Favourite Posts to Hop

Well, I've been contemplating my participation in this week's Book Blogger Hop by Jennifer from Crazy-For-Books. After being rather neglectful of my blog over the last week I figured a Hop may be just what I need to get back into the groove.

This week we have been asked to post a link to our favourite post or book review that we have written in the past three months.

Seeing as Coffee Tale Reviews is allllllmost 2 months old, my entire archive is being exposed in this question.

Problem is I can't chose just one. My favourite post would be An American Fugitive - which discusses my intense real-life adventure in Washington a few weeks ago. On the book review front, I would have to chose Hitler's Private Library - this review created some pretty philosophical questions for book lovers such as ourselves.

Happy Hopping!

Sarah's Key

Is it important to remember the past?

Should horrific details of our heritage be submerged under notions of an idealized present?

Is it better to know or to forget the most gruesome aspects of our lives... and of our nation?


Tatiana De Rosnay, author of Sarah's Key, grapples with these questions. Sarah's Key describes the story of a young French Jewish girl who was detained by French Forces during the Vel' d' Hiv' roundup but was able to escape before being sent to Auschwitz in the 1940s.

De Rosnay creates a story centered on the notion of remembrance. After her escape, Sarah must live the rest of her life with memories of the roundup, losing her Mother and Father upon arrival at the detainment camp, and the dire consequences of hiding her brother in a small cupboard before leaving for Vel' d' Hiv'. De Rosnay expertly links Sarah's story to that of Julia Jarmond, a contemporary journalist researching the French state during the Holocaust.

De Rosnay shows how countries try to avoid discussions on negative aspects of their past, how a family's history impacts one's self-identity, and that repercussions of the Holocaust remain prominent even in the 21st century.

I found it very interesting to see a portrayal of France's remembrance of the Holocaust due to my own extensive university studies on Germany's remembrance of World War II from the 1940s to present day. Books alike to Sarah's Key attest to the symbolic importance of having historical events formally recognized by the state. Recognition creates the ability to further establish one's own identity and to once again feel a sense of community.

Thank You

I would like to thank Laura Ashlee, the creator of Ramblings of a (Future) Librarian, for kindly awarding me with the One Lovely Blog award. She has a great eclectic book review blog of her own - definitely worth a check out!

I love...

Freshly made cinnamon buns... even if they take five hours to make from scratch.
My university.
Strong, dark coffee.
The smell of new books.
Making notes throughout my books... a book well-loved is one that appears destroyed.
Apples in September.
Coffee-ring stains.

I guess it's a good thing I started university this week. Class attending, homework completing, volunteering at the archives, baking, and of course, reading with a strong cup of coffee on hand has now become part of my schedule. Though they're not as thrilling as my regular books, I do have around $300 worth of texts to add to my bookshelf as of yesterday. At least I'll have that new-book smell, a potential muse for blogging, and a whole new selection of material to tattoo with coffee-ring stains.

Oh, and my earlier goal... the 'finish reading Tatiana De Rosnay's Sarah's Key by Tuesday, 7 September 2010' goal... failed miserably. But I am almost done! Probably by the time I finish writing this I could be done reading the book, but a lady has her priorities. Writing before reading, right?

Peanut Butter and Jelly Thumbprints

Sweet Sunday's Yummy Lit Review:
Peanut Butter and Jelly Thumbprints

I have a confession.
I have never eaten a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

It has never sounded, or for that matter looked, appetizing to me. The colour and consistency have put me off countless times - brown paste with something red and sticky? No thank you.

Never having eaten a peanut butter and jelly sandwich (a staple of most children's diets) combined with my intense dislike for meat products means that I spent most of my childhood eating cheese sandwiches. To this day I can't look at cheddar/American cheese between two pieces of untoasted bread without having flashbacks of lunch hours spent in my school's cafeteria room.

Flash-forward a handful of years, and here you have a 20-something year old woman who has never experienced the combined flavours of peanut butter and jelly... until she read about it in a cookie book, that is. I figured there was no time like the present to lose my peanut butter and jelly virginity.


The Cookie Bible (2004, p 260) tells me that to do so I'll need:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup honey
1 tablespoon milk
Any flavour jelly

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt. Add peanut butter and butter; mix until crumbly. Stir in honey and milk. Shae into 1-inch balls. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. Press thumb into center of each ball; place 1/2 teaspoon jelly into each thumbprint. Bake at 375*F for 8 to 10 minutes. Cool on baking sheets 1 minute before removing to wire racks. Store in airtight container.
Makes 2 dozen cookies.


I'll admit that I did change the recipe around a little. Instead of creamy peanut butter I used the chunky kind... which gave the cookie a more nutty, yet crumbly, texture. I also forfeited jelly for natural, wholesome strawberry jam from Krause Farms. I don't know if any of you live in or close to BC, but be sure to check out Krause Farms if you do. I swear it's the homeplace of some of the best fruits and vegetables I've ever tasted. They have these apples that taste better than candy, and that's saying something coming from me... but I digress...

So how did my first time with peanut butter and jelly (well jam) go?

Great! The recipe is super easy to follow... no weird steps, no faulty directions, no need to drastically change anything. Making Peanut Butter and Jelly Thumbprints is quite rewarding really - spend a short amount of time at an easy task and boom - 1o minutes later really yummy and quite aesthetically pleasing cookies come out of your oven.

I was even pleasantly surprised by the flavour combination. Peanut butter and jelly is good! Who would have thought... well besides all those kids who have spent decades happily munching down on those sandwiches. Maybe they're onto something.

I'll admit though - I am still not ready to try a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. The combination of their colour and consistency between two slices of untoasted bread still doesn't look too appetizing to me.

Are there any 'normal' food combinations that you just can't bring yourself to try?

Happy Sweet Sunday!

Fresh Face

Coffee Tale Reviews has gone through yet another face lift.

I remember constantly changing my blog's appearance when I first started blogging in July. With the summer almost over, my new-found familiarity with the blogging world, and boredom with images of coffee beans, I figured it was high time for another change... something a bit more classier, a bit more grown-up, and a bit more versatile.

In the past few weeks I have found some truly creative looking blogs and it has made me eager to change around my own blog's appearance. I've used a template from The Cutest Blog on the Block. There may come a time when I miss my old coffee bean outlay, but right now I'm in love with the pink.

Also - as a heads up - with the new (and my very last!) semester at university, new volunteering positions, and potentially a new job, Coffee Tale Reviews may have a few more changes in store...

I'm not sure exactly how things will turn out, but I promise it will be good reading.