This was way WAY easier to read than Finnegans Wake. I read the first 100 pages solo, and then downloaded a copy of Spark Notes Ulysses to help me catch the story underneath the surface. Unlike the massive Reader’s Guide I needed for Finnegans, the Sparks Notes was only about 100 pages and broke things down easily for me. I would then reference back as I went along to verify what I was reading.

It was a simple story, really, so if you want to read a Joyce novel – this would be the one I’d recommend.

yeah, this flick is categorized as a “thriller” but in the first few minutes I had to laugh out loud at the line:

“No, we don’t have any monkeys in Scotland. If we did have monkeys we’d probably deep fry them.”

It was awesome watching Judi Dench do something different.

Saul Bellow is brilliant writer. I am really enjoying all his reads from my 100 classics list. Here is the gripping exit paragraph from Seize the Day:

The flowers and lights fused ecstatically in Wilhem’s blind, wet eyes; the heavy sea-like music came up to his ears. It poured into him where he had hidden himself in the center of a crowd by the great and happy oblivion of tears. He heard it and sank deeper than sorrow, through torn sobs and cries toward the consummation of his heart’s ultimate need.

FILLING:
9 ounces white chocolate, cut into pieces
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
3 large egg whites
1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon of Amaretto (or liqueur of choice)

GARNISH:
8 ounces white chocolate, melted and cooled
2 pints strawberries
white chocolate shavings

TART SHELL:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup dark cocoa
2 tablespoons cornmeal
3/4 cups pecans
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted & cooled slightly

Preheat oven to 350F

Process the dry ingredients (including pecans) in a food processor until fine. Add butter & process until dough forms. Press dough over the bottom and sides of a 9 inch tart pan. Refrigerate the tart shell for 30 minutes before baking.

Blind bake the crust in a preheated 350F oven for 25 minutes or until just set. Remove parchment and weights from blind bake. Bake the shell about 10 mintues more or until completely dry. Cool completely.

FILLING:
To make the white chocolate filling, combine the chocolate pieces witht he butter in a heat proof bowl. Place over a ban of hot, but no simmering, water and stir to melt. Remove from hot water and stir in the crea a little at a time. Keep stirring until the mixture is very smooth. Press plastic wrap against the surface and chill to set the filling.

To finish the filling, combine the egg whites and sugar in a heat proof bowl and place over a plan of simmering water. Whisk gently until the egg whites are hot and sugar is dissolved. Remove the egg whites from the simmering water and whisk until the whites are cool and have increased in volume to produce a light meringue. Meanwhile, beat the chocolate filling to lighten it and beat in the Amaretto. Fold the meringue into the filling and spread in the cooled tart shell. Chill the tart in the refrigerator until very firm to the touch.

Dip the berries in the prepared white cholcoate. Place the finisher berries on a paper-line pan. Refrigerate to set white chocolate. Arrange dipped berries on the filling (we fanned the berries). Decorate the tart with chocolate shavings.

Serves 10!

Roasted Vegetables:
olive oil
2 1-pound eggplants, unpeeled, cut into 1-inch cubes
6 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/4 pounds medium zucchini, halved lengthwise, cut crosswise into 1-inch pieces
3 large red bell peppers

Couscous:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 tablespoon curry powder
3 cups water
2 cups (12 ounces) plain couscous
1/2 cup coarsley chopped roasted salted cashews
1/4 dried cherries, halved
1/4 cup dried apircots, cut into slivers

For vegetbles:
Preheat oven to 400F. Generously rub two heavy duty baking sheets with olive oil. Mound eggplant cubes on 1 sheet; drizzle with 4 tablesppons oil. Sprinkle with salt and peper; toss to coat. Spread out evenly. Roast eggplant and zucchini until golden and tender, turning occasionally with spatula, about 20 minutes for zucchini and 40 minutes for eggplant. Transfer vegetables to bowl and cool. Char peppers directly over gas flame or under the broiler until blackened on all sides. Enclose in a paper bag; let stand for 10 minutes. Peel and seed peppers. Cut 2 peppers into 1-inch pieces. Thinly slice remaining pepper and reserve for garnish.

For couscous:
Hat 1 tablespoon oil in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add opion; saute until soft, about 6 minutes. Mix in curry powder; stir 1 minute. Add 3 cups water; bring to simmer. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer curry water 10 minutes. Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon oil in heavy large pot. Add couscous and stir constantly until color darkens and couscous is toasted, about 3 mintues. Mix in hot curry water. Turn off heat, cover pot, and let stand until couscous is tender and curry water is absorbed, about 10 minutes. Fluff couscous with fork to separate grains. Mix in cashews and currants and cool completely. Mix in eggplant, zucchini, and bell pepper pieces. Season the salad to taste with salt and pepper. Mound salad on large platter; garnish with reserved bell pepper slices.

1 tablesppon fresh lemon juice
1 small shallot, minced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon Dijon-style mustard
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley leaves
1/4 cup olive oil

1/2 pound log of soft goat cheese, cut crosswise into 6 rounds
egg wash (made by beating 1 large egg with 1 tablespoon water)
1 cup fine dry bread crumbs (we used Japanese bread crumbs)
1/2 cup finely ground hazelnuts
2 small heads of frisee (washed, spun dry, separated into bite size pieces)
1 small head radicchio (washed, spun, shredded via chiffonade technique)

Vinaigrette:
in a small bowl whisk together the lemon juice, shallot, garlic, mustard, parsley, and salt/pper (to taste). Add the oil in a stream, whisking until the vinaigrette is emulsified.

Preheat oven to 400F

Combine bread crumbs with hazelnuts. Dip the goat cheese pieces into the egg wash, dredge them in the breadcrumb mixture, and transfer them to a lightly oiled baking sheet.

Bake the goat cheese pieces in the middle of the oven for 6 mintues. While that’s baking, toss the frisee and radicchio with the vinaigrette.

Divide the salad among 6 plates; arrange 1 goat cheese round on each salad. Serve immediately.

First course prepared in the “April in Paris” class I attended last night. Delicious.

RECIPE:
4 large cucumbers (6-8” long)
4 cups plain yogurt
2 cloves garlic, chopped
3 tablespoons minced cilantro
3 tablespoons minced dill
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste

peel cucumbers, cut in half lengthwise, and de-seed. Coarsley chop cucumbers. Combine ingredients and pureee until smooth. Chill for 1-2 hours before serving.

This 2006 movie version is a star-studded cast remake of the 1949 Oscar winning classic based on the 1946 Pulitzer Prize novel of the same name, written by Robert Penn Warren.

I’m interested in seeing the original film adaptation, however since this is the version my sister owns it’s the one I watched. I thought the book was good, and that there was just way too much information to stuff into a movie. And in the case of the 2006 version, I see where eliminating pertinent information could cloud one’s perceptions of the characters and dull the impact of events.

Skip the flick, read the book instead.

I will grudgingly admit that I think this book borders more on brilliance than farce. If the guide is to be believed, that is. It is not just phonetic slang, but highly allegorical code that incorporates several languages, often merging into new words. Punctuation isn’t used normally, either. Examples of difficulty:

1] Long sentences, like the one that runs from page 326-329 which contains 1,103 words.

2] Long running words like in this paragraph on page 414: ”—I apologuise, Shaun began, but I would rather spinooze you one from the grimm gests of Jacko and Esaup, fable one, feeble too. Let us here consider the casus, my dear little cousis (husstenhasstencaffincoffintussemtossemdamandamnacosaghcusaghhobixhatouxpeswchbechoscashlcarcarcaract) of the Ondt and the Gracehoper.

3] Ondt and the Gracehope (from above) mean Ant and Grasshopper.

4] “Mind your pughs and keaoghs if you piggots, marsh!” {mind your P’s and Q’s)

I recommend this read to anybody seeking a mental challenge, but suggest using the Reader’s Guide to Finnegans Wake by William York Tindall