Debi Cates

Another author I'd now like to read after reading a selection with The Short Story Club*, Dürrenmatt's “The Sausage.” FIVE STARS because OMG I'm in love with it, although it's dark. Very dark. Totally absurd and funny in a wicked off kilter way.The story is the last day of the trial of a man who killed his wife and made her into sausage. It's told in staccato, very short sentences, “chop chop chop” as reader Fionnuala perfectly described it. The many evocative metaphors (I almost wrote “meataphors,” ha!) are bloody, ominous, and delicious.The evidence? The last, quivering, aromatic sausage link sitting on a small plate in front of the judge.I'm learning that I like dark (see the graphic novel [b:Beautiful Darkness 17287069 Beautiful Darkness Fabien Vehlmann https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1364599765l/17287069.SX50.jpg 6577216]) and absurd (see the play, [b:The Caretaker 96530 The Caretaker Harold Pinter https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1391637117l/96530.SX50.jpg 2457841]). I never knew this side of myself before—Hello, where did you come from?UPDATE 07/29/2025 Learning that literary scholar and Dürrenmatt biographer Peter Rüedi wrote that The Sausage was “a shrill prelude to Dürrenmatt's later general theme of legality, law, and justice” elevated its absurdity and unique style for me into a more interesting piece, after I had already enjoyed it quite a lot because of said absurdity and style...and its dark humor. Thank you again to Fionnuala for that important contextual tidbit.*You can join The Short Story Club at https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/1187035-the-short-story-club where we are reading one short story a week (for July and August one story every two weeks) from [b:Black Water 2: More Tales of the Fantastic 147802 Black Water 2 More Tales of the Fantastic Alberto Manguel https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1473851695l/147802.SY75.jpg 1146288]. Our excellent moderator (Cecily at https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1199525-cecily) makes sure there is a digital copy to read, even if it means scanning and uploading it herself.

2025/08/19...the year so far

I meant to do a Mid Year Review in July and forgot! Today I remembered and am still keen to document what is making this an excellent reading year.

Buddy Reading is a Super Power
Buddy reads are you, times 10!

In a buddy or group read, other readers will pick up on something your reading eyes blew right past providing extra clues, key words, and delectable nuances. Others will turn you on to tidbits, like similar works, video documentaries, written articles, and even visual Art works that will fire new synapses until your gray matter positively glows.

Groups will hone your communication skills, too, no longer spewing unfettered into the ether as you can do in a review. Clarity and also diplomacy is a good skill set to work on, especially in these divisive days.

And dang, there are some really smart people out there, who aren't there to wow, but there to share, to think aloud. What a gift to have the pleasure of their thoughts in conversation.

Buddy/group reads are a place for gaining global awareness. Being an American that isn't often my strong suit. Now I can literally tap into a whole world of diverse ideas. Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) may have recently been made a dirty acronym in the US but it's a living, thriving thing, hardly something that can be obliterated by the signature of an illiterate. Not everywhere is America, never has been, and thank heaven for that.

Short Stories are Not Just Literature Lite
Somewhere along the line, I got it into my head the erroneous idea that short stories were just short novels. Quickies, you might say. No, no, no. They are their own art form and now I've fully disabused myself of that notion, can freely seek them out and “count” them as real reading. Additionally, they don't have the problem that I heartily dislike, the trend of over and carelessly written novels pushed out at record speeds by many of today's major publishers who have drastically cut their editor staff to increase their bottom line. But built right into the structure of the short story is the insistence of tighter writing that I love so much. Wow me with your mastery, not your blah-blah-blah-what's-my-word-count-now.

There Will Never Be Enough Time.
Now that my family is grown and raised, I have more time to read as I always dreamed I would have one day. I've gone from 30 books a year (and that was a lot compared to my peers at the time), to double, then triple that, and have been able to also read dozens and dozens of kids books with great pleasure with my “Littles” (my youngest two granddaughters). Yet I've discovered there is still not enough time to read all I want to read. That's because the more I read, the more I want to read–new recommendations by GR friends, authors from the past new to me, new genres I've discovered I like, and this burning new desire to be a “completist” of certain writers I love.

It's a good problem, to have a fast-growing mountain of beautiful potentialities to look forward to, especially in 2025 where an ugly slowmo horror plays on and on and on.

2024, what a whopping jolly reading year! In 2024, I reached out on GR and Booktube, meeting really thoughtful, kind, lovely readers. I joined a GR reading group. I even created a homemade Book Bingo game that I post in the mail monthly to a few willing reader friends.In 2024, I ditched some silly personal reading rules I used to obey, like not reading more than one book at a time. I also implemented a new soft rule: leave a review of every book I read which is a great way to not only remember details later, but I also enjoy that time to contemplate more as I write about what I just read. This year I discovered that my local library has given patrons access to Libby and Hoopla where I've begun partaking of audiobooks through those services. I also rely heavily on OpenLibrary.org, Archive.org, Gutenberg.org, and Librivox.org as free sources.I greatly increased the number and the quality of my reading enjoyment in 2024, my best reading year ever!==MY # 1 TOP FAVORITES OF 2024[b:Timothy; or, Notes of an Abject Reptile 243519 Timothy; or, Notes of an Abject Reptile Verlyn Klinkenborg https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1389062963l/243519.SY75.jpg 1425439] Written from the perspective of naturalist Gilbert White's tortoise, written in the best prose ever.[b:Froodle 18465557 Froodle Antoinette Portis https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1382758761l/18465557.SX50.jpg 26123534] Froodle had me, my Littles, and their mom in stitches as we each took the silly sounds of one of the birds.=== OTHER TOP FAVORITES OF 2024Other top favorites that I must mention. All were stand-out enjoyments and I'm so glad they have become part of my reading memories.[b:Orlando 18839 Orlando Virginia Woolf https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1443118010l/18839.SY75.jpg 6057225][b:Piranesi 50202953 Piranesi Susanna Clarke https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1609095173l/50202953.SY75.jpg 73586702][b:Under the Glacier 14265 Under the Glacier Halldór Laxness https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1386924487l/14265.SY75.jpg 3019063][b:The Summer Book 79550 The Summer Book Tove Jansson https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1390613592l/79550.SY75.jpg 76813][b:The Council of Animals 55077719 The Council of Animals Nick McDonell https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1610926648l/55077719.SY75.jpg 85876229][b:Farewell, Earth's Bliss 940954 Farewell, Earth's Bliss D.G. Compton https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1735312348l/940954.SY75.jpg 953682][b:Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit 15055 Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit Jeanette Winterson https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1267717580l/15055.SY75.jpg 1411520][b:Lolly Willowes 937105 Lolly Willowes Sylvia Townsend Warner https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1680550043l/937105.SY75.jpg 922084][b:Dandelion Wine 50033 Dandelion Wine Ray Bradbury https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1374049845l/50033.SY75.jpg 1627774][b:The Red Pony 8732 The Red Pony John Steinbeck https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1391231816l/8732.SY75.jpg 1665907][b:A Guide to Being Born 16158505 A Guide to Being Born Ramona Ausubel https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1372023371l/16158505.SY75.jpg 21998921][b:Lebanon 123: A Counting Book in Three Languages 357372 Lebanon 123 A Counting Book in Three Languages Marijean Moran Boueri https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1389233170l/357372.SX50.jpg 347530][b:A Room of One's Own 18521 A Room of One's Own Virginia Woolf https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1327883012l/18521.SY75.jpg 1315615]===STATS FOR 2024Fiction books: 63Poetry books: 9Plays:3Nonfiction books: 25Young reader: 97Young reader nonfiction: 9(Of those) Read to and with my Littles: 31Books that are new permanents on my shelf: 29 (the rest donated or given to others)Five star reads: 47Re-reads: 6Pages read: 26,221Average book page length: 126Longest book read: 1,276 pages, [b:The Count of Monte Cristo 7126 The Count of Monte Cristo Alexandre Dumas https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1724863997l/7126.SY75.jpg 391568]Oldest book: [b:Persuasion 2156 Persuasion Jane Austen https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1385172413l/2156.SY75.jpg 2534720], first published 1817Newest book: [b:Small Things Like These 58662236 Small Things Like These Claire Keegan https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1734631773l/58662236.SX50.jpg 86476810], first published 2021Books by women: 110Books by men: 89Books by woman & man team: 2Books by non-binary gender: 1Books by corporations with no author listed: 3Author American: 113Author Australian: 1Author Canadian: 5Author Chinese: 1Author Danish: 1Author English: 45Author French: 3Author German: 4Author Icelandic: 1Author Indian: 2Author Irish: 3Author Iranian: 2Author Japanese: 5Author Lebanese: 2Author Mexican: 1Author Norwegian: 2Author Russian: 3Author Scottish: 2Author Spanish: 2Author Swedish: 1Author Swiss: 1Author Ukrainian: 1===LASTLY, MY GOALS FOR 2025I need to read, read, read what I own! Also need to streamline donating books instead of causing a traffic jam at the front door. Wondering if I need to do something about the books I freely add on the slightest whim to my ever-growing GR TBR? Or let it grow; it takes no room, being just zeros and ones after all.

Stay or Go?
I'm in the throes of deciding which of my many cookbooks stay or go. It's a monumental task! To do that I will assess features of each cookbook, read each recipe, and then try a few of the most appealing recipes I've been meaning to get around to. I'm designing my weekly menu as I write this.

So, stay or go? To be determined.

Cookbook's raison d'etre
Author recounts that “super foods” is often a vague description, usually referring to foods high in nutrients per calorie. She states that definition often lacks some nutrients as well as phytochemicals. She then devised her own top list of 52–including leafy green vegetables, fruits and berries, seeds and nuts, beans and legumes and two fish. Each recipe lists in bold those “super food” ingredients.

Details
===Dietary types
No dietary specialization, other than including, of course, “super foods.” Recipes can include oil, soy, gluten, milk, cheese, and eggs. No animal flesh other than fish.
===Contents
64 (not 65 as stated on the cover) recipes listed in standard chapters beginning with Breakfast, Soups and Salads, etc.
===Specialty items
Most ingredients not hard to find in most Western cities, no recommendations for substitutions. One recipe required an ice cream maker.
===Photos
Every recipe has a photo of prepared dish. Photos are simple and pleasing.
===Nutritional Values
Not included. Instead highlights a list of the super nutrients of each dish.
===Recipe layout
Recipe lists number of servings and total time to prepare-cook. Includes a photo of each recipe's raw ingredients in their measured state. Text of the ingredients are below the photo, listed one after another, in rows, and then centered–not a good “glance-able” text format. The ink is black and background is white, thank Heaven! The text size is slightly small.
===Index
Listed by major ingredients but I found some ingredients used that were not included by specific name (eg. “pinto beans” not listed, however recipe is listed under “beans”). Also includes dish types, like Soups, etc.
===Chattiness
None. Defines the cookbook goal without preaching and then includes the list of featured nutrients and their role in health, including citing sources. No preambles to recipes. End of recipe will sometimes include a–usually obvious–“serve with” recommendation.

Recipes especially appealing to me
p.46 Super Slaw. Rutabaga and turnip slaw with tahini and yogurt dressing.
p.54 Sunshine Soup, a warm soup made with bell pepper (red, yellow, or orange) and tomatoes.
p.58 Creamy Comfort Soup, a pureed soup with cauliflower and pinto beans.
p.68 Spicy Stir-Fried Greens, bok choy with cilantro, Thai chili, ginger, mirin, and sesame oil.
p.70 Green Mash, steamed potatoes mashed with chopped sautéed kale and collard greens.
p.72 Nutty Grilled Lettuce, romaine grilled, served with dressing, boiled eggs, and hazelnuts.
p.80 Mediterranean Vegetable Bowl, simmered eggplant, bell peppers, tomatoes, artichoke hearts, raisins.
p.84 Supercharged Carrots, roasted carrots with a food processor dressing that includes the carrot tops, served with black sesame seeds.
p.94 Glowing Green Pesto Pasta, fusilli pasta with kale and peanut based pesto.
p.106 Kale and Bean Hash, skillet dish of kale, great northern beans, hazelnuts, sunflower seeds, and parmesan cheese.
p.118 Cheesy Vegetable Pie, baked stuffed puff pastry with kale, potatoes, turnips, and cheddar cheese.
p.126 Supercharged Muffins, wheat flour muffins with spinach, red bell peppers, feta, and chia, flax and sunflower seeds.
p.132 Berry Burst Tart, baked apples, cranberries, pecans in a puff pastry tart.
p.144 Sticky Energy Bars, pecans, peanuts, dried fruits, coconut oil, honey, almond butter, sesame seeds.

Overall
Pre-recipe testing, this appears to be a no-nonsense cookbook with plants as stars of the recipe. Appetizing photos are clean, the kind I like best, without fussy staging–just the food, please. There were a few recipes that required more non-vegan items than seems feasible to substitute, but by far most of the recipes seem doable as is, or simply without, or with a few standard vegan alternatives.

The “personality” of the book is seen mostly through the beautifully clean approach of the photos and the emphasis on mostly whole food ingredients. (No author jibber-jabber.)

Looks good; I like it. Now time to try some of those recipes this week! Will update.

In progress

I subscribe to Academy of American Poets service where they send to my email a poem a day. Upon receiving this one today (August 2,2025) I was taken by the irrepressible rhythm and chant of it, and its perfect flight of imagination with surprising insight.

Meeting Ourselves by Vachel Lindsay

We met ourselves as we came back
As we hiked the trail from the north.
Our foot-prints mixed in the rainy path
Coming back and going forth.
The prints of my comrade's hob-nailed shoes
And my tramp shoes mixed in the rain.
We had climbed for days and days to the North
And this was the sum of our gain:
We met ourselves as we came back,
And were happy in mist and rain.
Our old souls and our new souls
Met to salute and explain—
That a day shall be as a thousand years,
And a thousand years as a day.
The powers of a thousand dreaming skies
As we shouted along the trail of surprise
Were gathered in our play:
The purple skies of the South and the North,
The crimson skies of the South and the North,
Of tomorrow and yesterday.

Turns out this poem was published in the 1920s and was written for “precocious children twelve or fifty years of age.” I'm 66 now and cannot be precocious child, unless one can be belatedly precocious in one's second childhood. It's the kind of poem I could learn by heart and, at some odd opportunity, lift a line or two to sum up the occasion or to rally prevailing emotions. I rushed to find where I could read more and was again delighted when I read the book's title.

I am going to have a lot of fun with this one. Yeah, “poetry” and “fun,” imagine!