Embedded: How Many Re-reads Before a Book Becomes a Part of Your Psyche?

On the banks of Plum Creek, in Walnut Grove, Minnesota

This summer I had the chance to travel to South Dakota for the Laura Ingalls Wilder conference called Laurapalooza 2015. It was a fantastic experience to say the least. But there I had a bit of a reading revelation.

Now, I have not read the Little House books for over  - at least - ten or fifteen years. I did look at part of Pioneer Girl when it came out last year - but have not really immersed myself in it. So I went to an intense conference and fan based event, not really having updated myself on the material. To my amazement, I did not have to.

The details of the books and the story lines that I remembered astonished me. The recall I had was if I had read the books the night before. Where did this come from? (I can barely remember to take my daily medication - and have to double check sometimes.) Was it the energy from the fandom that was giving me the ability to bring up minute details of Laura's life?  I was a bit flummoxed.

As we know memories can be tricky. We can make ourselves forget things and emotions that others remember with clarity. There are many studies out there and no one knows everything about the brain and how our memory works. (Need to find a good book on this!)

Ingalls Homestead in DeSmet, South Dakota

But is there a time period where reading can imprint in your head and stories can embed themselves in your inner most memory? I read the Little House books over and over when I was younger. I watched the TV show and dismissed it since it went down a different path than the original books. I took the entire book set with us on a driving vacation, because I was somehow convinced that our house would burn while we were away, and I needed my Laura titles. They were MY collection. (Bless my parents for indulging me.)

Is that how I did it? Did my connection and obsession with Laura's works allow me to have a better recall? Or is this just a case of an old passion coming to the forefront during a time of "need?" I don't know. Are all readers like this? Or it is just our emotional connection to the particular written work? Perhaps it is just a case of the "right book at the right time."

It is something to think about. How embedded are you?

Colonial Foodies

The Founding Foodies: How Washington, Jefferson, and Franklin Revolutionized American Cuisine By Dave DeWitt


This is a great and concise title on how our founding fathers really were the first foodies in the land. Jefferson and Washington were plantation owners and experimented with crops and vegetables in their particular states. Franklin spent time in France as the U.S. ambassador and definitely enjoyed himself while there! He also was a early supporter of corn. Jefferson used his time in France to discover new plants and vegetables and had some of them brought back to Monticello.

This book goes into detail about food (and drink) during colonial times and how the tavern really helped the growth of the democracy. There is also a lengthy section with recreated recipes. There is a very detailed appendix with historic colonial foodie sites to visit. And perhaps best of all - an extremely detailed bibliography for more books both on Washington, Jefferson and Franklin, but food and living during colonial times. A fun read.

CookOff: Recipe Fever in America

Do you watch eagerly any and all cooking competitions on the Food Network? Do you dream of entering the Pillsbury BakeOff? If so then Amy Sutherland's book Cookoff: Recipe Fever in America is for you. Sutherland captures the history, enthusiasm and a bit of the wackiness that is inherent in these contests that are promoted as being all American. But do these contests really reflect what America eats? Or is this a case of the contestants giving the big food conglomerates what they want? And are they really cooking anyway? Or just assembling ingredients?

Sutherland delves into all those questions and many more as she follows contestants to the Pillsbury, garlic fest and other cook offs and well as a couple chili competitions. Just who are these people who compete? Some are what they call "contesters" people who have been doing this for quite a while. (Pillsbury has limits now on how many years you can compete at the contest - three!) Some are fresh faced newcomers just thrilled to be at their first contest. Most of the branded contests have women as the majority of their contestants. Men on the other hand dominate the chili and BBQ contests.

Sutherland has a great way of making these folks come alive in her writing. And she shows them to be very human with all their foibles, humor and passion. Most of these people love food and love to be creative in the kitchen. And it shows. Check out the mania and maybe you too will compete. A very entertaining read.

The Fortune Cookie Chronicles: Adventures in the World Of Chinese Food

The Fortune Cookie Chronicles: Adventures in the World Of Chinese Food by Jennifer 8. Lee is a whirlwind trip into Chinese American cuisine. The fortune cookie is an American made phenomena, but does it have an ancestry in the food culture it helped popularize? That is the start of Lee's quest and she takes the reader all over the world in search of answers.

As an American -born Chinese, she takes us in the history of the Chinese food in America and elsewhere. Chinese food is served in all seven continents - including Antarctica. (And she takes us to some of the most well known of the overseas restaurants. The irony is that most of them have"American style" food!) It is a story of Chinese immigration and adaptation.

Just who first made chop seuy anyway - and just who is this General Tso and his chicken? (This dish really sounds like just a variation of sesame chicken to me!) And what happens when hundreds of people use the same numbers from their fortune cookie to play the lottery? Read and find out.

Lee's book is well written and thoughtful. She provides us with a glimpse of the Chinese American experience. I'm just glad she let us all come along for the ride. A must read for anyone who loves their local Chinese takeout. Well written and a lot of fun. And yes, it will make you hungry.