Well, I can’t say I’ve done a TON of reading these last few days, but I have been thinking a lot about books. On the drive to Waco, my son and I listened to a history podcast about the lead up to WWI, and when we were done I said “I wish I had a map of Europe in 1914.” That night I started Ken Follett’s Fall of Giants and this was the first thing I saw when I opened the book:
I’m REALLY enjoying the book so far, but I haven’t had a lot of time to read. That should change tomorrow, when I spend the entire day traveling back to Florida. I’m glad I have such a long, involved book to keep me company.
I’ve been to Waco five times now, so imagine my delight and astonishment when I found out there’s an INDEPENDENT BOOKSTORE HERE, Fabled Bookshop and Cafe. I spent the morning happily browsing and drinking tea.
Look at this area- I love how there’s a puzzle in progress! I sat in one of these chairs reading for a while. I eventually bought one book and several souvenirs:
It was one of my favorite things I’ve done in Waco.
I put “eating” in parenthesis in the title of this post, because although we’ve been eating some delicious food, I failed to photograph most of it. On the first day of our trip, we had about eleven hours of driving- we were SO GLAD we brought dinner along! When we got to our hotel we microwaved our pizza, and ate it happily while watching the Olympics.
On the road, we ate the famous chickpea salad for lunch, and on the second night we arrived in Waco in time to heat up Nora’s Marry Me Chickpeas for dinner. The only problem was, in order to fit everything into our cooler I had to store them in ziploc bags. We offered to share the Marry Me Chickpeas with my son’s roommate, and then proceeded to pull out a ziploc bag of something that looked like vomit from our cooler. Ha ha… he politely declined and went out to get his own dinner. But really, it was delicious.
Do you ever buy books? What was the last book you bought?
Have you tried this chickpea salad yet? – My son likes it so much, he asked me to make another batch for him before I leave.
18 Responses
sounds like a fun trip so far! and so wise to pack your own food and eat along the way. I need to make marry me chickpea!!! sounds good to me but i can imagine others seeing it as “vomit”. ahahah.
It definitely didn’t look attractive in the ziploc bag! But it does look fine on a plate- and it’s really good.
You know I love that chickpea salad! It’s so good and flavourful.
I rarely buy books and I can’t think of a single time I’ve gone browsing for a book. Usually if I’m buying a book it’s because I’ve already read it and want to own it (so I can re-read it), or occasionally for a book club or gift for someone else.
I actually had a stack of books and then reluctantly putting all but one back- I just couldn’t justify buying things I can get for free at the library.
If I had been at the bookstore I would have spent all of my time working on the puzzle. What a genius idea.
I’ve had the experience of talking about something and then seeing an ad for it pop up on my phone…saying that you wish you had a map of Europe in WW1 and then having one magically appear in your next book…it’s kind of the analog version of that.
Buffalo chk’n pizza with artichokes??? Nom!!! It’s time for me to make pizza!
Pro tip for the single folks out there – do not serve Marry Me Chickpeas in ziplock bags if you’re looking for a proposal. For the rest of us, it’s a legit way to take them on the road. I still need to make them.
Hahahaha… yes, you won’t get any proposals that way. And, that pizza is so good!!! We get the Daring brand of buffalo chicken and it’s yummy.
Fabled Bookshop is a very well-known independent bookstore! Their buyer, Elizabeth, is known for having excellent taste! I would love to visit that bookstore someday but don’t know that I will ever find myself in Waco, TX!
That is so funny that you opened that book and found the map you had been wanting to see! I love that series of books! All 3 are excellent!
I almost never buy books for myself but I do buy them for my kids since I know they will be re-read. I don’t re-read books so have a hard time spending money on a book!
I can see how the marry me chickpeas look VERY unappealing to someone else, especially in a ziplock bag. I made that recipe over the weekend and haven’t felt super compelled to eat them as leftovers to be honest… and it might be the color that is throwing me off. It does not look super appealing to be honest!
Well, if you’re ever driving through Texas, stop in Waco! I have some other suggestions in addition to the bookstore. It was really a very lovely place, and had a nice children’s section although I didn’t go in there.
We really liked both chickpea dishes, and my son ate all the leftovers. I don’t think he’s too picky about how things look though.
Your trip sounds so great and I’m glad you’ll get a chance to get some more reading in with a long travel day!
Haha sometimes the tastiest foods are not the prettiest! I still want to try the Marry Me Chickpeas and I love that it is a portable option, because I like having dishes like that to bring to work for lunch but sometimes they don’t travel well.
Yes, it’s definitely portable. (Hopefully you have a microwave at work.) I’m about to start my travels with book in hand!
What wonderful serendipity with that map, Jenny! I’m onto the next installment of the saga (Winter of the World).
The last book I bought was _Midlife at St. Margaret’s_ a book about menopause loosely modeled on the Judy Blume classic about menarche _Are you there, God, It’s me, Margaret_. My bestie wrote it, so I bought several copies to give away, actually!
OH, you’re a book ahead of me! This one is so good! I’m sure I”ll read all three. So a friend of yours wrote a book about menopause, modeled on the Judy Blume book? I’m intrigued!
Book cover postcards!! Those look amazing and I’m a tiny bit jealous that I don’t own them!
I recently spent nine cents (yes! 9¢ – I had to look up the alt code for a cent symbol, when did that disappear off the keyboard?) to get a Kindle version of Black Beauty. I am, above all else, a frugal lady who does not buy books very often.
Oh yeah- there’s no cent key! Huh.
A bookstore with a PUZZLE! Sold. I can never resist book cover cards, and then I have trouble writing in them and sending them away, but I try. My daughter puts them up on her wall.
The last book I bought was Better Living Through Birding: Notes from a Black Man in the Natural World. The author is the NY man who asked a woman to leash her dog in Central Park in 2020 and was told that she was going to call the police and say a black man was threatening her life. For a change, the fallout landed on her, not him, and now he’s written a book. He is a fascinating person apart from this incident, and an insightful and witty writer.
I remember that incident! Glad to hear the guy is doing so well. And- the book postcards are so pretty! I could see putting them up as a decoration.
Library.. I don’t buy books. I like to buy practical souvenirs like a bookmark or a magnet.
I read a lot more when I’m on a train or plane.
Oh that sounds like a great trip so far… I love the bookstore and the table with the puzzle. So anybody can have a go at it? How cool!