glitter and glue by Kelly Corrigan

I was first drawn to this book by the title because who doesn't like glitter and glue, right? When I learned that the title actually described the way her mother felt her role  in the family was vs. that of the father's, it made total sense. Kelly has a way with words and made her father come to life on the pages. On the other hand, she communicated well her mother's role and behavior in their family's life. It took her going on her big adventure and having to take a money gathering break to have time to reflect on how much she was in fact like her mother in so many ways! Growing up we spend so much time invested in our own thoughts and ideas and often it takes a life changing situation to open our eyes and help us to see life through the eyes of others. Kelly made me stop and think about my own mother and our relationship through the years. It is so true that mothers are very often the glue that holds the family together and takes care of the mundane day to day needs and is often the serious one who keeps track of who is going where and when that there's no energy left to be shiny like glitter!

There are those who have reviewed this book thinking that something was missing. I think maybe they haven't reached a point in their lives yet where they can relate to the family roles described here. I loved the book and wanted to read on and see what would happen next. That's the mark of a good book in my view!

Sous Chef by Michael Gibney

For all of the foodies out there, this is the book to read! Michael Gibney takes you on a station by station tour of the kitchens that prepare your food in all restaurants - whether it is an upscale dining establishment or a neighborhood eatery. The bottom line is that the way food is prepared in a restaurant is far different from the way we put our meals together for our families. Attention to first the workplace, then the tools and finally the ingredients is painstaking, if done properly. I have a newfound respect for all of the chefs and the kitchen staffs in the preparation of my lone order. The night they had 300 expected for the evening was incredible, scary and amazing all at the same time. It's unbelievable that one small restaurant could achieve service (high quality at that) to so many diners in one evening with a small crew working behind the doors of the kitchen! Bravo Mr. Gibney for taking us on this tour!

I must say that the book did start out slowly as I referenced in a prior posting but it soon had me under its spell to keep reading to find out more and more about the journey of our food from start to finish!

Slow going... Sous Chef is great for foodies but...

I was extremely excited to be given access to this book. So far, it is not what I expected but I'm going to give it a little more time. There aren't many books that I just can't tackle. Here's hoping it isn't one of them!

Time to post on great books!

Ever since living in Italy when I started to download books through NetGalley, I have had the goal to enjoy reading some great books and sharing my thoughts on my blog. I have done a few reviews but not enough to really do justice to the great writers that are represented by the galleys on NetGalley. Starting this week, I plan to blog about at least one book every week. Free books are great but need to be read and not just loaded into my Kindle library. I don't know about you but these digital books are just like digital pictures - you take one but then it is gone in a blip of time and takes up space but you lose the memory of it quickly. These reviews will help me remember the words and stories that others have shared!  The first book to be read and reviewed is Sous Chef.