Literary Links

It's been quite sometime since I did one of these posts! I hope you enjoy this little collection of literary related posts!

Poe is back in Boston! The city in which he was born but came to hate and Boston kind of reciprocated that feeling. Read this article to understand what brought on these sentiments from one of America's greatest literary figures!

An article about what it means to be a young writer hits rather close to home. Reading this article felt so realistic, I couldn't wait until the end because I felt like it would tell me my future.  

Young female writers seem to be having a moment right now and I hope that moment turns into something much, much more. This article gives some advice as to how we can make sure that's the case.

Because I love Elena Ferrante and it is oh so rare when she actually gives a (written) interview.

Lauren Conrad's Fall reading list. I can't say they all interest me but I've been wanting to read Number 1 for a while now, Number 5 is one of my favorites and a book I think everyone should read, and Number 7 sounds really interesting especially because I love Revolutionary history—especially this time of year! What do you guys think about these choices?

What Everyone Should Be Reading and Loving

I'm sure this post is no surprise to anyone who has read my blog before. I finished reading Elena Ferrante's latest installation of her Neapolitan novels a few weeks ago now I think. It was just as amazing as the two novels that preceded it.

In this, the third, novel (and thankfully not the last!) of the series, Elena and Lila are growing up, more so than they have in the past. Both become mothers and lead very different lives that causes the tension in their friendship to grow even more.

The book is also filled with the ideals of revolution as both girls play their part in enacting change for those who are suffering. Ferrante eloquently places her readers in the context of Naples during this time and she does it so seamlessly. 1950s and 60s Naples is very real in this text and adds to further develop the characters of Elena and Lila.

Elena is married and becomes a mother over the course of the book. She lives in Florence with her academic husband and yet, she is unhappy. She is bored with her husband and feels uninspired to write. Motherhood is difficult for her to accept and she feels her mother's shadow creeping into her own life. And even though Lila lives a harder life, unmarried and mothering her son on her own with help from her live-in boyfriend, Enzo, Elena is again jealous of her friend. And the jealousy only grows as Lila's fortune changes for the better. Not to mention, the reappearance of Nino Sarratore leads to more conflict and drama.

It is impossible not to become engrossed in the lives of Ferrante's characters. I became so invested reading this novel, more so than the last two although all of them are amazing tales, that when the ending came I was angry and you'll see why when you read it.

I'm so glad that there will be one more Neapolitan novel but I can't believe we have to wait a year for it to come out!

To Do List for October

This is a fun month and every year, when October roles around, I want to squeeze as many fun and festive activities into the month that I can. I'm a little worried about doing that this year, you know with the whole wedding and grad school factoring in, but this is the first year that I'll be spending the whole month of October in Boston and in my favorite state, the one that I think is quintessential New England and the most ideal for Autumn. So here's a list, that will be ever changing for the next few weeks, of what I would like to do this October.

1. Go to Salem. We're about 30 minutes from Salem, by car or ferry, and I doubt you could find a more festive place this time of year. We went around this same time last year and it was crazy packed! Witches and people in freaky costumes crowded the streets and there were so many vendors and delicious smelling food stands, it was wonderful but hectic. I was going to bypass this trip this year because of the craziness, but Marina and her boyfriend might be going and we will definitely join them if they do! I won't pass up a free ride to Salem! Plus, it's always fun finding the places where Hocus Pocus was filmed.

2. Go to an apple orchard/pumpkin patch. Again, I wasn't sure I'd be able to do this this year. It's not the easiest thing to get to an orchard from Boston when you don't have a car, but if Marina visits, I will insist on making a stop in Ipswich or Danvers to pick some pumpkins and apples and enjoy hot apple cider and apple cider donut holes.

3. Watch Hocus Pocus. I've already done this a few times in August and September, and I'm sure I'll do it a few more times this month. I find it necessary. Amok amok amok amok!

4. Go to the Boston Book Festival. It's not really festive for Fall, but it's this month, it's nearby in Copley Square, and maybe there will be free books!

5. Eat Halloween candy. Is it bad that I already bought our Halloween candy? I had a CVS coupon that was expiring soon so I bought it way ahead of time! I already poured it out into a pumpkin dish, too. So far we've been able to hold out.

6. Go to the Boston Common Pumpkin Festival. This one I've never done or even heard of before but in my quest to find festive activities within the city limits, this popped up! It looks like it's mostly for kids, but I'm sure there will be pumpkins and pumpkin flavored baked goods so I'll be there. For those interested, it's in the Common on the 19th from 4:30-6:30.

7. Make Kettle Corn with Halloween M&Ms. AJ and I love putting M&Ms in our popcorn and I thought it'd be fun to make kettle corn for a movie night on Halloween, since apparently I'm too old to trick-or-treat on Beacon Hill. I already bought the M&M's, they have peanut ones that are Fall colored I guess, and others that are supposed to taste like candy corn!

8. Eat chili and pumpkin corn bread. I already bought both so this will definitely happen at some point. I also want to drink a pumpkin beer.

9. Watch Halloweentown, Halloweentown II, and Halloweentown High. This is a given and one of my favorite parts of October! These movies remind me of childhood.

10. Make apple pie. I already did this when AJ's family visited but there's no such thing as too many apple flavored food in the Fall! I should do pumpkin pie too, but my mom always makes apple pie and it's easy for me to follow her recipe.

11. Watch Stephen King movies. I don't  feel like there are really any good, scary, and well-made Halloween movies out there in the world. But there are two Stephen King movies, which are thankfully available on Netflix (not to stream though—boo), that are kind of Halloween-y. Rose Red (which is super long and you have to order two DVDs on Netflix for) and Salem's Lot. The former has a haunted house (and Marnie from Halloweentown) and the former has vampires (the scary kind, not the Twilight kind). I'm insisting, much to AJ's unhappiness, that we watch both this month.

12. Decorate the apartment. This is already mostly done. I have a festive wreaths, two small pumpkins, two small white pumpkins, mums, and a few other decorations I've been given. But I really want to get those sticky decorations you can put on windows so that the people walking down Charles outside can see—although I'm not sure if the building or neighborhood allows that. Also, I need more pumpkin smelling candles.

And one more reason since 13 is a good number for October.

13. Get married. This is the only really important thing on the list and the only thing that I will, without a doubt, be doing this month.

The First Sunday In October

Today, the first Sunday in October, was the epitome of Fall as far as weather goes. It was sunny but chilly and you definitely needed a jacket if you were walking in the sun. AJ and I filled today to the brim!

We started the day off really early, 6:30 am early. We got up and walked down Beacon Street to Mass Ave to go to Crossroads Irish Pub to watch the Manchester United game. We usually do this if there's a weekend game.

After the game, we came back home and AJ watched more soccer while I did lots of homework. At 11:30, we walked across the Longfellow Bridge to Cambridge to go to the Cambridgeside Galleria. I had to make a return and AJ had to pick up an order. We shopped around a bit—I need new jeans but they were all too long! And we smelled lots of yummy smelling and not so yummy smelling candles at Bath & Bodyworks. 

We came back home and changed into warm clothes, our building hasn't switched over to heat yet. I lit a pumpkin candle, made a pot of pumpkin spice coffee, and got back to homework while AJ watched football. I fell asleep on him around 4 and then started making dinner at 5.

I tried a new recipe for dinner, 5 ingredient white chicken chili. I used 4 cups of chicken broth, one can of pinto beans, a little over 1 cup of cooked chicken, 1 1/4 cups of salsa verde, and 2 teaspoons of cumin and I topped it with avocado. I was nervous because AJ doesn't like chili, and I always get nervous when I try recipes for the first time, but we both loved it! AJ cleaned the pot he liked it so much. So I'm glad that was a success. I also made loaded baked sweet potatoes with parsley, bacon bits, and a blend of Mexican cheese. It was a successful dinner.

Now we're watching the Pats game and I'm trying to get more homework done even though my brain doesn't work as well as it gets later into the night.

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend and I hope tomorrow is as happy a Monday as can be!

Shakespeare Saturday: Romeo and Juliet

I'm a little late on this one but better late than never. A few weeks ago, AJ went back to Connecticut and I stayed behind in Boston for a few more days before joining him. One night while he was gone, I decided to have a date night with myself. I made a big bowl of popcorn, pulled up Netflix, and got ready to watch a movie I'd been wanting to see for almost a year! The newest big-screen adaption of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. It came out in theaters last October and is directed by Carlo Carlei and stars Hailee Steinfeld and Douglas Booth as the titular characters.

Romeo and Juliet is one of my favorite Shakespeare plays and I like to see how different people adapt it in different ways. This film's adaptation was really interesting! It did not get great reviews, they were really bad actually which is why I didn't see it in theaters. But it was still enjoyable and quite different than what I expected.

The first thing that jumped out at me was that they strayed from the original script. That's normal, though, for a film especially because if you include every word, that'll make for one long movie. And I think some directors and screenwriters like to add their own language in to make the wording a bit to make it a bit easier to understand. Of course, the verbiage was still true to the tone and fit in with the original language.

Also, Benvolio was given a much bigger role than usual. He was everywhere! And he seemed younger than he is typically portrayed. Paul Giamatti as Friar Laurence was genius. I'm so used to seeing him in comical or unlikable roles so I thought that maybe the Friar would be humorous in this film, but he was surprisingly perfect for this role. I think he had the best performance out of everyone. Also, the nurse, played by Lesley Manville was a great choice. She did add quite a bit humor and her character was very likable.

My favorite part of the film was the scenery. It was gorgeous! It probably wasn't extremely realistic, but it was quintessential Italian renaissance styling. There was so much detail to each scene, especially during the masked dance and during the balcony scene. I would watch it all over again just to see the scenery.

I didn't think the acting by the main characters was great but what can you do? If you like Shakespeare or Romeo and Juliet, you should watch this anyway. It's fun and, like I said, very pleasing to the eyes.

October Books

I love to read and I think it's so fun to read books that fit the season, holiday, month, and so on. I chose some books that would be fitting to read for the month of October. 

When I think of Fall I think of New England and when I think of New England, I think of Fall, so naturally my book picks reflect that bias. Fall in New England is beautiful and I always try to take full advantage of it because Autumn is so fleeting. I feel extra blessed this year to be living in Boston this Fall, it is one of the best places to experience a real New England Autumn.

 Reading books and stories that are reminiscent of the season makes me feel even more immersed in the magic of the fresh air, orange leaves, bright pumpkins, crisp apples, and spicy coffee and tea. I chose a few books that will suit all different readers and will definitely get you in the mood of October!

So the first- The Portable Edgar Allen Poe. Poe is a New Englander and therefore he makes the list. Also, a lot of his writing is spooky and perfect for the mood of October. The Raven is always a must read. And, this weekend a new statue of Poe is being revealed 5 minutes from my apartment! I'll be walking by it all the time this Fall. 

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving I try to read every October. It gets you in the spirit and gives you a look back at colonial New York history. There’s also a Johnny Depp movie with the same title that’s worth a (creepy) watch. And the new show on Fox isn’t bad either! It took a really interesting spin on the original story and adds a lot of new layers to it. But of course, nothing beats the book! Also, it’s very short so if you’re crunched for reading for pleasure time, this Sleepy Hollow is a great choice.

Witch Hunt is a Young Adult novel but would be an interesting read for anyone. It’s a  creative perspective on the Salem witch trials that historical biographies don’t give. This is more of an entertaining read because it is fiction but it sticks with the facts and is historically accurate.

Mysteries and Legends of New England is like grown up scary stories for telling around the campfire with s’mores. Like I said, Fall and New England go hand in hand in my mind so spooky legends focused on New England are perfect for October. The stories aren’t really scary, just eerie enough to give you the chills!

October Dreams is a collection of short stories and essays about the month and Halloween, so of course it would a fun anthology to flip through and pick a story every so often throughout the month to keep the spirit alive. Reading them out loud to kids or friends in front of the fire place would put you in the Halloween mood even more!

And the final book, Witch Hunt, is for those who are not as New England centric as me! This nonfiction book focuses on the history of witch hunts throughout Europe even before the witch trials in Salem! People in the United States, myself included, might not have ever learned too much about this part of Europe’s history but it is ver interesting indeed! If you’re already a Salem witch trial buff, don’t care for spooky stories or New England, this is for you!

Happy October!

I can't believe it's already October! But I'm oh so happy it is. This is my favorite month. I love the leaves and the cool weather. I love seeing pumpkins and gourds for sale at markets. I love the feeling of a new season and I love the yummy foods that come into season. Sweet potatoes, butternut squash, apples (Honey Crisp especially), apple cider donuts, and tangerines. It all tastes like Fall and it is my kind of comfort food. I added some pumpkin pie spice to my oatmeal this morning, just in celebration of this new month!

Today, Boston is cloudy and rain will be imminent all day. Yesterday was wet and chilly. The next few days will be the same but I like it. After a heatwave this past weekend, this really feels like Fall!

As you can imagine, AJ and I have been really busy lately. Every weekend there has been something keeping us busy. After we got back from our quick trip to Connecticut, AJ's family came for the weekend. This past weekend, my mom, godmother, cousin, and sister came to visit for the night and it was great! It's always fun having family around and they do so much for us when they're here. Plus, school and work take up just about all my time but I'm really enjoying my classes! I'll post more specifically on school later.

A few other fun things to note, it is now mine and AJ's wedding month! It is extremely crazy how quickly time has gone by since we started planning. It's so soon! And we're very excited and everything is coming together just perfectly.

Also, today is AJ's first day at his new job here in Boston! His start day had to be delayed due to the extremely slow processed of becoming licensed in another state but—the day is here! I just some him off this morning. I am so proud of him and can't believe how much he's done and how far he's come since the day I met him. He's amazing and I hope he really enjoys this job. I can't wait to hear from him and hear all about his day, but I have to leave at 5:30 for class tonight so I might just miss him!

Last month, I completely neglected this blog and—even though this month might be busier than last—I don't want to let that happen this month. My favorite month. I love blogging and I don't want to let this slip away and get lost in school and work. I'm going to work hard and try hard to keep this going and keep it interesting!

Posts on books, food, and school will be coming!