Two More Books

So I bought a ton of books recently, because the local Borders is going out of business (sob!).  I've finished two of them.

I started Real World by Natsuo Kirino first.  It was described as a feminist noir, and was translated from Japanese.  Four teenage girls suspect one of their next door neighbors of murder, and then things get more complicated--or so the back of the book said.  It sounded really exciting and up my alley, but it was not what I'd imagined.

First of all, there's really no question that Worm, the boy who lives next door to Toshi, has murdered his mother.  Beyond that, though, I'd imagined that the girls would be trying to solve the crime.  Instead, they rather randomly, passively support Worm's efforts to get away.  And it's never really explained! I mean, I suppose they sort of justify some of their behavior, but I never, ever felt like Toshi and her friends were in any way like myself or people I've met.  I couldn't understand their motives, and what's more, I didn't care too much about them.  The reader is told differences between the girls (Kirarin is sweet, Terauchi is smart and sarcastic, etc.) but they're never really demonstrated.  It was like "tell, don't show" was the maxim.

The other book I read was An Unquiet Mind by Kay Redfield Jamison.  Dr. Jamison is a professor of psychiatry at Johns Hopkins, and also has bipolar disorder.  An Unquiet Mind is the story of how she learned to deal with the disease, and how it's informed her work as a psychotherapist.  I find well-written books about psychological disorders fascinating, and this one definitely was.  It balances stories of what she did while manic or depressed, how the disorder is treated, and how it changed her life.  I appreciated that it wasn't just "here is messed up stuff about my life." She actually synthesized her experiences and reached important questions.

Whoa, I just saw my purple Donna Morgan dress on a Burlington Coat Factory commercial, on a woman loaded down with shopping bags from their fabulous sale or whatever.  

Cloud Atlas movie

Apparently the Wachowski siblings (who directed The Matrix, among other things) are going to direct a movie version of the book Cloud Atlas, which I adore.  Tom Hanks is set to star in it, but I don't know who he would play - Adam Ewing (from the first section) maybe? 

You can read the article here

Eagle Cam

My aunt just told me about a live camera feed on two eagles that have had some eagle babies recently.  Their nest is in Decorah, Iowa.  This particular couple has been together for several years and has already raised some kids together.  They seem to have a good thing going.  Bring home a dead rabbit, sit on the kids, fly around - it works for them.

Check out the cam!

A movie and a book

I watched the movie "Mystery Team" tonight.  It's about a trio of eighteen-year-olds who, as kids, started a detective agency in the Encyclopedia Jones mold, and are still running it.  People in town think they're weird, since they're now pretty much adults, but still try to solve cases like finding a missing autographed baseball or discovering who stole a carton of milk from the lunch line.  Then an eight-year-old girl hires them to find out who killed her parents.

Most of the jokes come from the juxtaposition of classic boy-detective tropes, like the enormous magnifying glasses or terrible disguises (mostly just a variety of mustaches), with the sight of nearly-grown men using them.  They're also, in trying to solve a murder, exposed to the seedier side of life, and are either shocked or simply uncomprehending (for example, they dress up in top hats and tails and speak with British accents when trying to sneak into a "gentlemen's club").

It was funny, vulgar, stupid, and entertaining.  My boyfriend said it seemed like the sort of movie that was spun off from a short bit of sketch comedy, and I agree.  But one of my favorite movies is "Wayne's World," so for me that isn't necessarily a bad thing.  The plot was very predictable and formulaic, but really I was watching it for the jokes.  I'd certainly watch it again, though I doubt it will become one of my faves.

I also finished the book The Vanishing of Katherina Linden by Helen Grant.  It's written from the perspective of an eleven-year-old German girl.  It was great. Pia, the heroine, falls in status at school after her grandmother dies by basically spontaneously combusting, making the other kids label her a freak.  (That bit alone didn't totally ring true for me.  Some children are cruel, but nearly ALL of them? And for such a reason? I don't know.)  She's left with only Stefan, the most unpopular kid in school, as her friend.

After girls their age start disappearing from town, Pia and Stefan are determined to solve the case. They're aided by Herr Schiller, an old man they've befriended.  As they learn more about local folklore from Herr Schiller and imagine terrible supernatural interference, real life intrudes from the troubles between Pia's English mother and German father.

I am not usually scared while reading, particularly during the day, but for some reason the end of this book just had me on the edge of my seat.  I said "Oh no!" out loud a few times.  Once I reached the climax, I committed to finishing the book and ignored my phone ringing and everything else until it was done.

I think things wrapped up a little too quickly - I would've liked a little more detail on how things settled for Pia.  But it was overall a great book.  If you like fairytales of the gruesome Brothers Grimm variety, and/or you like coming-of-age novels, you should definitely read this.

Holy Cow!

OK, I totally stole the joke in the title. This is an article about a cow that a sixteen-year-old German girl raised to be like a horse. Luna (the cow) and Regina (the girl) go on long trail rides (sometimes joined by horses), do jumps, listen to commands, etc.

Read about Luna

More Outfits

I thought I'd post some more outfits on here.  Again, they're all from lookbook.  I can officially say I'm spending too much time on there.

Must read more Aimee Bender!

I finished The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake, and it was wonderful the whole way through.  I felt it ended on just the right note--some closure, some happiness, nothing false or cliched or too happily-ever-after, nothing deliberately vague or downbeat.  I wish there was a series about Rose, the girl who can taste people's emotions, her genius brother Joseph and his kind, smart best friend George.  I don't want to let them go yet.

Read it!!!

Spinach and Tofu Curry

Tonight I made a vegan version of saag paneer, a spinach and cheese curry.  The recipe was my own invention, based on having eaten (non-vegan) saag paneer at Indian restaurants and having looked at a few recipes online and in books.  My version may not have been authentic Indian, but it was SUPER tasty.

Because it was so yummy and not too difficult, I decided to share:

• Make some rice.  You'll do something with it later...
• Press a block of extra-firm tofu, then cut it into cubes.
• Heat some peanut oil in a frying pan.  Put the tofu cubes in, and resist the urge to flip them till they've really browned on one side.  It'll take awhile, so proceed with the rest of the recipe, checking on the tofu every now and then.
• In a different pan, saute chopped onions in peanut oil.  
• Once the onions are pretty soft, add minced garlic and chili pepper and cumin seeds
• About a minute later, add some Indian spices.  I used coriander, turmeric, garam masala and a little cayenne pepper but you can use whatever you have around.
• Slowly add a can of light coconut milk.  Stir it in, let it get hot
• Add spinach! Mix it in, let it wilt.
• Once the spinach is wilted, transfer everything to a blender and blend it all up! It will be a beautiful/terrifying green color (depending on your perspective)
• Probably your tofu is done being fried.  Put the spinach blend back into its pan, and add the tofu.  Mix it all around, make sure it's thoroughly heated.  And you're done!
• What about that rice?  Using the pan you'd had the tofu in (I hate having extra dishes to do), heat some more oil and toss some raw peanuts in. 
• Once they're roasty, add cumin seeds and mustard seeds (cover the pan with a lid till the mustard seeds are done popping)
• Stir in turmeric (not too much, less than a teaspoon) and a couple tablespoons of lemon juice.  
• Now turn off the heat, and slowly mix in your cooked rice (make sure it's not too sticky-together - you want individual grains).  Make sure it's thoroughly mixed, so your rice takes on the yellow color of the turmeric.  If you have some fresh cilantro, get that chopped up and sprinkled on top.  (I was out of it tonight, unfortunately.)
• Tada!  You just made lemon rice to go with your saag paneer!

Here's a photo of our leftovers.  It would've looked prettier on a plate, but that didn't occur to me until I'd already spooned it into the tupperware, and I've already established how I feel about extra dishes being used.  Anyway, here it is:

Again, I cannot stress enough how tasty I found this meal.  My boyfriend and I just went crazy over its yumminess.

P.S. I realize I didn't remember to include very many (if any) measurements.  Don't sweat it.  When in doubt, use a teaspoon or two for the spices (except the cayenne pepper).  Use a nice big bag of spinach. Don't worry over it too much.  It's hard to make these things taste bad together.  They're just too intrinsically tasty.