Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Suzie's Sourdough Circus

I love all of the small world overlaps that occur when blogging. My editor was super close friends with Anna growing up, whose blog I just adore. Sara is friends with Grace, which I discovered on Twitter. And Katy, whose blog is gaining increasing renown, went to college with Hubs. Small world, indeed.

A few weeks back, Katy sent Huxley a package for his birthday. The package contained an adorable craft paper envelope (drawn by Katy) inside of which was an autographed copy of the equally darling Suzie's Sourdough Circus by Kathy Sager. The book depicts (via Eliska Liska's captivating illustrations) a day in the life of Suzie, a child who, after playing outdoors, comes inside to create a batch of sourdough bread.

Teeming with wild and wacky sourdough cultures, Suzie's Sourdough Circus tells in rhyming prose the life and times of these cultures. The book concludes with several recipes, including: Six Tips for Happy Sourdough, Suzie's Sourdough Bread, Sourdough Flapjacks, Sourdough Bannock (sort of like a pancake), and Chocolate-Vanilla Marble Sourdough Cake.
  
When I asked Katy what motivated her to send Huxley the book, here's what she had to say:
The book is written by the best friend of my little sister Sara (although she did name the character "Suzie" after her mother.) Our father started making the family bread using sourdough starting way back in the early 70's, and has never stopped. And although I sinfully buy store-bought bread, my sister makes hers using our father's recipe. 

I thought this book was a perfect fit for your family, as it depicts a cozy making-everything-from-scratch family, complete with sleeping dog (who, incidentally is based on my sister's dog Ramira!). Also, I think the publisher did a fantastic job with design, (as did Lark books [with mine]) And the illustrations could not be cuter. 

Agreed. This book is stellar. Thank you so much for your generosity, Katy, and to Kathy for signing Huxley's copy.  I can't wait for when Huxley is old enough to read it and make some sourdough together. If you've got wee ones of your own, or even just in your life, I can't recommend Suzie's Sourdough Circus enough. It would make a GREAT holiday gift!

4 comments:

Katy @ The Non-Consumer Advocate said...

So happy that you liked the book! Thanks for the lovely words.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

"Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without"

Indio said...

I'm always on the lookout for gift ideas, and books are my favorite thing to give. Thanks for mentioning it.

Courtney said...

What a beautiful book! I don't have children yet, but I may get this book just for myself anyway (I love children's books). I've been trying to motivate myself to start with sourdough ...

Baby By The Sea said...

Love how small this world is. Sara is a good pal of mine on this tiny island. Looks like a great book - I'll have to check it out.