I’m so excited when I get to read a brand-new, brand new book -that is, when I am the first person to check out and read a library copy of a book. Don’t get me wrong, I love to share, but right now I am really enjoying the “new car smell” of the experience. It helps that I’m also really enjoying what’s going on between the book’s fresh covers, as well.
Better Luck Next Time by Julia Clairborne Johnson is set in 1938, in Reno, Nevada at the Flying Leap dude ranch. There, women who are waiting for their divorces to come through can, for a fee, put up stakes for the six weeks it takes for them to declare state residency and file the paperwork legally. While nursing their (sometimes) broken hearts, these women are pampered and catered to by hunky ranch hands like Ward, the narrator of this story, who finds himself torn between the job and, you guessed it, one of the ranch’s visitors. So far, this look at marriage, divorce, friendship, love, and finding yourself, is proving to be engaging and original and is educating me about a slice of American history that I hadn’t known before. Also, it is providing me with plenty of opportunities to laugh out loud along the way. Reserve your copy here!
But, enough about the book. Let’s talk food! It’s been so cold here lately that this weekend I thought I’d conjure some warmth by recreating a cake I made over the summer, a lemon cake that is chock-full of blueberries and covered a cream cheese frosting. I dare you to bake one yourself and take a bite with your eyes closed. You can almost feel the sunshine pouring down on you. I found the recipe online at https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/lemon-blueberry-layer-cake/ but you can find cookbooks by the genius who created this recipe in our catalog! Hope you enjoy. ~Carol
Read it or Weep 