Brendan Francis
If you have a talent, use it in every which way possible. Don't hoard it. Don't dole it out like a miser. Spend it lavishly like a millionaire intent on going broke.
Attribution
Brendan Francis
Liese O’Halloran Schwarz is the author of the acclaimed novel THE POSSIBLE WORLD and the forthcoming WHAT COULD BE SAVED. Alternating between the past and the present, the book, which releases on January 12th, is about a family shattered by loss and betrayal, and the beauty that can exist even in the midst of brokenness. Liese has so many wonderful childhood memories of giving and receiving during the holidays, but what she remembers most fondly are the books that were gifted to her on Christmas morning. While shopping in bookstores may not be possible for many of us these days, Liese is hopeful that books will continue to be an important part of our holiday celebrations this year.
Daniel Akst
Exercising self-restraint can be depleting, yet it can also be ennobling.
Attribution
Daniel Akst, WE HAVE MET THE ENEMY: Self-Control in an Age of Excess
Scott Westerfeld
It doesn't take much convincing to make someone believe they're better than everyone else.
Attribution
Scott Westerfeld, SPECIALS
Pythagoras
Rest satisfied with doing well, and leave others to talk of you as they please.
Attribution
Pythagoras
December 11, 2020
There are times when I feel like I live in a sitcom, and this week was one of them! I celebrated my birthday on Monday, and Tom made my favorite stuffed tenderloin and fingerling potatoes. As he was making it, we had a discussion on what to have with it. I voted for his amazing Brussels sprouts, but I also wanted a spinach salad. So the plan was that we would have both, with me making a small salad. So we sit down to dinner and I ask, "Where are the Brussels sprouts? You guessed it. He forgot to make them, so we had a small salad, which left more room for cake. All good. The boys also realized that Mom spelled upside down is Wow. So I was presented with my cards upside down. Furthering my sitcom theory! Oh, and there was a perfect book gift: THE ANTHROPOLOGY OF TURQUOISE.
Editorial Content for The Chicken Sisters
Book
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
Norah Piehl
Merinac, Kansas, is known for one thing: fried chicken. Well, actually it’s known for two things: Chicken Mimi’s and Chicken Frannie’s, two restaurants on opposite ends of town started in the late 19th century by sisters who, according to local and family lore, never saw eye-to-eye on anything. More than a hundred years later, Mimi’s and Frannie’s are still thriving, more or less, and the feud continues. Read More
Teaser
In tiny Merinac, Kansas, Chicken Mimi's and Chicken Frannie's have spent a century vying to serve up the best fried chicken in the state --- and the legendary feud between their respective owners, the Moores and the Pogociellos, has lasted just as long. No one feels the impact more than 35-year-old widow Amanda Moore, who grew up working for her mom at Mimi's before scandalously marrying Frank Pogociello and changing sides to work at Frannie's. Tired of being caught in the middle, Amanda sends an SOS to “Food Wars,” the reality TV restaurant competition that promises $100,000 to the winner. But in doing so, she launches both families out of the frying pan and directly into the fire.
Promo
In tiny Merinac, Kansas, Chicken Mimi's and Chicken Frannie's have spent a century vying to serve up the best fried chicken in the state --- and the legendary feud between their respective owners, the Moores and the Pogociellos, has lasted just as long. No one feels the impact more than 35-year-old widow Amanda Moore, who grew up working for her mom at Mimi's before scandalously marrying Frank Pogociello and changing sides to work at Frannie's. Tired of being caught in the middle, Amanda sends an SOS to “Food Wars,” the reality TV restaurant competition that promises $100,000 to the winner. But in doing so, she launches both families out of the frying pan and directly into the fire.
About the Book
Three generations. Two chicken shacks. One recipe for disaster.
In tiny Merinac, Kansas, Chicken Mimi's and Chicken Frannie's have spent a century vying to serve up the best fried chicken in the state --- and the legendary feud between their respective owners, the Moores and the Pogociellos, has lasted just as long. No one feels the impact more than 35-year-old widow Amanda Moore, who grew up working for her mom at Mimi's before scandalously marrying Frank Pogociello and changing sides to work at Frannie's. Tired of being caught in the middle, Amanda sends an SOS to "Food Wars," the reality TV restaurant competition that promises $100,000 to the winner. But in doing so, she launches both families out of the frying pan and directly into the fire.
The last thing Brooklyn-based organizational guru Mae Moore, Amanda's sister, wants is to go home to Kansas. But when her career implodes, helping the fading Mimi's look good on "Food Wars" becomes Mae's best chance to reclaim the limelight --- even if doing so pits her against Amanda and Frannie's. Yet when family secrets become public knowledge, the sisters must choose: Will they fight with each other, or for their heritage?
Audiobook available, read by Xe Sands and Cassandra Campbell
Editorial Content for This Time Next Year
Book
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
Norah Piehl
Minnie Cooper knows she has a terrible, groan-inducing name. But she also knows she was supposed to be named Quinn. While in labor in a London hospital on December 31, 1989, Minnie's mom, Connie, confided her choice of baby name to her roommate, Tara Hamilton, who was going through her own difficult labor. Read More
Teaser
Minnie Cooper knows two things with certainty: her New Year's birthday is unlucky, and it's all because of Quinn Hamilton, a man she's never met. Their mothers gave birth to them at the same hospital just after midnight on New Year's Day, but Quinn was given the cash prize for being the first baby born in London in 1990 --- and the name Minnie was meant to have, as well. When Minnie unexpectedly runs into Quinn on their mutual 30th birthday, she sees only more evidence that fortune has continued to favor him. But if Quinn and Minnie are from different worlds, why do they keep bumping into each other? And why is it that each fraught encounter leaves them both wanting more?
Promo
Minnie Cooper knows two things with certainty: her New Year's birthday is unlucky, and it's all because of Quinn Hamilton, a man she's never met. Their mothers gave birth to them at the same hospital just after midnight on New Year's Day, but Quinn was given the cash prize for being the first baby born in London in 1990 --- and the name Minnie was meant to have, as well. When Minnie unexpectedly runs into Quinn on their mutual 30th birthday, she sees only more evidence that fortune has continued to favor him. But if Quinn and Minnie are from different worlds, why do they keep bumping into each other? And why is it that each fraught encounter leaves them both wanting more?
About the Book
Their lives began together, but their worlds couldn't be more different. After 30 years of missed connections, they're about to meet again.
Minnie Cooper knows two things with certainty: that her New Year's birthday is unlucky, and that it's all because of Quinn Hamilton, a man she's never met. Their mothers gave birth to them at the same hospital just after midnight on New Year's Day, but Quinn was given the cash prize for being the first baby born in London in 1990 --- and the name Minnie was meant to have, as well. With luck like that, it's no wonder each of her birthdays has been more of a disaster than the one before.
When Minnie unexpectedly runs into Quinn at a New Year's party on their mutual 30th birthday, she sees only more evidence that fortune has continued to favor him. The gorgeous, charming business owner truly seems to have it all --- while Minnie is on the brink of losing her pie-making company and her home. But if Quinn and Minnie are from different worlds, why do they keep bumping into each other? And why is it that each fraught encounter leaves them both wanting more?
A moving, joyful love story, THIS TIME NEXT YEAR explores the way fate leads us to the people we least expect --- no matter what the odds.
Audiobook available, read by Hannah Arterton
