Five Things to Tell You Vol. 40
a podcast appearance, three amazing reads, baking and more!
Well, hello there! So happy to see you today!
Before we dive into the main newsletter today, I must share that 1) I was on Suzanne’s podcast again! Listen to our conversation, and if you’re in the general Wisconsin-ish area … 2) prepare to come and see us TOGETHER in conversation on October 4th in Madison during a stop on Suzanne’s book tour!
WHEN: Saturday, October 4th at 1:00
WHERE: Ivy & Ink Book Boutique @ 2134 Regent St, Madison, WISober Social, Wisconsin’s first NA Bottle Shop, will be set up there as well! If you’re in the area, or willing to drive, we’d love to see you …
Now, please just settle in with your favorite snack and let’s dive in …
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One of my very favorite fiction niches is the thorny combination of technology + ethics + humanity, and while I often am not quite sure who to recommend these books to (besides always Laura Gardner!), I desperately want to share them all with you today.
These three recent reads are so very much of this exact moment, and they beg to be read IN this exact moment. Don’t sleep on these.
Moderation by Elaine Castillo will definitely not be for everyone, particularly because of the graphic descriptions of horrible things online in the first chapterish. However, after that, this is a unique, slow burn romance set in the Las Vegas tech world with one of the most fierce female protagonists I have read. I am in awe.
Information Age by Cora Lewis is a slim little novel(la?) that I had to buy directly from the publisher, but the effort was well worth it. I was left gasping at line after line with the sheer brilliance and cleverness of Lewis’ writing and her depiction of life in early 20s and the ever-evolving media industry. I gave my copy to my daughter alredy, so I can’t share any quotes here, but you can read a taste of the original story in The Yale Review.
Culpability by Bruce Holsinger is the most universally recommendable title of these three, and I finally read it despite the Oprah Book Club thing. I adored the thorny ethical issues brought up throughout the book surrounding AI and parenting, and so appreciated a family fiction story with a brilliant neurodivergent mother and slightly bumbling father rather than the typical reverse. Written by a MAN, no less.
Yes, I have tried other options than Goodreads. Yes, I quit shopping at Amazon and detest everything about the company and owner.
But damn, I just love Goodreads so much and am so grateful that Angelina Mazza at Slate agrees with me.
Most importantly, Goodreads is still where people go to talk about books. I read a lot of romance, a genre often sidelined in mainstream literary coverage, and it is here, on this ugly, broken website, that I find smart and serious conversations about the books I love. Being on Goodreads feels like belonging to a massive, asynchronous book club made up of roughly 150 million friends—plus Roxane Gay, Lucy Dacus, and possibly Luigi Mangione. Sure, some of those friends have really bad opinions, but that’s how real-world book clubs work, too. And while sleeker, more user-friendly alternatives exist—the StoryGraph, for instance, boasts 3.8 million active users—none rival Goodreads in scale or sway. The site, vast though it is, preserves a bloggy intimacy that feels increasingly rare, a holdover from a simpler, less centralized internet. (go read the full piece!)
While visiting my daughter in Madison last weekend, we walked and explored the amazing neighborhood that she lives in, and visited THREE fabulous indie bookstores all within blocks of her house. Oh, and a branch of the Madison Public Library too ~ her neighborhood is my dream literary home!
If you happen to be visiting Madison, WI, or want to support these stores online, definitely check them out:
Ink & Ivy Book Boutique (this is where my event with Suzanne is being held!)
I bought so many books ~ yay for shopping local!
In baking news, I’m on a ROLL! Last weekend I made two new-to-me recipes and had delicious snacks this week AND stashed a bunch in the freezer for weeks when I don’t have as much time.
The recipe for these Lunchbox Harvest Muffins says they take 35 minutes but DO NOT be fooled. They were much more time consuming for me since the grating of the carrots, apples, and zucchini for a double batch took me so long, but the healthy, hearty, yummy result was well worth the time. I look forward to having these for my car breakfasts along with my smoothie on the way to work. I ended up grating enough extra zucchini and carrots to freeze for my next double batch of these, which I know future me will VERY much appreciate! I made regular size muffins, not mini.
And this Sour Cream Coffee Cake is SO MOIST, and it was a super fast one to mix up and bake when we got home from the Labor Day Parade. The 9×13 size makes it great for having plenty of leftovers for the freezer!
One more kitchen-related thing! I promise this won’t become (only) a kitchen newsletter, but I do need to inform you that I have finally made the transition to glass food storage about oh, a decade after I was supposed to, and 15 years after my sister did.
It was just so hard to justify getting RID OF plastic stuff that still worked! Good news on that front is that my husband is resisting this change, so is still using the old Rubbermaid. We both win I guess???
Anyway, I knew I wanted Pyrex because I love all of my other Pyrex (baking dishes, bowls) and it’s a brand I know and trust. I found this set on sale at Kohl’s and also grabbed more of this size as well. I am figuring out that I still need some bigger sizes, but I’ll add those slowly over time.
I also have these from Target, but ended up taking the rubber thingies off the bottom because water ended up getting trapped in them and the tops make them a lot bulkier than I like in my lunchbag. The Pyrex tops are a lot more streamlined.
A bonus to this switch is that I’m getting a strength workout in just toting my lunchbag to work - it’s SO HEAVY now. Ha!
That’s all for this week ~ thanks for reading! Please feel free to reply to this email or use the link below to leave a comment to chime in about any of these things, or to share one of your own things ♡
Thanks for stopping by!
Ah, lovely Madison! Haven't been in forever. We made it to Chicago, but the trip stopped there (my husband did go to Minocqua this summer).
Here for all the Pyrex content! Unfortunately they last forever, and my ratty lids continue to last. I have no excuse for a set.
Happy weekend!
Hooray for Chicago and Minocqua ~ the latter is near where I grew up :-) And I'm hoping my Pyrex lasts me the rest of my life ... it would be delightful to never had to think of this again!