This past Thursday, my husband, son, and I drove home from the Big Ten basketball tournament in Indianapolis where we had been cheering on our Northwestern Wildcats. My sister had treated us to incredible third-row seats, so we could hear the players talking to each other and see beads of sweat flying from their hair. The energy was electric.

And yet, as I looked around, I couldn’t help but notice the sheer amount of plastic cups and wasted food strewn under and around our seats. That’s … [Read more...] about Dream State

What can food tell us about the history of the South and the rise of southern cuisine? In John T. Edge’s book The Potlikker Papers, he writes that “During the antebellum era, slaveholders ate the greens from the pot, setting aside the potlikker for enslaved cooks and their families, unaware that the broth, not the greens, was nutrient rich.”

Using food as the centerpiece, Edge describes how stories about food illumine history. “On the long march to equality, struggles over food reflected and … [Read more...] about The Potlikker Papers

I read Shred Sisters by Betsy Lerner in two days. I couldn’t put it down. Great writing is such a treat, and when you get a book like this in your hands, you know the author is on a different level.

I bought Shred Sisters after reading about it in the NY Times because I was so interested in why the author wrote it. Lerner is in her 60s and has had an impressive career in publishing. She loves non-fiction and wrote a memoir a number of years ago.

It wasn’t until a lockdown during the … [Read more...] about Shred Sisters

Loved this review from the NYTimes by Judith Newman
"It’s a little misleading to call TREATING PEOPLE WELL: The Extraordinary Power of Civility at Work and in Life a self-help book. It’s really a charming memoir about being a social secretary in the White House, by Lea Berman, who worked for the George W. Bush administration, and Jeremy Bernard, who worked for the Obamas. The book is divided into 12 lessons that describe the different facets of gracious behavior: self-confidence, humorand charm … [Read more...] about Treating People Well

Author Laurie Frankel’s characters often break all the molds and see all the angles. That’s how one reviewer puts it, and that sums it up perfectly. Family Family explores all the dynamics of a modern family, and along the way reminds you of the complexities, nuances, challenges, joys, and hardships of what it means to be a person in the world and what it means when we say family.

The first question that comes to mind when you pick this book up is what does the title mean. Buckle up and enjoy … [Read more...] about Family Family

Consider this:

The U.S. incarcerates 1.8 million people, the highest per capita in the world.
The U.S. spends twice as much on crime and punishment as it does on social services.
By contrast, countries like Finland focus on rehabilitation, education, job training, and personal growth. Their incarceration rates are among the lowest in the world.

In Correction: Parole, Prison, and the Possibility of Change, Chicago author Ben Austen reveals the devastating truth about America’s … [Read more...] about Correction: Parole, Prison, and the Possibility of Change

This past Thursday, my husband, son, and I drove home from the Big Ten basketball tournament in Indianapolis where we had been cheering on our Northwestern Wildcats. My sister had treated us to incredible third-row seats, so we could hear the players talking to each other and see beads of sweat flying from their hair. The energy was electric.

And yet, as I looked around, I couldn’t help but notice the sheer amount of plastic cups and wasted food strewn under and around our seats. That’s … [Read more...] about Dream State

What can food tell us about the history of the South and the rise of southern cuisine? In John T. Edge’s book The Potlikker Papers, he writes that “During the antebellum era, slaveholders ate the greens from the pot, setting aside the potlikker for enslaved cooks and their families, unaware that the broth, not the greens, was nutrient rich.”

Using food as the centerpiece, Edge describes how stories about food illumine history. “On the long march to equality, struggles over food reflected and … [Read more...] about The Potlikker Papers

I read Shred Sisters by Betsy Lerner in two days. I couldn’t put it down. Great writing is such a treat, and when you get a book like this in your hands, you know the author is on a different level.

I bought Shred Sisters after reading about it in the NY Times because I was so interested in why the author wrote it. Lerner is in her 60s and has had an impressive career in publishing. She loves non-fiction and wrote a memoir a number of years ago.

It wasn’t until a lockdown during the … [Read more...] about Shred Sisters