The Son by Philipp Meyer Review Book Review

The Son has been on my reading list for a while, it took a back seat while I was under a time crunch to finish  Brick Lane before our trip to London in November and The Orphan Master's Son for book club (which we just recently discussed... finally!).  I picked this one up just before the holidays and finished just after, with some concentrated time around New Year's to polish it off.  This happened to be the first book I finished in 2014 (perhaps the only at this point... ).

Synopsis: click here for Amazon's synopsis.

The Son is indeed a family saga spanning many generations.  I read this on my kindle and as a result, missed the schematic of the family tree in the beginning.  This left me to piece together the family tree in my own head, which turned out to be fun.  It took somewhere between 20 - 30% to piece it together.  There was only one relationship I misunderstood, which would have brought greater clarity had I known while I was reading, but I enjoyed rethinking through the course of events after learning the true relationship.

In the beginning, the story lines I thought I would be least interested in, turned out to be some of the more interesting ones in the end.  While it took almost 20% of the book to pick up, once it did, it kept going.  The chapters are structured such that they move backwards and forwards in time depending on the character of focus of the chapter.  At times this could be difficult to keep up with, especially in the beginning when I was a bit impatient and kept asking myself, well what the heck does Jeannie have to do with Eli, where do these darn characters connect. Once the connections were established it became more interesting to read character development one chapter at at time in this disjointed sort of manner.

Unfortunately I took too long to write this review and I'm having trouble recalling much more about this book.  While I enjoyed it and was able to finish it, it's not the great American novel its been touted as by other reviewers.  It's a good book and a good read if you're looking for something new, but not a must read.  I wouldn't bump anything off your reading list for this one.

Happy Reading!

Sarah B's Butternut Squash Lasagna from My New Roots

As of today, it's been a week and 2 days since we've been detoxing.  We're detoxing not by counting calories or cutting out all sugar, but by eating, whole foods, organic (as much as is humanly possible without breaking the bank!), and working on eliminating gluten, dairy and processed, preserved, and refined products (think: white sugar, stuff out of a can or jar with unknown ingredients, cooking beans and whole grains instead of using canned versions, etc.)... and the kicker... coffee.  We cheated on the coffee part a little bit and didn't give that up until week 2, but so far so good.  I've been able to fully replace coffee with this masala chai recipe!

Since starting this detox, the My New Roots blog has surprisingly become my new friend!  I was always slightly scared by Sarah B's recipes, they were a bit 'hippie' and awfully healthy sounding ... I always figured I wouldn't like the taste of any of her vegan friendly foods.  Much to my surprise (and pleasantly so), since starting this detox I have found a lot of week night friendly and tasty meals that are not only great for this detox, but will be great for general week night meals well after this detox is over.  Take a peak and don't be too scared... ease your way into the more 'hippie' ingredients if you're not into that stuff yet and you'll find Sarah B's blog quite useful!

Since this detox is 3 weeks long and we're doing it with friends (whose idea it was in the first place :D) who live nearby, I wanted to have a Saturday evening that was detox friendly, but still encouraged the spirit of sitting down together and having a meal.  Browsing through this blog I found Sarah B's recipe for Butternut Squash Lasagna (no, it does not use pasta noodles, tomato sauce, or an alfredo sauce) that I thought would be perfect for a Saturday night.

Ingredients:

For the butternut squash sauce:
2 butternut squash (about 2 kilos in total)
3-4 cloves of garlic
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 teaspoon of lemon juice
sea salt to taste

For the Celeriac 'Noodles':
600 g celeriac (yes, I weighed it out)
vegetable broth

Bean 'Bechamel'
2 cups of white beans (I used cannellini)
nutmeg grated to taste
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon lemon juice
pince of salt
1/4 cup of water (recipe indicates you could use up to 1/2 cup)

spinach

Directions:

Prepare each the Butternut Squash Sauce, Celeriac Noodles and Bean Bechamel separately.
Layer the lasagna starting with the celeriac noodles, followed by a thick layer of butternut squash sauce, followed by a thick layer of spinach, followed by a topping of the bean béchamel (this will be a little difficult to spread, drizzle it over the spinach), and repeat.  Have the last layer consist of the celeriac noodles and butternut squash sauce with a sprinkling of freshly ground black pepper.

Butternut Squash Sauce Directions:
1. Cut the squash in half and place on baking sheet.
2. Warm some coconut oil in the oven and bring to liquid form.  Once liquid, brush over the squash and sprinkle with sea salt.
3. Cook in the oven at 400F (200C) until soft, about 40 minutes.
4. Remove from oven and let cool.
5. Scoop out the the flesh and add to food processor or mixing bowl with remaining ingredients.  Process or mash (I used a potato masher) until a mixed thoroughly.  Season to taste.

Celeriac Noodles Directions:
1. Peel the celeriac root with a peeler.  Trim off the bottom roots.
2. Cut the noodles into think sheets, about 1cm thick. You can either keep the natural shape of the vegetable or shape it so that it makes square/rectangular sheets.
3. Braise sheets in vegetable broth for 3-5 minutes.  Cook until al dente, not mushy. Drain and set aside for use (save that vegetable broth for something else, you've just enhanced the flavor!)

Bean Bechamel Directions:
1.  Drain and rinse the beans (if canned, if cooking from dry beans cook to taste)
2. Put all ingredients and 1/8 cup of water in the food processor and blend.  Add more water up to 1/4 cup until desired consistency is reached.  It should be creamy, smooth and spreadable.

Once assembled, bake at 350F until all vegetables are warmed through and cooked to desired consistency.  All it to cool slightly and serve.

Here are some photos to share from our experience.

The full pan of 'lasagna'

My portion of dinner, it sort of fell apart, but it was yummy!

Anybody else out there on a diet after the holidays?  How's it going?  Are you trying anything you think you'll be able to maintain long term?

Happy Eating! 

On my nightstand

I hope everyone had a lovely holiday season and rang in the new year joyously.  Do you have any resolutions?  Mine are pretty standard, eat healthy, loose some weight, but I haven't acted on any of it yet with the exception of emailing to sign up for a yoga course in town.... I'm hopeful I can maintain it.  I'm not sure if I would call it a resolution, but I plan to continue blogging book reviews and keeping up with the literary world, it's been a great 6 months or so and I'm loving it!

So, what's on my nightstand for the next couple of weeks?

Well, happy news to report... I've finished my first book of the year, The Son by Philipp Meyer!  Woot!  It doesn't really count, because I started it last year, but it's the first in 2014!  I do intend to write a review, so stay tuned for that one.

Next book, as previously reported will be Curry: A Tale of Cooks and Conquerors by Lizzie Collignham, can't wait to get into that one!

I didn't pick up anything for our Egypt trip, so I won't be digging into this topic specifically unless, by chance, something interesting comes my way.  After Curry, I'm pretty much open, nothing next in line specifically, but the reading list is long.  There are a lot of 2013 books I'm waiting to go to paperback before I'll pick them up.  One trip we are hoping to take this spring is to Naples, any recommended reading on this region in Italy that you recommend?

Happy Reading in 2014!

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!

From our family to yours, wishing you a joyous holiday season and a happy new year! 

The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri

The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri

Synopsis (partially from Amazon)

… an extraordinary new novel, set in both India and America, that expands the scope and range of one of our most dazzling storytellers: a tale of two brothers bound by tragedy, a fiercely brilliant woman haunted by her past, a country torn by revolution, and a love that lasts long past death.

Born just fifteen months apart, Subhash and Udayan Mitra are inseparable brothers, one often mistaken for the other in the Calcutta neighborhood where they grow up.  But they are also opposites, with gravely different futures ahead. It is the 1960s, and Udayan—charismatic and impulsive—finds himself drawn to the Naxalite movement, a rebellion waged to eradicate inequity and poverty; he will give everything, risk all, for what he believes. Subhash, the dutiful son, does not share his brother’s political passion; he leaves home to pursue a life of scientific research in a quiet, coastal corner of America.

But when Subhash learns what happened to his brother in the lowland outside their family’s home, he goes back to India, hoping to pick up the pieces of a shattered family, and to heal the wounds Udayan left behind—including those seared in the heart of his brother’s wife.

My Review:

Through multiple reviews, I cautiously added this to my reading list suppressing my desire to order the book, knowing that I should wait for a while to pick it up at an affordable price.  Much to my surprise, I was elated when I received this book as part of birthday gift from my dear husband.  He sneakily picked it up during our weekend away in Paris with my father in law, and hid it from me throughout the entire trip.  Love it!

I have nothing but a rave review and praise for this book, I finished it in just one week! Jhumpa Lahiri is the author of my favorite book, The Namesake.  Maybe a cliché for the daughter of two Indian immigrants, but who cares… I relate to it so well, it’s a close mirror image to how I feel, how my own life has progressed.  The Lowlands is not the same, of course, but it’s so beautifully written, I found myself reflecting on passages, saving pages of a couple of these passages that evoked meaning for me, well after I was through the chapter. I did also find myself thinking about my parents on a couple of different occasions.  Sometimes I thought about what my own parents experienced between the 60-70s when they were growing up in India… what were those times like?  In other instances, I began to understand the complexity of what it means to let a child experience mistakes, regrets or grief and how difficult that might be.  I don’t have children, so maybe it’s in my head, but I appreciated the perspective Lahiri gave me. 

My only minor complaint about the novel was the huge swaths of time that were missing between various chapters.  The novel continues fluidly each time, and you most certainly do not need to know the events in between to love the book, but on occasion I found myself wishing that the picture was more fruitfully colored.  Perhaps a purely selfish desire… just because I loved the book so much.  I’m not sure you can really call this a complaint, but that’s it. 

The Lowland is a must-read Lahiri novel.  If you haven’t read Lahiri before, I highly recommend her as an author and especially recommend The Lowland. Lahiri has received much well-deserved praise for this novel and many book awards, all a credit to her enchanting writing abilities.  

On my nightstand

Last time I posted, I indicated I was in the middle of two books, one for the London trip and one for book club.  I finished reading both and have posted reviews for Brick Lane and will be posting a review for The Orphan Master's Son soon.

During the Thanksgiving holidays I celebrated my birthday and received a lovely novel from my husband called The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri.  I absolutely love this book and highly recommend it to anyone.  A review of this novel will be posted in a couple of days.    

So, currently I'm back to reading the Son by Philipp Seymour, which has been on my list for a while, about 15% of the way through this one and its beginning to pick up.  After that I will be reading a book called Curry: A Tale of Cooks and Conquerors by Lizzie Collignham, which I picked up while in London at the Foyles book store (scored a little first weekend of Christmas shopping discount!), very excited to get into this one.  It appears to be a history of curry, how it's evolved through the influences of other geographies.  Right up my alley! 

 

After these, I've not selected any novels.  Of course there are many on the list, but I'd like to pick something up for our upcoming trip to Egypt for the Christmas holidays.  Any recommendations? 

Happy Reading!

Brick Lane by Monica Ali Book Review

Synopsis from Amazon:

Still in her teenage years, Nazneen finds herself in an arranged marriage with a disappointed man who is twenty years older. Away from the mud and heat of her Bangladeshi village, home is now a cramped flat in a high-rise block in London's East End. Nazneen knows not a word of English, and is forced to depend on her husband. But unlike him she is practical and wise, and befriends a fellow Asian girl Razia, who helps her understand the strange ways of her adopted new British home.

Nazneen keeps in touch with her sister Hasina back in the village. But the rebellious Hasina has kicked against cultural tradition and run off in a 'love marriage' with the man of her dreams. When he suddenly turns violent, she is forced into the degrading job of garment girl in a cloth factory.

Confined in her flat by tradition and family duty, Nazneen also sews furiously for a living, shut away with her buttons and linings - until the radical Karim steps unexpectedly into her life. On a background of racial conflict and tension, they embark on a love affair that forces Nazneen finally to take control of her fate.

My Review:

I chose this book as a precursor to our London Trip over the Thanksgiving holidays.  I found it on a list somewhere on the internet (could not reproduce that link if I tried, perhaps part of the issue :P), but do not feel it was well suited for a first time London trip, mostly focused on the main city sights.  In fact, we did venture through Brick Lane one evening (as part of a Jack the Ripper tour) and were haggled by the bouncers, pushing us and offering discounts to eat in their restaurant.  Word of advice, don’t venture to Brick Lane in London without a restaurant recommendation, perhaps try something that doesn't have bouncers, go for the authentic experience … if there is one!

Back to the book and leaving behind the initial purpose for reading the book…. I still really struggled with this book.  It took a good 75% of the book to have any action; it wasn't until the very end I was compelled to keep reading to learn Nazneen’s choice.  There are large sections in the book that are letters written by Nazneen’s sister, Hasina in broken English.  As I reported previously, it was difficult to make my way through these passages.  At first it’s a nice touch, drawing you into the situation more, but after two letters or so of struggling to understand the real meaning, it’s insufferable.  Within the first extended section of Hasina’s letters, my progress through the book really slowed down.   

The book did have some highlights.  The style of writing Ali uses to describe the love relationship between Nazneen and Karim was unexpectedly beautiful.  The build up to their ‘union’ (so PC!), and the release of their hidden emotions (ugh, I’m terrible!) was poetically written without being cheeky (ha!) or slimy (it was an affair after all!).  I also really appreciated Ali’s development of Nazneen’s first daughter, Shahana, who reminded me of me. I was such a brat to my parents as a child and I wholly admit I had the ‘first child of immigrant parents’ syndrome (perhaps sometimes I still do :)), but I related to this young girl.  I wanted to hug her and tell her that while it sucks, it gets better and that she always had a confidant in me.  I’d like to think I would have sheltered her, protected her from making a regrettable choice.  On the other hand, who are we if we don’t learn from our mistakes and regrets? AH, life…

So, in all … well, shouldn't be a surprise, but I don’t recommend this book whether you are heading to London for the first time or are looking for a new book to read. It’s too slow and heavy for a light-hearted beach-read as well.  

Do you read books before going on vacation to prepare?  This is a relatively recent thing for me and so far I haven't chosen wisely.  How do you pick a book for an upcoming trip?