New York Public Library's "Mad Men" Reading List

If you are a dedicated fan of AMC's Mad Men (and I'm just going to assume that you are), you know that the characters frequently reference books and films specific to the show's 1960s milieu. One of the more notable examples would be Don Draper's  moving voice-over recitation of a poem by Frank O'Hara in the second season. But even the more casual glimpses of what books the characters are interested in can be revealing. Don's daughter, Sally, reads age-appropriate Nancy Drew mysteries. Bert Cooper, not surprisingly, extols the virtues of Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand's 1100-page love letter to the free market. The ladies of the secretarial pool whisper about Lady Chatterley's Lover, the genuinely racy D.H. Lawrence novel that was the subject of an influential obscenity trial in 1959. These are just a few of the many literary works that have been spotted on Mad Men. And, for that reason, we can thank the fine librarians at the New York Public Library for compiling a fairly extensive list of the books cited throughout the show's run. Needless to say, you can search our catalog for any of the titles that interest you.

The 'Mad Men' Reading List - New York Public Library

Recipe Tester: The PDT Cocktail Book

The PDT Cocktail Book (2011) by Jim Meehan and Chris Call
Call No.: 641.874 MEE
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Named after the super popular NYC cocktail lounge PDT at which nationally renowned mixologist, Jim Meehan, is the head bartender, the PDT Cocktail Book is a must read for bartenders and cocktail geeks.  It has all kinds of information on how to set up a bar, bar etiquette, bartending techniques, a lengthy bibliography (lest you run out of cocktail books to read), and lots and lots of recipes.  Even cooler, Jim Meehan includes liquor recommendations and exact recipes for drinks served at PDT, so if you can recreate them at home, if you are so inclined. That is--if you have the skills and a sizable liquor budget. Meehan also provides the background for each drink in the book, so you know who was responsible for creating a drink, as well as when and where a drink was created.  

To test out the cocktails in the book, I tried making to unusual PDT cocktails that involved some liquor infusing- Benton's Old Fashion and the Cinema Highball.  Below are the results of my experiments: 

The Book(s) I Read

I've been on string of good books.  Below of my favorite reads of late: 

The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown (2011)
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This is a cute book about three semi-dysfunctional sisters who return home to a small Ohio college town care for their mother who has been diagnosed with breast cancer. Their father was a Shakespearean scholar, so each of the girls have a Bard-inspired name.  They are all also running from something.  The eldest Rose (Rosalind) is happily engaged, but is concerned as her fiance isn't as tied to staying in Ohio as she is and he seems to have his heart set on working for Oxford University.  She has long been the family caretaker and is worried the rest of them will be unable to survive on their own.  Bean (Bianca) is the middle child who leaves New York City in debt, after being fired for skimming off the payroll at her law firm.  The youngest, Cordy (Cordelia) is the overgrown baby of the family who had been living a hippy nomadic existence (partly funded by her parents) until she discovered she is pregnant.  The Weird Sisters is definitely a light, fun read with a fair amount of literary allusions, so it's a guilt-free pleasure! 

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green (2012)
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This book is about two teenagers with cancer who fall in love.  Hazel Lancaster is a 16-year-old girl who has been diagnosed with terminal thyroid cancer, but her life has been lengthened indefinitely by a "miracle drug" that she started taking when she was 13.  At a cancer support group meeting she runs in the gorgeous Augustus Waters, a 17-year-old boy whose in remission but lost his leg to cancer.  The two quickly hit it off and bond over a book called "An Imperial Affliction" by a reclusive author named Peter Van Houten.

I was worried that I wouldn't really enjoy this book.  The premise sounds like it could easily be maudlin and Nicholas Sparks-y.  Thankfully, John Green managed to strike the right balance.  This book is definitely my favorite thing he's ever written.  It's funny, romantic and just a little bit heartbreaking. Highly recommend!

Vaclav and Lena by Haley Tanner (2011)
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This is a story of two childhood friends, Vaclav and Lena (collectively Vaclena).  Both are Russian immigrants who live in Brighton Beach in Brooklyn.  Vaclav is an only child who lives with his loving parents and dreams of being the next Harry Houdini.  His lovely assistant Lena isn't so lucky.  She's an orphan who lives with her aunt and is largely neglected.  Vaclav's mom, Rasia, takes Lena under her wings, but she can't save her from her home life.  Eventually Rasia witnesses something horrifying and Lena is taken away.  Later on, Vaclav and Lena meet up again as teenagers. 

Though the subject matter is often dark, this is a delightful book.  I really like the character of Rasia and her point-of-view.  She is a tough, hardworking mother but she is also so loving and tolerant.  I listened to audiobook, which is wonderfully acted. It's hard to imagine reading this in print as the thick Russian accents were half of the fun!

Favorite Literary Romances

In honor of the most famous Hallmark holiday: Valentine's Day, I thought it would be fun to discuss favorite literary romances. This topic is kind of a can of worms because people often have strong feelings towards their favorite books and couples, while finding other romances (cough: The Notebook) a little too sappy.  Personally, I'm not a big romance reader; however, I'm a sucker for anything British and literary.  And like any girl who spends too much time with her nose in a book, I love Jane Austen.  However, for my choice of all-time favorite romance novel has to be Jane Eyre.  Jane is strong, smart heroine and Rochester is uber-dreamy, even if he has some minor personal problems like (spoiler alert!) a crazy pyromaniac wife.   Below are a couple of runner-up favorites for me.  I realize I'm leaving out a lot of usual suspects (Romeo and Juliet, Gone With The Wind, Wuthering Heights, and so on), so please feel free to post your favorite literary romances in the comments!
Find Jane Eyre in the catalog!

Runners-Up:

Sense and Sensibility: Before you curse my name- yes, I love Pride and Prejudice and Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy are awesome.  However, my favorite Austen novel is Sense and Sensibility.  Even though I know what's coming, I still get a little weepy at the end. 
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Speaking of Austen, I'm a big fan of Persuasion as well.  Captain Wentworth is a catch, even if he's a little bit stubborn!
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Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. This book is about more than the relationship between Kath and Tommy, but I really liked the way their relationship grows and changes over time.  Ishiguro is a master at breaking your heart, so have tissues handy!
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Recipe Tester: Cookbook Discoveries of the Year

While I love reading, my favorite books to buy and browse are definitely cookbooks.  We get a lot of cookbooks at the library that are fascinating to look at, but I'd never actually make anything inside because I lack the skills and ingredients to make most of the dishes (NOMA, Momofuku  Milk Bar come to mind this year).  However, my favorite cookbooks are ones that are accessible for every day cooking.  Below are the best cookbooks I discovered this year (whether or not they were actually published in 2011):

Slow Cooker Revolution by America's Test Kitchen. 
Call No.: 641.5884 SLO
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I've had a slow cooker for about three years, but never got around to using it until last spring.  Now I use it every time I plan on having a late night dinner.  It's a super convenient way to cook for days that you know are going to be on the long side.  I especially love to make anything Indian or Moroccan this way, because very rarely to do I have two hours to let a tagine or curry simmer properly.  It's also ideal for preparing meats that need to be cooked slowly, like short ribs or pork shoulder.  Stand out recipes include Korean braised short ribs (p.103), red lentil stew (p. 76), chicken curry in a hurry (p. 52), and the chickpea tagine (p.74). 

Flour by Joanne Chang
Call No.: 641.815 CHA 
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Flour is a fun, quirky baking book, with new twists on traditional recipes.  I really like her upscale versions of the fig newton (137-9) and Oreo (p.134-6), though both are a lot of work to make. The pie section is full of deliciousness of both the savory (smoked salmon, herbed cream cheese and red onion pie on p.241 is to die for good) and sweet (bittersweet chocolate truffle pie, p. 236) varieties.  Other yummy recipes include the rosemary shortbread (p.146), pumpkin muffins with pepitas (p. 56-7), and the chunky Lola cookies (p. 110-1)- a spin on kitchen sink cookies.

In the Small Kitchen by Cara Eisenpress and Phoebe Lapin.
Call No.: 641.5 EIS (on the You and Your Family--Wall Display)
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Read my earlier blog post about this book.

Tyler's Ultimate by Tyler Florence
Call No.: 641.5 FLO
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Snob confession: My feelings towards anything on the Food Network are just a little gentler than Anthony Bourdain's.  However, I was lured in by a bacon and pea macaroni and cheese recipe (which is awesome, BTW).  Once I checked out the book, I discovered that there were tons of recipes that I wanted to try.  Favorites include the pear cobbler with cranberry streusel (p. 238), baked rigatoni with eggplant and pork sausage (p.162) and the chicken paillard with fresh fig salad and blue cheese (p.138- this dish is so pretty, it's a good summer dish to impress guests).

Speakeasy by Jason Kosmas and Dushan Zaric.
Call No.: 641.874 KOS
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An excellent cocktail book, see my earlier review.

Jamie Oliver's Meals in Minutes by Jamie Oliver.
Call No.: 641.555 OLI (You and Your Family--Wall Display)
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Oliver's book from two years ago, Jamie's Food Revolution, is one of my favorite cookbooks ever, so I psyched to see that he a new book coming out this year.  The format for the book is a little unusual.  Each recipe is for an entire meal essentially (main dish, side dishes and dessert), so it's a little confusing to follow if you are just making one dish on the page.  However, with a little bit of work, you'll figure it out.  This is a great source for fast meal ideas, especially for families.  Favorite recipes include Pregnant Jool's Pasta (p.30) and oozy mushroom risotto (p.64, seriously the cheesiest and most delicious risotto I've tried).  I really like Oliver's multicultural mix of recipes, including lots of Italian, Indian, Greek Asian dishes and some British ones too.

Micheal's Genuine Food by Michael Schwartz
Call No.:641.5973 SCH
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This book made a lot of best of the year lists last December, which is why I checked it out.  It's easy to see why, the has excellent photography, an emphasis on seasonal cooking and making things from scratch, and an interesting mix of recipes.  Michael's Genuine Food is worth checking out for the Kimchi quesadilla (p.23) alone, which is a wonderfully cheesy, spicy, and unusual fusion concoction.  His Greek farro salad (p. 79) makes for an excellent lunch or side dish.  The fried gnudi with shaved Parmesan and lemon creme (p. 36-7) didn't turn out at all the first time I made them, but the second time they were so good that I'd definitely say it was worth the hassle.  The garlic herbed breadsticks (p. 35) were also a delicious side, even though I used store-bought pizza dough.  I haven't had the chance to try them yet, but the Bulletproof Manhattan (p. 222) and the tomato harissa (p. 243) definitely sound delicious.

Good Mood Food by Donal Skehan
Call No.: 641.563 SKE
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This book has a lot of really yummy, super healthy soup recipes which are great for the winter months.  I'm especially found of the carrot ginger soup (p.249) and the boot camp soup (p. 59, though I use spinach instead of iceberg lettuce and add a pinch of cumin).  The Thai green chicken curry (p. 187) makes for quick and delicious mid-week meal, as is the Bulgar wheat, chicken rocket and parsley salad (p.189).  Best of all is the hummus recipe (p.133), which has become a staple of mine.  Sometimes, I skip the cayenne pepper and add other things to the hummus like kalamata olives or roasted red peppers. 

Super Natural Every Day by Heidi Swanson. 
Call No.: 641.5636 SWA (You and Your Family--Wall Display)
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This book is gorgeous to look at and has lots of quick, easy meals that are full of interesting flavors.  All of the recipes are vegetarian and super healthy, but taste so good that you don't even notice.  Stand out recipes from this book include the ravioli salad with black olives and pepitas (p.75)- an easy to make dish for lunches, the wild rice casserole (p. 155) which is loaded with delicious mushrooms and Gruyere cheese, and the white bean spread (p. 110) which makes an easy appetizer for parties. I am also a big fan of the harissa ravioli (p.131), cauliflower soup with cheese and Dijon mustard (p.152) and the broccoli orzo salad (p. 95).

Christopher Hitchens: 1949-2011

Christopher Hitchens, prolific author and journalist, died Thursday, December 15, after a long bout with esophageal cancer. He was 62 years old. A renowned columnist and literary critic for such publications as Vanity Fair and The Atlantic, Hitchens is probably best known for his controversial stance on, well, virtually everything. As erudite as he was outspoken, Hitchens wrote frankly and with a wicked sense of humor on myriad topics. His views on religion, politics, foreign affairs, and world history, were often divisive, but always frankly stated and elegantly written. Hitchens own life was, in many ways, as complicated and courageous as any of his written work.

What follows is a list of highlights from the author's extensive bibliography:

Arguably: Essays by Christopher Hitchens

Hitch-22: A Memoir

God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything

Thomas Jefferson: Author of America

Love, Poverty, and War: Journeys and Essays

Thomas Paine's Rights of Man

The Quotable Hitchens: From Alcohol to Zionism

Destiny of the Republic by Candace Millard

Part biography, part true crime, and part science, Destiny of the Republic by Candace Millard is a book in the vein of Erik Larson's The Devil in the White City. Millard follows multiple lives as they converge into a life-changing event for all and then splinter off again on individual paths.

Our twentieth president, James A. Garfield, was shot in a Washington D.C. train station on July 2, 1881 by Charles Guiteau. Only four months into office, Garfield had begun to show great promise as president: he championed civil rights 80 years before they became a reality and he stood up to political corruption. He had a Cinderella story, if there ever was one, having lived as a child in poverty only to rise to become a college president, congressman, and eventual U.S. president (interestingly, an office he did not actively seek). When he finally succumbed to death on September 19, he was beloved by Americans, both Northern and Southern-- a tough feat in the post-Civil War era. This would be a cut-and-dry book about his assassination and assassin if Garfield had died because of his gunshot wound, but, instead he suffered months of agonizing medical care administered by Dr. D.W. Bliss, who some might actually fault for the president's death. Many American physicians, including Bliss, had yet to adopt the sterilizing procedures introduced by Dr. Joseph Lister. Meanwhile, an unlikely protagonist emerges in Alexander Graham Bell, who fervently attempts to help the wounded president by inventing a metal detector of sorts in order to locate the bullet in his body.

The rare thing that comes out in this book is that the president and the inventor are infinitely more interesting than the killer(s?). As a society I think we tend to dwell on the perpetrator more than the victim, shadowing the life with the death. Garfield's and Bell's lives and accomplishments are much more interesting and impressive than Guiteau or Bliss could ever hope. Reading about the out-pouring of support for Garfield and the first family reminded me of the months following 9/11 and how people pulled together. Even vice-president Chester Arthur stepped up when the time came; citizens and colleagues alike were weary of his impending administration, but he managed to surprise people. It appears that Garfield had the ability to bring the best out in people, except, of course for his assassin and doctor.

Destiny of the Republic by Candace Millard
Find it in the Catalog!