Emma

Book Menu for Emma by Jane Austen

ISBN of edition I read: 9780674048843 (annotated hardcover)

Food mentioned in Emma:
Wedding cake, 46
Minced chicken, 53
Scalloped oysters, 53
Apple tarts, 54, 278
Custard, 54
Walnuts, 57, 66
Stilton cheese, 122
Roast mutton, 143
Rice pudding, 143
Sweet-cake, 190
Muffins, 206
Gingerbread, 273
Baked apples, 276-277, 280, 371-372
Apple dumplings, 276
Sandwiches, 293
Rout-cakes, 329
Ice cream, 329
Coffee, 366
Biscuits, 371-372
Sweetbreads and asparagus, 372
Spruce beer, 383, 414
Pigeon pies, 398
Cold lamb, 398
Strawberries, 399, 402, 406, 419
Madeira wine, 415

Books mentioned in Emma:
Elegant Extracts / Vicesimus Knox, 58
The Vicar of Wakefield / Oliver Goldsmith, 58
The Romance of the Forest / Ann Radcliffe, 59
The Children of the Abbey / Regina Maria Roche, 59
"Elegy Written in a country churchyard" (poem) / Thomas Gray, 322
William Cowper, 388

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Far From the Madding Crowd

Book menu for Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy

ISBN of edition I read: 0679405763 (hardcover)

Food mentioned in Far From the Madding Crowd :
   (Volume 1)
      Cider, 13, 48, 65, 69, 147
      Bread and ham, 48
      Bread and bacon, 48, 120
      Plum pudding, 130
      Bread and cheese, 172
      Applies pies, 179

   (Volume 2)
      Cider, 21, 24, 49, 54
      Bread and ham, 22
      Batty cake, 27
      Ale, 49, 54
      Brandy and water, 49

Books/Authors mentioned in Far from the Madding Crowd :
   (Volume 1)
      Paradise Lost / John Milton, 82
      The Pilgrim's Progress / John Bunyan, 82
      Robinson Crusoe / Daniel Defoe, 82
      John Keats, 187

   (Volume 2)
      Pilgrim's Progress / John Bunyan, 22
      Francis Beaumont, 126
      John Fletcher
         The Maids Tragedy, 126
      The Mourning Bride / William Congreve, 126
      The Vanity of Human Wishes / Samuel Johnson, 126
      Othello / William Shakespeare, 126
      Love in a Village / Isaac Bickerstaff, 127
      The Maid of the Mill / Isaac Bickerstaff, 127
      Doctor Syntax / William Combe, 127

Music mentioned in Far From the Madding Crowd :
   (Volume 1)
      "Jockey to the Fair", 46, 76
      "Dame Durden", 77
      "The Girl I Left Behind Me", 96

   (Volume 2)
      "Soldier's Joy", 48-49
      "Majoy Malley's Reel", 178


My favorite quotes from Far From the Madding Crowd:
   (Volume 1)
   "It is safer to accept any chance that offers itself, and extemporize a procedure to fit it, than to get a good  plan matured, and wait for a chance of using it." (p. 46)

   (Volume 2)
   "It is difficult for a woman to define her feelings in language which is chiefly made by men to express theirs."
    (p.182)

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Mary Poppins

Book Menu for Mary Poppins by P.L. Travers

ISBN of edition I read: 0152017178 (trade paperback)

Food mentioned in Mary Poppins:
Milk, 13
Rum punch, 13
Tea, 15, 23
Raspberry jam cakes, 19-20, 23, 25
Whelks (snails), 23
Crumpets, 32
Coconut cakes, 32
Plum cake with pink icing, 32
Eggs with asparagus, 52
Scones, 83, 163
Bananas, 92
Shortbread fingers, 104
Gingerbread, 116-117, 122, 124, 126, 128
Peppermint bars, 121
Baked custard pie, 126, 163
Sponge cakes, 163
Doughnuts, 163

Books mentioned in Mary Poppins :
Robinson Crusoe / Daniel Defoe, 28, 182
Swiss Family Robinson / Johann David Wyss, 188

Dances mentioned in Mary Poppins:
Sailor's Hornpipe, 68, 78
Polka, 68
Highland Fling, 68, 125

 

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The Hobbit

Book menu for The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

ISBN of edition  I read: 0395071224 (hardcover)

I just reread The Hobbit since the long-awaited film adaptation is coming soon. What a wonderful story!  The first time I "read" this book I listened to the audio book version, narrated by Rob Inglis. He also narrated all three of the Lord of the Rings books.  They are my favorite audio book recordings to date. For me, the best passage of The Hobbit is when Thorin (on his death bed) says to Bilbo: "If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.".  Amen!

Food mentioned in The Hobbit:
Cake, 15-17
     Seed-cake, 16, 18
Beer, 16
     Ale, 17
     Porter, 17
Coffee, 17-18
Scones, 18
Red wine, 18
Apple tart, 18
Mince pie, 18
Pork pie, 18
Cold chicken and pickles, 19
Eggs and ham, 31
Bacon and eggs, 65
Mead, 112, 114
Bread with butter, honey and clotted cream, 114
Nuts, 116
Dried fruit, 116
Twice-baked cakes, 116
Apples, 166
Cram, 207, 220, 225

Discussion questions for The Hobbit:
Why does Bilbo finally agree to join Gandalf and the dwarves on their adventure?
Provide examples of humor throughout the story.
Describe the tone of the story.
What lessons does Bilbo learn during his journey? What lessons does Thorin learn?
Find examples where the narrator directly addresses the reader.

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Anna Karenina

Book menu for Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

ISBN of edition I read: sorry the edition I read was published before ISBNs were issued.  I read the Doubleday edition published in 1944.  Translated by Constance Garnett; illustrated by Fritz Eichenberg. It has 736 pages.

This is the second time I've read Anna K. I first read it when I was twenty-five.  I was working with a Russian woman at the time and told her I was interested in reading some Tolstoy.  She advised me to start with Anna K rather than War and Peace.  I took her advice and wasn't sorry.  Now I'm forty-two and decided to reread this novel since there is a new film adaptation due out next week.  I am just as enthralled with this novel as I was seventeen years ago. Bring on Keira Knightley as Anna!


Food mentioned in Anna Karenina :
Pear, 4
Coffee, 7-10, 62, 97, 102, 210, 230, 366, 488
Boxed chocolate, 10
Champagne, 17, 33, 53, 324
Turbot, 32-3
Oysters, 32-4
Cabbage soup, 33, 296
Printaniere, 33
Roast beef, 33
Capons, 33
Poulard a l'estragon, 33
Macedoine de fruits, 33
Chablis, 33
Salt goose, 146
Chicken in white sauce, 146
Poached eggs, 155
Beef steak, 159, 272
Sherry, 160
Rhine wine, 160
Bread, butter, and cheese, 210
Plum soup, 210-11
Pea sausages, 211
Roast turkey, 227
Peaches 263-4
Truffles, 272
Burgundy wine, 272
Junket, 309
Raspberries, 304
Russian pancakes, 324
Fish and asparagus, 340-1
Caviar herrings, 349
Fruit preserves, 349-50
French bread, 349
Soupe Marie-Louise, 351
Sweet meats, 370
Meat pie, 540
Eel soup, 623

Books/Authors mentioned in Anna Karenina :
Charles Dickens, 39
Treatise on Heat / Tyndall, 86
William Shakespeare, 101
     King Lear, 619-620
Kauffman, 312
Jones, 312
W.E.B. Du Bois, 312
Michelli, 312
Nikolai Gogol, 405
Hippolyte Taine, 602
Ivan Andreevich Krilov, 622
Emile Zola , 631
Alphonse Daudet ,  631
Plato, 711
Immanuel Kant, 711
Schelling, 711
Hegel, 711
Schopenhauer, 711
Homaiko, 711
Spencer, 724

Music mentioned in Anna Karenina :
"Il Mio Tesoro" / Mozart, 3
Beethoven, 101
Offenbach , 280
     "La Belle Helene", 300
Wagner , 620

Artists mentioned in Anna Karenina:
Raphael , 101, 430
Reubens, 430

Discussion questions for Anna Karenina:
What, if any, are the parallels between Frou-Frou's (horse) accidental death and Anna's death?

Anna Karenina is narrated with an omniscient point of view. Tolstoy even writes from Levin's dog's point of view (Part Six, Chapter 12).  What effect does this particular passage have on the reader?

There are several hunting scenes that are meticulously described. What significance, if any, do these scenes have in the story?

Discuss examples of irony in Anna Karenina.

Describe Tolstoy's writing style in this novel.

Describe the tone of Anna Karenina.

  
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The Great Gatsby

 
Book Menu for The Great Gatsbyby F. Scott Fitzgerald

Edition I read: c1925, Charles Scribner's Sons (hardcover, 182 pages)

I hadn't read Gatsby since I was in high school more than twenty years ago.  This book was completely lost on me back then.  I picked it back up this weekend since a new film adaptation will be released on Christmas Day. Now that I am older, I can appreciate why this story is a classic.  The writing is stunning and precise but eloquent.  I can't wait to see Leo Dicaprio's version of Jay Gatsby.


Food mentioned in The Great Gatsby:
Claret (wine), 13
Champagne, 39, 47, 51, 103
Oranges and Lemons, 39
Spice baked ham, 39
Pig sausages and mashed potato, 57
Sauterne (wine), 77
Tea, 85
Lemon cakes, 85
Chartreuse (liquor), 92
Lemonade, 103
Gin rickeys, 117
Mint juleps, 126-7, 130
Cold fried chicken, 146

Books mentioned in The Great Gatsby:
Thomas Park D'Invilliers, epigraph
Simon Called Peter / Robert Keable, 29
John L. Stoddard, 13, 46
Hopalong Cassidy / Clarence Mulford, 174

Music mentioned in The Great Gatsby:
"The Love Nest", 96
"Three O'Clock in the Morning ", 110
"Beale Street Blues ", 151

Magazines mentioned in The Great Gatsby:
The Saturday Evening Post , 18
Town Tattle, 27, 29, 38

Theater mentioned in The Great Gatsby:
Follies , 41

Libraries mentioned in The Great Gatsby:
pages 45-6, 52, 54, 57, 92

                                                                     

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Pride and Prejudice

Book menu for Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

ISBN of edition I read: 0143036238 (paperback-Keira Knightley movie tie-in cover)

Food mentioned in Pride and Prejudice:
Ragout, 35
White soup, 54
     (meat stock, egg yolks, ground almonds,cream and negus)
Coffee, 75, 160
Muffins, 75
Cold meat, 211, 256
Cake, 256
Fruits, 256
   grapes, nectarines, peaches

Games mentioned in Pride and Prejudice:
Backgammon, 67-8
Whist, 75

Discussion questions for Pride and Prejudice:
An online reviewer said they would bring this book with them to a deserted island.  Would you? Why or why not?  Why is the book so loved? Why so many film versions.  Why is it Austen's most popular work?

If Jane Austen were in the room with you now what would you say to her?

What do you think the author's view of "an ideal marriage" is?  Different characters in the story have various views on marriage. Which is most in line with your own view? What purpose does marriage serve in the story?

What are some examples of pride and of prejudice in the story?

If you have seen any of the movie adaptations, compare them to the book.

One of the library catalog subjects for P&P is 'love stories'. Do you agree?  If not, how would you categorize this story for the catalog?

Libraries mentioned in Pride and Prejudice:
page 54: "...When I have a house of my own, I shall be miserable if I have not an excellent library."
page 67
page 70
page 329:  "Mary petitioned for the use of the library at Netherfield; and Kitty begged very hard for a few balls there every winter."

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Breakfast at Tiffany's

 
Book menu for Breakfast at Tiffany's by Truman Capote

Edition I read: Selected writings. With an introd. by Mark Schorer.  Random House, 1963

Food mentioned in Breakfast at Tiffany's:
Cottage Cheese and melba toast, 171
Peanut butter, 174
Apples, 174, 177
Hamburger, 178
Lemon pie, 178
Sweet and sour ribs, 189
Coffee, 197
Chow mein

Books/Authors mentioned in Breakfast at Tiffany's :
Georges Simeon, 172
William Saroyan, 173
Ernest Hemingway, 173
Somerset Maugham, 174
Wuthering Heights / Emily Bronte, 203

Music mentioned in Breakfast at Tiffany's :
Cole Porter , 172
Kurt Weill , 172
"Oklahoma", 172

Radio programs mentioned in Breakfast at Tiffany's:
Our Gal Sunday, 163
Gilbert and Sullivan, 163

Title mentioned on pages 187, 202

Libraries mentioned in Breakfast at Tiffany's:
page 200

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