When I was 10 we visited my grandparents in Maryland for Christmas. They lived out in the country and it had snowed. since we didnt have snow boots, coming from AZ- she drove us to a little thrift shop to look for boots.( the Surprise Shop is still there btw) There were quite a few Bobbsey Twins books- my Grandma asked me if I had ever read them and I said no. She bought them for me. Back to the house and I started reading and got hooked. Also Old Mother West Wind Books were a favorite of mine as a kid- I found the whole set at a yard sale for $2 . BTW- these books were ancient before I read them! Somehow I only had antique books that my Mom and Dad had as kids. My Dad had a set of My Bookshelf(not sure of title) green books.These are hands down my favorites. Grimm fairy tales, fables, etc. The pictures inside are that orange and green ink.

In Emma, by Jane Austen, there's a big strawberry picking party, and pigeon pie and cold lamb are served at a picnic. And in Mansfield Park, there's mention of gooseberry pie. Dickens has lots of food, but I think most of it might be too heavy for a summer party. In A Christmas Carol, he mentions roast goose, applesauce, mashed potatoes and gravy and the plum pudding. Also, "turkeys, geese, game, poultry, brawn, great joints of meat, sucking-pigs, long wreaths of sausages, mince-pies, plum-puddings, barrels of oysters, red-hot chestnuts, cherry-cheeked apples, juicy oranges, luscious pears, immense twelfth-cakes, and seething bowls of punch." Virginia Woolf centers a meal in To the Lighthouse around Boeuf en Daube. In A Room of One's Own, she describes a luncheon of soles in white sauce, partridges, with sauces and salads, potatoes, brussels sprouts and pudding, either rice or tapioca. In Mrs. Dalloway, there's a big party with chicken in aspic, salmon, ice-cream, soup, and pudding. There's a lunch scene with turbot and a casseroled chicken, and another with lots of cream cakes. The Wind in the Willows has this picnic menu: âÂÂcoldtonguecoldhamícold beefpickledgherkinssaladfrenchrollscress sandwichespottedmeatgingerbeer lemonadesodawater." From The Hobbit: pork pie, apple tart, buttered scones, raspberry jam, seed cakes, cold chicken, bread, mince pie, cheese, biscuits, salad, pickles, ham, eggs, beer, ale, tea, coffee. And that was just one meal. From Brideshead Revisited, which has a ton of food descriptions: soup of oseille, a sole quite simply cooked in a white-wine sauce, a caneton àla presse, a lemon soufflé, caviar aux blinis. There's also plover eggs, lobster Newburg, pickled walnuts and cheese. Pumpkin juice from Harry Potter? Green eggs and ham?

What lovely rooms! Great eye, excellent book (I looked at the sample pages on the Amazon site). I am mad for the deep blue paneled room. Sadly, the linen and fringe and white loose covers thing is problematic for me...I have black cats with claws intact! I can work with white if it's tightly upholstered, so that the daily sticky-rollering is even possible, but all that luxe, louche, pale draped stuff...oh, dear! Still, the concept is very inspiring, and freeing, too. Thanks for letting us in on it.

'Letters to a Poet' by Rilke is an excellent choice - a book I return to often. I would highly recommend Francine Prose's 'Reading like a Writer'. I firmly believe you can't be a writer unless you are an avid reader too. I reviewed the book a couple of months ago on Amazon: Reading Like a Writer, May 29, 2007 By Adam (Adelaide, Australia) "The best books, to my mind, are those which give rise to discussion and thought. Prose provides these in sweeping doses here. Prose superbly evokes in this book, the need for the writer to read, and read widely, slowing down and carefully paying attention to the minutiae of the text. It is the focus on language: "lingering over every word, every phrase, every image, considering how it enhance[s] and contribute[s] to the story as a whole...[and by] reading a masterpiece can inspire us by showing us how a writer does something brilliantly." "Reading Like a Writer" encourages you slow down and absorb every word, sentence and paragraph. It also lets you ponder such things as: Narration, character, dialogue, and the details of text that makes literature dazzle. Towards the end of the book, there is an insightful chapter on Learning from Chekhov, in which Prose suggests that we read his many stories, and by doing so "admit that you know nothing of life, nothing of what you see. Then go out and look at the world." This is sound advice, I think. Finally, Prose details a list of Books to be Read Immediately. These range from Jane Austen, Raymond Carver, Tolstoy, Henry Green, Nabokov and Flaubert among others. These are books to be read and savoured, because we have to keep working at being better readers and writers, for we have an exciting apprenticeship ahead of us. Prose does not talk down to the reader, rather she treats the reader as an intelligent person, who wants to learn a thing or two about how to read more effectively, so that they can aspire to write effectively. Prose is a fantastic and witty communicator; her ideas are explained clearly and with passion. I highly recommend "Reading Like a Writer" to anyone that wants to be a greater reader, and indeed a quality writer." Also, if you can track down an essay by Raymond Carver, I think it's called 'On Writing', then you will be rewarded by his insight. I'm sure it is in his 'Fires' collection. Adam Here is a link that might be useful: Reading like a Writer