Sunday, December 27, 2015

Sunday miscellany: Bookish connections, reading & baking, and a Christmas present

Good morning from a stormy Houston! Our ridiculous winter heat wave has finally broken, but the cold front is bringing us some treacherous weather. We're under a tornado watch, and with the terrible storms in the Dallas area, I'm keeping an ear out for the weather alerts. My sister in El Paso just sent a picture of her backyard deep in snow - not quite a white Christmas, but close.

I was amused by a couple of bookish connections in the last couple of days. First, in the Christmas chapters of Orley Farm, Anthony Trollope wrote about children "who could not hurry fast enough into the vortex of its dissipations." That made me laugh, not just with the eager children, but because it reminded me of Jane Austen. In gently critiquing the novel her niece Anna was writing, Austen wrote,
Devereaux Forester's being ruined by his Vanity is extremely good; but I wish you would not let him plunge into a "vortex of Dissipation". I do not object to the Thing, but I cannot bear the expression; - it is such thorough novel slang - and so old, that I dare say Adam met with it in the first novel he opened... (Letter, Sept. 28, 1814)
Trollope uses a similar phrase later in the book, "a vortex of ruin and misery."  He was a big fan of Austen's novels, but he died two years before the first edition of her letters was published, so he could not have seen this. I wonder what he would have thought of her advice to a fellow author.

Second, have you ever had a quotation from a book niggling away in the back of your mind?  It drives me crazy, until I can pin it down. From the massive biography of William Lloyd Garrison, I learned that Louisa May Alcott's father Bronson was a supporter of Garrison's work, and that her maternal uncle Samuel May was one of his closest friends and allies. I knew that there was at least one reference to Garrison in Alcott's novels, but I could not for the life of me track it down in the nine I own. I came across one completely by accident in Rose in Bloom, while trying to find a different quote about obligatory Christmas presents.
[Rose's] heroes ceased to be the world's favorites; and became such as Garrison fighting for his chosen people; Howe, restoring lost senses to the deaf, the dumb, the blind; Sumner, unbribable, when other men were bought and sold; and many a large-hearted woman working as quietly as Abby Gibbons, who for thirty years has made Christmas merry for two hundred little paupers in a city almshouse, beside saving Magdalens and teaching convicts.
Oh, the satisfaction of tracking down an elusive quote!  (Being more of a print reader, it never occurred to me until just now that I could easily search the digital editions of her books.)

Third, Melanie posted something from Little House on the Prairie in her Christmas greetings. It mentions little heart-shaped cakes that Mary and Laura find in their Christmas stockings, along with a tin cup and a stick of striped candy each. Every time I read about the Ingalls' family Christmases, I am struck by how grateful they were, for so little. Anyway, the mention of the cakes sent me off to find my copy of The Little House Cookbook, which includes a recipe for the cakes.

My copy has the same style cover as the books themselves - the familiar yellow.
Leafing through this, with all the familiar Garth Williams illustrations, has made me want to pull the books off the shelf again - and also bake some little cakes. They're made with lard, though, and I'm wondering if I can substitute shortening.

Finally, I only received one book for Christmas (not counting the one I bought myself, which hasn't arrived yet). It's one I've been wanting to read for a while:



I hope you are all enjoying the holiday weekend. Going back to work tomorrow will be a bit of shock, I have to say.

20 comments:

  1. I dipped into How to Be... when it first came out and then had to return it to the library. Thanks for reminding me that I've been meaning to get back to it. Thinking of you when I heard about the weather...hope it passes you by. Merry Christmas!

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    1. I did the same, Audrey. I think I got through the first chapter before I had to give it back. My only quibble with libraries :)

      So far the storms haven't been too bad, and the drop in temperature is VERY welcome.

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  2. I love the Austen/Trollope phrasing coincident--thanks for sharing that. He must have been channeling her.

    I love the LH books and the Christmas chapters are among the best--yes, the gratefulness for the small things sets them apart. I have that LH Cookbook but have never actually tried any of the recipes. I can't imagine substituting shortening for lard would be a problem, and so much heart-healthier!

    Interestingly, I only received one book this year too--the Gloria Steinem memoir. I have the Victorian one on my wish list though. Hope it's good.

    Stay safe and out of the storm's way--we are in the midst of a cold spell. Down to 7 deg F this morning and no hope of above freezing temps all week. Perfect weather for reading, especially since I have the day off.

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    1. Jane, that's always been one of my favorite lines from Austen's letters, so it definitely caught my attention! She was complaining the phrase was outdated fifty years before he used it :)

      I don't think I've cooked or baked anything from the LH cookbook either. I have from somewhere else Laura's gingerbread recipe, and I've made that.

      I'm on the library list for the Steinem memoir. It's been "on order" for ages.

      We won't be as cold as you! Enjoy your day off - I dread tomorrow morning!

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  3. You will definitely enjoy the Ruth Goodman, and I was amused that your stray thought turned up in ROSE IN BLOOM -- Abby (Hopper) Gibbons was married to my great-great-grandfather's brother, so we regard her as a member of the family.

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    1. Oh Ann, how fascinating - thank you for telling me. As I was typing the quote out, I was wondering how LMA knew Abby Hopper, and what became of her.

      I know the Goodman book is packed with information. It's high on my reading list.

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  4. We are having weather problems in Scotland and northern England too, lots of flooding. It has rained for weeks and weeks. Touch wood we are fine in Fife, although boggy. I don't like the idea of lard in cakes, margarine or butter would be better.

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    1. I was just reading about the flooding in Scotland, Katrina. And just like here, the police were warning against driving through high water. People get stranded every single time. We're between thunderstorm cells right now - I'm hoping for a quiet night.

      My grandmother's pie crust recipe calls for lard, and it was always delicious, but I've given up using it. I wouldn't use lard in cakes either. I think there are more like thick cookies though - they're baked on sheets.

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  5. Well, I have certainly been sucked into a vortex of Christmas dissipations over the last few days :) Love that; I had no idea it was such a common phrase, now I'm sure I'll come across it everywhere! Thanks for sharing that.

    As to the heart-shaped cakes, I'll be looking them up. I always substitute shortening for lard, as I've been vegetarian for over 20 years...I find that Earth Balance shortening works very well in this case. Hope you have fun baking!

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    1. I think this may be the first time I've seen the phrase - or noticed it anyway!

      I'm domestically vegetarian but sometimes socially carnivorous, but I draw a line at lard these days. Which is too bad, because the best tamales and torillas use it.

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  6. I remember leafing through How to be a Victorian, too. Have been meaning to borrow it from the library...

    Hope you remained safe during the storms and the return to work today is not too painful :)

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    1. There was a fair bit of chatting about the holidays, which did help me ease back into the work :) But I didn't want to come back from lunch with Mr Trollope - that half-hour *flies* !

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  7. I think you'll love the Ruth Goodman book! I was very impressed with it -- she gets into the nitty-gritty of what it's like doing and wearing and eating all these things, and she's mostly careful to delineate the differences between life as it was lived in different social classes. Good stuff!

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    1. I hadn't realized that she does living history events, so she's writing from her own experiences at least some of the time. I hadn't thought about the class angle - I'm glad she addresses that.

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  8. Wasn't Garth Williams responsible for the illustration on 'Charlotte's Web'? I love those, but have never thought to look for other examples of his work. I will certainly see if I can get a copy of the cook book. The Bears will enjoy the cakes as well.

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    1. I had to check, but it's the very same! I was just looking on Wikipedia - I had no idea he'd written his own books (and illustrated them) as well.

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  9. I've made those heart-shaped cakes! (I've got that same Little House on the Prairie Cookbook.) And shortening totally works. They're very yummy. And a perfect Valentine treat. :)

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    1. I'm glad to know they've been officially tested, Lark :) I'm definitely putting these on my baking list. Now that it's gotten cold again, I can stand to have the oven on in my tiny little kitchen.

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  10. Oooh, I want to read the Victorian book - just my sort of thing, thought I suspect I wouldn't really like to live like a Victorian at all. Not unless I was guaranteed excellent plumbing and sanitation. ;-)

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    1. Also modern medical care, rational dress (no crinoline for me), education & property/voting rights. I don't actually think I want to be a woman in Victorian society.

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Thank you for taking the time to read, and to comment. I always enjoy hearing different points of view about the books I am reading, even if we disagree!