Last week was my craziest reading week ever – I was reading four books at the same time. Usually, I have at least two going. I like to read before bed, and I prefer light romances that won’t keep me tossing and turning. During the day, I read whatever I want. Last week I was also listening to an audiobook, which I haven’t finished yet. I have a hard time with audiobooks; my mind tends to wander.
I’ve never listened to a contemporary romance, and I was curious as to how I would handle it, especially ones with graphic sex scenes. I listened to all the Outlander (Diana Gabaldon) books and those held my attention, even though I had already read the print/digital version prior to listening. This has been an interesting experiment for me. So far, I think I’ve listened to most of it, but occasionally I find myself thinking about something else. Plus it takes so much longer to read a book by listening to it. I can read a typical contemporary romance in a few hours, and I’ve been listening for a couple of weeks now. I don’t listen every day, so that’s part of the problem, I guess. I was also reading Fourth Wing, a romantasy, while reading the other books, so that’s how I ended up reading four books at once. I don’t think I’ll be doing this again.
Book News
How anarchists in North Carolina rescued books banned in Florida
A bookshop in left-leaning Asheville is now sending children’s books back to the Sunshine State
Food News
I have tried making all sorts of different chocolate cakes. Not my favorite, but my family loves it. I finally found THE CAKE! This is the one that everyone loves best, family, friends, and co-workers. It’s called Beatty’s Chocolate Cake, and I got the recipe from the Barefoot Contessa herself, Ina Garten. I used Ghirardelli Majestic Premium Cocoa Powder and Trader Joe’s Pound Plus Dark Chocolate (the one in the brown wrapper, which is about 57% – the red wrapper is 72% so more bitter if that’s your preference.) I’ve tried so many other recipes, from Dorie Greenspan, Rose Levy Beranbaum, Deb Perelman, Claire Safitz, several from the New York Times cooking app, Bon Appetit, America’s Test Kitchen, etc. and this is, by far, everyone’s favorite. I don’t even love chocolate cake and I happily devoured this one. If you give it a try, please let me know!
Other News
My grandson’s first trip to DisneyWorld was a blast!
As always, thanks for reading, and stay safe.
Thanks to The New York Times and The Washington Post for allowing me to “gift” my readers with free access to these articles, a lovely perk for subscribers.
Stacy Alesi's BookBitch.com™ 