Flour by JoAnne Chang

JoAnne Chang’s new cookbook Flour titled after her renowned bakery in Boston is by far one of the best, most reliable books I’ve ever used. I received it as a Christmas present last year from my mom, who knows how much I love to bake. The recipes are all challenging and time consuming, but so worth it. Chang uses techniques that I had never tried before and I have learned so much through working with her recipes.
I started out with her recipes and as I began to read them I realized how she does two major things differently from most other cookbooks I’ve used one being, she weighs everything instead of using volume and two, almost every recipe has a waiting period before it’s baked. These two things add a noticeable improvement to the flavors and textures of the cookies, cakes, and pastries. Weighing makes a very big difference to the texture because especially with flour, which is often a main ingredient, it is important to weigh because it allows you to more accurately measure. Volume, on the other hand, is more temperamental and can easily be thrown off resulting in a less than perfect measurement.
When I first paged through the book last Christmas after receiving it as a gift my first thought was that all of the recipes seemed really time consuming and complicated. I must say I was wrong, well mostly wrong. The recipes are so decadent and probably the best things that I have ever made. Granted they aren't without their work, but they are so easy to prepare ahead of time and then bake fresh the day they're needed. Chang talks about having a freezer filled with dough for breads and pastries and I don't blame her because it is so easy and it allows you to wake up in the morning and say 'hmm I could really go for some homemade poptarts right now', which by the way are absolutely divine! The recipes all need some time to sit to let the flavors come together, I must say you really can taste the difference when you wait for the dough or batter to sit and allow the flavors to meet and become more vibrant. Some planning is involved for sure with this baking and I would recommend reading through the whole recipe as always before starting so that you aren't thrown off if your dough has to rise for 2 hours or your scones need to be refrigerated before baking.
Overall I cannot speak highly enough of JoAnne Chang's Flour it is my new favorite baking book and it is tried, true and absolutely trustworthy!
5 Cupcakes!
Buy Flour by JoAnne Chang on Amazon

Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

“Dead girl walking,” the boys say in the halls.
“Tell us your secret,” the girls whisper, one toilet to another.
I am that girl.
I am the space between my thighs, daylight shining through.
I am the bones they want, wired on a porcelain frame.

Lia and Cassie are best friends, wintergirls frozen in matchstick bodies, competitors in a deadly contest to see who can be the skinniest. But what comes after size zero and size double-zero? When Cassie succumbs to the demons within, Lia feels she is being haunted by her friend’s restless spirit.

In her most emotionally wrenching, lyrically written book since the multiple-award-winning Speak, Laurie Halse Anderson explores Lia’s descent into the powerful vortex of anorexia, and her painful path toward recovery.


Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson was not initially a book that I had planned to review. Laurie Halse Anderson unlike so many other young adult authors writes about books that are dramatic and heart wrenching, but they delve deeply into real issues. The author writes beautifully in Wintergirls and especially after reading Speak, her New York Times Best-seller, I had almost impossibly high expectations. Wintergirls was very different from Speak and much harder to read because it was about two girls and how they bring pain upon themselves. It was much more disturbing and tragic because of that. 
Wintergirls is the type of book that stays with you and haunts you long after you've turned the last page. Lia's stubborn personality that keeps her from healing from her eating disorder is so troubling. Lia narrates the book, and as her character develops so does her voice. Anderson does a brilliant job of illustrating Lia's growth throughout the book. Lia as the narrator describes her own eating disorder and although she recognizes it she does not want to heal herself. She can only focus on her eating and her calorie intake after the loss of her estranged best friend Cassie.  

Cassie and Lia were best friends they created a dangerous pact to race to be the skinniest. Lia is sent to a hospital to heal herself leaving Cassie behind. After Lia has been discharged from the hospital she begins to heal until Cassie dies. Lia spirals out of control and cannot shake Cassie from her mind which drives her back to starving herself. 

After exploring other reviews on Wintergirls I was surprised to see the lack of empathy for Lia. Many people have found this novel to be difficult to relate to because Lia is harming herself and is aware of her problem. To me this was hard to read even though it was a foreign thought, I think anyone can relate to the desire for attention and also for Lia it was about letting go of her best friend and all of the guilt she felt for her death. 

Wintergirls will remain a favorite book of mine and Laurie Halse Anderson will always be a favorite author of mine. 

5 Cupcakes!

Wintergirls

Sweethearts by Sara Zarr

As children Jennifer Harris and Cameron Quick were both social outcasts. They were also one another's only friend. So when Cameron disappears without warning, Jennifer thinks she's lost the only person who will ever understand her. Now in high school, Jennifer has been transformed. Known as Jenna, she's popular, happy, and dating, everything that "Jennifer" couldn't be--- but she still can't shake the memory of her long-lost friend.
When Cameron suddenly reappears, they are both confronted with memories of their shared past and the drastically different paths their lives have taken.
From the National Book Award nominated author of Story of a Girl, Sweethearts is a story about the power of memory, the bond of friendship, and the quiet resilience of our childhood hearts. 
 Sara Zarr writes in Sweethearts expertly as I would expect after reading Story of a Girl another wonderful read. Sweethearts by Sara Zarr is darker and has more substance than a lot of other Young Adult Literature. Jenna is a great character that is very relatable.  Her problems are very real and not the typical angsty teen drama because her issues are not just skin deep.
As a child Jennifer was tormented because she was overweight so when her mom remarried and they moved to a new town she seized the opportunity to reinvent herself as pretty, popular Jenna Vaughn. Jenna Vaughn is in control of her life and has plenty of friends to support her who don't even know of her dark troubling past that has stayed with her. Jenna is a great character because she successfully recreated herself and put her past behind her. Jenna is so collected until Cameron reappears dredging up memories Jenna worked so hard to toss aside. A crack seems to appear on the surface for Jenna as she tries to reconnect with Cameron and remain her "Jenna" self  and she begins to unravel.
Jenna has been through things that although are not tragic, it is heartbreaking to read about her and Cameron's shared past. Jenna and Cameron's story slowly unfolds after they are reconnected. Sweethearts tugs at your heartstrings and I truly felt for Jenna as a little girl and then as a teenager haunts her still. It is a compelling read that is in one sense of moving on and letting go and in another how our pasts can shape us.  5 Cupcakes!

Suite Scarlett by Maureen Johnson

Scarlett Martin has grown up in a most unusual way. Her family owns the Hopewell, a small hotel in the heart of New York City. Her nineteen-year-old brother, Spencer, is an out of work actor facing a family deadline to get his career in order. Eighteen-year-old Lola has the delicate looks of a model, the practical nature of a nurse, and a wealthy society boyfriend. Eleven-year-old Marlene is the family terror with a tragic past. 
When the Martins turn fifteen, they are each expected to take over the care of a suite in the once elegant, now shabby Art Deco hotel. For Scarlett's fifteenth birthday, she gets both a room called the Empire Suite, and a permanent guest named Mrs. Amberson. Scarlett doesn't quite know what to make of this C-list starlet, world traveler, and aspiring autobiographer who wants to take over her life. And when she meets Eric, an astonishingly gorgeous actor who has just moved to the city, her summer takes a second unexpected turn. 
With Mrs. Amberson calling the shots, Spencer's career to save, Lola's love life to navigate around, and Marlene's prying eyes everywhere, things won't be easy. Before the summer is over, Scarlett will have to survive a whirlwind of thievery, Broadway glamour, romantic missteps, and theatrical deception.
The show, as they say, must always go on...


Suite Scarlett by Maureen Johnson is a compelling and amusing read. The plot is creative and unique and I love the fact that it is set in New York City (one of my personal favorite places). Suite Scarlett is not just about Scarlett herself it also is about her family and the hardships that they face. The novel illustrates the relationships within her family beautifully and perfectly portrays the interactions between her siblings. The Martins remain a typical and believable family that lives at and runs the Hopewell Hotel, which brings them closer and makes for a humorous setting. I love the idea because the Hopewell Hotel is a true family business and not corporation so the whole family is really hands-on while running it.
Scarlett meets Mrs. Amberson on her fifteenth birthday when she moves into the Hopewell for the summer. Mrs. Amberson is flamboyant fun, but also full of mystery in a way that is very intriguing. I love Mrs. Amberson as a character she's a strong and independent woman who knows exactly what she wants and is also devious and clever because she knows how to get it. When Mrs. Amberson checks in at the Hopewell she is a nuisance for Scarlett to care for. Mrs. Amberson although incredibly high maintenance she puts her own needs aside to help Scarlett sort out her problems and help Spencer kick off his acting career. 
Scarlett Martin, the center of it all,  is a well realized character that ties together the novel. Scarlett is a typical 15-year-old girl, but she is forced to become much more mature than many girls her age. Scarlett's maturity comes from having to work at the hotel from a young age and care for her younger sister Marlene. I found Scarlett to be incredibly endearing and sweet and also very relevant to many youth her age because she faces may of the same issues. My only issue with the novel is that I would have loved it even more had it been narrated from Scarlett's view instead of third person. I think this would have made it a little more personal and I prefer (usually) a first person narrative. That being said I don't think I could find anything else to dislike if I tried!
 I finished Suite Scarlett quickly knowing that I could not wait to read the sequel Scarlett Fever!
5 Cupcakes!