The Zookeeper's Wife

I've become a little obsessed with my local metropolitan library's app on my iPad.  There are, literally, tons and tons and tons of books and audiobooks that you can check out electronically.  This was my most recent listen via this app. 

The Zookeeper's Wife, written like a novel, is the true story of the plight endured by the Warsaw zookeeper and his wife during World War II.  Antonina Żabińksi, the zookeeper's wife, kept a journal and Diane Ackerman pieces together her story masterfully along with other wartime documents.

I guess I never thought about what it would be like to own a zoo during wartime, and what you'd have to do to maintain and sacrifice for the animals.  Many animals were carefully transferred to other zoos outside the country, but many more were victims of the war.

What's so extraordinary about this story is what the Żabińksis managed to accomplish during this sad time, using the zoo as a farce.  Many Jews were temporarily smuggled out of the Warsaw ghetto and into zoo cages or within their villa.  Once a safe-haven was found for these Jews, they were able to move on.  How many Jews lived because of the Żabińksis' generosity of spirit and their willingness to jeopardize their own position?  It's hard to know.

One thing that greatly saddened me about this book was the story of the Żabińksis' son, Ryszard.  He knew how important it was to not reveal what was going on within his home, that Antonina documents in her journal how he withdrew from other children and attempted to NOT make friends during the war.  The poor child was too scared he might accidentally reveal the household goings-on, that Ryszard became something of an introvert and played almost singularly with zoo animals or other Jewish children within the zoo grounds.

Between listening to Antonina's own eccentricities, the zoo animals' activities (especially badger) and Jan's (the zookeeper) bold underground workings, this book is amazing and tragic at the same time.  While so many horrible things were going on in Warsaw, this family was able to keep their heads above water AND help others while attempting to keep a positive attitude.

I highly recommend this book.  I'll say again, that this book reads like a novel.  After listening in audiobook form for about 30 minutes, I had to double-check that this was, truly, a work of non-fiction. 

Safe Haven

Happy Monday!  I'm a bit behind on reviewing the books I've finished lately, so I thought I'd start out the week with this one...Safe Haven!  My friend, Nicole, read this book first and gave it a pretty good review.  She said she was in a reading slump and needed a sure thing, because that's what Nicholas Sparks is most of the time.  Right after we moved to Tulsa, I found a hardback copy of this book at a library book sale near my house.  So, I picked it up for a couple bucks, I mean why not?

I have to admit that this book didn't immediately jump to the top of my "to-read" list.  I have to be in the mood for Sparks' books because a) someone always dies or b) someone always gets a horrible terminal illness.  Add on to that, this book's storyline sounded A LOT like this movie...

Don't get me wrong, Sleeping with the Enemy is one of those movies where, if it's on TV, I'll stop and watch it.  I know the storyline and I know that everything is going to work out alright in the end.  And I love Julia Roberts.  But, I felt like Safe Haven had that "been there, done that" feel to it.  Then, Nicole informed that this was happening.

What's great about reading a book when the movie stars have already been picked for the silverscreen is that you know who to picture in your head.  Needless to say, I picked this one out of my pile the day after I found out about the impending movie.

I'll say that the storyline does follow the Sleeping with the Enemy-esque style...BUT, there's a fantastic twist in the end.  I don't want to make a big deal about it because I don't think you should be looking for one...but, it's great.  I never saw it coming and when I asked Nicole about it, she said she didn't either. 

I definitely recommend this one...it is a typical Nicholas Sparks book, in that someone does die (bet you can guess who if you've seen Sleeping with the Enemy a bajillion times too) and there is someone who died of a terminal illness (the main character's love interest is a widower, hello!), so it's still a good Sparks story with his trademark touches.  Go pick it up before the movie's out in February!

Friday Funday

Since I missed last week, I thought I'd give you an extra long post of my favorite pins over the past two weeks.  

Of course, I have to start with some bookish ones.

I don't watch this show, but I love this line...

Source: sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net via Crystal on Pinterest

So true...

Source: 24.media.tumblr.com via Crystal on Pinterest

For realz.

Source: sphotos.xx.fbcdn.net via Crystal on Pinterest

This needs to go on my "need to make NOW" list.

Source: etsy.com via Crystal on Pinterest

A Couple Christmas Pins!

I'm going to try and start this tomorrow on my Instagram account...

Source: positivelypresent.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Mmmm...tasty!

Source: cookincowgirl.blogspot.com via Crystal on Pinterest

And to motivate me (and maybe you too) to remember to exercise after and through the tasty food of the holiday season...

Source: screem01.blogspot.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: theurbanslant.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Source: fitsugar.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Happy Friday and last day of November everyone!

The Next Best Thing

I have to say that Jennifer Weiner has become a favorite author of mine in the past couple of years.  After starting out with her Good In Bed a while back, I was hooked (for that review, click here).  It's so nice to have someone write about real women with real body and emotional issues.  Every protagonist in her books is the kind of underdog you want to root for. 

I've recently noticed that she's only written 10 books...and I've read six of them to-date.  I think I might have to just round it out and finish up this smallish number, I already own two of the others I haven't read yet...that leaves only two more. 

The Next Best Thing is Weiner's newest book, released in July of this year.  Interesting note, after finishing this book, I read some other reviews and found out that this book is semi-autobiographical.  Also, if (like me) you've read The Guy Not Taken, this book is a continuation of one of those short stories.  Yay, I was super excited about that!

The main character, Ruth, is an aspiring sitcom writer whose pilot script, The Next Best Thing, gets picked up.  Ruth lives with her sweet grandmother, who coddles her a bit since Ruth was the victim of a childhood car accident where she was physically (and emotionally) scarred for life AND lost her parents.

This book follows Ruth's struggle to make her Golden Girls-style sitcom dream a reality, all the while dealing with executives, annoying television actors, a huge crush on her old boss and all the other types of politics surrounding Hollywood. 

For me, this book was a solid 3 out of 5 stars.  It didn't wow me like Good In Bed and I felt the ending was left a little open.  I would have appreciated more of a definitive closing, but I think Weiner might have been making a point with it.  It ends with the message that Ruth is happy with how things have turned out and that while things might change tomorrow, she'll be happy with what she has today.  It's a nice idea, but I think that I (along with other readers, judging from other reviews) would have liked a bit more closure.  I definitely recommend this book, like I would recommend just about any Jennifer Weiner book.  In fact, it might be a good stocking stuffer for someone you know (or you could just slide it under the tree for yourself)!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

I hope everyone had a fantastic, long Thanksgiving holiday weekend.  We certainly did, even though we spent about 9 hours on the road throughout the weekend...we still managed to see all our loved ones and that's what's important. 

I love this time of year because you're reminded of what's really important in your life, family and friends.  Though, from time to time I might get a little choked up because certain items remind me of certain people that might not be here anymore.  For example, I was in the grocery store on Monday afternoon and saw my first fruitcake of the year.  My grandfather, who we lost a few years back, is the only person I've ever known who actually liked (and actually LOVED) fruitcake.  It made me a little sad, but I had to smile at the same time.

Monday and Tuesday I predominantly spent decorating our home.  I really had fun this year because this was the first year I felt I could really go all out.  Last year, we had just moved and it was more of a rush to get everything up so that we didn't miss the chance to enjoy our decorations. 

This year, I decided to buy some garland for our staircase and David managed to get it hung last night...I think it looks fantastic.  I never even thought to do this last year, but it will definitely be a requirement every year from here on out.

Also, my great-great Aunt Naomia gifted us with this family heirloom nativity set back when we moved her into a senior living community this past summer.  I've had to wait since then before I could display it on our mantle...but, I think the wait was totally worth it.

Back to getting choked up around this time of year, this little guy did it to me as well.  My mom bought me this cheap, little, singing, light-up, stuffed Rudolph back when I was still in college.  He was always a part of my work station decorations.  During my last job, it always really felt like Christmas once he was displayed.  Part of that was because my then-boss and best guy friend, Tom, HATED this particular Rudolph.  He even strung him up at one point to make it look like Rudolph "committed suicide."  The Tom I'm referring to also happens to be the friend that lost his life earlier this year.  While unpacking and placing Rudolph amongst other Christmas-y stuffed animals, it made me smile wistfully while remembering better times with my friend.

Have you got your house and/or work station decorated for the holidays yet?  Or do you wait until closer to the big day?  David didn't actually want to decorate until December 1st, but I managed to persuade him.  His parents will actually wait until closer to Christmas because they always buy a real tree, which wouldn't last that long if purchased and decorated now.  I've never had a real tree and wouldn't even know how to care for it!

What items/foods/decorations make you feel nostalgic this time of year?

Happy Thanksgiving

Wishing you and yours a very happy Thanksgiving! 

Source: iheritages.tumblr.com via Amy on Pinterest

And because every family watches some football either on Thanksgiving or another day on this holiday weekend: a little funny for you...

Source: fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.net via Nicole on Pinterest

Beautiful Brownie Indulgence

As we head into the holiday season, on this very special week where we focus on giving thanks, I thought I'd share a couple of indulgent recipes I've recently tried out.  Because in this household, we're thankful for chocolate.  Like, a lot.  This first recipe experiment stemmed more from the fact that I felt we were drowning in leftover Halloween candy.  I saw this pin and decided that it looked incredibly tasty...and a good freezable entity. 

Source: blog.babygizmo.com via Crystal on Pinterest

Of the two brownie recipes you'll see in this post, this first one is David's favorite.  Both are a chocolately, ooey, gooey, cookie/brownie, tasty goodness...this one was just lucky enough to win out with him.  Here's the recipe:

Ultimate Pretzel Crusted Peanut Butter Cookie Candy Brownie Bars
From Baby Gizmo's blog

2 ½ cups crushed butter pretzels (one 9 oz. package)
1 cup melted butter
5 tbsp sugar
Betty Crocker Peanut Butter Cookie Mix (and all the ingredients the mix calls for)
Brownie Mix (and all the ingredients the mix calls for)
Snack Size Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups (20-24)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Crush the pretzels in a food processor, but leave some small pieces for texture...you don't want just dust.  Mix with the melted butter and sugar.

Press into a lightly greased 13x9 pan.  Mix the cookie dough according the package instructions.

Lightly press the cookie dough over the pretzel layer.  You'll need to do this gingerly, as the pretzels will want to stick to the cookie dough. 

Unwrap the peanut butter cups and begin distributing them evenly over the cookie dough layer.  The original recipe called for 24 cups, but I only had 20.  This was still plenty for this recipe...and don't worry if they're a little beat up (like mine) because they still taste the same and melt beautifully in the final product.

Prepare the brownie mix according to the package instructions, then pour that over the peanut butter cup layer.

Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes.

Let cool and then cut into bars...and enjoy!!

These are dangerous...because they're so dang delicious!  Because they're so heavy and decadent and wonderful and filling, I didn't want us to eat the whole pan all at once.  Or even within a few days.  So, I separated the brownies into plastic-wrapped packages of two.  Then, I froze them.

These freeze beautifully and taste just as good after you've let them thaw.  What I've been doing, because of David's impatience is this...when I bake something in the oven (which I do at almost every meal), when I'm done I'll turn the oven off.  Then, I'll put a frozen brownie (or 2) in a glass baking pan and place it in the still-warm oven for about 10 minutes.  Ta da!  Warm and gooey brownie(s) in minutes...and a fully satisfied and satiated husband.  Mission: complete.

This next recipe is also another Pinterest find that I decided to try out.  David's favorite dessert anything is "cookies and cream."  Ice cream, shakes, candy, etc.  He loves it.  So, when I saw this pin, I knew I had a winner.

Source: picky-palate.com via Crystal on Pinterest

This is, yet another, super easy and delicious brownie recipe.  And this one comes from a blogland favorite, Picky Palate.

Gooey Cookies and Cream Chocolate Cake Bars
from Picky Palate

1 Devils Food Cake Mix
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
14 Oreo Cookies, broken into bite size pieces

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a 9×13 inch baking pan with tin foil sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.

Place cake mix, butter and egg into a large bowl, mixing to combine.

I have to admit that I tried using that wooden spoon first, but she's right...use your hands, it works much quicker.  Press into prepared baking pan.

Top with broken pieces of cookies (I used 20 cookies instead of the 14 the recipe calls for...I didn't want to accidentally eat the 6 leftover cookies, lol!).

Pour sweetened condensed milk over cookies and top with chocolate chips.

At this point, I think this post qualifies as food porn, am I right?  Because this looks completely delectable to me...

Bake for 23-25 minutes, until cooked through. Remove from oven.

After 5 minutes of cooling, run a plastic knife around edges to loosen, this makes it much easier to remove from foil.  Let cool completely, remove foil from pan, then cut into squares.

And enjoy!!

I did the exact same thing with these brownies that I did with the others; I wrapped them up in packages of two and froze the delectables.

These freeze perfectly as well.  And I do the same oven-warming trick with them.  Honestly, these are my favorite of the two...they aren't quite as rich, which I like.  Of course, they're not 3 inches thick either!

I would highly recommend both recipes (new Dave's Faves, both of them) and I would highly recommend freezing them both.  The good thing about freezing (and this is more important at this time of year than even in other seasons) is that you have to put some effort into thawing and preparing them for consumption.  You can't just walk over to the pantry and stick your hand in a bag and boom=instant gratification.  When you eat these after thawing them, you've really made yourself a treat and will truly enjoy them without (hopefully) a nagging feeling of guilt in the background.

I hope you're having a fantastic Tuesday, leading up to the most thankful holiday of the year!