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Welcome, hungry readers! I'm the author of the "Solid" series, but my blog is about food in books. No, not cookbooks - food in FICTION, mostly YA. We all talk about what the characters are doing and whom they're doing it with, But What Are They Eating?
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Number of Readers that added this blog to their MyJacketFlap: 2
1. Authors in Bloom Giveaway Hop!
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 4/9/2013
Blog: But What Are They Eating? (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  Add a tag





Welcome, hoppers!

Now just because I only planted my first garden last summer, don’t think my post stop isn’t clearly the one you should read the most thoroughly and take to heart!

I have one stellar piece of gardening advice and here it is:
Leave. It. Alone.

Brilliant, right? Okay, maybe I should give a little background so you can appreciate the wisdom of those words.

I’ve had plants in my life. Lots, actually. And I’ve killed them all. Even my “indestructible” brain cactus grew some sort of fungus and died. (It may or may not be relevant that the rotting began after my cat ate a chunk out of the plant, but at least the cat went on to live a long and happy life.)

ANYWAY – last summer I finally identified the root (pun intended) of my planticide career: trying too hard. Every plant in my past passed because I over-watered, over-sunned, or over-thought it to death.

So when I began the garden, assuming nothing would make it, I planted a gazillion seeds and didn’t even dare hope for the best. But when I checked the pots days later, the seeds had magically ALL sprouted. And of course the first thing I wanted to do was, well, something. Water them, touch them, anything. But for once I decided to just leave them alone, and when I checked them again after the 2ndweek, this is what I found:


Unbelievable, right? I actually ended up with so many healthy plants that I couldn’t fit them all in my garden plot!

But don’t cue the happily-ever-after music just yet. (Although you shouldn’t jump to the conclusion that I reverted back to my murderous ways, either!)

This is the point where a self-proclaimed gardener extraordinaire threw in her two cents about which vines needed to be cut and which plants had to be moved. Sadly, after following her expert advice, 7 of my 8 beautiful young pumpkins died, along with all but one of my watermelons and my entire cauliflower and pea sections. 

If only I’d left them alone, I could’ve raked in cash hand-over-fist at a roadside stand instead of ending up back at the market purchasing the fruits of someone else’s labor. Or non-labor, really, which is what I now know is the key!


But wait - there's more than just free advice here today; there are prizes, too:

My giveaway here at BWATE? is a set of 2 ebooks (the first 2 of my SOLID series): 






AND Dianne Venetta is giving also giving away an EREADER and a $25 gift card to start filling it up! (Winning one prize doesn't exclude from winning the other; you can win both.)

To enter BOTH giveaways:
Follow this blog and leave a comment/question,
along with a way to contact you.

Optional Extra Entries:
+1 Follow on Twitter
+1 Like Solid Series on Facebook 
+1 Add series to your to-read list on Goodreads

Winners will be chosen from the comments ACROSS ALL OF THE PARTICIPATING BLOGS, so here are the notable points:

1. Leave a comment here that includes your contact email address.

2. Leave a separate comment for each additional entry (i.e. follow the blog and leave a comment that you did so, then leave another comment once you follow on Twitter, a third once you've followed on FB, and a final one for the GR add, allowing up to 4 entries here).

3. Visit as many of the other blogs as you can, leaving comments with contact information there as well. 

Good luck to you all - Happy Reading and Happy Spring!

 Participating blogs:
 

1. Dianne Venetta (INTL)  
2. Rose Anderson  
3. Margay Leah Justice  
4. Catherine Chant  
5. Amber Kallyn  
6. PJ Sharon  
7. Kaira Rouda  
8. Darcy Flynn (US)  
9. Katharina Gerlach  
10. Amy Saunders  
11. DarcyholicDiversions/Barbara Tiller Cole  
12. Sheila Seabrook  
13. Mina Khan  
14. Caron Rider  
15. Lakisha Spletzer  
16. Christie Palmer  
17. Karl Fields  
18. Beverly Nault  
19. Shelley Workinger  
20. Samantha March  
21. Cat Lavoie  
22. Anita Hughes  
23. Karen Baney  
24. Sarah Pekkanen  
25. Courtney Vail - Gotta Have YA  
26. Lisa Lim  
27. Candy Ann Little  
28. Lynette Sofras  
29. Boys on the Brink  
30. Dee S White (INTL)  
31. Patti Callahan Henry  
32. Elizabeth Allen  
33. Maria Geraci  
34. Linda Andrews  
35. Mary L. Laudien  
36. Jencey Gortney  
37. Ninette Swann  
38. Edie Ramer  
39. Kate Copsey  
40. Kate Austin  
41. Best-Selling author Jennifer Conner  
42. Anna Patterson  
43. Bestselling Author Danica Winters  
44. Sharon Kleve's Romantic Ramblings  
45. Jennie Bentley  
46. Leanne Tyler  
47. Stacy Juba's One Stop Reading  
48. Gemma Juliana  
49. Kara Ashley Dey  
50. Dey for Love  
51. Sara Walter Ellwood  
52. Jennifer Lowery  
53. Summer Kinard  
54. Tracy Solheim  
55. Alexa Grace  
56. Teena Stewart  
57. Cynthia Vespia - Author of Thrills and Chills  
58. Caroline Doherty de Novoa - Dancing with Statues  
59. J.D. Faver  
60. Laina Turner - Being Fabulous is a Skill  
61. A Cozy Readers Corner  
 


Content provided by Shelley Workinger,

17 Comments on Authors in Bloom Giveaway Hop!, last added: 4/22/2013
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2. FOODFIC: Maggie Vaults Over the Moon - Grant Overstake
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 3/28/2013
Blog: But What Are They Eating? (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  Guest, Grant Overstake, FoodFic, corn, Maggie Vaults Over the Moon, Add a tag



Maggie Vaults Over the Moon retells the story of Maggie Steele, a gritty farm girl from tiny Grain Valley, Kansas, who pours her broken heart into the daring and dangerous sport of pole-vaulting. Kirkus Reviews says the novel “…exudes sweetness; in some ways, it feels as if it takes place in another era, as it lacks the dark edge seen in other popular YA stories…”

A morsel of this story’s other-era sweetness can be tasted in a nostalgic food scene in which the stressed and grieving Steele family takes a break from a long day’s harvesting to savor a fresh, home-cooked dinner – transported from the farmhouse kitchen to a half-cut Kansas wheat field.

I chomped the buttery corn and chewed the fried chicken clean off the bone, wiping my hands on my napkin. Looking out from where we sat, I could see about a third of the wheat field had been cut.
“We still have a lot of work to do before dark, but we’ve made a good start of it,” Dad said.
Mom and Grandma took our empty plates and put the leftovers back in the basket. There was easily enough food left over for a hungry teenager, but if anybody else was thinking about Alex, they didn’t say so.
Even as full as I was, I still felt empty. But I kept the feeling to myself.

Now just before that scene, heroine Maggie Steele, for the very first time in her life, drove a fully-loaded grain truck from the wheat field to the Grain Valley Elevator, eight miles distant on the county blacktop. Driving the huge truck was a chore that her older brother, Alex, had always done, but that was before Alex and his friend Caleb had both been killed in a car crash one month before. 

On the way to town, Maggie made a driving mistake and barely managed to keep the fully-loaded truck from overturning on the highway. She arrives at the elevator shaken and frightened about taking her brother’s place on the family farm, but sits down to dinner with family members who seem to believe that if they don’t acknowledge who’s missing, everything looks, tastes, and smells as if all is okay. Maggie indulges her sense but isn’t fooled. After what she experienced on the highway, she knows everything has changed. And even a heaping plateful cannot fill the empty space she feels inside.

My years spent as a newspaper reporter in Kansas wheat country provided most of the scenes in the story. And while I'd heard-tell about harvest field dinners like this, I'd never seen one. Today, even the smallest towns have a place where Maggie could pick up some hamburgers and fries on the way back to the field, and so they do. Womenfolk like Grandma who felt compelled to fix such big dinners are mostly gone. Moms like Maggie's now work in town or drive the big grain trucks themselves. 

I heard from an older reader who especially liked this scene because he'd experienced field dinners just like these, with clean linen napkins, cold metal tumblers and everything. He said Maggie touched him so deeply that he cried when he finished reading it, because he didn’t want the story to end.

As for me, I felt like I needed to write this scene into the story because I wanted an eating event that went beyond the kitchen table and took on the feel of a mythic meal. I wanted you to taste the goodness, and believe that there really is a place called Grain Valley, Kansas, with a golden wheat field like this one – where your Grandma still fusses and fills your plate with fried chicken, potatoes and gravy, and Oh! fresh-baked bread, buttered with love. Where you, too, can taste the sweetness again.

Thanks for sharing your food for thought, Grant!


Former Miami Herald Sportswriter Grant Overstake is a lifelong participant in the sport of track and field who competed in the decathlon for the University of Kansas Jayhawks. A multiple award winner for excellence in journalism, Maggie Vaults Over the Moon is the author’s premiere work of sports fiction, and is now available in paperback and e-book at Amazon.com.
Content provided by Shelley Workinger,

0 Comments on FOODFIC: Maggie Vaults Over the Moon - Grant Overstake as of 3/28/2013 10:55:00 AM
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3. Toastworthy Teen - Sierra Green
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 3/26/2013
Blog: But What Are They Eating? (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  Sierra Green, Oregon History Idol, teen, toastworthy, Add a tag

Sierra Green, Oregon History Idol


If you're not from there, you may not know that Oregon is the "land of the rose and sunshine" (I didn't!), or even that the state song is called Oregon, My Oregon. But if you attended the Portland Trail Blazers game on February 14th, you learned both, thanks to the vocal talent of Sierra Green. 

The 16-year-old earned the coveted performance slot with a winning audition at the Oregon History Idol competition the weekend before.

Sierra, who admittedly practiced in her room until she "drove her brother crazy," has wanted to be a Broadway performer all her life. Sounds like she has the talent and work ethic to get there!

See her game performance here:

Do you know a toast-worthy teen you’d like to see featured here at BWATE? 

Comment below with your email address so we can get a post together!
Content provided by Shelley Workinger,

0 Comments on Toastworthy Teen - Sierra Green as of 3/26/2013 11:11:00 AM
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4. FOODFIC: A Violet Season - Kathy Leonard Czepiel
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 3/22/2013
Blog: But What Are They Eating? (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  Kathy Leonard Czepiel, FoodFic, A Violet Season, sugared violets, Add a tag



Let’s begin by addressing exactly when violet season is. The work begins with the plowing of fields and moving of cuttings into raised beds in June, but violet “season” officially kicks off with the New York Horse Show in November at Madison Square Garden. (Before you rush out to buy tickets, let me clarify: violet season kicked off at MSG in 1898, but the last violet farm in the Hudson Valley closed in the 1980s and the horse show has moved to Kentucky). 

The violet farm depicted by Czepiel is a family business, meaning that the Fletchers are as ensnarled in all the complications that come with both families and businesses as are the roots in their beds. And adding further stress to the situation is the arduousness of the work. Joe Jacobs, the son of the Dutch Reformed Church’s dominie, home from Princeton while he decides whether or not to go on to law school, hires on at the Fletchers’ farm and is quick to note: I never realized how hard you had to work to grow these little flowers. I don’t imagine any boy who gives them to his sweetheart has any idea.

Joe’s intended sweetheart is, of course, Alice, the daughter of the youngest Fletcher brother (why else would an educated young man endure such grueling labor?). And when Joe stays on the farm after Alice is sent away, he’s not so different from the other Fletchers who’re sticking out unhappy situations because of the time, circumstances, and, frankly, lack of other options. 

There are bright moments, certainly, like the holiday party where they serve the confection I’d secretly hoped to find since I first saw the title – a cake topped with sugared violets! Now, I’m sure the Fletchers didn’t feel quite the same excitement over seeing yet more of the little purple flowers that they were surrounded by and essentially dependent on, just as I imagine a cherry farmer would prefer to see anything but that tell-tale lattice pie crust on his table each night!

I’d like to think, though, that those crystallized petals brought at least fleeting smiles to the faces of the Fletcher women, not only because there were so few bright spots in their tough lives, but also since the violets –hardy blossoms which flourished in cold climes, not unlike the women themselves – were, even if only for one night, being treated with care and held in a place of honor.
Content provided by Shelley Workinger,

0 Comments on FOODFIC: A Violet Season - Kathy Leonard Czepiel as of 3/22/2013 8:50:00 AM
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5. Toastworthy Teen - Max Wallack
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 3/19/2013
Blog: But What Are They Eating? (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  teen, toastworthy, Puzzles to Remember, Max Wallack, Add a tag

Max Wallack, Puzzles to Remember

Max Wallack has been putting both his altruistic spirit and innovative mind to use since he was 7, when he devised a portable step with handle to help his great-grandmother get in and out of her van by herself. And those childhood years spent watching Gertrude battle Alzheimer’s also led to Max’s greatest “invention” – Puzzles to Remember. 

At age 13, Max learned that doing puzzles could actually slow the progression of Alzheimer’s and dementia, while at the same time giving sufferers and their caregivers something positive to do together. So for the past 3 years, Max has collected almost 15,000 puzzles for 1,500 care facilities in all 50 states as well as Mexico, Canada, and beyond. Even more impressive is that he’s taken all the monetary awards he’s received from various groups for his good work and donated it the Boston University School of Medicine’s Alzheimer’s Disease Center. 

Max does all of this for his “heroes – the men and women who sacrificed so much for your country," but clearly Max is a hero in his own right. :)

To find out more, visit:
http://www.puzzlestoremember.org



Do you know a toast-worthy teen you’d like to see featured here at BWATE? 

Comment below with your email address so we can get a post together!
Content provided by Shelley Workinger,

1 Comments on Toastworthy Teen - Max Wallack, last added: 3/20/2013
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6. FOODFIC: Please Welcome Guest David Hill, Author of At Drake's Command
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 3/14/2013
Blog: But What Are They Eating? (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  FoodFic, David Hill, Boiled Beef, At Drake's Command, Guest, Add a tag


The year is 1577. Our unlikely hero, Peregrine James, is a young cook sentenced to a lashing for the crime of being an unwelcome suitor to his master's daughter. Despite the stripes on his back, however, Perry convinces the charismatic sea captain, Francis Drake, to accept him among his crew. Soon he is aboard the Pelican, the flagship of a fleet of five small vessels ostensibly bound on a trading voyage to Alexandria—although everyone is sure their real destination lies elsewhere, wherever there were Spanish or Portuguese ships to rob.

As the assistant cook, Perry is the “least boy” aboard the Pelican. Unfortunately, he is disliked by his immediate superior, Lancelot Garget, who assigns him every menial duty—scrubbing pots, “shifting” salted meat, plucking chickens, fetching ingredients from the orlop, mucking out the livestock pens—and much chopping and dicing and scraping. There are sixty-seven boys, sailors, men, and gentlemen sailing with the Pelican, and each is entitled to a full pound of beef, pork, or mutton per day, with cod or ling served on Fridays, not to mention equal portions of vegetables and biscuit. The work is never ending.

This is the natural of things in any kitchen or galley, of course, and Perry never thinks of complaining. What irks him, however, is that Garget “cannot abide foreign flavors, particularly the stink of garlic” and insists on food plainly cooked in the style “my mother taught me, God rest the good woman.” Growing ever more tired of Garget's signature dish, boiled beef and onions, Perry is overjoyed when he is transferred temporarily to the Benedict, the smallest ship of the fleet. Finally he has a galley of his own and may cook as he likes. His welcome, however, is not warm …



EXCERPT


The Benedict was commanded by Tom Moone. He was a hulking giant several inches past six feet in height, with placid brown eyes and a stillness of expression that encouraged you to believe him to be slow-witted although I knew him to be a professional killer of high intelligence.

“Where is Garget?” he asked Bartelmyeus Gotsalk.

“Drake would not part with the man.”

“No surprise there. Lancelot is too fine a cook to surrender.”

“Drake swore the lad here would do as well. Let us take heart, captain, at least he is not Artyur.”

“Truer words were never spoken. I have been experiencing curious intestinal twinges since breakfast and I am not looking forward to supper. Artyur! Artyur! Where the devil are you?”

“Here, meneer.”

“This is Peregrine James, who is to be your superior until Hogges is back on his feet.”

“Let him return to the Pelican, kapitein. I need no assistance.”

“You have it wrong, Artyur—you are to assist Mr. James, do you understand me?”

Artyur was a Hollander of about my own age. His head was almost perfectly round and he cut his hair in a line above the ears and shaved his cheeks and neck clean, a style that emphasized the globular nature of his cranium. Artyur’s features were in constant motion and he could not keep his hands still and he was always worrying the joints of his fingers.

“Aye, kapitein,” he muttered sadly, “I understand all too well, ja. You did not appreciate the morning porridge.”

“Pepper does not marry easily with oatmeal.”

“And what of the taart?”

“In the future remember that the flavor of sugar should overpower that of salt in sweet pastry. Now no more argument, Artyur. Provide Mr. James all courtesy.”

My first challenge, I realized, would be to find Artyur harmless work since he was sure to do me injury through incompetence, if not through malice. It was plain that he resented my presence aboard the Benedict and coveted my station.

“Be so kind as to peel twenty onions,” I told him, “followed by an equal number of carrots. Wash a couple bunches of celery. Cut each vegetable into pieces the size of your knuckle.”

“Ja ja. Which knuckle? The first one or the second?”

“The knuckle does not matter. The point is for the pieces to be uniform, so that they cook evenly.”

Going below, I found a haunch of beef that had been rinsed of salt and was ready for cooking. I butchered it into square chunks and began browning the meat in bacon grease as my mother had taught me, guiding my hand with her own as we turned the sizzling cubes with a wood spoon, murmuring, “Mira, mi hijo. Pay attention so that all sides receive equal color. Es muy importante.” Without Garget breathing over my shoulder, I was also able to skim off the impurities that would impart a bitter aftertaste if allowed to remain in the liquid. Frying together some butter and flour until golden, I employed this mixture to thicken the broth instead of using a paste of water and flour, which was quicker but brought nothing to a dish except a raw taste and a muddy color.

“I am done, ja,” stated Artyur, giving the last carrot a couple chops before sweeping it from the cutting board into a bucket with the edge of his knife. “What now?”

“Fetch eggs, sugar, milk, raisins, and stale bread. A cup of sack, too. We will have pudding for dessert.”

When Artyur left to get the required items, I carried the bucket of vegetables to the iron pot in which the stew was simmering. Some premonition, however, prevented me from tossing in the contents all at once and instead I added the ingredients handful by handful.

This allowed me to intercept the dead rat hidden among the carrots, onions, and celery before it fell into the stew.

Artyur’s strategy was obvious. He planned to publicly discredit me before Tom Moone and the rest of the men.

More saddened than dismayed by this evidence of perfidy, I tossed the rodent overboard without advertising that I had discovered it. I figured my silence would lead Artyur to suppose his intrigue remained undetected, and it did. He shot me a couple sideways glances and then began whistling happily while stirring the pot, no doubt anticipating my upcoming humiliation and his consequent elevation to my position once I was disgraced. I did not doubt he was composing a rousing speech to recite when the rat was sighted in the stew.

“How is the flavor?” I asked as I finished kneading the old bread with the sugar, eggs, and milk and began to press the dough into a greased tin. “Is more pepper necessary?”

“Nee, nee,” Artyur answered. “I believe there is ample.”

“Taste it to be sure.”

“I have done so, ja. All is good.”

“Lift your spoon, Artyur.”

“Ja, meneer?”

“Lift your spoon from the stew, place it to your lips, and tell me whether additional seasoning would be appropriate.”

Artyur regarded the spoon as if he had never encountered such a utensil before and had no inkling why the thing was in his hand. Finally he brought it to his mouth, hesitated briefly, and flicked out the tip of his tongue. “Very good,” he said, obviously relieved that his unwelcome addition to the recipe had not soured the dish. “Excellent. Now, Artyur, please take a generous helping, chew it thoroughly, and inform me if the meat is tender.”


Thanks for stopping by to share you food for thought, David! 

 

You can find David here:




Content provided by Shelley Workinger,

1 Comments on FOODFIC: Please Welcome Guest David Hill, Author of At Drake's Command, last added: 3/16/2013
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7. Toastworthy Teen - Donna Vekic
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 3/12/2013
Blog: But What Are They Eating? (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  teen, Australian Open, toastworthy, Donna Vekic, Tennis, Add a tag

Donna Vekic, Tennis Champion


This year’s Australian Open was Donna Vekic’s first appearance at a grand slam event and, even though she entered with a rank of 111, she closed the tournament as the youngest winner ever.

Donna’s may sound like a Cinderella story, but it’s all hard work and not luck or magic behind this young star; she actually lives in Croatia but trains in London and has done so since she was only 11 years old. 

Clearly this 16-year-old phenom (whose attitude, according to her coach, is “second to none”) is going to be a force on the court for many years to come. :)


Do you know a toast-worthy teen you’d like to see featured here at BWATE? 

Comment below with your email address so we can get a post together!


Content provided by Shelley Workinger,

3 Comments on Toastworthy Teen - Donna Vekic, last added: 3/15/2013
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8. 2-Year Blogiversary!
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 3/8/2013
Blog: But What Are They Eating? (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  Blogiversary, suggest, FoodFic, musing, books, Read, Add a tag



And what a busy book year it's been!

Now, since I only post my FoodFic musings biweekly, I don’t get to blog about every book I read. And, to be fair, not every read lends itself to a good FoodFic discussion, either because the food in the story doesn't jump out at me, or my schedule’s already full for the year, or a book’s subject matter is too dark or serious for me to lightly chat about here.

Anyway, these are most (I’m sure I’ve forgotten a few) of the books I read over the past year that weren’t reviewed here at BWATE?:

Laurie Halse Anderson – Speak
Margaret Atwood – The Handmaid’s Tale
Donald Bain – Three Strikes and You’re Dead
Edward Bloor – Taken
Geraldine Brooks – Year of Wonders
Harlan Coben – Tell No One
Suzanne Collins – The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, Mockingjay
Robin Cook – Cure
Patricia Cronwell – At Risk
James Dashner – The Kill Order
Jennifer Egan – A Visit from the Goon Squad
Myla Goldberg – The False Friend
Seth Grahame-Smith – Pride and Prejudice and Zombies
Kelly Green – The Shadow (Borrowing Abby Grace)
Philippa Gregory – The Boleyn Inheritance, The Other Queen
John Grisham – The Racketeer 
E.L. James – Fifty Shades of Grey, Fifty Shades Darker, Fifty Shades Freed
Kathleen Jeffrie Johnson – Gone
James Kilgore – Prudence Couldn't Swim
Stephenie Meyer – The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner
Chris Mitchell – Cast Member Confidential
Liane Moriarty – What Alice Forgot
James Patterson – 7th Heaven, The 8th Confession, The 9th Judgment, 10th Anniversary, 11th Hour
James Patterson & Howard Roughan – Sail
Francine Prose – Touch
Joyce Raskin – My Misadventures as a Teenage Rockstar
Delia Sherman – Changeling
Maureen Sherry – Walls Within Walls
Rebecca Skloot – The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
R.L. Stein – Welcome to Camp Slither
Kathryn Stockett – The Help
Susan Vaught – Stormwitch
Paul Volponi – Hurricane Song
Rich Wallace – Dishes
Scott Westerfield – Uglies, Pretties, Specials, Extras
Daisy Whitney – The Mockingbirds
Brenda Woods – A Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame 
Jacqueline Woodson – Behind You
Benjamin Zephaniah – Face
Markus Zusak – I Am the Messenger


Be sure to leave a comment with some of your best (or worst) reads of the last year, or let me know if you have specific books you'd like to see reviewed here over the next year!
Content provided by Shelley Workinger,

5 Comments on 2-Year Blogiversary!, last added: 3/9/2013
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9. Toastworthy Teen - Daniel Burd
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 3/5/2013
Blog: But What Are They Eating? (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  teen, Daniel Burd, toastworthy, plastic-eating microbes, Add a tag

Daniel Burd, Plastic Fighter


Daniel Burd was “tired of all the plastic bags falling on my head every time [he] opened the closet.” But unlike the rest of us who just shake off the annoyance and go on with our day, this Ontario teen began studying microbes to see if he could isolate the natural occurring plastic-eating ones, his long-range goal being to tackle the many landfills full of the stuff. 

After collecting soil samples, isolating chosen microbes and growing cultures of each, Daniel found 4 strains capable of breaking down plastic, one of which was able to degrade more plastic in 6 weeks than we currently see break down over years in our landfills!

The more scientific-minded of you can read his report here:
Burd Report

 
Do you know a toast-worthy teen you’d like to see featured here at BWATE? 

Comment below with your email address so we can get a post together!
Content provided by Shelley Workinger,

1 Comments on Toastworthy Teen - Daniel Burd, last added: 3/7/2013
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10. FOODFIC: Please Welcome Guest L.Leander, Author of Inzared
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 2/28/2013
Blog: But What Are They Eating? (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  Squirrel Stew, Guest, L.Leander, FoodFic, Inzared, Add a tag




The year is 1854.  Inzared Romanoff (better known as Inzared, Queen of the Elephant Riders) is entertaining a guest at her campsite in the woods.  There is a bright red and yellow Gypsy wagon called a Vardo parked nearby and a big black horse grazes in the meadow.  Inzared is a great cook and pretty good talker too.  Let’s eavesdrop on the conversation: 

Squirrel Stew and Dumplings

“Hi, my name is Inzared Romanoff.  Wasn’t always that way – grew up Bertha Maude Anderson but never was too fond of that name.  Always sounded plain and I wanted something fancy.  Was raised on a poor dirt farm in the Appalachian hills of North Carolina.  Dreamed of travelin’ and seein’ the world someday and now I have.”

“You see, in 1849 the circus came to Brower’s Gap, the town about three hours down the mountain – the place we traded and sold our eggs to the local storekeep.  Whole band of Gypsy circus performers came in and we got tickets to the show.  Never saw anythin’ so amazin’ in my life.  ‘Course, I was only sixteen at the time.”

“Sorry, I’m gettin’ away from the subject.  Do that a lot.  Pull up a chair to the campfire.  We’d love to have you stay for supper.  Timmon, that’s my boy, was out huntin’ earlier and came back with a couple of squirrels.  He’s already got ‘em dressed.   I make one of the tastiest stews around – my Ma taught me.  Here, let me show you how it’s done.”

“Here, you can help me take some of the meat off the bones.  Been boilin’ the squirrel for about an hour.  Should be tender by now.  Start on this here pan and be sure you get all the little bones out.  I’ll mix up the dumplin's.”

“Good job.  Put the meat back in the pot, won’t you?  There should be plenty of liquid but if it looks too low you can add a little water from that pitcher over yonder.   Looks good.  Now, I’ve been mixin’ flour and a little milk with a pinch of salt and some lard.  If they’re over mixed they get soggy and tough.  There, that should be just right.  See?  You just drop a big ole spoonful into the boilin’ stew and cover the pan.  After about a half hour or so it’ll be done and ready to eat.”

“Want to help me make a cobbler?  Emily found an apple tree and brought them back this morning.  You can help me peel the apples.  I’ll mix up the rest.  Oh, I forgot to tell you, stoke up that fire under the pot so the stew keeps boilin’.  Thanks.  Ok, now where were we?  Oh yes, I make a mighty fine cobbler.  A little butter, some salt and flour, baking powder and soda – but the secret is buttermilk.  I’ll make the dough.  Drop the apples in the bottom and stir in the sugar and butter.  There, that’s fine.  I’ll just add the dough on top and we’ll put a cover on it.  It goes on the side of the fire that’s burnin’ steady but not too high.  We’ll leave it there about an hour and we can have a pot of fresh coffee and the cobbler for dessert.”

“Don’t that smell good?  Makes your mouth water.  Let’s get some plates and utensils out.  The kids should be back shortly, I can hear ‘em laughin’ out yonder.  We don’t get much company for dinner.  Nice to have you here.  Where’d you say you were from again?  Never had squirrel stew?  Well, I’ll be.  You’ve got a real treat in store.  And I can guarantee you’ll love the apple pie too.”

“Just in case you want to make some squirrel stew of your own I’m goin’ to share it with you – and the fruit pie receipt too.  Y’all can come back any time – I sure enjoy the company.”

Squirrel Stew: http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1848,157173-250195,00.html

Fruit Cobbler:  http://www.pbs.org/food/recipes/campfire-cobbler/

Thanks for stopping by to share you food for thought, L! 
 

L.Leander is an author, freelancer and award-winning songwriter.  Her first novel, Inzared, Queen of the Elephant Riders was published in June of 2012.  The second book in the series, Inzared, The Fortune Teller is slated for publication in early 2013.  The author has also published a short non-fiction series titled 13 Extreme Tips for Writers, targeted to the beginning writer.
 

Ms. Leander manages a blog titled L.Leander’s Reviews and Interviews that offers book promotion to Indie Authors.  The author currently resides between Wisconsin and Mexico.


You can find L. Leander and her books here:

INZARED, Queen of the Elephant Riders by L.Leander
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008FD5O1E

Video Trailer for INZARED, Queen of the Elephant Riders:  http://youtu.be/lQHtsFQGAP0

13 Extreme Tips to Self Publishing by L.Leander
http://amzn.to/Vlcq2v

13 Extreme Tips to Marketing an eBook by L.Leander
http://amzn.to/Xu0Qk0

L.Leander’s Website:  www.lleander.com

L.Leander’s Reviews and Interviews: http://lleandersreviewsandinterviews.wordpress.com/

Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/L.-Leander/e/B008IVRNU8

Facebook Page:  http://facebook.com/lleanderbooks

Twitter:  www.twitter.com/lleander11
@lleander11

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/lleander11

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6441993.L_Leander

Google+: https://plus.google.com/100076816458862731821
Content provided by Shelley Workinger,

0 Comments on FOODFIC: Please Welcome Guest L.Leander, Author of Inzared as of 2/28/2013 9:39:00 PM
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11. Toastworthy Teen - Logan Robinson
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 2/26/2013
Blog: But What Are They Eating? (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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 Logan Robinson, Pancreatic Cancer Awareness


Many people don’t know that not only is pancreatic cancer the 5th deadliest cancer in the U.S., but that it’s also the only one in that top 5 whose death rate has seen no significant decline in the past decade.

13-year-old Logan Robinson knew the tragedy of this all too well, having lost her father to the disease when he was only 33 years old. She also knew that when “people found out about breast cancer and raised awareness, that’s how all the funding for research got started.”

Putting that knowledge together with an eye-catching idea, Logan approached the CEO of a major furniture chain with a store in her hometown and asked him to dye the water in the Monroeville store’s large outdoor fountain purple to bring attention to National Pancreatic Cancer Awareness month. 

I think the best part of the story is the response from the company’s president:
“We loved the fact that [it] was suggested by a young person. It shows you that with a good idea, it doesn’t matter how young or old you are.” So true. :)

For more information on pancreatic cancer, here’s one great resource:
Pancan.org


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12. FOODFIC: The Selection - Kiera Cass
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 2/22/2013
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I always read the back cover flap to *meet* the author whose book I’m about to read. Kiera Cass both looked fun and engaged me with her bio…until she declared her love of cake. Uh-oh. Everyone who knows me also knows how unkindly I feel toward cake (sorry, cake; it’s not you, it’s me). Suddenly the gorgeous cover gown looked too much like an elaborate pastry and it occurred to me that every meal beneath it could revolve around petit fours and other cloying confections. In other words, I began to worry it would all be just too sweet.

I shouldn’t have.

This actually turned out to be the 3rd book of the past year that I read in one sitting. It’d even be fair (and bad punning) to say I devoured it.

Not unlike America Singer, the story’s 16-year-old heroine who finds the food at the grand palace of Illea to be the best part of the Selection experience. Of course, that might have something to do with her tier-5 upbringing where food was almost a luxury for the family and they’d at times had to choose between electricity and groceries. Or perhaps it’s that America has no interest in the contest which she’s been brought to the palace to participate in – the one boasting a grand prize of marriage to Prince Maxon – because she’s still in love with a boy back home. Or maybe, just maybe, the palace steak is just that good – in America’s words, “so juicy, so tender, so flavorable. I wanted to ask someone if this wasn’t the best steak they’d ever had.”

What’s not to love about a dish (and book) like that? ;)
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2 Comments on FOODFIC: The Selection - Kiera Cass, last added: 2/26/2013
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13. Toastworthy Teen - Eric Delgado
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 2/19/2013
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JacketFlap tags:  Eric Delgado, teen, toastworthy, Efflux Pump, antibiotic, Add a tag

Eric Delgado, Efflux Pump Foiler


We’ve all heard how germs are become more and more resistant to antibiotics. Well, when high school Eric Delgado had the chance to work with Jersey City Medical Center researchers who were investigating one such drug-resistant bug (MRSA), he came away determined to find a solution. 

After learning that some bacteria use a mechanism called an efflux pump (built into their membranes) to expel antibiotics, Eric wanted to find a way to turn off the pumps. 

Luckily, he had a teacher willing to help him make contacts across the country who then supplied him with everything from advice to plant compounds. Over 2 years of experimentation, Eric was able to determine how much antibiotic each pump expelled, and thus how much medicine need be administered to overcome that. 

He has now brought his talents to Yale University, and eventually wants to work in public health, where I’m sure he’ll have a positive impact. :)


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14. FOODFIC: Please Welcome Guest Chloe Jacobs, Author of Greta and The Goblin King
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 2/14/2013
Blog: But What Are They Eating? (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  Guest, dandelions, Greta and The Goblin King, FoodFic, Chloe Jacobs, Add a tag





The heroine of Greta and the Goblin King has had to put up with a lot of changes since she ended up in Mylena: land of ice and snow…not the least of which is the slim-to-none access to food. 

She realizes pretty quick that when the world has been frozen for hundreds of years, there really isn’t a “growing season”. Food is a really expensive commodity, especially fruits and vegetables

However, there are a few things that will grow in even the harshest of environments, and Greta becomes an expert on finding them and making the most of them. Winter berries and tubers. Even some of the different needles and greenery will add some taste to soups and teas.

Mushrooms are one of the things Greta is almost always able to find, especially after a new frost forces them to fruit. Dandelions will also grow pretty much everywhere—that’s why they call it a weed. Granted, they won’t have the bright yellow tops on them during the winter, but the roots are long and the leaves are hearty. They’ll be bitter but still pretty edible and the roots can be ground up and roasted for coffee, or fried up with some oil and other flavours until they soften up. Fennel and horseradish and other winter-growing root vegetables will also do okay in a place like Mylena.

So while it’s never easy and food definitely isn’t plentiful, the harsh environment Greta lives in isn’t exactly a wasteland. There are hidden gems beneath the surface…much like the hidden gems within Greta herself. She’s tough, but worth a chance! 

Thanks so much for having me, I had a great time today!           ~ Chloe Jacobs  


Thanks for stopping by to share your food for thought, Chloe!




You can find Chloe here:

ChloeJacobs.com

Twitter @Jacobs_Chloe

Facebook

Goodreads






*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

GRETA AND THE GOBLIN KING
While trying to save her brother from the witch three years ago, Greta was thrown into the fire herself, falling through a portal to a dangerous world where humans are the enemy, and every ogre, goblin, and ghoul has a dark side that comes out with the full moon.

To survive, 17-year-old Greta has hidden her humanity and taken the job of bounty hunter—and she’s good at what she does. So good, she’s caught the attention of Mylena’s young Goblin King, the darkly enticing Isaac, who invades her dreams and undermines her determination to escape.

But Greta’s not the only one looking to get out of Mylena. The full moon is mere days away, and an ancient evil being knows she’s the key to opening the portal. If Greta fails, she and the boys she finds stranded in the woods will die. If she succeeds, no world will be safe from what follows her back . . .
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1 Comments on FOODFIC: Please Welcome Guest Chloe Jacobs, Author of Greta and The Goblin King, last added: 2/15/2013
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15. Toastworthy Teens - Mallory Kievman
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 2/12/2013
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Mallory Kievman, Hiccupops


Some people recommend holding your breath to cure hiccups. Others swear by the scare-the-hiccup-out-of-you method. Connecticut teen Mallory Kievman brings a new solution to the table: the “Hiccupop.”

The 13-year-old inventor sifted through research dating as far back as the 1970s before coming up with a special recipe based on apple cider vinegar, which she says “overstimulates the nerves in your throat responsible for hiccups and cancels out the message to hiccup.” She added sugar to the formula (another common hiccup cure) and Voila! The hiccupop was born. 

But you don’t have to take her word for it; try one yourself:
http://www.hiccupops.com



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16. FOODFIC: Beautiful Creatures - Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 2/8/2013
Blog: But What Are They Eating? (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  Beautiful Creatures, Margaret Stohl, FoodFic, Carolina Gold, Kami Garcia, Barbeque Sauce, Add a tag



Beautiful Creaturesis narrated by Ethan Wate, a golden boy of Gatlin but perhaps the only person in town who dreams of leaving. Lena Duchannes is the beautiful, mysterious, new-to-town leading lady with a troubled past, present, and future. But the star, the heart, the – yup, I’m saying it – meat and potatoes of the story is Amma, and she’s the one I’m most excited to see come to life on the big screen.*

We all wish we had an Amma watching over us in both the real and mystical senses, doling out wisdom sometimes in cryptic phrases, sometimes in crossword answers delivered one deliberate letter at a time, and often followed by covertly-placed, hand-crafted dolls, charms, or other spiritual tokens.

But you know I love her most because she dishes out meals as fortifying as her advice.

For breakfast she serves Ethan fried eggs, bacon, buttered toast, and grits. And that’s not just for the first day of school; the next day it’s eggs over easy, biscuits and gravy.

For dinner there’s fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, string beans, biscuits, and even buttermilk pie on a regular old weeknight! Then comes pulled pork with Gatlin’s own Carolina Gold mustard barbeque sauce.** 

Hold. The. Phone.  Amma doesn’t make her own sauce? From scratch? I can’t believe it.

Which is ironic, because I blindly accept that the green-eyed girl Ethan’s been dreaming about for months just miraculously showed up in his town, a place where a new girl hasn’t appeared since he was in 3rdgrade. And I don’t flinch when I learn that this new Miss Lena Duchannes not only smells like Ethan’s lemon- and rosemary-scented dream girl, but that she’s been dreaming of him, too. Mystical powers, telepathy, even a secret library – I find myself believing it all because, well, it’s just delicious. ;)


*Of course I timed this review with next week’s premiere of the film adaptation!

**In case you were wondering, Carolina Gold is a real gourmet barbeque sauce made from a recipe passed down since Colonial times.  
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1 Comments on FOODFIC: Beautiful Creatures - Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl, last added: 2/8/2013
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17. FOODFIC: Scarlet - A.C. Gaughen
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 1/11/2013
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This was my pick for the 2012 debut author event over at Midnight Reads, so I’m double-dipping here a bit by now taking a FoodFic look at it as well.

Now, even though this is an entirely new review, I have to start it the same way: 

I loved this book.

I loved the heroine (Scarlet): the knife-throwing, branch-hopping, foxy right hand of Robin Hood that the people don’t know is actually a she. I loved Rob with his rakish smile and English-Channel gray-blue eyes, as well as the rest of the merry band of thieves. I loved that Gaughen covered all the bases: action, mystery, romance.

And yes, I even liked the food scenes, not necessarily because of what is served but for how it is used to reveal facets of Scarlet herself. The band takes most of their meals at Friar Tuck’s, where the menu consists of items like “some kind of slop with barley and carrots in it and a hunk of stale bread.” 

Of course, that’s only Scarlet’s immediate cynical assessment of the supper placed before her; bandmate Much is quick to inform her that it’s rabbit stew and it’s actually quite good. Unfortunately, “good” hasn’t come around much in Scarlet’s life, so it’s hard for her to recognize even when it’s right in front of her and impossiblefor her to ever expect. But over the course of the story, thanks to Rob and the others, that begins to change – she changes – and we start to believe she might finally get a taste happiness. :)
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18. Toastworthy Teens - Marcos Ugarte
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 1/8/2013
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Marcos Ugarte, Rescuer

14-year-old Marcos Ugarte doesn't consider himself a hero; he says "I think anyone would have done what I did."

Well, I beg to differ. When his neighbor's home caught on fire, Marcos got a ladder, climed to the burning home's second floor and rescued a trapped 8-year-old boy by pulling him through the window.

Sure, we'd all like to hope that in the same situation we'd have both Marcos' courage and his presence of mind, but I think young Cory Ma is pretty lucky that Marcos is the person living next door!


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19. Toastworthy Teens - Devon Rodriguez-Cayro
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 1/15/2013
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Devon Rodriguez-Cayro, Icy Plunger


It happens every year, all over the country; different places call it everything from the “Polar Dip” to the “Polar Plunge.” In Harrisburg, it’s known as the “Penguin Plunge” and 2013 is the 16thyear locals have run into the frigid Pennsylvania water in January to raise money for the Humane Society. 

14-year-old Devon Rodriguez-Cayro has taken the icy dare 4 YEARS running and this year brought in almost $5,000 in donations for the animals! She not only will continue taking the plunge in the future, but I bet she'll also keep doing it with style. ;)

Meet Devon here:
http://www.whptv.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoid=3886928


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20. FOODFIC: Please Welcome Guest Lorne Oliver, Author of Red Island
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 1/17/2013
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In the interest of showing rather than telling, I thought the best way to give you a glimpse into the life of my book's hero (Sgt. Reid) was to sit him down for a little imaginary lunch and let you spy on us from the next table over. ;)
Bon appetit!


“What’s going on?”

“Nothing.” I motion to the chair across the table from me.

The man pulls out the chair and sinks into it. He’s getting wrinkles around his eyes and I bet if he let his hair grow more than the light stubble there would be a fair bit of grey. He says, “You know I’m busy, right? I’m trying to catch the killer of little girls, so I can’t be sitting around.”

“You went to Yogi’s bar and almost missed your couples’ therapy.”

“You haven’t written that scene yet, so technically I haven’t done it yet.”

Out of nervous habit my hand goes to the pen sitting on my black cover notebook. I give him a little smile. “It’s in my head so that has to count for something.”

“You and I both know what’s in your head doesn’t always make the page.”

I have to give him that.

His name is Reid, Sgt. Reid. Okay, that sounded corny. I know his first name, but he has sworn me to secrecy because he hates it and never uses it. Even his wife just calls him, Reid. He is in the Major Crimes Unit of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Prince Edward Island, Canada. His marriage is on the rocks, he has impure thoughts towards his partner, and no matter where he goes the mistakes of his past seem to follow. Namely killing the only suspect is a pedophile killer case, which made him move across the country to “the gentle island.”

“Gentle island my ass,” he snorts.

“Don’t read my mind.”

“I’m in your mind.”

A small white plate appears in front of each of us. In the center of the plate is a perfectly seared scallop sitting on a warm salad of grilled corn, quartered cherry tomatoes, and a light honey-lime vinaigrette. On top of the scallop are a couple of tiny pea shoots.

“You’re buttering me up for something,” he says as he picks up his fork and knife.

I take a bite of the scallop. “I thought I’d give you some PEI fare. Next is my seafood chowder with shrimp, haddock, clams, North side lobster, and mussels. After that it’s the island favorite of New York strip loin with a peppercorn sauce and mashed potatoes.” I can tell the curiosity is growing in his eyes as I go through our menu. “For dessert I was going to have sticky date cake with a toffee sauce. Yum.” My eyes go wide. I put another piece of scallop in my mouth with some of the salad.

Reid stops. His fork was about to enter his mouth with the last of his scallop speared on the tongs, but now sits suspended in air. He slowly puts it in his mouth and chews, but the taste is not what is on his mind.

“What?” I don’t want to look at him in the eyes. In many ways Reid is like me only I pictured him looking like a cross between Bosco from the TV show Third Watch and Detective Baylis from my favorite cop show, Homicide: Life on the Street. The season Baylis had the really short hair.

As the first plate goes away and a bowl appears with wonderfully creamy seafood chowder, Reid stares me down. “First of all, you never say, ‘yum.’ And secondly, what the hell is going on? Are you filing me in the round filing cabinet or what?”

I can’t keep it from him. It’s nothing like that.” Trashing hi? Sgt. Reid, Hillary, Sgt. Marilyn Moore, Eckhart, the Red Island Killer – they have been a big part of my life for the past two, almost three years. I can’t remember how many emails I have sent and how many hours I have interviewed actual RCMP officers to get the realism. I don’t study the inner workings of serial killers for fun. I clear my throat before continuing. “I’ve got us a publisher. Split Tree Publishing out of my home town is going to put most of what they have on my shoulders as their first big author.

His lips twitch a little toward a smile, but the man who has interviewed many criminals and witnesses won’t let anything go by. “And?”

“We are going through Red Island with a fine tooth comb and, as you know, I’m working on the second draft of Forever Screaming.”

“And?” He takes a spoonful of the chowder and his expression lightens.

“Forever Screaming won’t be out until mid-September with Red Island being re-released a week or two before that.”

Reid makes a noise with a mouthful of diced potato and seafood that came from the waters around the island.

“But we’re going to have to stop selling Red Island soon.” I watch him put his spoon down. “But that means I can focus more on the next books for a little while.”

For a few minutes Reid says nothing. He only eats his chowder.

While living on PEI I learned how to make really good seafood chowder. One of the restaurants I worked at had a lot of customers with allergies so I learned how to make the chowder using no flour or cream, but tons of flavor.

“So is that it for me then?” Reid asks when he is finished the soup.

I shake my head. “Of course not. I’m still selling the copy that is out there for a couple more months, I think. And then we’ll start teasing people with little snippets of Forever Screaming. And there’s more books to write and more crimes for you to solve.”

“So the copy of Red Island that is out there now could be a collector’s then? If you make it big that is.”

My face flushes. “That’s so many steps down the line, Ha-“

“Don’t go there.”

The empty chowder bowls go away as a plate of steak and potatoes appears with a dark rich sauce oozing out. Some sautéed wild picked chanterelle mushrooms sit beside the meat adding a vibrant orange color to the plate.

Sgt. Reid holds up his mug of Alexander Keith’s and simply says, “Here’s to the future.”


Thanks for sharing your food for thought, Lorne (and Sgt. Reid)!



You can find Lorne here:




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21. Toastworthy Teens - Matthew Petronis
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 1/22/2013
Blog: But What Are They Eating? (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  Teens, Breezy Point Disaster Relief Fund, toastworthy, Matthew Petronis, Add a tag

 Matthew Petronis, Breezy Point Disaster Relief Fund

For most people, Thanksgiving is pretty much synonymous with "home." That's why it was so devastating for Matthew Petronis to see the beloved Breezy Point community where he'd spent all of his 18 Thanksgivings go up in flames as part of the Hurricane Sandy destruction.

By the time the fire was subdued, more than 100 houses had been lost...and within hours Matthew had set up the first fundraising tool to help those newly homeless families. In the month between the Oct. 29th tragedy and Thanksgiving Day, Matthew's relief fund collected almost $80,000 in donations, all while Matthew (whose baseball coach calls "a free spirit, yet a caring kid [with] that New York can-do attitude") managed a full college freshman course load. 

To help Matthew help others, visit:

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2 Comments on Toastworthy Teens - Matthew Petronis, last added: 2/7/2013
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22. FOODFIC: Dirty Little Secrets - C.J. Omololu
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 1/25/2013
Blog: But What Are They Eating? (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  C.J. Omololu, hoarders, FoodFic, Dirty Little Secrets, gelatinous brown goo, Add a tag




This is the hardest FoodFic post I’ve had to write so far; in fact, I actually finished the book almost a month ago and am just getting my thoughts together now. My procrastination isn’t a result of my not liking the story; on the contrary – once I got to a certain point, I couldn’t put it down.

No, the trouble is that something major happens very early on (chapter 2, to be exact) that makes almost anything I might say here a spoiler, which is something I try to avoid at all costs. (Apparently the cost here will my sounding completely cryptic and odd. :) So I’ll just say what I can in the best way I’m able and know that when you read the book yourselves, you’ll understand. 

In this book, the “dirty little secret” is that Lucy’s mom’s a hoarder. Now, I’ve seen enough episodes of Buried Alive to know what sort of food I should expect in this story – old, moldy, rotten, forgotten…you get the idea. And it’s all here: petrified pizza boxes and takeout containers full of food that had sat long enough to congeal into one black, furry, mess, a no-longer-used sink full of a dark brown mass that…looked like chocolate pudding, and a plastic grocery bag full of some gelatinous brown goo that was probably produce at one point. It’s enough to make you throw up, really – even if you’re expecting it – and more horrifying still because it’s so accurate. 

What I hadn’t pre-known, however, was the shame felt by the children of hoarders; they’re embarrassed and scared that other people might find out their family secret, as well as terrified of being thought of as dirty or gross by their peers. I found this both eye-opening and eye-wetting – another way kids suffer internally andexternally because of their parents’ failings. 

Omololu certainly gave me some food for thought with this one, and I particularly loved that she included a website (childrenofhoarders.com) at the end of the narrative for the real-life Lucys out there.
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3 Comments on FOODFIC: Dirty Little Secrets - C.J. Omololu, last added: 1/27/2013
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23. Toastworthy Teens - Anastasia Roda
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 1/29/2013
Blog: But What Are They Eating? (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  Anastasia Roda, teen, toastworthy, Oyster Creek, Add a tag

Anastasia Roda, Ecosystem Researcher


19-year-old Anastasia Roda is focusing on environmental studies and marine biology at Harvard and is keeping the option of a law degree open. But impressive as that is, her toastworthiness predates her acceptance to the prestigious university.

When she was only 15, Anastasia began to worry about the proximity of the nation’s oldest nuclear power plant (Oyster Creek Generating Station) to the bay where she spent her summers. To determine whether or not her concern had merit, she began studying the ecosystems of the creeks near the plant. 

Proving that the creeks closest to the power plant had higher temperatures, faster currents, and created higher bacteria levels downstream (than a control creek 7 miles away) led to several awards for Anastasia, including the American Museum of Natural History’s Young Naturalist Award.

If you are (or know) another such talented teen researcher, enter next year’s contest here:
http://www.amnh.org/learn-teach/young-naturalist-awards/3.-submit-your-entry



Do you know a toast-worthy teen you’d like to see featured here at BWATE? 
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Content provided by Shelley Workinger,

0 Comments on Toastworthy Teens - Anastasia Roda as of 1/29/2013 1:42:00 PM
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24. FOODFIC: Please Welcome Guest Samantha Stroh Bailey, Author of Finding Lucas
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 1/31/2013
Blog: But What Are They Eating? (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  Guest, Finding Lucas, coffee, FoodFic, Samantha Stroh Bailey, Add a tag





Finding Lucas centers around Jamie Ross, a 32 year old associate television producer for Chicago’s sleaziest daytime talk show. She’s just about ready to end her toxic five year relationship with her bad boy turned metrosexual boyfriend and head off on a hilarious and life changing hunt to track down the love who got away. And Jamie wouldn’t be the fiery and sassy woman she is without her beloved and holistically nutritious family.


Jamie is a coffee loving carnivore and the total opposite of her health conscious mother, Leah, a crystal healer and colonic herbalist who shuns coffee, meat, sugar and anything chemical. Jamie, on the other hand, craves anything that Leah thinks might be bad for her body.


I created these two diametrically opposed eaters because of my own struggle to eat healthier and make sense of the organic world. I have always believed that everything is okay in moderation, be it meat, cheese, coffee and sugar. However, it’s interesting that my husband and many friends are vegetarians, my sister-in-law and brother-in-law grow their own food and have chickens to lay eggs and most of my loved ones are very aware of what they eat. In Jamie, I created a food rebel.


Growing up in a warm, loving and toxin free environment, Jamie always felt like she didn’t quite belong. And without her daily dose of caffeine, Jamie would never make it through the day. Navigating a difficult childhood with parents unlike any others in her suburban neighborhood, Jamie ate spelt bread and soy milk for snacks (in the 90s!) and distanced herself from her family as much as she could.


Food plays a major role in one of the most talked about scenes in Finding Lucas when Jamie, her stepmother, sister and Leah are all having lunch with Jamie’s boss, Andrew.


"Do you want some tea, Andrew?" Katie asks as she pulls five mugs down from the shelf.

"Do you have any coffee?" he asks.

Four heads swivel to look at him in shock.

"That word is blasphemy in this house. No caffeine, no sugar, no meat. But there is a vast assortment of tea," I tell him.

"Um, sure, tea would be great then. I feel so damn good. I haven't felt this loose in," and he rubs his chin, "huh, years. I haven't felt this relaxed in years."

"That's funny. David does that," Leah says to Andrew with interest.

"Dad does what?" I ask.

"Rubs his chin with one hand when he's thinking about something."

"Oh, that's just one of my little habits. I also grind my jaw like Jamie."

"Do you have a navel ring like Rachel's?" I ask.

"No. But I do have a tattoo on my hip. Katie saw it," he says and winks at Katie who flushes with pleasure.

Where did Mr. Charm come from? Jeez, he is just full to the brim with surprising character traits.

"Could I have some tea too, please?" I ask.

I don't want to sit at the kitchen table and chitchat about Andrew's tattoo because before he knows it, they'll have convinced him to take off his pants to show them. 

"Of course, love. Katie, mix in a little of that mulch we bought. Jamie's color needs some perking up," Leah says and peers at my pores.

"Just plain tea, please."

I move my face back so she'll stop inspecting me. It's embarrassing.

How people eat relates to how they see the world and their place in it. Jamie just wants to find hers. And though she goes through a major transformation and comes to appreciate her family more than she ever has, you’ll still never find her without a cup of coffee plastered to her lips.


Thanks for stopping by and sharing your food for thought, Samantha!


                    You can find Samantha here:
Samantha Stroh Bailey                    Goodreads 
Twitter @PerfectPen                         Facebook


And Finding Lucas here:

Amazon                 Kobo

Content provided by Shelley Workinger,

6 Comments on FOODFIC: Please Welcome Guest Samantha Stroh Bailey, Author of Finding Lucas, last added: 2/7/2013
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25. Toastworthy Teens - Aidan Dwyer
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By: Shelley Workinger, on 2/5/2013
Blog: But What Are They Eating? (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags:  Teens, Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge, toastworthy, solar panel, Fibonacci, Aidan Dwyer, Add a tag


Aidan Dwyer, Solar Panel Designer

If you’ve read (or seen) The Da Vinci Code, you might know the term “Fibonacci sequence.” If you paid attention, you might also know that it’s a mathematical sequence in which each successive number is equal to the sum of the preceding two (i.e. 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13…). And if you delved even deeper, you know that the pattern is often seen in nature, everywhere from the scales of a pineapple to the seeds of a sunflower.

What you probably don’t know is how to use a Fibonacci sequence to develop an improved, portable solar panel that could revolutionize the energy field. Well, that’s precisely what 14-year-old Aidan Dwyer did to qualify as a finalist in the 2012 Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge. From there he went on to speak at the opening ceremony of the World Future Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi, as well as meet with President Obama in Washington, D.C.

His teachers credit Aidan’s self-motivation, creative thinking, and scientific questioning, while also recognizing that kids have the ability to think outside the box in a way that many adults simply cannot.

If you are (or know) such a bright scientific mind, learn how to enter next year’s competition here:
http://www.youngscientistchallenge.com


 Do you know a toast-worthy teen you’d like to see featured here at BWATE?  

Comment below with your email address so we can get a post together!
Content provided by Shelley Workinger,

2 Comments on Toastworthy Teens - Aidan Dwyer, last added: 2/6/2013
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