ARC Giveaway!

I have a little giveaway to host for three recently published young adult advance reader copies! See the entry form below to enter, and you can enter every day between now and May 26th. Only the first step is mandatory and anything else above that is optional, but will raise your chances of winning. Only United States residents are eligible and I will announce the winner on May 31st. Good luck!

The winner will receive these three ARC's

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ARC Giveaway!

Read a Book, Sip a Cocktail No. 21

Photo from Goodreads.com

When I read The Great Gatsby in high school I was not thrilled at the assignment because after all it was an assigned book - one that I had to read, but after finishing it I was secretly in love with it. As a high school kid I could never admit I liked it, much less thought it was genius.  But next to To Kill a Mockingbird, it was probably my favorite "required" reading assignment prior to college and prior to reading for pleasure.  Then add to that the fascination with F. Scott and his wife Zelda and their beautiful, tormented, cut-short-lives, and well, I would have to say that the novel is always at the top of any of my best or most beloved reads.  In summary The Great Gatsby is about unfulfilled dreams. Jay Gatsby having reinvented himself in hopes of winning back his girl, Daisy Buchanan, dreams that he will regain her love, but also turn his "new money" into "old money". Daisy is stuck in an unhappy union with Tom who is unfaithful to her but not willing to let her go.  Even the narrator, Nick Carraway, who becomes enamored with the mysterious Jay Gatsby, is confounded at how little care is given after Gatsby's demise when not long before he had so many admirers as the enigmatic host of the most lavish and shining parties.  I was inspired by the two opposing locations Fitzgerald juxtaposes in the novel: East Egg and West Egg, and so I made a boozed-up egg nog completely from scratch.  Since the latest film adaptation starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Carey Mulligan is coming out tomorrow, I thought this was also a fitting book and cocktail pairing. The movie looks so glitzy and full of reverie that I think this cocktail would be perfect as a companion to those day dreams and ritzy nights.  The taste is just sweet enough with a very smooth kick from the bourbon and the rum. The best part is the creaminess of the rich whipped milk and egg, which lend the drink an airy and indulgent feel. I can't wait to watch the latest film version of this great American novel. Now don't go on a toot and get zozzled daddy-o!

East West Egg Nog
1 large egg
2 tablespoons of granulated sugar
2 oz heavy cream
1 oz bourbon
1 oz aged rum
2 1/2 oz whole milk
ground nutmeg

How to: Separate the white and the yolk from the egg and beat the egg white until soft peaks appear. Slowly add the sugar. In a separate bowl, whip the heavy cream and the egg yolk until thick. Add the bourbon and the rum to the cream and yolk mixture and then combine the two mixtures.  Add the milk and beat until soft peaks appear again.  Serve chilled with a sprinkle of nutmeg.  Double the ingredients to make a batch for two.  You can substitute the whole milk for 1 or 2% milk to make it lighter, or half and half to make it richer.

In the middle of beating the egg white

The nutmeg adds another dimension of flavor

"In his blue gardens men and girls came and went like moths among the whisperings and the champagne and the stars." (Quote from The Great Gatsby)

Read a Book, Sip a Cocktail No. 21

Read a Book, Sip a Cocktail No. 20

Photo from Goodreads.com

I was inspired to do a little wine tasting this time around by the book Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons by Lorna Landvik.  The story centers on five women who serendipitously form a book club in their Freesia Court neighborhood in the 1960's. Through forty years of friendship, their lives are unraveled, enjoyed, devastated, and enriched by secrets, marital woes, booze, and inevitable changes and revelations.  I really enjoyed learning about each character's lives and getting the story from each of them because they all had individual voices and perspectives.  The five characters include Faith, a mother of twins who feels a bit lonely, Merit, the pretty doctor's wife, Audrey, resident sex pot (I thought Joan Holloway all the way while I read it), Kari the reliable widow, and Slip who is tiny in size but not in character or strength.The story had both heart warming moments, as well as heartbreak, laughter and of course great books, food and drinks.

I am not the usual wine lover in that I guess I cheat at wine. That is to say that I prefer the sweet, desert wines, so when it comes down to it, I'm not a true wine enthusiast even though I actually have lots of enthusiasm for wine, but my palate is not complex I guess. All I know is that if it is sweet, I like it, no matter the cost, the age, the vintage, nose, varietal, or the obscurity or exclusivity. I don't pick up on nuances like vanilla oak, pepper, rhubarb, or whispers of clove either.  I pretty much stick to a good Riesling, Moscato, Gewurztraminer, and the occasional Zinfandel. And I love sipping a port with some chocolate after dinner too. So this is where the bon bons come in.  I chose three wines and I paired them with a variety of chocolates. I started with Cupcake Vineyards Red Velvet, which is a mix of Zinfandel, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petite Sirah.  It smelled like any other red wine to me, but it was actually not too dry and just smooth enough for me with a hint of sweetness (although with the name I really did expect some sort of a nod to red velvet cake).  I paired it with white chocolate and it was quite nice to sip a bit at a time with the creamy white chocolate.  Second up was the Chocolate Shop Red Wine which is red wine infused with dark chocolate, and I could definitely smell the chocolate before I took a taste. I paired this one with milk chocolate and it was a nice balance to the headiness of the wine.  And finally I ended with a Quarles Harris Ruby Porto, which is an inexpensive port that has a bit of a kick (for something better I would recommend a Fonseca Porto).  I paired it with a dark chocolate and almonds, but I think a chocolate desert might be best with this one.  Out of all three my favorite was definitely the Chocolate Shop Red Wine. It was smooth, not too strong, with a lovely hint of dark chocolate. I could have even sipped it without the chocolate truth be told, which is rare for me as I usually stick to the white wines.  Overall I think if I'm going to have some dessert after dinner or during a book club meeting, I think having it with some wine is definitely a win-win situation.

Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons Flight
1 bottle of Cupcake Vineyards Red Velvet
1 bottle of Chocolate Shop Red Wine
1 bottle of Quarles Harris Ruby Porto
A variety of chocolate

How to: For this pairing I would recommend making a night of it, inviting some angry or not-so-angry friends over to enjoy the flight with you and just have everyone bring a pairing of a wine and either a chocolate or maybe a cheese or a dessert. And make sure you have a DD as well or plenty of sleeping bags!

Read a Book, Sip a Cocktail No. 20

Book Review: The Paris Wife by Paula McLain

Ballantine Books, 2011; 314 pages; ISBN 0345521307
My Goodreads Rating: 3.5 stars

I took a listen to the audiobook of The Paris Wife, which is the story of Ernest Hemingway's first wife, Hadley Richardson and more than anything what I took away from the book was a feeling of getting a clearer picture of Ernest Hemingway and his early years as a writer.  The book was never exciting enough or perhaps brilliant enough to warrant a higher rating, but it was still pleasurable and interesting.  The story unfolds from the perspective of Hadley Richardson, who was married to Hemingway from 1921 until 1926.  In the beginning their relationship is beautiful and young. They both have stars in their eyes and Paris seems like a brilliant constellation where they can both map out their dreams (they also travel to other cities, like Chicago and Toronto).  But as the months and years wear on and Hadley has a child, it becomes harder and harder to maintain a sense of themselves. Ernest has a difficult time dealing with set backs in so far as his writing, and Hadley has a hard time situating herself and basically keeping up with Ernest.  Their story was one of true love, but loyalties falter, and in the end Hadley loses Hemingway to another woman, although I think she actually loses him to himself and his writing.  They had one son during their marriage, John Hadley Nicanor Hemingway, and one thing I did enjoy very much from listening to the novel was the opportunity to learn more about Hadley Richardson as a woman - how she met and fell in love with Ernest Hemingway, and then that prompted me to read more about her in other sources as well.  I learned how she lost some of his manuscripts while in Europe and how Hemingway became obsessed with bullfighting. Also, more insight was given into relationships the couple had with other prominent characters, such as Gertrude Stein and the Fitzgeralds.  All in all it was nice to know that she lived a long life and that she took part in the life of one of our greatest authors.  This is a great book for history and literature lovers and the audio book was well read by Carrington Macduffie.

Photo: From Goodreads.com website

Book Review: The Paris Wife by Paula McLain