Book Review: Weaving Step-by-Step (hearts, baskets, chairs, etc.)(OT)

Weaving Step-by-Step by Sue Muldoon (Sue Muldoon, 2024, $34.99, 59 pp spiral bound)

Whether you are a total beginner like me, an intermediate or an advanced weaver, Weaving Step-by-Step will teach you more than you could ever have imagined! 

Ideas Galore! With Variations!

From easy-peasy hearts and paper or reed snowflakes to more intricate baskets (see my favorite below)

and backpacks, author Sue Muldoon's knack for teaching will make it not only easy for you but challenging at the same time with information about dyeing reeds, drying and sealing reeds, and lists of sources, guilds, suppliers and websites (with QRCs).

The author's excellent photography and just-the-right-size diagrams that are highly labelled make for early success.

You can tell she is a teacher! Most of the 20 projects are for beginners, even children, yet look so complicated that pretty soon you will even talk like a professional weaver, thanks to the basketry definitions on page 25. 

You can find Sue and her books at the 2024 Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival the first weekend in May. Hopefully she will return next year and teach some classes. Stay tuned!

Book Review: Whose Manger is This? (children's book, OT)

Whose Manger is This? by  Lisa Robbins (Elk Lake Publishing, 2023, $13.99 pb, also Kindle and hardcover, ages 3-8, 36 pp)

Easy Rhyming

It is so hard to write a book, even a short book, in rhyme and make it sound natural but author Lisa Robbins has managed to do so with a lovely little book.

A Book of Gifts

Whose Manger is This? begins with us meeting a rowdy ram and a cranky cow. Then we come across a moody mule and curt camel, a jeering jay, a dapper dove, a meanie mouse and, finally, a cozy cat - all of whom claim the manger. And each animal is true to life with their own characteristics that are specific to their kind: the camel spits, for example.

But then, the rowdy ram notices someone in the manger. . . . 

Each animal has its own gift to give. You and your child will go back and forth in this lovely little book to see the animals with their negative adjectives turn into their gifts. You will learn how to overcome those adjectives with the questions in the back of the book. And you will cherish and keep this book. I did.

Book Review: Bodhi, The All American Lodge Dog (Maryland, yellow lab)

Bodhi, The All-American Lodge Dog, photography by Middleton Evans (Ravenwood Press, 2007, $35 HB, 192pp) Review by Skye Anderson 

Who Says You Can't Tell a Book by its Cover?

The cover photo will draw you in and the inside photos will keep you enthralled and entertained!

Every hotel should have a hotel dog (there is at least one in New York City). Every dormitory, daycare, camp, school, retirement home, prison, fraternity and sorority house, too! And in Maryland, the Savage River Lodge* has its own resident yellow labrador retriever, Bodhi. Of course, if your favorite dog is the labrador retriever like so many Americans over the past decades, you will want to keep thumbing through Bodhi, The All-American Lodge Dog and 'dog-ear' your favorite photos! There are so many of them. . . . 

Bodhi started out life as a little pup whose people built a wilderness resort for him (of course!) (well, sort of!) that was simply heaven on earth, full of adventures to experience, animals and people-guests to meet, winter snow to ski and snowshoe on, spring buds and 'baby wilds' to smell and befriend, autumn leaves to bound in (and wear).

Fall Fun

Man's Best Friend, or - Everyone's Best Friend?

Bodhi is a healer: many lodge guests come to relax, commune with nature,  escape the stresses of everyday city life while others come to ski or fish or . . . meet Bodhi!

In an interview with an animal communicator, Bodhi related that communication with him and his kind is becoming more understood. It is like learning another language. When we learn the language of interspecies communication, we can truly say "Bodhi speaks" and we listen (p. 161).

Game Warden

With Six Chapters. . . . 

With six chapters, each introduced by an essay followed by several two-page spreads on a specific topic, my favorite was "A Day in the Life," showing Bodhi's morning commute, his office hours, a sniff test of new canine guests arriving at the lodge and 'Kissing the Girls' who check in at three, three square meals, romper room, show business, and finally, "Good night and sweet dreams, Bodhi!")

What the Future Brings

Bodhi's book appeared in 2007 and there have been some changes  since then, of course. First of all, in his book Bodhi mentions his people will soon travel to pick up a set of yellow lab twins, Koko and Karma, who Bodhi will train to be the welcome staff at Savage River.

Since the Bodhi book was written in 2024, Bodhi, Koko and Karma have passed away but left their legacy in calendars for a few years. We hope the Lodge will soon again have a canine ambassador with a calendar for those folks too far away to visit in person.

The Savage River Lodge, home of fine dining and delightful events such as Wine in the Woods and weddings (even elopements) and retreats, is still welcoming guests who stay in the lodge itself or in yurts or cabins. And the Lodge is dog-friendly, of course!

Y'all Come Back Now, You Hear?

*about three hours from both Baltimore and Washington, DC

Bonus: some of my favorite Bodhi photos, besides the silly ones: inside the front cover (below)

 and inside the back cover (below)

Summer Fun

More Summer Fun

Book Review: TL;DR Shakespeare (summaries of his plays)(OT)

TL;DR Shakespeare, by SparkNotes (Spark Notes, 2022, $14.99, 96pp) Review by Skye Anderson 

TL;DR? LOL?

At last I know what TL;DR means! Like LOL which some thought meant Lots of Luck when it really means Laughing out Loud, Tl;DR actually means Too Long; Didn't Read!

I have been an amateur Shakespeare aficionado since the age of 12: I try to like his plays and I keep trying, which is why I picked up this very colorful little book.

Six Comedies, Six Tragedies: Organized

One of two TL;DR books (the other being Literature* - 13 modern classics), this is a keeper for any student in high school or college or for any self-learner. Since it can be difficult for an amateur (non-English major) to understand poetry written hundreds of years ago, Notes can help explain Shakespeare for you. It would make a great gift for a 12-year-old to read over the summer and decide which of the plays to really start with.

Each play has a 6-page spread starting with illustrations of the characters, with the genre, setting and 'year first performed.' Next comes the summary (plot overview with rising action, climax, falling action and major conflict )

followed by a page of more main characters (more than before) and their relationships, themes and a quote,

closing with the key question and answer, and finally, 'What Does the Ending Mean'?

This TL;DR book also contains half-page synopses of 9 other comedies, 6 tragedies and 11 histories in addition to the six comedies and six tragedies.

What Would I Change?

A few things: first, some pages had backgrounds of such dark colors like blue that the print was difficult to read. And, like Russian novels of several hundred pages spanning decades, this book of summaries tries to include everything so that you don't remember the characters' names after reading the one paragraph synopsis.

However, I can't wait to get the other TL;DR book - Literature!

*includes To Kill a Mockingbird, Lord of the Flies, Catcher in the Rye, The Handmaid's Tale, The Things They Carried, Of Mice and Men, 1984, Fahrenheit 451 and more

Book Review: Kody's Capers: Finding Joy (horse - rescue and therapy)(OT)

Kody's Capers: Finding Joy, by Terri Abbatiello (Terri Abbatiello Publishing, 27pp, 2023, ages 3-10, $10.99) Review by Skye Anderson

Kody, a little miniature horse with one blue eye and one brown eye, comes full circle in his book Finding Joy. In the beginning, Kody wants for food, among many other things, but most of all, he wants love. Then, a miracle happens but it's scary - a trailer comes for Kody and his friends and takes them - fast and noisily - to a wonderful new home, a horse rescue farm.

Trimming Tickles!

We loved the part where getting his hooves trimmed tickles!

The next thing Kody knows is that he is adopted and he (with his person) visits others as a therapy horse! They bring joy but not only to people - also to the animals Kody lives with.

Starting Conversations

Kody's Capers will start many a conversation, from the younger set retelling the story, to the older ones noticing Kody's eyes and asking about therapy animals. Who knows? Maybe the readers will beging taking their dogs to schools, libraries or nursing homes to spread the joy!

And, Best of All

And, best of all, this is a true story!

Book Review: Driving Home Naked (and other misadventures of a country veterinarian)

Driving Home Naked (and other misadventures of a country veterinarian) by Melinda McCall* (She Writes Press, 2023, $17.95, 304 pages PB) Review by Skye Anderson 

Now that I have your attention. . . . !

If the cover illustration (with the requisite border collie as co-pilot) doesn't reel you in, the title will: Driving Home Naked. 

If you like to carry a book around with you as you go through your day and open it when you have a few empty minutes (rather than using your i-phone), this is the book for you, with short anecdotes of sometimes humorous situations and other times unbelievable situations. However, you might want to cover the cover, especially due to the title!

Divided into three sections, "Dressing the Part" (with 18 short chapters covering the years 1990-2007), "Peeling Off the Layers" (12 stories, 2008-2011) and "Wearing Many Hats" (25 situations, 2012-2021), Driving Home Naked covers the early years, mid-career and experienced experiences to date of a teacher of others in a female large-animal veterinary practice in Virginia. 

Who hasn't wanted to be a veterinarian? Not I! I still want to be one. And I can be - sort of - by reading books like Naked.

I hesitate to say this, but I especially liked the two stories about euthanasia, one being rather humorous. But I can't tell you my favorite story - McCall simply included too many. However, she will sell and sign her books at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival at the Howard County Fairgrounds on 4 and 5 May: I can't wait to chat with her!

The Author

McCall is truly living her dream and was driven to be a veterinarian from an early age, having been brought up on a dairy farm. You, too, can live your dream of being a veterinarian in Driving Home Naked without having to drive home naked yourself!

*Also author of Million Dollar Goat

Book Review: Coyotes in the Pasture & Wolves at the Door (raising sheep, cooking lamb), Part 2: The Rest of the Story

Coyotes in the Pasture & Wolves at the Door, by John & Sukey Jamison (Word Association Publishers, 2018, 187 pp, $35), Part 2: The Rest of the Story (reviewed by Emily Steele, cook, and Skye Anderson, non-cook)

A Memoir Spiced with Lamb Recipes

Coyotes in the Pasture & Wolves at the Door has both word and pictures, plus recipes thrown in for good measure. Yesterday we focused on the words and today, on the recipes (and pictures) thanks to co-reviewer Emily Steele.

Lamb is not the most popular meat, perhaps because of its expense or the slightly gamey taste but it can be cooked with very few ingredients, allowing the flavor to star. And the Jamisons of western Pennsylvania have perfected raising sheep, pasture-fed, over the past 50 years. They were also the first to offer mail-order lamb and to sell to the best chefs: they even befriended Julia Child!

The recipes included in Coyotes are easily created by the average cook, given quality meat, like Lamb Leg Mini Roast, p 176.

We especially loved the idea of lamb spaghetti and lamb risotto and lamb stroganoff, along with lamb burgers and rack of lamb. And, of course, also included are three notes from Julia Child and a photo of her kitchen.

What We Might Suggest

Short chapters told perhaps chronologically, with 2-3 photos and a delicious recipe make Coyotes a fun book to keep - and to use!. A good idea, but perhaps difficult to carry out, would be to coordinate the chapters with the recipes and, of course, to caption the photos (but later, we found a list of the photos in the back of the book and even without that, it was fairly easy to discern who was in each photo from the accompanying story). The recipe photos were taken professionally while the family and farm photos vary in quality - but that is part of the charm of this book written so well by two English majors.

The Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival

If you would like to meet John and Sukey Jamison, we invite you to the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival where they will be selling and signing their book and giving a lecture/workshop. The Festival is always on the first full weekend in May, at the Howard County, MD, fairgrounds.

We can't wait to meet the Jamisons at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival on May 4th and 5th this year. Won't you join us?

Book Review: Coyotes in the Pasture & Wolves at the Door (raising sheep, cooking lamb), Part 1

Coyotes in the Pasture & Wolves at the Door, by John & Sukey Jamison (Word Association Publishers, 2018, 187 pp, $35), Part 1: The Words (reviewed by Skye Anderson)

I have been trying to figure out why I enjoyed this book so much since it contains 22 lamb recipes (with one fruit, one potato, and one cake recipe) and I do not cook. Is it because the authors, the Jamisons, live in the next state over and are about my age, having lived through the Hippie Generation? Is it because there are 22 short chapters (with an intro and epilogue)? Is it because the cover photo is so intriguing? Is it because the Jamisons, farmers in western Pennsylvania, are name-droppers with the likes of Julia Child (former spy), Anthony Bourdain, Jody Foster 

and several nationally known chefs?

Two Mortgages, Three Kids and No Job, But 200 Acres and 3,000 Sheep!

A wealthy cook and her husband start out to buy land and sheep to raise in the 1970s and end up selling to the great chefs of the world. The Jamisons manage to persevere amid the ups and downs of learning farming and became the nearly first mail-order lamb supplier to major restaurants in the country.

Sustainable Food, Humanely Raised Pasture-fed Sheep

Scrumptious photographs of the end-products of the recipes I will never make but will continue to drool over. I suppose I could attempt a couple since they seem easy, simple and I would start on recipes with the fewest number of ingredients like Loin Chops a la Grille on p. 112.

Writing Style, Book Organization and Suggestions

Authors John Jamison and his wife Sukey were English majors which may account for the readability of the short chapters, interspersed with humor and, even though the chapters are rather formulaic, they are still immensely enjoyable. Photos of the recipes are professional and the book is also dotted with family photos (and letters from Julia!), not captioned but easy to discern. The 'wolves at the door' expression refers to living on a shoestring in the early days but if you can explain the coyotes in the pasture, please let this reviewer know!

Stay tuned to more information about the recipes: my usual food reviewer lives across the country but I have found a local expert!

Oh, and two of the 'blog-chapters' also feature dogs, of course, like "Kate, the Wonder Dog"!