Tuesday, April 11, 2017

The Risk Pool



Book menu for This Risk Pool by Richard Russo


ISBN of edition I read: 0394565274 (hardcover)

Food mentioned in The Risk Pool :
Martinis, 3, 309, 311
Hamburger steak, 7, 108, 173, 212, 222, 228, 331, 498
Ice cream, 14, 18, 462
Macaroons, 17, 43
Chili and beans, 22-23
Bacon, 27, 48
Eggs, 27, 48, 360
Beans and hot dogs, 44-45
Sugar Doughnut, 48
Buttered graham crackers, 48
Pancakes, 48
Sausage, 48, 322
Ham,48
   Spiced ham, 56
Fruit, 48
   Grapefruit, 48-49, 446
   Fruit salad, 326
   Apple, 454
Lasagna, 49
Salami, 56
Wedding Soup, 56, 58, 60
Oreo cookies, 76-78, 126
Hamburgers, 79, 118, 445
7 Up, 85, 136-137
Coffee, 101, 177, 179, 219, 226, 311, 314, 322, 398
Pork chops, 110, 391
Mashed potatoes, 110-111
Creamed corn, 110-111
Cokes, 118
Turkey club, 118
French fries and gravy, 119, 174
Pickles, 145
   Sweet pickles, 282
Olives, 145
Pepperoni, 146
Maraschino cherries, 147, 168
Roast pork and mashed potatoes, 147
Asparagus, 147
Parker House rolls, 147
Frozen Daiquiris,160
   Banana daiquiris, 425
Grilled Rib Steak, 227, 234
Campari & soda, 244
Boilermakers, 245, 316
Pate, 255, 316
Hershey bars, 273
Pretzels, 283
Manhattans, 299, 317-318, 341, 344-345
Filet mignon, 310, 312
Crab legs, 311-312
Amaretto, 311-312
Spaghetti, 315, 331, 370, 372, 436
Veal & peppers, 319
Cornbread muffins, 322
Orange juice, 324-325
Champagne, 324-325, 459
Eggs in Hollandaise sauce, 328
Pizza, 344, 347, 350-351- 407
Cherry Kool-Aid, 350
Seven & 7, 380, 382
Pina coladas, 425
Iced tea, 432-433
Buffalo wings, 436
Napoleon brandy, 479

Books/Authors mentioned in The Risk Pool:
Cannery Row / John Steinbeck, epigraph
Rick Brant, 95
Karl Marx, 152
Gone with the Wind / Margaret Mitchell, 256-257, 328
Heart of Darkness / Joseph Conrad, 274
Nathaniel Hawthorne, 284

Music mentioned in The Risk Pool:
Elvis, 43, 135, 249
   "Hound Dog", 160
Duane Eddy, 135-136, 168, 296-297
"Moon River", 280
Fleetwood Mac, 478

Television programs mentioned in The Risk Pool:
Bonanza, 208

Movies mentioned in The Risk Pool:
It's a Wonderful Life, 174

Some of my favorite Risk Pool passages:p. 16: "I was forbidden to climb the tree after the day my mother came out onto the back porch, called my name, and my voice drifted down to her from the second story level, at the very top of the tree's dwarf side. I swung down from branch to branch to show off my dexterity. My mother wasn't impressed. 'If I ever catch you in that tree again...' she said. She either liked unfinished sentences or couldn't think of how to finish them, and I resented her unwillingness to spell out consequences. It was impossible to weigh alternatives without them."

p. 25: "At the water's edge, [Wussy] attached the spinning reels to the rods and ran line through the eyelets all the way to the tips. I watched, full of interest. "Ever fish before?"

I shook my head.

It's about the best thing there is until you're older and can do some other stuff, and it's better than most of the other stuff too."

p.88: "How could you be sure something wouldn't work until it didn't?"

p. 176: "I read some good books that summer...I'd realize I'd understood more than I thought. If I was feeling energetic, I'd look up words I didn't know, but more often I'd be content to wait for the word to crop up again in another context, and by its second or third appearance I'd know what it meant. I began to develop a firm conviction that most efforts to teach people things were wasted. All they needed was to go off some place quiet and read."

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