Pie vs. Cake

Lately, I've been thinking about pie. In particular, though, the book, "Pie" by Sarah Weeks. It has picqued my interest, much like many other food titled books have done. Yes, yes, I know not to judge a book by it's cover, but the foodie in me just insists...
.... for example, I had my eye on the book pictured below, by Aimee Bender for months. Of course the pile of unread books at my bedside kept me from purchasing it. Part of my problem, though, lies in my eagerness to begin a book and pretty soon I'm five chapters into five different books. Eventually, I could no longer stall myself. So, I bought it. And, I began reading it, casting aside the other five books I was already in the midst of. Among everything else taking my attention in life, I am able to read a bit of "The Particulare Sadness of Lemon Cake" every other night or so. Food, however, is not the sole subject of the storyline. The cake is the initial way by which the protagonist "tastes" the emotional state of her mother, which in turn becomes quite a burden for young Rose as she desparately seeks solice from her "gift".

That about gets me to where I am in the book, currently. The next part of the book will delve into issues regarding the reclusive brother which, from what I've read in reviews, has little mention of food as it was in the first half of the book. So, they hooked me with the initial food associations, and now I am caught up with the emotional lives of the characters and am bound and determined to finish this one before I even dare get to "Pie". Several years ago, Joanne Harris printed just one word: "Chocolat" and there I was, putting aside all other reading material for the chance to absorb myself in this tale of a chocolatier working her magic in a very catholic French village at the start of Lent. It was a very enjoyable read and then, later, when it became a movie, I was eager to see someone else's visual interpretation. It didn't hurt that they cast Johnny Depp as the leading male, but in the end, the chocolate still took center stage.

Not all books that I choose to read are food oriented, I am also very partial to historical fiction, particular about art history. Tracy Chevalier has always been a favorite of mine for that. Her latest book, however, is one that I cast aside in order to read, "Cutting for Stone" by Abraham Verghese and then that became a collector of dust so that I could begin, "The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake".

Now, much like a Weight Watchers member...I am counting my points. I will exhibit willpower and wait to finish my cake before I begin my pie. And hopefully, for the sake of points, I won't have my pie and cake all in the same day.