Day 303: Gumbo Shop

Chatting Books Online Day 303. Today's recommended book is a great one for this cold wet weather. When the weather gets like this I want something warm and hearty , preferably cooked in a big pot, for dinner so what better book for this purpose than "Gumbo Shop: traditional and Contemporary Creole Cuisine . A New Orleans Restaurant Cookbook" by Richard Stewart with a forward by Peggy Scott Laborde.

This cookbook has not only Gumbo recipes as you may expect (actually 6 different gumbos including Z'Herbes) but it also has soups, chowders, beans of all varieties , entrees and even desserts and specialty drinks served at the iconic French Quarter restaurant ( think Cafe Brulot, Sazeracs and Bourbon Milk Punch).

This paperback cookbook features 117 pages . It sells for $17.95 a copy and if you act quickly I even have 2 signed copies available.

To purchase a copy come see us at the shop during business hours or you can call or message me to have a copy shipped to you .Now mask up and stay warm.

Day 302 : Blooming Trees and Shrubs of the Coastal South

Chatting Books Online Day 302. Today's recommended book is "Blooming Trees and Shrubs of the Coastal South" by Ann Justice.

Until this weekend I was not aware this book existed, and I am so happy to know that it does - want to know why? Because it is arranged by sequence of Blooms! So you can place trees and shrubs around your landscape to ensure that something in each area is ALWAYS blooming. When we first moved into our home in St Francisville I fell in love with the backyard. It had been planted many years ago with Azaleas, Camelias, and Gardenias interspersed and it occurred to me that someone planned this so that every third bush is always in bloom. While I thought that was a great idea I have not known how to do it with bigger shrubs and trees in the yard . Well now I have a guide!

While it is not a new book (originally published in 2007), it is new to me and I am so happy to find it. The book is paperback , 96 pages and sells for $24.95 a copy.

To purchase a copy come see us at the shop during business hours or you can call or message me to have a copy shipped to you .

Day 301 : The week in Review January 4-10, 2021.

Chatting Books Online Day 301. The week in Review January 4-10, 2021.

Have to admit this week's book recommendations were a little bit all over the page. We started the week with "Through the Bible in One Year" , in case you have that resolution. Or maybe you want to get in shape so we threw in the "Simply Keto" cookbook. But maybe you want to cook but not necessarily Keto we also added "The New Orleans Cookbook".

Then we had a magazine to tell us what's what as we embark on a parade-less Mardi Gras in Arthur Hardy's Mardi Gras Guide : 2021. We couldn't leave the littlest book fans out so there was also "One Fish, Two Fish, Three, Four, Five Fish".

And then there was a fantastic historical fiction novel from one of our favorite Louisiana author's C.H.Lawler in "The Memory of Time".

I must say quite an interesting week. If you missed any of these reviews and want to read what I had to say about them you can see all of our Chatting Books Online picks by visiting our website at: http://www.conundrumbooks.com/chatting-books-online .

We still (and always will going forward) offer shipping if you cannot make it to the store. Or just stop by the shop during or normal hours . See you soon !

Day 300: The New Orleans Cookbook

Chatting Books Online Day 300. Today's recommended book is "The New Orleans Cookbook" by Rima & Richard Collins.

Earlier this week I was flipping through facebook and saw a post on a New Orleans Foods Facebook page where someone asked fro a recommendation of a cookbook to learn to cook some of the delicious foods she had eaten in New Orleans. As I read through the comments one title kept popping up again and again and it was a book I did not know at all - so of course I immediately ordered it for the bookshop!

That title was "The New Orleans Cookbook" by Rima and Richard Collins and as I flip through the pages today I am not disappointed at all. There are recipes for all of your New Orleans favorites including an extensive section on soft shell crab ! The recipes look fabulous and simple. No hours long list of intricate steps just good cooking. I will be trying the crab cakes firs, I wonder what your first selection will be ?

This 254 page paperback contains 288 recipes and sells for $ 19.95 a copy.

Day 299: Simply Keto

Chatting Books Online Day 299. It is the beginning of the year, and that is a time that people often think about dieting and getting in shape so today's recommended book is "Simply Keto" by Suzanne Ryan (of Keto Karma).

I have to see I have seen friends embrace Keto over the last few years to great success but I have shied away from it due to my love of Pasta and Wine (I am Italian afterall). But just glancing through this book let me say these dished look delicious ! I don't think I would miss the pasta nearly as much as I thought I would. And there is even good news on the wine front. When talking with friends they always said they could drink certain cocktails because most clear hard liquors have zero carbs. Well I don't like clear hard liquors so that didn't help but reading this book I learned that of the wines they listed a glass of brut champagne has far less carbs than other wines - and prossecco even less! See useful information already !

I also like that the book is beautifully illustrated with beautiful photos of each dish (love a pretty cookbook) and my favorite part is that there is an entire 3 meal a day 30 day meal plan at the back of the book and sections on dining out on Keto and how to navigate a coffee shop on Keto. Easy Peasy!

Let's just say, I am still not sure if I will go full on Keto but I do know I will soon try the Pesto Shrimp Kabobs !

This paperback cookbook is 336 pages and sells for $34.95 a copy.

To purchase a copy come see us at the shop during business hours or you can call or message me to have a copy shipped to you .

Day 298: Arthur Hardy's Mardi Gras Guide

Chatting Books Online Day 298. Today's recommendation is actually a magazine rather than a book. There may not be parades during Mardi Gras this year but by gosh there is Arthur Hardy's Mardi Gras Guide.

The subtitle of this year's edition , the 45th annual edition, says it all. That subtitle is "No Parades? No Problem. Do it Different. Do it Safe.". I have to say the moment I saw the stack of this year's magazine arrive it made me happy to see a little bit of normalcy amidst so much change . It also made me so proud to see the indomitable entrepreneurial spirit of this magazine and it's publisher. Take away parades - no problem. This magazine is just as packed as ever even without the usual parade maps, maybe even more so. With letters from crew captains and announcements of return dates for next year. With so much history of Mardi Gras past - including the history of those Mardi Gras that have gone paradeless in the past. There are great articles about some of the krewes and marching bands and even info on a new book coming out about some of the alternative krewes and marching clubs that have popped up over recent years (Our copies of that book will arrive soon and I'll let you know what I think).

I have read this year's issue cover to cover and I enjoyed every page. It gave me hope that the world will return to that which we know and love and who knows maybe even with a bit of newness added in (maybe decorated houses and parading in place will become a permanent addition).

The magazine is 128 pages and sells for $5.99 a copy.

Day 297: The Memory of Time

Chatting Books Online Day 297. Today's recommended book is "The Memory of Time" by C.H.Lawler.

Simply put, I REALLY enjoyed this book. Written by Baton Rouge's C.H.Lawler this work of historical fiction is all the best of that genre . There is so much detail in this book it is simply amazing. Actually , on that note I asked the author if he spent an incredible amount of time researching events for this book or if he simply had such an incredible imagination and fantastic writing style that I believed every footnote even if made up. His response was to let me know that everything in the book is absolutely true - except the parts he made up. So the mystery continues. But what isn't a mystery is that you will love meeting Myriam, Ellie, and most of all Bridget, as you read this book and learn of the amazingly full and fascinating lives that they lead. The book is written as if Myriam is sending the transcript of many interview with Bridget to a relative . The interviews were held as part of a WPA works project. Reading Bridget’s words we get to see nearly a century of the history of New Orleans and Shreveport as seen through the eyes of an Irish immigrant making her way in a new world. And what a way she makes!

The writing style of this book : partially as letters, partially as journal entries and largely as transcripts of recorded interviews really help the narrative flow along in such a way that you are swept up waiting for the next page.

I thoroughly, thoroughly (yes that's two thoroughlies) enjoyed this book and highly recommend it .

This paperback edition sells for $19.99 a copy. We currently have signed copies of this and all of Dr. Lawler's books available at The Conundrum and we can't wait for his next book to be released!

Day 296: One Fish, Two Fish, Three Four Five Fish

Chatting Books Online Day 296. Today's recommended book is one I think all of us know at least most of by heart: "One Fish, Two Fish, Three, Four , Five Fish: by Dr. Seuss .

We all remember "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish" by Dr.Seuss (aka Theodore Geisel), well this is basically a shortened board book version of that book with fishy busy beads woven at the top. Perfect for keeping busy little folks engaged while you read to them. It is always a favorite that littles themselves grab for off of our shelves when released from their mommas arms or strollers (that and a book about how to tell time - oh and anything with a unicorn on it of course).

This fun, interactive board book sells for just $8.99 a copy .