Pear-Shaped

Photo taken by Ms. C. 

I found Stella Newman's Pear-Shaped at a little bookstore in Newcastle, UK.  To be honest, I was attracted by the cover.  The light blue background, teeny tiny pear shaped white dots, bright pink font, and 1950s style woman beckoned to me.

Pear-Shaped is about Sophie, an English girl, who meets and falls in love with James, a man who is completely and utterly bad for her sanity.  James is an older and slightly overweight man who has a history of dating models and fraternizes with a host of womanizing men.  Newman's tale focuses on the turbulent relationship between Sophie and James.

I am torn with this book.  Newman's writing is, at times, hilariously funny.  I think many people can relate to Sophie's story - a girl who falls in love with the wrong man.  Newman is able to depict Sophie's dilemmas in an entertaining, engaging, and funny way.  However, most of the time I wanted to slap her characters.  Why?

The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake

Photo taken by Ms. C

I spent a good part of last year browsing bookstores, finding Aimee Bender's The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake, thinking it sounded like an excellent read... but ultimately returning it to its store shelf.  It cost $20 and I couldn't justify buying it.  Flash-forward to a few months ago, and a copy of Bender's work was held tightly in my hands.  After looking and waiting for a copy for *so* long I decided to give it a shot.

Bender tells the story of Rose, a young girl, who can taste emotions in her food.  It is with only one bite of a lemon and chocolate cake that Rose discovers her mother's, the cake chef's, depression.  Bender explores Rose's childhood, family turmoil, and her unique ability to trace emotions in food within this work.

Meet Me at the Cupcake Cafe

Jenny Colgan's Meet Me at the Cupcake Cafe explores one girl's highs and lows while establishing her own little bakery in London, England.

Written as a work of fiction, Colgan tells the tale of Issy Randall. Issy, who recently became redundant at her office job, searches for her life's meaning and a way to pay the bills in Colgan's work. Vibrantly colourful characters and a shifting plot-line are introduced throughout the text. Not only do readers learn the intricacies of Issy's personality, but the ins and outs of creating a bakery, too.

The People's Chef

The creation of soup kitchens.
The improvement of the British military's diet.
The formation of the first non-pub restaurant in London.

Alexis Soyer, a French national residing in Britain, did it all.

Ruth Brandon's The People's Chef: The Culinary Revolutions of Alexis Soyer examines the modernization of the restaurant industry and European views on nutrition during the nineteenth century. Brandon tests century-old recipes in a contemporary kitchen while providing a non-fiction account of the Irish Famine, the Great Exhibition of 1851, and the Crimean War.

The Time Traveler's Guide to Medieval England

Next month you are travelling to England. Fourteenth century England at that. What do you need to know? What are the laws? What should you expect to eat, do, and wear on your stay?

How will you experience medieval England?

This is a central question in Ian Mortimer's The Time Traveler's Guide to Medieval England: A Handbook for Visitors to the Fourteenth Century. Mortimor creates a very unique non-fiction history text through writing the past as if it were the present.

A Real-Time Post

Hello all!

Most of you will be aware that I'm currently stationed in England. I have been posting updates (written before departure) over the last few weeks. But, I have yet to create a real-time post. A post that I have written while in foreign territory. Today's my first 'do nothing' day, and what better way to spend it than re-entering the blogging world.

So, how is the Land of E treating me?

Julie and Julia

I picked up Julie Powell's Julie and Julia: My Year of Cooking Dangerously the summer of 2009. I had heard all of the movie-hype for Powell's work, and being a firm believer in the old adage "the book is always better than the film," I had wanted to read Powell's own words first. I am so glad I did.

The Cookie Speaks

Tonight, after a dinner of Chinese food, I was greeted with three fortune cookie paper slips. One cookie, three slips... that's bang for your buck!

Long Distance Baking

Gingerbread Cookies:
Not a Sweet Sunday Yummy Lit Review

Have you ever baked with a friend over the phone? I never thought of it until E rang me during my gingerbread cookie baking session. I didn't quite feel like putting a stop to my baking nor telling him to ring another time. Instead, with phone rammed between my shoulder and ear, I had a halfway across the world 'baking-with-friends' experience.

He's a Stud, She's a Slut

I searched everywhere for this book... it's not available in any B.C. bookstores. I searched Washington, USA... couldn't find it anywhere. Finally, after over a year of looking, I found it on a little shelf in the Vancouver Public Library.

I must say that I was well beyond eager to read Jessica Valenti's He's a Stud, She's a Slut and 49 Other Double Standards Every Woman Should Know. The title either instantly intrigues you or causes you to shudder, because yes, it sounds an awful lot like a title for some loud and brass feminist book... which it is.

I was introduced to Valenti's first monograph Full Frontal Feminism: A Young Woman's Guide to Why Feminism Matters in a Sociology of Gender university class during early 2009. I instantly developed an academic crush. I loved that her writing was uncensored to such an extent that it felt like I was reading a letter to a friend. I loved her ideas and views on society. One of the subjects Valenti discusses in this work is North American culture and its promotion of female thinness. I became engrossed in her theories on this subject. Valenti's claim that eating is a powerful and revolutionary act for women in today's society distinctly resonated with me at the time due to my own personal struggles with food. Since reading Valenti I have proudly declared myself a third wave feminist and have become motivated to improve my own unhealthy relationship with food.

Needless to say I began reading He's a Stud, She's a Slut with very high expectations. It was a good read... but I honestly left the book feeling disappointed. This book felt like a quick rehashing of Valenti's previous Full Frontal Feminism.

He's a Stud, She's a Slut is a good introduction to feminist studies for a general audience. Valenti argues that feminism is premised on equality and choice. It is about being aware of one's culture and understanding its patriarchal roots. Feminism recognizes the inequalities that exist within society for individuals of all sexes, ethnicities, social classes, sizes, and sexual orientations. Valenti claims that change and progress are only possible through recognizing inequality and by making a conscious effort to eradicate it at a grassroots level.

Valenti's work is an eye-opener. It is also extremely funny. Among the many double standards she discusses are those involving fashion, health care, salaries, body image, humour, the dichotomy between physical attractiveness and intelligence, procreation, and the role of each partner's age in a romantic relationship.

She discusses the Miss, Ms, Mrs debate. As you can tell from my blog, I pledge allegiance to the Ms category. I'm not against being called Miss (in fact, I use it often under the right circumstances), and I will probably chose Mrs when that time comes... but right now Ms sums me up perfectly. Though it is just a label, Ms reflects the notion that my self-identity is not attached to any relationship, be it family or romantic. Men never have to deal with this conundrum - Mr covers all of their life stages. Heck, men can avoid wearing wedding rings without society frowning upon them.

Valenti also brings up the potential for social networking sites, such as Facebook, to diminish the inequalities in relationship statuses. Facebook asks all of its users to list their relationship status and even sexual orientation. I can see her point... even in something as trivial as Facebook there has been progress and movement towards recognition and equality. Talk about a grassroots movement expanding tenfold.

Valenti provides evidence to suggest that we are far from an equitable society. Her work remains enjoyable and highly amusing though it does contain facts that may be hard to swallow. However, I'd be sure to read Valenti's first work, Full Frontal Feminism, before setting out for this one.