Zingerman's Bakehouse Celebrate Every Day

If you have never been to Zingerman’s Bakehouse in Arbor, Michigan, you absolutely must go (and eat!). In the meantime, have fun sampling delicious recipes from a brand new cookbook, ZINGERMAN'S BAKEHOUSE CELEBRATE EVERY DAY by Amy Emberling, Lindsay-Jean Hard, Lee Vedder, and Corynn Coscia. The four authors each adopted a season in order to include “A Year's Worth of Favorite Recipes for Festive Occasions, Big and Small.” The photographs by E. E. Berger are stunning – and there are more of them (roughly a hundred) than recipes (about 80) so this is a visual feast as well as one sure to please the palate. Recipes are detailed with fairly lengthy ingredient lists, but the results are so creative and special, that it will truly be a joy to experiment with the ideas here. Examples include Key Lime Pie, The Works Grilled Cheese Sandwich, or Hot Cross Buns for Spring and Blueberry Buckle or Fresh Fruit Tart (plus a couple of Paella choices) for Summer. Fall may be my favorite with Bavarian Soft Pretzels, Kickin’ Butternut Soup, Pumpkin Cheesecake and Michigan Double Chocolate Cookies, but Winter has plenty to offer, too: Pfeffernűsse, two versions of King Cake, and West African Peanut Stew or Zingerman’s Deli Chicken Pot Pies. And that is just a few from each season – don’t they all sound yummy?

The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman

THE LAST DEVIL TO DIE by Richard Osman is a terrific offering in The Thursday Murder Club series featuring pensioners Elizabeth (former agent), Ibrahim (part-time psychiatrist), well-meaning scatter-brained retired nurse Joyce, and Ron (former union organizer). They are joined once again by some local, amusingly tolerant cops and a few well-connected criminals. Mixed together, that brings plenty of laughable moments and numerous witty observations as they try to solve the death of an antiques dealer and locate a missing shipment of heroin worth 100,000 pounds. There is a bittersweet element in this entry, too, as Elizabeth reflects on her life with husband Stephen, “the real secret was that when they looked at each other, they each thought they had the better deal.” THE LAST DEVIL TO DIE received a well-deserved starred review from Library Journal. Osman entertains and will make readers both laugh and cry. Humor (“‘people rarely pay in cash these days. It's a nightmare,’ says [drug dealer] Connie. ‘Even I have to take Apple Pay now.’”) is interspersed with more serious and poignant plot points about older people grappling with computer fraud or dementia: “our memories are no less real than whatever moment in which we happen to be living.” 

Democracy Awakening by Heather Cox Richardson

DEMOCRACY AWAKENING by Heather Cox Richardson is subtitled “Notes on the State of America” and Cox, a professor of history at Boston College, is extremely adept at sharing her insights. For example, she notes early in the text that “democracies die more often through the ballot box than at gunpoint.” In fact, many of her comments are scary or disturbing as when she argues that “once people internalize their leaders’ propaganda, it doesn't matter when pieces of it are proven to be lies, because it has become central to their identity.” Cox draws numerous historical parallels and points to racial resentment as a key factor. Examples include summaries of events – some tragic – involving American patriots like Isaac Woodward, Felix Longoria, and Constance Baker Motley. It is sadly ironic that her new text is becoming widely available on a day when headlines feature news about an indicted candidate for president expressing his interest in purchasing a gun (even though it would be illegal under federal statue for someone to sell it to him). DEMOCRACY AWAKENING received a starred review from Kirkus (“show[s] her readers how history and the present are in constant conversation”) and has been referenced in an array of publications, including The New Yorker, Foreign Policy, and The Washington Post.  Worth reading and revisiting. 

The Traitor by Ava Glass

THE TRAITOR by Ava Glass is the next espionage thriller in the series which began with the very exciting Alias Emma. Emma Makepeace, a British spy, is back and posing as a staff member on the yacht of a wealthy (and criminal) Russian oligarch. That setting is impressive and isolating. Emma (posing as Jessica) is intent on learning about possible chemical weapons trades so she comes across some very ruthless adversaries. The subsequent deaths and numerous close calls add tension, but unfortunately, the “traitor” of the title is fairly obvious from the start. That means a good deal of the suspense centers on how long until Emma will be betrayed and the extent to which she is likely to be deceived by her handlers. Emma is a very likeable character and her conscience is increasingly coming into conflict with espionage practices – I am looking forward to more in this series.

The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger

THE RIVER WE REMEMBER by William Kent Krueger is a very reflective piece of writing. Just like a river flowing, there is often a calm leisurely pace interspersed with swift action. Krueger says, “I love this story... My heart and soul are in [it].” Set in rural Jewel, Minnesota during 1958, Krueger crafts a puzzling whodunit complete with strong character development and a definite feeling for the time. Attitudes toward “the other,” including women, Native Americans, and immigrants, are explored when an unpopular landowner is found dead and the sheriff, ex-soldier Brody Dern, seeks to find the cause. Kruger relays traumatic life experiences of a former prostitute and of soldiers having returned from World War II; all the while, the local prejudices are simmering in the background. The overall tone of this stand-alone mystery is definitely melancholy and there are multiple subplots with themes of sexual abuse and racial discrimination. THE RIVER WE REMEMBER received a starred review from Booklist (“recognition that postwar America was filled with shattered veterans and war widows”). Another well-written adventure (e.g., see Fox Creek, Lightning Strike, This Tender Land,) from a prolific, talented writer.