canadiangeese
January 2008 
 Duck's Cottage...Notes from the Pond
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Happy New Year!

I apologize for the tardiness this month but in addition to year-end inventory, post-holiday catch up, etc, etc... I had grand plans of redesigning Notes From The Pond. However, once the calendar flipped to this last week of January I decided the redesign unveil could wait. I contemplated skipping a month but then realized I had too much to share! Especially considering it's the dead of winter!
I am pleased to inform you that I am the 2007 recipient of the coveted 'Most Unusual Christmas Present' award and couldn't be happier about it! Jim and Marge (father-in-law and wife) gave me a silky soft stuffed-toy llama along with a card from The Heifer Project informing me that somewhere in this big wide world someone will be receiving a llama in my name. How many people do you know can say they got a llama for Christmas? I can! I can! And her name is..... DOLLY! Carry on...

 Between the Lines
 Reading Recommendations from the Cottage Shelves

waterfowl Every few months I go on a binge and next thing I know there is a huge stack of books I've burned through. I am in the midst of one of those times right now. You'll see what I mean in a minute. I mentioned that I was holding onto Pillars of the Earth for holiday reading. Well, I read it. Don't be intimidated by the size, the story is utterly captivating and pulls you right through all 973 pages in no time. It follows the medieval England exploits of three very different families, a variety of clergy- corrupt and innocent, the royal wranglings over the throne and the building of a cathedral over the course of fifty years. The interwoven plots and subplots are masterful and you can't keep your heart from getting involved with these people, no matter how bloody the fighting gets. Next on my list, Follet's long awaited (1,000+ pages!) follow-up, World Without End. I also breezed through Innocent Traitor, a novel by Alison Weir, best known for her Tudor non-fiction. Lady Jane Grey is one of my most favorite persons from English history (I even own a print of 'The Execution of Lady Jane Grey') and am always hungry for more information about her young, tragic life. Weir's well- researched book did not dissappoint and ranks right up there with Philippa Gregory's The Other Boleyn Girl for me. I had a lovely post-New Year's lunch with Carol Fitzgerald, Founder and President of The Book Report Network. Carol has declared 2008 to be the year of women's fiction (not to be confused with chick lit!) and is highly recommending two upcoming novels, The Opposite of Love (Julie Buxbaum, Jan 28) and Souvenir (Therese Fowler, Feb 12). (FYI, well-read Cottage customer Linda Nave read the advance Carole gave me of The Opposite of Love and it passed her review with flying colors!) Carol has asked me to be a guest blogger on her website every month- I'll pass along the details when I have them!
A few more books getting ready to hit the stands that I can personally recommend are Charlatan: America's Most Dangerous Huckster, the Man Who Pursued Him and the Age of FlimFlam (Pope Brock, Feb. 5). Think of this as Devil in the White City meets snake oil salesman. Lots of interesting info about the origins of the AMA, AM radio, Wolfman Jack and the many things purported to be cured by having a goat's gland transplanted into... well, I'll let you guess where. I also enjoyed another long title- All Shall Be Well; And All Shall Be Well; And All Manner of Things Shall Be Well (Tod Wodicka, Jan. 29). A bit hard to describe, but suffice it to say that if you liked The Epicure's Lament or Confederacy of Dunces you'll love the obsessive medieval re-enacting protagonist, Burt Hecker (aka Eckburt Attquiet) and I'm willing to bet you track down a Hildegard Von Bingen CD soon, too.
Also included in my reading streak was a mini-binge on Cormac McCarthy. It started with No Country for Old Men which had me on the edge of my seat for two days. I hadn't picked up Mccarthy in awhile and was reminded of the wonderful spells he casts. This was worthy of all the praise it received both as a book and as a movie (which I saw as well). Next I whipped through The Road, his most recent apocalyptic novel. Yes, it was just as dark and depressing as everyone said it was, at the same time it was simply marvelous. What imagination! What insight! What a world of @$*& we'll be in if we ever get nuked! McCarthy's books are my MUST READS for this month.
Now I'm reading David Sedaris for the first time- Me Talk Pretty One Day. Love listening to him on NPR and reading him is pretty funny as well (especially since I can hear his voice in my head reciting the words on the page). Caroline took in his show in Norfolk recently and recommends him in person as well. Here's what's coming up next on my stack- The Omnivore's Dilemma, Love in the Time of Cholera, Evening and Terrorist. And those are just the titles I can think of off the top of my head! What's on your pile?

Visit the No Country for Old Men movie site... 


 Duck's Cottage Reading Group
 The Latest

cholera There's a lot to report from the Duck's Cottage Reading Group. In December we read Ruth Reichl's Garlic and Sapphires which was well received all around. This book is part memoir, part food writing as Reichl focuses on her tenure as food critic at The New York Times, sprinkling the tome with actual reviews, anecdotes from her experiences dining incognito and memories of great meals enjoyed with family and friends. An ideal selection for any group with foodie tendencies. We also had a book exchange which proved a wonderful way to end a year of great reading. Each member brought a wrapped book, described it for the group without revealing title or author, and the reason why they chose it for the exchange. We then placed the books in a pile, drew numbers and took turns selecting the book that had most intrigued us. Interestingly, everyone claims to have gotten exactly the book they wanted! Titles exchanged were- The City of Falling Angels (John Berendt), Pure Sea Glass (Richard LaMotte), To Kill A Mockingbird (Harper Lee), Collected Novels of John Steinbeck, Gift from the Sea (Anne Morrow Lindbergh), Miss Julia Speaks Her Mind (Ann B. Ross) and Letters from Eden: At Home, In The Woods (Julie Zickefoose). The group has exacted from me a promise to make the exchange an annual event!
Last week, our discussion was of Whistling in the Dark, a gem of a book by Lesley Kagan. Whistling takes place in 1959 Milwaukee and tells the story of the O'Malley sisters, Troo and Sally (8 and 10). Their father has died, they have a new alcoholic stepfather, an older sister consumed by boys and hair, an arthritic grandmother and a street chock-full of kids running pell mell everywhere. When their mother goes into hospital for a simple operation then catches a staph infection which keeps her there for weeks on end, the girls are left to their own devices which, coupled with the mysterious summer murders of neighborhood girls, provides page after page of scenes ranging from tender to funny to suspense-filled. For more about our discussion, see below.
We just selected our next six books: Love in the Time of Cholera (Gabriel Garcia Marquez), Hope & Other Dangerous Pursuits (Laila Lalami), River Town: 2 Years on the Yangtze (Peter Hessler), A Thread of Grace (Mary Doria Russell), The Canning Season (Polly Horvath), and a current must-read among book groups nationwide, Eat, Pray, Love (Elizabeth Gilbert).
From our book club to yours, Happy Reading!

 


 Flotsam & Jetsam
 Footnotes from life at a coffeeshop

single goose The biggest thing to hit the Outer Banks in years is actually across the bridge... the IceHaus at the Weeping Radish Brewery in Currituck is the first ice skating facility in the area and has been a popular spot since its December opening... located beneath an enclosed tent, the rink has provided hours of fun for local kids, families and even pond hockey players! Great idea- thanks IceHaus!... North Beach Outfitters has changed hands... George and Sandy Keefe have handed the reins over to Dan and Lynn Lane but we know you'll still find the same great selection of outdoor apparel and gear sold by the same friendly staff... I am racking up some points with my Project Runway Fantasy team- I've moved up to 3,751 place!... a must see: No Country for Old Men... Chris, Jim, Marge and I drove to Norfolk to see this great flick... it's almost enough to make me start seeing movies adapted from books again... then I remember The Accidental Tourist... the swans and geese are back in the Sound and occassionally we even catch sight of an otter!... so Starburnt is now going to give free refills? we've always had free refills on brewed coffee! ... we spent a night in DC right after Christmas and, on the recommendation of friend Danny Purcell, had lunch at the cafeteria of the American Indian Museum...no boring institutional food here!... a bounty of great dishes featuring ingredients native to the Western Hemisphere awaits with much to choose from- Buffalo burgers, spicy stuffed poblanos, brunswick stew, an awesome three sisters squash dish w/cashews, all sorts of unconventional breads... a simply brilliant and refreshing dining experience- check it out next time you're on the Mall... we also enjoyed another fine meal at McCormick and Schmick's on F Street (I know, who leaves the beach to eat seafood?)... we got an incredible deal on a room at L'enfant Plaza...if you're heading to DC, be sure to check for any specials there before booking elsewhere... it's an easy stroll to the Mall, the Metro runs just below it and you can literally watch planes take off and land at the airport... our kids loved it!... we have a new favorite restaurant in Norfolk, too... we recently discovered Bobbywood, just a block from MacArthur Center...we've been there twice and the food is distinctively delicious... chef Bobby Huber's take on calamari has ruined me for the dish anywhere else... we love the 'spoons'- perfect little amuse bouche like Tuna Tartare Avocado Mousse, Leek Fondue or, Charlie's favorite, Baby Mac N'Cheese w/Rock Shrimp.... you'll flip over the wine list and Sarah highly recommends anything chocolate for dessert.... so that should have everybody either eating well on their next travels or.... hungry now!!

Check out Bobbywood! 


 A Discussion with Lesley Kagen
 A Reading Group exclusive!

lesleykagen Several months ago I received a very curious e-mail in the Duck's Cottage inbox. It was from a woman named Lesley Kagen who happened to be the author of a book, Whisting in the Dark which was an upcoming selection of the Duck's Cottage Reading Group. (She found this out via our website.) Lesley was thrilled we had chosen her book and graciously offered to join our meeting via telephone. So at this week's discussion, we were treated to a chat with the author!
Lesley was amazing and spent over an hour speaking with us. We asked her lots of questions about her novel, the writing process and more. We found out the initial printing of Whistling was for 7,000. A fairly small run. But never underestimate the power of word of mouth, book clubs and independent booksellers (there are over 140,000 copies in print today). People starting reading the book... and loved it. What's not to love? Kagen captures the atmosphere of 1959 Milwaukee seen through the eyes of a ten year old girl with precision. We asked her- was it hard to maintain the voice of a child throughout the book? She replied because the book has a lot of autobiographical attributes, it was almost like writing from her subconscience and that she actually misses Troo and Sally, the O'Malley sisters at the heart of the book. When asked which authors she was most influenced by she reeled off a list of names including Harper Lee, Joshilyn Jackson, Pat Conroy and Robert Parker. We asked her what she is reading right now and she mentioned The Kindness of Strangers (Katrina Kittle) and went on to say that she enjoys 'literary fiction that isn't too literary. I don't want to read too many pages describing a tree'.
Kagen grew up in Milwaukee but then moved to Los Angeles where she remained for quite a few years, doing voice-overs, writing commercials, meeting and marrying her husband. 'I knew once we had kids, I wanted to go back to the Midwest to raise them.' Which they did. In addition to raising a daughter (now in law school) and son (who she calls a great editor), continuing to do commercial work and finally finding time to sit down and write, Lesley and her husband own and manage Hama 'the best sushi restaurant in town'. Busy lady!
Lesley has a new novel coming out in August called Land of a Hundred Wonders. It is set in Kentucky (seems Kagen has a deep affinity for and attraction to the south!) and she proclaimed to be even more infatuated with the female protagonist of this novel than she was with the O'Malley sisters. She also shared that 'This is much more of a drop dead mystery than Whistling was.'
Thanks again, Lesley, for providing such a magical evening for our book group! We can't wait for August!

Visit Lesley on the web... 


 


The first month of '08 is almost over, the school year's half-way done, 6 weeks until Spring Solstice, Daylight Savings Time returns March 9 (whoo-hoo!) AND... Memorial Day is ONLY 115 days away!!! Enjoy the Winter while you can and in the meantime, think SUMMER!

Jamie Layton

jamie
Jamie Layton
Duck's Cottage

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