisiana town of Bon Temps.  She is a telepath, and has spent her life trying to deal with her special ability, until vampires start "coming out" and co-existing with humans and paving the way for other supernatural beings (such as shapeshifters, werepanthers, werewolves, demons and fairies) to share their existence too.  Sookie dates a vampire and is introduced into this interesting world where her ability is appreciated by most supernatural beings.  The events of Dead Ever After  begin a few weeks after Deadlocked, the previous book, ends.  Sookie and her boss, Sam Merlotte, are trying to cope after Sookie brought Sam back to life, and life is bumpily moving along until Sookie's old waitress friend (who tried to murder her) is suddenly released from jail.  When she turns up dead after asking Sookie for her old job back, Sookie becomes the prime suspect in the murder.  Her group of friends bands together to help clear her name, while encountering twists and turns along the way.  Does Sookie end up with her past vampire flame, Bill Compton, her current vampire lover Sheriff Eric, werewolf Alcide or shapeshifter Sam?  I encourage you to read the book and discover for yourself!  Although the HBO series TrueBlood is based on these books, the books are much different than the television show.  Visit Charlaine Harris at www.charlaineharris.com and on facebook.com/Charlaine Harris to learn more about her writings.  I had the privilege of meeting Mrs. Harris at a Mississippi Library Association Conference several years ago and enjoyed spending my evening talking to her and discussing what would happen if HBO decided to bring her characters to life.  I wish her good luck as we say goodbye to Sookie Stackhouse--you will be missed!

In the words of Charlaine Harris from the dedication page of Dead Ever After :

This book is dedicated to the loyalreaders who have followed this series from beginning to end.  Some of you were reading the books before True Blood, and some came after, but you were all amazingly generous with your ideas, speculations, and votes on Sookie's future.  There isn't a way I could make all of you happy with the ending of the series, so I've followed my own plan, the one I've had all along, and I hope you agree that it's fitting.

Yummy!

     Anyone who knows me also knows that I LOVE cookbooks. For the past couple of weeks, I've been thumbing through two of the newer cookbooks we have here at the library. The first one is Hors d'Oeuvres: New Edition by Victoria Blashford-Snell and Eric Treuille.

This gem has more than 200 recipes and a slew of step-by-step sequences to show you how to create each delectable little morsel. Asian pork balls, marinated Mediterranean olives, roast beef with horseradish cream finger sandwiches, mini sticky orange cakes, triple chocolate biscottini, and Thai chicken skewers are just a few of the delicious and simple recipes this book offers. There are also handy "Cook's Note" sections located throughout the book to help with preparation. Probably my favorite features are the seasonal menu planners for parties as well as the "how much will I need" sections at the beginning. This is a great book to pick up if you are planning a shower, cocktail party, or just some nibbles with friends!

     The second book I've been perusing is called PIES: Sweet and Savory by Caroline Bretherton. As the title says, this book contains both sweet and savory pies as well as how-to sections on different kinds of pie dough (although, many recipes can be made with purchased dough). The recipes in this book are quite a bit more complicated than the above tome, but they are still pretty easy if you have done a bit of baking in your lifetime. You'll find recipes for chicken and cheese empanadas, shephard's pie, pot pie, quiche, chicken pasties, apple strudel, plum crumble, Normandy peach tart, cherry lattice pie, chocolate tart ...you get the picture! (Boy, I'm making myself hungry!) Now, check out one of these, or any of our myriad of cookbooks, and go cook somethin'!

 

Re-reading Old Favorites

     Back in high school, I found a love for spy stories and read the James Bond series by Ian Fleming.   Having recently come across the set again, I've started to re-read them again and am finding that the older me is getting as much if not more enjoyment out of them as the teenaged me did.  I've already re-read Goldfinger, Casino Royale and You Only Live Twice and am now in the middle of Thunderball.

     Some of the technology and world situations are, of course, rather dated, but for a series of books that were written around fifty years ago, they hold up very well and are still highly entertaining.  Next year will mark the 50th anniversary of the release of You Only Live Twice, the last Bond book published while Ian Fleming was still alive (The Man with the Golden Gun, Octopussy and The Living Daylights were all published posthumously).  If you've ever enjoyed a Bond movie, why not give one of the books a try?  Our library collection includes nine of the Bond series.

Super Foods for Pregnancy

Many of my friends and family members are expecting new additions to their families, and better nutrition during pregnancy is a frequent topic of conversation for us.  I discovered a book that the library owns, that is a great find for expectant moms!  Nutritionist Fiona Wilcock's Super Easy Drinks, Soups, and Smoothies for a Healthy Pregnancy describes quick and delicious meals on-the-go, that are packed with the nutrition that moms to be and babies need.  The cover of this fabulous book is very attractive, and it is filled with full-color photographs of the recipes.  Why is good nutrition while pregnant and breastfeeding, so important?  It has been proven that what happens during the nine months

that a woman is pregnant, is a major determinant of her baby's long-term health and what she eats and doesn't eat will have enormous consequences throughout the baby's life.  Unfortunately, due to the major hormone changes during pregnancy, many expectant women do not enjoy the smell of cooking, do not crave food any longer or are nauseous.  The idea behind this book was to help pregnant women maintain a good pregnancy diet even when she can't eat as she'd like to, by having nutrient-packed food in liquid form.  The first part of the book discusses why hydration is important and focuses on ingredients, nutritional quality and drink-making equipment needed.  The second part of the book contains recipes, and even a section on how to make homemade stocks and non-alcoholic cocktails!  This book is a wonderful tool and the recipes can be used by any person who enjoys eating flavorful smoothies and soups.

Celebrate Summer with Gardening

Crops in Pots:  How to Plan, Plant and Grow Vegetables, Fuits and Herbs in Easy-Care Containers by Bob Purnell is a great book for the aspiring gardener!  It is perfect for the home gardener who wants to get his/her feet into growing fruits and vegetables for snacks or meal time.  The book begins with a great section on how to grow plants from seed

and how to take care of them, including figuring out what to plant and how to fertilize them, and even a section on pests and diseases.  The rest of the book is divided into sections as to the type of food you want to grow--starters, main courses, and desserts.  Each type of plant shown has a picture of the plant, a detailed method on how to grow it and a recipe using the items you've grown.  One of my favorites is the "Select Salad" on page 68.  It's a main course, and combines an assortment of edible leaves, blooms and other unusual salad ingredients in a large growing pot.  This is a very accessible and easy-to-read book, perfect for beginning and seasoned gardeners.  The 50 planter projects contained in the book will yield delicious rewards, even if your gardening space is minimal!