Welcome to Litsy!

Y'all. Katherine Arden is just...magical. So...what if ghost stories and folktales associated with war were real (i.e. what if a fiddler really was on that roof?) This book, like all her books, beautifully weaves folk stories and reality, and I CANNOT get enough of her!

I didn't understand this book

#SheSaid. One of our book choices for later this year is currently on sale on Kindle in the US for $3.99 of you prefer buying to library.

I think this needs to come with many warnings: kidnapping/incarceration in a bunker,suicide,murder. I wanted to bail towards the end but decided not to. It‘s a claustrophobic, heartrending story ¬ for everyone. It reminded me a bit of The Wall by Haushofer because of its focus on women,solitude & there‘s this element of “fantasy” which is the wrong word, speculation perhaps “what if” without answering questions of why,how or even when or where?

Diving into this one tonight 🤓

I couldn‘t sleep last night so I pulled out my kindle and read this short novella. It was a perfect choice as it is a gentle and touching story of a Jewish child who is hidden in Belgium during World War II. Despite its subject matter, it was neither saccharine nor overly sentimental, nor filled with horror. Instead it is a book about hope and sacrifice and the goodness of many everyday people. It was a perfect read for the current climate.

I *think* this is my last Dutch recipe: kibbeling: https://www.196flavors.com/netherlands-kibbeling/
They're basically bite-size battered fish. They're less of a faff than full-size battered fish and the addition of a spice rub was nice. The recipe called for a full tablespoon of ground bay leaf, which I felt was a lot, so I only put a fraction, and still it was all I could taste! Will make again.
#Netherlands #FoodandLit
@Catsandbooks @Texreader

Last week, I made kletskoppen, using this online recipe: https://www.thespruceeats.com/classic-kletskoppen-recipe-1128529 and not the tagged book. I divided the amounts by 10. The batter spread so much it ended up being 1 giant rectangular cookie, that I then cut into pieces. I was hoping they'd be like almond thins, but lacier. The flavour profile was v. similar, but they were thicker and really hard. I've got to try again and concentrate!

As it's Sunday, I made Dutch Sunday Soup, from the tagged book. It is made with whatever vegetables are in season (I used leek, carrots, celeriac, celery, Jerusalem artichokes and romanesco), small pieces of beef, veal meatballs flavoured with nutmeg, and vermicelli. Perfectly fine.
#Netherlands #FoodandLit
@Catsandbooks @Texreader

I don‘t know exactly what this #snowycover has to do with the book I just read, but it was a very interesting story. #25alive