Like The Tomato
Nothing here but my musings about daily life, books, anime, and food.
- Title: Arsenic and Adobo
- Author: Mia P. Manansala
- Genre: Mystery
- Pages: 295
- Publisher: Berkley
- Published: 2021
I remember seeing this book on Amazon before the book got released. Do not ask me how I came across this one, I think I might just be randomly perusing books. The trigger word? Adobo. That’s all it took for my interest to be piqued.
For those who do not know, adobo is a Filipino dish that can be made either with chicken or pork or BOTH cooked in soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, and peppercorns. This dish is served with white rice. One of my favorite dishes to make and eat. A good adobo is just so comforting to me. So yeah, it is understandable that putting adobo on the title will tickle my interest.
In a gist, the book is about a Filipina named Lila Macapagal, going back to her hometown to get over a breakup. Helping out her family business in the meantime, her name got dragged into a murder case when a food critic – who was also an ex-boyfriend – drops dead while eating at their family restaurant.
As you can see, this is a book with a heavy subject matter – murder. However, as in any mystery novel out there, the story was very fast-paced. I cannot put the book down. Growing up in a Filipino household myself, the book really called to me. From the importance of family to the appreciation of good food.
Aside from the main conflict – finding out who killed her ex-boyfriend, the novel was sprinkled with food, family conflict, friendships, and a hint of a possible love triangle. I mean, what’s not to love this book?
But really aside from all the food mentioned in this book, it was the family dynamic that reminds me of how it is to be in a traditional Filipino family. Regardless of where they are. Having been raised in an environment where family is a huge thing, the dynamic did hit home for me. I, too, had to struggle of finding a good balance between following my dreams and still not fully abandoning my responsibilities to the family. Not an easy task.
All in all, I loved this book. And I will continue with the series. This is the first book to the Tita Rosie’s Kitchen series. Book two is already out – Homicide and Halo-Halo. I will be adding that to my cart soon.
Damn, it’s been eight days. I’ve been lazy…I think. Or at least I’m going with that. I could pretend and say that I just want to collect my thoughts, but no. All I’ve been thinking about lately is fried chicken. And you know, ice cream. It has been too hot again recently and I really do feel like anything than not doing anything is work.
Anyway, just minor updates: I went to a concert last Saturday, OPM Summer Fest US Tour 2022. It featured my favorite artists growing up – IntroVoys, True Faith, Gloc-9, and Rivermaya. Did I have fun? Yes. I will make a separate entry about it. It deserves its own entry. I still have to go through the photos I took.
My hun and I finished Miira no Kaikata (How to Keep a Mummy). And we loved it. We’ve been into feel-good anime lately. We just started watching Spy*Family. As in the title, it’s a spy anime, but with some comedy, and adorable-ness sprinkled in it. We were trying to find something similar to Miira no Kaikata but the suggestions were less than interesting. We’ve had our eyes on Spy*Family so we just said, what the hell.
I’ve been also making good progress on Howl’s Moving Castle. And all I can say is, Howl is a very unlikeable character. I am halfway through the book and I’m still not finding any redeeming qualities. I won’t lie though that I still have movie Howl in my head and I can’t keep comparing him to book Howl. And they’re just different. I had a very short moment where I felt the pull of book Howl – he was an academic, got a doctorate, and studied charms and spells for his thesis. And that lasted about two seconds. Because when it all comes down to it, I really think he’s horrible and a pig. I did enjoy that chapter when I was introduced to his niece. I wanted to learn more about his background and seeing how he was with his niece made me smile for a while. And his name is Howell Jenkins. I mean I didn’t think that Howl was his real name but Howell…I guess it made sense.
God, it’s so hot in my apartment right now. I cannot even think straight. But then again I have a reading light that is actually shining on me right now since I was reading. I just decided to take a break because I wanted to write something before I got lazy again. Remember, typing is too much work right now.
I also had a couple of movies played while I was reading. Drive Me Crazy, Saved, and now, The Lost City. All these movies I’ve watched multiple times already. But I do like having background noise. I have issues focusing when it’s too quiet. I’ve always been this way, and I don’t think I’ll ever change.
Anyway, I think this is it for today. Hopefully, I get to keep this up again. Well, I just need to not be too lazy.
- Title: My Friend Anna: The True Story of a Fake Heiress
- Author: Rachel DeLoache Williams
- Genre: Non-Fiction
- Pages: 304
- Publisher: Gallery Books
- Published: 2019
I remember being interested in this book when I first heard about Anna Delvey maybe a couple of years ago. Then I forgot about it. The next thing I knew, Netflix released a show called Inventing Anna. And of course, I devoured that show – marathon’d it one Sunday. What do I specifically remember about it? I did not like Rachel. And you cannot blame me for that, just watch the show, and tell me how Netflix did Rachel dirty.
“You are here to read about Anna Delvey, and I don’t blame you” is the first sentence in the Preface of the book. And Rachel was right. I bought the book and read it because of Anna Delvey. I did not buy the book to like Rachel but instead to know what she experienced. The show did not really expand on who Rachel is despite having an episode titled “Rachel”. But then what do you expect, Inventing Anna is a show about Anna, not everyone else.
The book was really easy to read. It was nonlinear at times – starting with the Marrakesh trip, then inserted with tidbits of who Rachel is, and the story of Anna’s and Rachel’s friendship. I liked how the book was set up. Starting with THE trip was a good strategy, with the later parts of the book dealing with the aftermath.
The book says it’s “The True Story of a Fake Heiress”. It wasn’t. Sure the book was about the Marrakesh trip and the aftermath. But I think it’s about the friendship of two people that soured and ended because one person decided to put one friend in such a horrible situation.
Anna’s and Rachel’s friendship read as superficial. At least to me. However, it does not make it any less real. The friendship was there, it was just a bit focused on having fun.
The conflict mainly focused on Rachel having to chase Anna down for the payment that she was owed for the Marrakesh trip. Rachel had to struggle financially in order to barely make ends meet. It was a very stressful situation that I do not wish on anyone. With Rachel not having any other choice but to get authorities involved.
Rachel was relatable. Her journey from being this timid person just letting things happen to standing up for herself and taking control of a very dicey situation is very commendable. The book humanized Rachel for me. Sharing tidbits of her life made her relatable to me. From her childhood, her love of The Great British Bake Off, and her tendency to box up her emotions and deal with problems on her own. I swore I was reading about myself – I mean, you know, aside from this traumatizing fiasco, mingling with people, and working in a magazine. I even made a note in the book “We are almost the same person. We could be friends in real life”.
I liked this book. I came in expecting a rundown of what happened in Marrakesh and what happened afterward, which I did. But what I got was so much more. I saw a friendship that had a very dysfunctional power dynamic that ultimately lead to its end. I saw a person who stood up for herself and took control of her life. Would I recommend this book? Yes. I would. Like I said, this book humanized Rachel for me. And after reading this, I could definitely say, that the show did not do her justice whatsoever.
Well, since I went to happy hour with some coworkers yesterday after work, I forgot to post. I was too inebriated and all I wanted to was to get ready for bed and sleep when I got home. Well, that and talk to my hun since I am always missing his voice.
Surprisingly, I had fun last night. For the whole week, I was dreading happy hour. I was being antisocial, and I really did not want to socialize. But I’m glad I went. The first I did when I got to the bar was went straight to the bar and ordered myself a vodka redbull. I was surprised that it was in a tumbler! Our group secured a nice big table hidden from the public and it was pretty nice. Well, I appreciated it. I hate crowds so that table was god sent! I ordered six carnitas rolled tacos, and while waiting for food, I finished my first drink. I went to the bar again to order my second vodka redbull for the night. Conversations on our table revolved around books, movies, shows, the JD and AH defamation trial, and random things. Some of us wanted to play some arcade games since we were at an arcade bar. So they went, and I ordered my third vodka redbull…Was I drunk, not exactly but I was having a good buzz. All of us wanted to play DND so we just decided to form our own with Everett to be the DM. That will be interesting if that actually happened.
When I got home, I had some left over subway sandwich and realized off the bat that I wished I stopped by Jack in the Box and got me some burger and fries. Because all I really wanted when I’m inebriated is some greasy fast food. Note to self: next happy hour, stop by Jack, buy some ultimate cheese burger, curly fries, and a large coke.
Today, my hun and I had to cancel our date night. I met up with family for lunch. We went to my cousin’s place and some good sinigang and rice. Finally was able to see them since they moved here a year ago. I also met my cousin’s daughter and their doggo named Murphy! They are both cuties. Both sweet. We caught up with my aunt and uncle who were visiting from California. After lunch, we watched a movie called Old. I am still deciding if I liked the movie or not. The premise was really good. Acting was great. Dialogue was meh. And the shots were…interesting. After that, we watched another movie, Lady and the Tramp 2. That was cute. What’s not to love about dog movies? Nothing.
On the way from there, I stopped by Half Price Books. It took a lot of will power to limit myself with just two books and a bookmark. Because if I don’t, I will end up with more than five books and that is just not going to work. I have way too much books already that I need to read. I bought the Devil of Nanking and the Secret Garden. There are some new books available in the store for a discounted price but with my Book of the Month subscription, I can get them cheaper. So if I feel the need to get more books, I will just peruse Book of the Month first and get it from there.
Paco was smelling me intensely when I got home…And all I can in his eyes was judgment for cheating on him with Murphy. He did not relent from sniffing my clothes until I changed. He is one adorable furbaby. Doing laundry now so I won’t have to do that tomorrow.
Planning on spending a lot of time with my love tomorrow and on Monday as well. I miss him.
nerdy bunch.
By: Kate Moore
Format: Audiobook / Hardbound
Pages: 496
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Listening Length: 15 hours and 52 minutes
What do I do in my desperate attempt to battle a reading slump? Pick up a nonfiction about radium and how it affected the lives of the girls who worked in the watch making industry back in the day. Dark AF.
Nonfiction is something that I don’t pick up naturally. So when I decided to browse the genre in my library, it came as a surprise to me. What drew me initially was the cover. I mean, look at at it! Gorgeous! It was an instant borrow. I didn’t even read what it was about. I just went for it. And oh boy – it was a difficult read.
The book is about the radium girls – female workers of the watch industry basically applying this glowing material to watch dials. These basically chronicles the journey of the girls from the beginning of working in the factory through the trials that came years later.
I was lost in the pages in an instant. It was definitely a roller coaster ride of emotions for me. I was excited for them getting their first jobs, getting their own money. I was raging for them when they were placed in harms way by these corporations wanting to sell these watches. When they were not protected enough while working with radium. Then what little protection they had was taken away. I cried when each one of them experienced the fatal effects of radium to the human body. I cheered with them as they surge on to fight against the companies they worked for to get what they deserved for working in such greedy companies.
When I said I was hooked the first second I started listening to it, I was hooked. I wanted to see how the journey ended for these women. It was a rough journey, definitely one of the most difficult reads I’ve ever experienced. And I loved every single minute of it. The fact that my anxiety was definitely triggered while reading this book is a positive thing.
So if you are feeling up to reading some history and what kind off pushed OSHA that we have today, I recommend you pick up this book.
I’ve said this so many times, I am a mood reader and I consider that as my own personal curse. My next read will always be dictated by my mood…and it could really be a hell of a challenge.
So what does it really like to be one?
I often struggle with finding the next book to read. Just because my mood changes so abruptly sometimes, I often had difficulty finding the next book to pick up. I can pick up an X number amount of books in a day and still not find the right book. The struggle will always be real.
I don’t have a “To Be Read” schedule. I’ve always had a problem with sticking to a TBR list. And this one hurts because I love crossing out something off a list. I am often jealous of people who can just pick the books that they would read for the rest of the month and successfully stick to it. But because my mood at the beginning of the month won’t be consistent for the rest of it, I always end up scrapping the whole list. The “To Be Read” pile is there, I just don’t have a list.
I have a lot of unread books. I have a lot of partially read books too. I learned early on that I can’t really force myself to read a book. Not that I haven’t done that in the past, I have, and it never ends up good. So I am not scared of putting a book down and setting it aside for a later time. I don’t see the point of forcing myself to finish a book. It’s unfair for me and the book. Hence, my pile of to be read books is forever growing.
I don’t really follow the list of new releases or anticipated releases. I don’t find myself getting overly excited for it. Or I can be excited but still won’t pick that book up until maybe a few months after or even a year after. The only exception to this one was Harry Potter of course.
I can’t join a read-a-long or a book club. These group readings could be fun and I often find myself wanting to join one. But since the books being read in these group settings are often predetermined, it’s difficult for me to join or engage at all. I definitely struggled with the required readings for school.
I struggle with reading slumps as much as I hate to admit it. It could be days, weeks, or months before I’m able to find a book that I am in the mood for. A book hangover definitely has been a contributing factor to some of these. But most often than not, it was because I couldn’t find the right book.
My reading count is definitely not consistent every year. Like I said, I could be in an extreme reading slump and not able to read for a long periods of time. Or it could be like last year and I found the topic and genre that I was in the mood for and just fly through the books.
I can’t participate in a yearly reading challenge, or any reading challenges to be honest. May it be just saying I will read an X amount of books for a year or following a reading prompt for that year or just picking a book from a TBR jar. I would definitely fail. Trust me, I tried so many times.
I go through different genres. I have my favorite of course. But being a mood reader definitely gave me the chance to explore different genres. I love it. Although, I still have to find myself picking up more non fictions. If my mood decide to shift me there, that would be great.
I can also fly through books once I find the right genre or topic I’m in the mood for. Since my mood can fluctuate a lot, I try to read as much books as I can in a short amount of time under that specific topic/genre. This was not often the case, last year was definitely lucky. From September until the present really, my mood apparently hasn’t changed. So I have been flying through books in one genre/topic. Since then, I often finish a book a day or two.
Bottom line, being a mood reader can be crippling at times and I do get frustrated once in a while, but I have learned to just go with it. Sure the downside is there, but I like the advantages too. The past year has definitely been a game changer. Since I am stuck in a genre right now, I have a choice to stop reading for a while and pick up a different genre at a later time. Or just go with it and embrace it. And that’s what I did. I am on book 14 for the month of January, so I can’t complain.