Nuts and Bolts Snack Mix

Ann Whitford Paul's how-to book about writing picture books for children has everything you need to get started. The nuts and bolts. The kitchen sink. :) You get the picture.

Nuts and Bolts Snack Mix

1 cup dry roasted peanuts
1 cup craisins
1 cup strawberried peanut butter M&Ms

Dump all the ingredients into a container or baggie and shake together (kids love this recipe).

*You can probably see from the picture how I did not use the strawberried peanut butter M&Ms. I went to four different stores searching for them, but they must be discontinued. If you can find them, definately use them. Trust me on this one. Yum. And they are more colorful. But alas, I used chocolate chips instead because I had to have some chocolate in there somewhere!

Writing Picture Books by Ann Whitford Paul

Food to eat while reading: Nuts and Bolts trail mix

Read the synopsis here.

What I liked:

The author has an easy style that makes reading a how-to book pleasurable, in fact, I set aside my current novel to read it.

Each chapter has an exercise that you can use to strengthen your work in progress, using the tools from that chapter.

This book allowed me to look at all of my WIP with a fresh perspective. The writing advice Paul gives is universal and helped me look more simply at the YA novel I am working out.

Paul gives picture book examples to help illustrate each writing tip.

I love the instruction on the rhythm in words and how poetry can help us with our prose.

What I would have changed:

Nothing, really. It’s a pretty straight-forward book with great advice.

The verdict:

Aspiring writers who have no idea where to begin will devour this book, and those who are looking for a fresh way to spruce up their writing will benefit from the exercises.


Purchase: Writing Picture Books: A Hands-On Guide from Story Creation to Publication

Genre: How To

Publisher: Paperback, 256 pages

Published June 2nd 2009 by Writers Digest Books

Where I got the book: Amazon

Tasty Tuesday Pre-Feis Spaghetti and Meatballs

Liffey Rivers won't think of eating anything but spaghetti and meatballs the night before a feis (an Irish dance competition).  Who knows what might happen if she were to eat, say, chicken.  In honor of Liffey Rivers and the Mystery of the Sparkling Solo Dress by Brenna Briggs, I am giving you a recipe for the biggest meatballs and yummiest sauce I can find.  And if spaghetti and meatballs brings good luck, then all of us should have it at least once a week. 

Giant Meatballs:
•1 1/2 lbs ground sirloin or turkey
•1 egg
•1/2 t crushed red pepper flakes
•3 cloves garlic, minced
•1/4 medium onion, minced
•handful chopped flat-leaf parsley
•1 C Italian bread crumbs
•4 good shakes Worcestershire sauce
•1 t salt
•16 small cubes of provolone cheese (1/4 pound or so)I used some string cheese
•olive oil for baking sheet
 
Preheat oven to 425.


Combine meat, egg, red pepper flakes, garlic, onion, parsley, bread crumbs, salt and Worcestershire sauce in a large bowl. Use your hands.

Make 16 meatballs.
Tuck a piece of provolone into the middle of each meatball and seal it up as much as you can. Place meatballs on a nonstick cookie sheet brushed with a little olive oil. Place cookie sheet in the oven and bake 12-15 minutes.

Marinara Sauce
*note, you could also use a can of store bought sauce if you would like

•2 (28 oz) cans crushed tomatoes
•3 garlic cloves
•red pepper flakes to taste
•2 T olive oil
•1/4 C chopped fresh Italian parsley
•1/4 C chopped fresh basil (or a couple of teaspoons of dry, in a pinch)
•1/8 C chopped fresh oregano (or a teaspoon of dry; feel free to adjust herb amounts to your liking)
•1 t sugar
•salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in a pot over medium heat, add garlic and red pepper flakes (about a teaspoon; more if you like a really spicy sauce). Saute until the garlic sizzles. Add tomatoes and stir. Then add basil, parsley, oregano, sugar (if the tomatoes are acidic), salt and pepper. Bring this to boil, stirring occasionally. Drop the heat down and let it simmer while you work on everything else.

Serve over your favorite pasta.

Source

Liffey Rivers and the Mystery of the Sparkling Solo Dress Crown by Brenna Briggs

Food to eat while reading: Pre-feis Spaghetti and Meatballs
How fun is a mystery set at an Irish dance competition?

Read the synopsis here.

What I liked:

Liffey is a spunky, quirky girl who dreams of qualifying for a solo dress and eats spaghetti and meatballs the night before every competition. Because of her overbearing personality, no one, including the reader, can anticipate what she will do next.

The author pulls the reader into two new worlds that they may never otherwise explore. The first is the world of Irish dance. Second, she gives us a feel for the city of St. Louis, Missouri.

Liffey lets her imagination run a bit wild, which makes her the perfect sleuth. She notices clues that other people might not even wonder about.

I can see where Liffey’s looniness might be hereditary. I laughed when I heard that her aunt gave a cheer during Liffey’s competition:“Kick ‘em high, kick ‘em low, go, go, go.”

Liffey internalizes about her fears and dreams in a way that most girls her age can relate to. She wants a solo dress more than anything . She draws her own designs for a dress, notices other girls’ dresses and daydreams about it every few minutes.

What I would have changed:

Even though I enjoyed Liffey’s eccentricities, her daydreams and a few stray points of view switches gave me whiplash. She would obsess about her dress, launch into a lecture on the St. Louis Arch, and then on to her competition.

Liffey’s character wavered inconsistently. She spoke of how she didn’t mind that her father required her to have an escort at the hotel, and then give the escort the slip a few moments later. She

I couldn’t relate well to Liffey. I felt pity for her that she was always left alone at competitions and had no mother to care for her. But pity wasn’t enough to make me relate to her. Liffey's rudeness to other people,disregard for rules and disrespect for adults distanced me from her. I could see why the other girls in her Irish dance school avoided her, I would too. Her quirkiness went past the point where we enjoy reading about her idiosyncrises-she became a bit too far out there to be relatable.

The mystery was fun, but predictable. Liffey’s actions kept me guessing, but the plotline of the mystery was very basic and easy to wonder about.

The author did not attempt to explain the world of Irish dance to an outside viewer, and as a result, those who are not familiar with Irish dance competitions will be left scratching their heads.

The verdict:

Think Nancy Drew meets the Irish dance world.  Anyone who loves Irish dance will enjoy reading about Liffey’s adventures.


Purchase: Liffey Rivers and the Mystery of the Sparkling Solo Dress Crown

Genre: MG, mystery

Publisher: Paperback, 146 pages, Published November 3rd 2005 by BookSurge Publishing

Where I got the book: Brenna Briggs, author*

*I received only a copy of the book as compensation for my review.