Dear Reader

Dear Reader Column 05-15-2020

Dear Reader,

From my mailbox...

"Hi Suzanne! Book delivery day makes me (and my husband!) smile each week. One of the things we miss most these days is visiting our local library--what if we run out of books to read? We came up with what we think is a great solution. Every week we each order at least one book from our local bookstore since they're still open for orders. Then we wait for the call that our books have arrived. It's a little like Christmas when they appear at our door--dropped off by the delightful young couple who own the store. We read them carefully so we can donate them to the library when it is able to open again. We see it as a win, win, win." -- Karen C.

"Good afternoon Suzanne, I would be remiss if I didn't say your daily emails always make me smile! I'm with you about the baking...it brings me great joy. I was having a bad day last week and I just got out the flour (because I'm lucky to have some) and started baking...lemon loaf, almond joy cookies, bread, and granola. All that measuring, mixing and of course tasting, quickly brightened my mood. Sharing baked goods is also part of the fun! Because the gyms are closed, I really was looking for some exercise, so my husband and I bought bikes. I don't think I've ridden a bike this much since I was in elementary school. It's really been fun cruising around the neighborhood. Thanks for letting me read along with you. Be safe--and happy baking!" -- Maria (I'm going to make something pumpkin as well as I found a leftover can from the fall.)

Favorite comfort food recipes of mine. Let me know if you try them this weekend.

Mrs. Creswick's Meatloaf

Porcupine Meatballs

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

* This month's Penguin Classics book is BLACK SHACK ALLEY, by Joseph Zobel. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 05-14-2020

Dear Reader,

We may be a virtual book club, but frequently readers tell me when they're reading the daily book club email, it feels like we're sitting at the kitchen table together, drinking a cup of coffee, talking about books and chatting about everyday life.

So today, pretend that hundreds of thousands of us are meeting together for an in-person book club meeting. We've discussed this week's book, dunked some of my homemade chocolate chip cookies into coffee or soda (yes, some readers report they dunk cookies in Dr. Pepper), and now our meeting is winding down to a little chit-chat.

I'm thinking about the theme for the first dinner after the pandemic party for friends. I think I'll have a Stack Party. I'll cook the main course and I'll ask everyone who comes to dinner to bring one round, unfrosted cake layer. Whatever flavor cake they like. I'll stack all the cake layers up high, with frosting in-between and we'll have Stack Cake for dessert.

Originally a stack cake was the traditional wedding cake for settlers in southern Appalachia. Wedding guests would each bring a layer of cake and the wedding cake would be assembled, layer by layer, usually with a dried, spiced apple compote in-between. The more popular the bride and groom, the taller the cake--thus the name Stack Cake.

Have a little chit-chat to share? Send it my way. I love to hear from readers. Email: Suzanne@DearReader.com

* Congratulations to the winners of The Earl Next Door by Guest Author Amelia Grey: Mari R., Carol M. and Sandi H.

The lucky winners of Eat. Pie. Love. by Guest Author Tara Royer Steele are: Elizabeth A., Carol M., Yvette F., Anne D. and Susan L.

And Annete R., the lucky winner of the potholder loom kit.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

* This month's Penguin Classics book is BLACK SHACK ALLEY, by Joseph Zobel. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 05-13-2020

Dear Reader,

Praised by readers and reviewers alike for her "gentle stories of hope," guest author, Kim Vogel Sawyer, wrote today's column: "You Can Take the Teacher Out of the Classroom, But..."

Kim and her former-military husband, Don, are empty nesters who relish time with their three adult daughters and a passel of granddarlings. When Kim isn't writing, she enjoys quilting, singing, and visiting ghost towns.

Say "Hello," authors always enjoy hearing from readers.
Email: Kim@KimVogelSawyer.com

You Can Take the Teacher Out of the Classroom, But...

In my previous life (before writing for a living), I was a school teacher. Loved it. Really, really loved it. But the opportunity to write full time came along, and I couldn't resist grabbing hold of the career I'd dreamed about from the time I was old enough to pick up a pencil. So I've spent the past fifteen years out of the classroom.

Enter COVID-19. Schools abruptly closed, parents became instant teachers, and families were thrown for a loop. My youngest daughter works nights. In health care. She feared bringing the virus home to her family. So she called, and...long story short...Gramma became Teacher Gramma.

Amazing how much things have changed, technologically speaking, since I closed my classroom door. Back in "my day," I taught using white boards and text books and practice worksheets. My granddaughters, who are first and second graders, each came with an app-loaded iPad. Their teachers emailed activity boards with links to videos and the girls responded on the iPad. ZOOM meetings on my computer let the girls see their teachers and classmates a few times a week. I was supposed to be teaching my Wugmumps, but they ended up teaching me a few things, too!

The situation started out pretty stressful, with the girls uprooted from their home and friends, and me being thrown into a role for which I felt woefully unprepared despite my many years of being a classroom teacher. But you know what? It really turned out to be a special time of bonding. My grandkids are growing up so fast. I've had three completely uninterrupted weeks of time with the littlest ones--to teach them, but also to listen to them. To play with them. To get a glimpse at how their little brains work and what things are important to them. We've gone on nature hikes, made paintings of dinosaurs, read countless stories, sang together, and made bird-feeders out of pinecones and peanut butter. We've giggled and, yes, shed a few tears, too. Yesterday as I was helping the second grader with regrouping 3-digit addition, she said, "I'm going to miss having you as my teacher, Gramma." I've never received higher praise.

The evening the girls and I sat on the back porch, listening to thunder roll and sipping hot cocoa while a rainbow formed in the clouds, I realized that years from now I'll look back on this time as one of my most precious life chapters. And to think we had it because of a virus.

-- Kim Vogel Sawyer
Email: Kim@KimVogelSawyer.com

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

* This month's Penguin Classics book is BLACK SHACK ALLEY, by Joseph Zobel. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 05-12-2020

Dear Reader,

It's my pleasure to present this month's Penguin Classics book, Black Shack Alley by Joseph Zobel. A semi-autobiographical 1950 novel, this Penguin Classic chronicles the coming-of-age of Jose, a young boy grappling with issues of power and identity in colonial Martinique. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading, and enter for your chance to win.

For a long time I've been aware that I have a "comfort" food. When I'm feeling a little beat up from the fast pace of my life--or if it's a rainy afternoon--I can easily coax myself into grabbing a quilt, propping up a few pillows, and getting cozy with a bag of chocolate covered raisins.

But for the past few years, I've been allowing myself to listen to my other comfort needs, too. I don't understand them or why I feel the need for them--especially since sometimes they're a little bizarre. But especially during this pandemic, whatever feels comforting to me, I'm grabbing on to it. This past Saturday afternoon I realized that I needed to make some potholders, the kind I used to weave when I was a kid. The idea wasn't logical, but then again, whenever Bailey, my now 25-year-old granddaughter, comes to visit, we make potholders. It's become a tradition. We've been doing it since she was five years old. Yes, potholders were going to make me feel close to Bailey, and that would bring me comfort, so I immediately got out my potholder weaving loom set.

I know from experience that if I listen, and go after what I need, no matter how strange, silly, or sometimes embarrassing it may seem, I'm rewarded with a sense of joy. My soul is soothed, and in no time I'm ready to face the world and the troubles in it.

Sometimes when my comfort need seems too weird, even for me, I write the idea off as something silly and I keep plugging away in my work. But if I do that, the idea follows me around and the instant I stop my hectic pace, and reflect for a moment--there it is, gently tapping at me, laughingly telling me to give in, take care of what I know I need and I will feel at peace.

If I absolutely refuse to listen to what my heart is telling me, and I keep on going like usual, weeks go by and all of a sudden I feel like I've lost a part of me. I can't explain it, but that silly potholder brought me a lot of joy, and warm memories of spending time with Bailey. And yes, I did indeed find comfort.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

* If you feel like making a "comforting" potholder, enter today's giveaway for your own potholder weaving loom set. Click here.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

Dear Reader Column 05-11-2020

Dear Reader,

When I opened one of the drawers in my bathroom vanity, I was shocked! Before the pandemic, I waded through everything to find what I needed, and then simply shut the drawer. But that was before pandemic times, when I was in a hurry, so I could get to work.

But now, in the midst of pandemic, when I'm moving in the slow lane, I'm here to tell you, those drawers look pretty scary--there's stuff and more stuff--unorganized stuff--everywhere. How come I never noticed this before? And how did I ever even find anything in these drawers before?

Dried up bottles of nail polish, band aids, 3 spray bottles of Comfort Zone stress reducing pheromone for our cats when they're having a melt down, 10 buttons (with some of my better shirts the manufacturer includes an extra button), 4 Beauty Secrets nail files, lipstick, triple antibiotic cream, body clothing tape (I have a dress that I absolutely love, but it's a little too open in some unmentionable parts so I tape it up and no one is the wiser), 2 water bottles but three water bottle stoppers, dental wax in 3 flavors, hydrocortisone cream and a teeny tiny 6 ml. bottle of Releev, a medicine for cold sores that I only use once every two years, but the bottle costs over 20 bucks, and to add to my frustration about it, I see it expired 11/30/18.

So here's the question for you. Do expiration dates really mean anything?

I hope not, because on a closer look with a magnifying glass, nothing is current in my bathroom drawers or cupboard. It all expired two, three, even four years ago. But Google assures me, "...the effectiveness of a drug may decrease over time, but much of the original potency still remains even a decade after the expiration date."

Sounds good to me, since most days lately I feel I'm past my expiration date.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Warmest regards,

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

Dear Reader Column 05-08-2020

Dear Reader,

After my husband and I took inventory of the canned goods in our kitchen cupboards, from the list we compiled, I was inspired to make two pumpkin pies (including the crusts), from scratch. Our family always has pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving, we're all crazy-in-love with pumpkin. So why do I only make pumpkin pies for the holidays?

Breaking pumpkin pie tradition, my husband and I took one of the pies over to our son, daughter-in-law and three grandchildren. We set the still-warm pie, along with a can of whipped cream, on their front porch, rang the doorbell, socially distanced ourselves, and some pretty excited grandchildren suddenly appeared on the front porch. Our pumpkin pie delivery has started a new tradition for me, at least through this crazy pandemic.

This Friday, I'm baking pumpkin bread and my husband and I will deliver it to our three pumpkin-loving grandchildren. Next Friday, chocolate cake, or maybe a peach cobbler? I love to bake, my grandchildren, son and daughter-in-law love to eat Grandma's baked goods. It's a perfect match.

What's making you smile? How has your daily routine changed? Share some of yourself with other book club readers. Email me at: Suzanne@DearReader.com

Book club reader Dianna P. wrote:

"A renewed appreciation for seeing neighbors out on a walk. A bike ride or sitting in a chair outdoors. A wave and a smile. I've been reminded of your bubble machine from years past and wondering if you still have it? I think it would be nice to have something like this going to send out well wishes and bring smiles to others.

The creative ways people are staying connected keeps me smiling. Many from the Union Library Community have been sharing poetry to inspire and support one another. A friend created a birthday video 'collage' with friends singing, dancing and recording well wishes for the birthday boy. I know of a grandmother, a retired teacher, who spends an hour every day with her grandson helping him with his lessons and learning remotely. These are just a few of the many things that make me smile. Thank you for your wonderful letters and the smiles they bring."

(Suzanne replies:) Yes, Dianna, I'm still running a bubble machine in front of my house every day. It's been 8 years of running the daily bubble machine. People have always loved the bubbles, but lately folks clap, and tell me that especially now, the bubbles make their day!

"Suzanne, your emails and this book club are what's making me smile these days! I also took the time to write out some cards to let people know I am thinking of them. I don't use social media, I use the old fashion cards and a stamp. When I'm down, I try to lift somebody else up and that helps me not feel sorry for myself. There is always someone who has it worse." -- C. M.

"Hi Suzanne. I live in an apartment, in Florida, and there is a pond right outside my window. I have a family of ducks that I call my babies, and I feed them bread outside my window daily. They know the sound of my window opening and will come swimming to me. I also have a mom with its one chick. It rides on mom's back all day long. Just watching this makes me smile and makes the long days a little shorter." -- William B.

What's making you smile? How has your daily routine changed? Share some of yourself with other book club readers. Email me at: Suzanne@DearReader.com

* Congratulations to the winners of Finding Deep and Wide, by guest author Shellie Rushing Tomlinson: Beverly D., Heidi Z., Mari R., Nancy R. and Mildred A.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Stay happy and healthy,

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win.

Dear Reader Column 05-07-2020

Dear Reader,

Every day, I can freely give to everyone the gift of "the benefit of the doubt."

When I read those words the other day, I stopped and went back and read them again--and then sat with them for awhile. Especially in the midst of this pandemic, it truly is a gift I can give to someone every single day.

Giving the gift of "the benefit of the doubt" reminded me of a column I wrote a long time ago.

It's all in how you look at it...

I'm driving to the supermarket and the man driving the car in front of me, he's going so slow, it's driving me crazy. You'd think he was in a funeral procession. But when I think about it, okay, perhaps someone close to him did just die, and getting to the supermarket, well, he's just not in a hurry. Eventually he'll get there.

Or maybe Abby, his cat, is very ill and he knows that sometime tomorrow he's going to have to take Abby to the vet and say goodbye to her. Suddenly I feel much differently about the guy driving the car in front of me. Or possibly the man in the car in front of me is on his way to his granddaughter's birthday party. Grandpa's bringing the cake, the cake is on the front seat belted in for protection, but he doesn't want the cake to slide around or Alley's name might get smished in the frosting on top of the cake.

It's all in how you look at something...

"Suzanne, your gardening column this morning reminded me of something that happened 45 years ago. When I was driving my mother, to what was going to be my home in a few months, I stopped the car right in the middle of the street and pointing to a house said, 'Oh look how beautiful they are, I want those at my house.'

My mother couldn't imagine what I was looking at; I explained what caught my eye were the scores of little, yellow flowers sprinkled throughout the large front lawn. Mom explained that those weeds were dandelions, and to please not tell anyone what I thought, so as not to be embarrassed. But to this day I still think those lovely, little, bright, yellow flowers looked so beautiful against the lush, dark green grass. Once again, you have brought back a wonderful memory." -- Jo, a reader at the book club

Yes, things are all in how you look at them...

I'd love to hear from you. Email me at: Suzanne@DearReader.com

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

AUTHORBUZZ

With so many new books out every week, we promise this title deserves your attention:

(NonFiction)
THE PLEASURE PLAN by Laura Zam

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

 

Dear Reader Column 05-06-2020

Dear Reader,

What's making you smile these days?

Monday I shared my story about George and Alice, two red-bellied woodpeckers nesting in my old oak tree. Today Barbara, a reader at the book club, told me what's been making her smile...

"Suzanne, two years ago the shed in our backyard became the home of a red fox family who produced four kits. They were adorable and each day was an adventure for them and us. They would poke their heads out from under the shed and watch the cars go by on the street some distance from their home. One morning they were gone.

This year we have a family of six red fox kits who are quickly becoming mature. They must have moved from where they were born and needed more room so now they occupy the area under our back porch. Our tipped over lawn chairs (which we had turned over because of strong winds a few days ago), have become their gym equipment--running under, over, and hiding from one another. Most of the time they race after one another, pounce on one another, grab a tail and pull, they are inventive. We feel so blessed to have nature at our back door. The fox family doesn't know how happy they have made us.

I hope your woodpeckers produce a lovely nest full of fledglings for you to enjoy. What a privilege to have them out your window. Thanks for your column, I enjoy it daily." -- Barbara

"Hi Suzanne, what's making me smile here in Iowa is seeing all the beautiful flowering magnolias, redbuds, crab apple blossoms, etc. and the trees leafing out more and more. Not too many flowers are popping up yet, but the tulips and daffodils are pretty. Now that the weather is warmer, it's been wonderful to see neighbors outside working on their yards and gardens. It makes life seem more normal again. It definitely makes me smile!" -- Muriel L.

"How exciting for you to watch the woodpeckers. We haven't had bluebirds in our yard for over 20 years until about two weeks ago. They built their nest in a new box my husband put out. We are hoping for a fun time in the next few weeks with our binoculars.

We lost our beloved cat, Annabelle, in March. We were crushed, as you know. After careful consideration, and lots of tears, we are getting TWO new kitties. That will make us very happy. They will be ready to come to our house in 19 days! Have a wonderful day. Your newsletters make me happy every day." -- Pat H.

"Hello Suzanne! Reading about your woodpeckers brought a smile to my face! I enjoy smiles and laughter as I watch old episodes of 'Andy Griffith,' see my dog get excited about walks and food, talking with family and friends, reading books, and seeing the beauty of nature in walks, pictures, and videos! Enjoy a wonderful day, Suzanne! It's great reading with you!" -- Lauren L.

What's making you smile these days? Email me at:

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win.

Dear Reader Column 05-05-2020

Dear Reader,

Every week I invite an author to visit the book club. Today, please welcome Tara Royer Steele. Tara lives in Brenham, Texas, with her husband and two boys. She continues to work in her family business with her husband. Together they have Royers Pie Haven in Round Top, Texas, and recently they've turned their commercial pie kitchen into a place to feed families through pick-up and delivery. Tara's book, Eat. Pie. Love. shares her story through illustrations, devotions, and recipes.

Five copies of Eat. Pie. Love. are ready to send to five lucky book club readers. Say hello, and when you do, you'll be entered in Tara's book giveaway. She'd love to hear from you. Email: tararoyersteele@gmail.com

I almost ruined their wedding day

Let me set the scene. I had been working in our family restaurant and pie business for 20 years and at the time was running our catering business. I was engaged and scheduled to be married myself in the next month, but today, we were catering for another lucky couple. The spring flowers were blooming; the birds were chirping; the sky was baby blue with big puffy clouds. It was the perfect day for a rural Texas wedding.

I got in the driver's seat of my fiance's brand new truck with my mom, while he and dad rode together. We arrived at the old dance hall and little white church on a hill. I jumped out of the car with excitement to serve and be part of a couple's dream day. But when I hopped out, I locked the truck with the keys in the ignition and my fiance's keys on the floorboard, where he would typically leave them. Realizing what had just happened, I tried to remain calm, but I went into panic mode. It was always in the back of my head that I'm going to ruin a girl's dream wedding, and today was the day. I usually thought, what if I burn the food, what if we don't have enough for everyone, what if we drop a plate on her white dress. I never dreamed we would not be able to get the food out of the car to serve!!

We called the sheriff and started to unload the other vehicle and set up what could be while we waited. My fiance found a coat hanger and began to work on the door. Fortunately, unlocking cars was one of his talents. Sometimes I wondered why it was a talent, that's another story. The officer arrived and began working on the vehicle too.

I was keeping my eye on the church door for them to swing wide open, and the people pour out. We were running out of time, my palms were sweaty, and my dad, who had been quiet, which is not one of his talents, began speaking what I was thinking, break the darn window! No one could get the car unlocked, the doors of the church swung open, and I said, "break the window!!!!"

At that moment, my fiance said, "I got it!!!" Thank you, Jesus! We all unloaded the car, filled the buffet line, and no one ever knew that the day was nearly ruined, and we all lived happily ever after.

-- Tara Royer Steele

For a chance to win a copy of Eat. Pie. Love. drop Tara an email, tararoyersteele@gmail.com.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win.

Dear Reader Column 05-04-2020

Dear Reader,

George and Alice make me smile everyday. George has been courting Alice, but she's been making him work hard for her attention. It's the male red-bellied woodpecker's job to carve a round hole in a partially decayed tree, and then excavate down inside the limb around 11 to 14 inches for the nest. The female goes inside, and if she approves, she comes out of the nest and 'rat-tat-tats' on the tree near the "front door" of the nest, announcing she likes what she sees.

Alice may have given her approval, but I think she must have decided she'd like a bigger master suite or an additional bathroom, because George has been working hard on the nest again. It's hilarious. He goes down into the nest, chips away at the wood, then sticks his head out the hole of the nest, shakes his head back and forth and a "sand storm" of sawdust falls to the ground. That boy is definitely in love. He's been working non-stop for the past couple of days. But yesterday, I saw Alice popping her head out of their new home all day long. She looked content and I'm finally assured that I'll see babies soon.

Sitting on my side porch, binoculars handy when I want to admire George and Alice close up--watching them makes me feel calm in the midst of the chaos and never fails to make me smile.

What's making you smile these days? This is my address:
Suzanne@DearReader.com

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win.

THE PLEASURE PLAN (NonFiction) by Laura Zam

Has the virus left you stressed? Time for some pleasure! Based on my essay in The New York Times' Modern Love, This book is a memoir and sexual healing guide. This wild ride features 30 pleasure-enhancing methods, including hypnosis with a bawdy therapist, and more. I wrote this book to empower women to take charge of their sexual health.

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on THE PLEASURE PLAN to read more and to email author Laura Zam, you'll get a reply.