Dear Readers,
Happy New Year and welcome to 2022. We've given up on predictions and plans and with that comes a strange sense of freedom. Knowing you can't control the future is an evergreen concept that feels especially relevant right now. So before we dive into all the exciting upcoming events and new goodness on the shelf, here's a beautiful reflection on a bookish life well-lived.
If you'll allow me a brief trip down memory lane: many years ago, I worked at a nonprofit called the Robin Hood Foundation. Back then we were housed in a fairly small office above The Strand. To get to our decidedly un-fancy offices one took a very small elevator that also serviced several floors of the storied bookstore, thus ensuring your lift companion was, more often than not, a bookseller. I don't remember many conversations but I do remember gazing at the employees with wonder, thinking it must be an extraordinary thing for ones life work to be the business of books. One particularly distinctive bookseller I often shared a ride with wore a tin funnel on his head. Day in and day out he wore that makeshift cap and a contented almost smile that suggested he was exactly where he was supposed to be, no matter any questioning glances thrown his way. Fast forward to New Years Eve 2021 when I stumbled across an obituary about the longest-tenured bookseller at The Strand. As I read about this treasured bookseller, Ben McFall, memories of those days lost in the stacks after work and elevator rides with eclectic booksellers came flooding back.
All of this is to say: just like Ben McFall, who "never had an official position [...] Ben's title was 'Ben'" my hope for 2022 is that while we navigate uncertain waters we may all engage in pursuits that exemplify who we are through and through, no title or explanation needed.
Now, for what's below: with some of us spending a few extra days at home due to 2022's gift that keeps on giving (we're looking at you big Oh-no-MICRON), this week's Friday Five is all about domestic pursuits. New events abound and some fine new releases as well. As always, we'd love to see you on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
Be well, be YOU —
Page
|
|
Charity Morgan
in conversation with Ereka Vetrini
Unbelievably Vegan
Thursday, January 20
7PM
|
|
Barrett Bookstore and The Corbin District are THRILLED to welcome chef Charity Morgan to Darien for a LIVE, IN-PERSON event. Charity will be joined in conversation by Darien resident and wildly popular food blogger Ereka Vetrini. This event will take place at Caffè Nero. Tickets required for attendance and include a copy of Charity's new cookbook, Unbelievably Vegan: 100+ Life-Changing, Plant-Based Recipes.
|
|
Indra Nooyi
My Life in Full: Work, Family, and Our Future
w/Ferguson Library
Monday, February 7
6PM
|
|
Erik Larson
The Splendid and the Vile
w/Darien Community Association
Tuesday, February 15
7PM
|
|
T he first days of the year can feel oddly quiet after the holiday rush; earlier this week after bookseller Robin and I filled the space with a verbal tennis match of "what did you read over the holiday" we found we had extra time to cover "what did you watch?" Robin mentioned The Lost Daughter which I'd been eyeing but hadn't yet checked off my list. A recent NYTimes interview with director Maggie Gyllenhaall in which she got real about women's writing and filmaking ("It is about the domestic, and it does include a lot of scenes in the kitchen. Can stories about the domestic really be seen as high art? Because to me it's an opera") popped the film to the top of my queue. Now that this extraordinary film is in my rearview mirror, I'm picking up the book.
Next up on the domestic homefront, I recently listened to the The Secret History of Home Economics over the break (via our indie audiobook partner Libro.fm) and you guys, this book is really something. I guarantee it's not what you are expecting. Emiko Tamagawa, a senior producer for NPR's Here and Now mentioned in on the radio during a rundown of 2021 favorites and my interest was immediately piqued. I have a whole new level of respect for the early pioneers in home economics whose lot included scientists, mathematicians, savvy marketers, businesswomen, and most fascinatingly, the OG influencers.
Next up, a quiet post-holiday week reacquainted me with my kitchen. I love to cook but I find during this particular season of life working and mothering sometimes push homemade dinners off the priority list. Spotted on a couple "best of 2021" lists was a new-to-me (and the store) cookbook 30-Minute Indian. Penned by home cook and Great British Bake Off alumna Cheta Makan, it's filled with easy-to-execute Indian dishes, new and old. I'm starting with Paneer and Pea Masala, Sweet and Sour Lentils and the Cheese and Chili Naan. Hold me accountable and ask me about it next time you're in!
Finally, this may be a bit of square peg in a round hole situation but my mind slots the final pick into this group of domestic reads quite nicely. A book I've had on my bedside table for months, The Hole was an easy afternoon read. Translated from Japanese, book delves into the psyche of a young woman who leaves the big city and a full-time job to join her husband after he's taken a new job in his small hometown. The couple moves in next to the husband's parents and the wife soon finds herself with endless amounts of idle time, leading her to question the value of home-based pursuits (among other things). This one is also on temporary backorder but will be on our recommended table as soon as it comes in. Drop me a line if you'd like to reserve a copy.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
