A must-read book!

"When Henrietta Lacks [the descendant of freed slaves] was diagnosed with cancer in 1951, doctors took her cells and grew them in test tubes. Those cells led to breakthroughs
in everything from Parkinson's to polio. But today, Henrietta is all but forgotten. In an excerpt from her book, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Rebecca Skloot tells her story."

Click here to read the excerpt.

I know you're busy. We're all busy. But please take the time to check out this incredible true account of life and death and science. I'm a 30 year cancer survivor and I owe a debt of gratitude to Henrietta and the scientists whose hard work make my life (and maybe yours as well) possible.

The book hits the stores on February 2nd. I can't wait.

Why I Love Marie

(I'm devastated. Blogger blew away the original post.)

As I was saying . . .

I love Marie Watley-Browne. Not only is she beautiful, witty, sophisticated, smart, and the mother of one of my other favorite women on the planet, Marie is also an extremely talented baker.

I mean, when it comes to baking (and everything else), Marie of Brookyn rocks.

Those of you who are lucky enough to be on her list know exactly what I'm talking about. Those of you who aren't? Oh, I feel sorry for you! You have no idea what you're missing.

I mean, Santa's only a seasonal player while Marie's cinnamon-and-chocolate workshop is open year-round for her to perform her magic. Christmas! Easter! Halloween! Valentine's Day! You never know when something delicious is going to land on your doorstep.

Here's a sample of the Christmas '09 goodies I was lucky enough to receive. (I'd show you more but I ate the rest. Just saved a couple for the camera!)



Happy Birthday, Marie, with much love from BB & R!

Happy 2010 and 2 Best Reads of 2009

I can't say I wasn't warned.

Once you decide to make your blog your de facto home page, you owe it to your visitors to actually provide new content every so often. Daily is best. Every other day is acceptable. Once a week is borderline. Once a season? Not so much.

I don't make resolutions. At least not in the traditional New Year's sense. (They have a way of coming back to haunt you, don't they?) I mean, I've probably pledged blogging fidelity at least a half dozen times before. So I won't say it. But let's see what happens.

2009 was a reading year for me and there are two clear cut winners for top marks.

My Life in France - Julia Child and Alex Prud'Homme
I fell in love with Julia. Head-over-heels, as a matter of fact. Her joie de vivre is irresistible. Her story? Better than fiction.

and

How To Knit A Love Song - Rachael Herron
I was lucky enough to read an advance copy and I literally couldn't put it down until I reached the end. If you're familiar with Rachael's fab blog, then you're probably head-over-heels for Rachael already. Her warm, funny, engaging style translates seamlessly from blog to novel. Best of all, this is book #1 in a series!

To be continued . . .