I’m so excited to have one of my co-bloggers from The Broke and the Bookish, Kimberly, here on the blog today to help us celebrate our love of Beauty and the Beast!

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Growing Up with Beauty and the Beast
by Kimberly from The Broke and the Bookish

Hello everyone! I am so excited to do a guest post, especially when it has to do with one of my all-time favorite things… BEAUTY AND THE BEAST.

Story time! When I was a kid I never wanted to talk about who my favorite Disney princess was. Because any time someone found out it was Belle, they’d make fun of me. Looking back on this now I’m even more confused. Why did all of those kids hate her so much? She’s still my absolute favorite! Now I have many friends, online and off, that adore Beauty and the Beast. Getting to fangirl with others is pure joy.

Let’s talk a bit about Beauty and the Beast and a few of the adaptations, shall we? Let’s start with what my introduction to the story was (as I’m sure it was for many others).

Disney’s Beauty and the Beast (1991)

*sigh* Even the opening sequence of this movie gets me all teary eyed. The animation is gorgeous, the music is perfect. Within moments of meeting Belle we know she’s a bookworm. (This was the moment I bonded with her, even at an early age.) Pretty soon we’re deep in the story. Belle has exchanged her freedom to save her father. She is doomed to live out her life with a tyrant… Or is she? The character development is beautiful. The Beast changes, but so does Belle. They defeat Gaston, break the spell and the castle undergoes a spectacular transformation. (Still one of my favorite bits of animation.)

Beauty and the Beast (Broadway)

I was in the ensemble for this in High School! SO MUCH FUN. The story is the same, but with little extra bits here and there. The relationship between Belle and her father is expanded. They have a lovely little song together, “No Matter What”, where they acknowledge that they are both odd, but there is no one else they’d rather spend time with. The enchanted objects have their own song “Human Again” (which was later added back to the original animated classic). The story behind the curse also gets greater detail. They weren’t just changed into household objects. They are slowly becoming less and less sentient. Losing mobility bit by bit.

One of the most priceless bits of dialogue is when they are discussing some of the other objects. They become objects that resemble their personality. Michelle became the wardrobe, and then Jean Claude…
Lumiere: “And poor Jean Claude. You remember him, not too bright, dumb as a…”
Cogsworth: “Brick?”
Lumiere: “The whole wall.”

Stolen Songbird by Danielle L. Jensen
Published April 1, 2014 from Strange Chemistry
Add to Goodreads

For five centuries, a witch’s curse has bound the trolls to their city beneath the mountain. When Cécile de Troyes is kidnapped and taken beneath the mountain, she realises that the trolls are relying on her to break the curse.

Cécile has only one thing on her mind: escape. But the trolls are clever, fast, and inhumanly strong. She will have to bide her time…

But the more time she spends with the trolls, the more she understands their plight. There is a rebellion brewing. And she just might be the one the trolls were looking for…

This was such a fun read! It starts off as a loose retelling of Beauty and the Beast and then goes off in its own amazing direction! There are a few references throughout the book that ties it back to the original, which is delightful. Great characters and excellent world building. Tristan is swoon worthy and Cecile is the type of heroine I can get behind! Plus the ensemble characters are wonderful. I definitely recommend it!

And…

Beauty and the Beast (2017)

I don’t have much to say on this yet, other that I am SO FREAKING EXCITED. I have loved all of Disney’s live action remakes and I really think this one will be wonderful. I get embarrassingly teary eyed every time I watch the trailer. (I’m pregnant, that’s a good enough excuse…right?) I am counting down the days until I see this.

What are some of your favorite Beauty and the Beast adaptations?

Today I’m welcoming one of my very good book blogging friends, Alyssa Susanna (of The Eater of Books), to the blog to share her holiday baking traditions! I love how she and her mother enjoy baking together each year,and that they’ve melded American Christmas customs with Trinidadian ones! You might want to grab some treats of your own before reading this post because it’s sure to make you hungry!

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Alyssa Susanna’s Holiday Baking Bonanza

Hello friends! Today I’m sharing something near and dear to my heart – my holiday baking traditions! Well, traditions that my mother and I keep. My family and I are Trinidadian, so we do a mix of “American” baked goods, and Trinidadian baked goods. Next year if I’m fortunate, Jana might let me come back, and I’ll share what a Trinidadian Christmas is like! But for now, dessert! Please note – while we do make all of these, we give away at least half, to family and friends! Also note – my mother is the mastermind here. I love baking, and I always have a hand in the holiday baking, but my mom is the genius.

So, here we go! Up first:

Trinidadian Christmas Fruit Cake

 

This is different from your usual fruit cake! It has raisins, currants, prunes, cherries, walnuts, Trinidad White Oak Rum. It’s often a favorite in the house, especially when all the Trini relatives come over!

 

Peanut Butter Crinkles

 

These are fairly “American”, but we love them because they are really easy to make, and the chocolate center is delicious! When you get the texture of the cookie right, it’s dreamy.

 

Tropical Nut Cookies

 

These are a classic, and a “secret family recipe”. My mother adapted a recipe she got from a lady in church, about twenty years ago. These are the most sought-after cookies that we make! My mother and I usually make four to six dozens! These disappear very quickly.

 

Chocolate Covered Pretzels

 

These are simple and so addicting! Melted milk chocolate chips, melted white chocolate chips, and Christmas-y sprinkles, if you want. Unfortunately they do take some time and the yield isn’t high, but these are perfect to snack on while watching the Christmas football games.

 

Peppermint Bark

 

These are simple and so addicting! Melted milk chocolate chips, melted white chocolate chips, and Christmas-y sprinkles, if you want. Unfortunately they do take some time and the yield isn’t high, but these are perfect to snack on while watching the Christmas football games.

 

Chocolate Fudge

 

Chocolate fudge is another one of the baked goods that we don’t love, but we make it to supplement what we give away. It IS tasty but so sweet! You need it in small doses.

We make MANY more different types of cookies, but I’ll round off with my favorite…

 

Snowball Cookies!

 

I love these! They are petite and so yummy. I love them so much, I’m going to share the recipe with you! I have been using this Nestle recipe that I found in the local grocery store, about ten years ago. So it’s Nestle’s recipe! Enjoy.

Ingredients:

1½ cups (3 sticks) butter, softened
¾ cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon salt
3 cups all-purpose flour
1¾ cups chocolate chips/holiday shapes/morsels
½ cup finely chopped nuts (optional)
Powdered sugar

Instructions:

PREHEAT oven to 375°F.
BEAT butter, sugar, vanilla extract and salt in large mixer bowl until creamy. Gradually beat in flour; stir in morsels and nuts. Shape level tablespoons of dough into 1¼-inch balls. Place on ungreased baking sheets.
BAKE for 10 to 12 minutes or until cookies are set and lightly browned. Remove from the oven. Sift powdered sugar over the hot cookies on baking sheets. Cool on the baking sheets for 10 minutes. Remove and cool completely on wire racks or wax paper.

Thanks for indulging! I hope you all have a wonderful (and sweet!) holiday season. In the comments, share some of your favorite holiday treats!

Today I’m welcoming my friend Brooke (of Brooke Reports) to the blog! Brooke has one of the cutest Christmas posts ever, and I’m so delighted she chose this topic! I remember baking/buying yummy treats and doorbell ditching them on my the front porches of my high school crushes. Have you ever done that? Brooke is pairing up some of her book boyfriends with a yummy holiday treat… recipes included!

 

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Sweets for My Sweeties
by Brooke at Brooke Reports

Okay, so originally I was going to write a post about all the fictional boys that I’d love to kiss under the mistletoe….but the list ended up being six pages long—so I scratched that.

Then I thought, oh! I know, a shorter list would totally be, “fictional characters I’d pair up together under the mistletoe.” But—I got WAY too jealous over my near perfect matches :P

So, I decided to go a much sweeter route—a post I like to call “Sweets for my Sweeties.” These hunks can spice up any holiday, here are some recipes inspired by some of my favorites!

 

Four from the Divergent Series

Holiday Oreo Cookie Balls

He’s a tough guy on the outside, like a hard chocolate shell if you will, but a big softie on the inside.

 

Fowler from Reign of Shadows

Peanut Butter Blossoms

This boy. I could eat him up. He is an absolute dream. He faces so many struggles. He is layered and full of surprises just like a Peanut Butter Blossom.

 

Logan from Defiance

Gingerbread Cookies

He is into Rachel. She is a redhead. Do you see where I’m going with this holiday treat? Gingerbread it is!

 

Adam Wilde from If I Stay

Cut Out Sugar Cookies

Where is this swoony-singer?! What are him and Mia up to? I this all American boy is baking up some sugar cookies with his favorite girl this season.

 

Julian from Caraval

Salted Caramels

He is sexy and sweet and complicated and he is the epitome of decadence. Sea Salt Caramels. Yes. Right?! Yes.

 

Ren from Nightshade

Peppermint Bark

Throwing it back to the old school bad boy, Ren from Nightshade by Andrea Cremer. He is spicy and sweet and definitely has a little bite to his bark! Peppermint bark!

What sweets would you give your sweeties?

A big Christmassy welcome to Molly Booth, 2016 debut author of Saving Hamlet! I was so excited when Molly told me her idea for A Bookish Little Christmas because I LOVE time travel and I really loved this idea of having Cooke (a guy from Elizabethan England) write a letter to Emma (our modern-day main character) during Christmastime in his time. Seriously, how fun is this?

 

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Cooke’s Twelfth Night
by Molly Booth

It is London, late 1601. Alexander Cooke, actor at the Globe Playhouse, prepares to play a new role with Shakespeare and the Chamberlain’s Men. He sorely misses his futuristic friend, Emma Allen. Unsure how to feel better, he fitfully writes her a letter.

My Dearest, Em

Emma, Emma, wherefore art thou, Emma? Deny thy time and refuse thy name. Though in sooth, I love thy real name, even if it doth keep us parted. My friend, much time hath passed since I last saw thee. The sun riseth, and I miss thee. It seteth, and I miss thee more. I write this letter to ease my aching mind — my heart, I fear, groweth so weary and cold there is naught to do for comfort.

I fear, also, that I am growing too dramatic.

Our company hath abandoned our Globe for the season, and we play indoors, lit by candle light. Master Shakespeare hath written a new play, “What You Will,” and I know thou wouldst like it. ’Tis a comedy, but if it twere a stream, the river bed would be of tragedy. We rehearse madly, for in a fortnight, we play for Queen Elizabeth and the Italian Duke Orsini. Art thou impressed?

I play a young woman, Viola, grieving for the loss of her twin brother. She disguiseth herself as a young lord to work for the Duke Orsino (Master Shakespeare flatters our Italian visitor with great subtlety). Naturally, Viola falleth in love with Orsino, and once again, the play ends with my marriage to Burbage.

I remember thee, when I am Viola. I remember thy spirit, thy clumsy, gentle ways. I remember thy grief after Master Wick’s passing. I feel the grief that bears down in my breast when I think of how we are parted. It feels wrong, though I know a shift in time cannot be right?

How shall I send this letter? Down a trap door? Up through heaven? By thunderstorm? By cannon?

Like all of Master Shakespeare’s plays, there is truth and beauty in this new one that bring tears and comfort:

O time, thou must untangle this, not I. It is too hard a knot for me to un’tie.

O — thou must knowest this play, as thou knowest all secrets of our future. So, couldst thou send us the final title? Master Shakespeare hath just discovered that another playwright hath new a play also called “What You Will.” He is not pleased.

I prithee. Do not stay away so long.

Cooke

Copyright © Molly Booth 2016

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Saving Hamlet by Molly Booth
November 1, 2016 from Disney-Hyperion
Add to Goodreads | Amazon

I wanted sophomore year to be different, but this was a little much.

Emma Allen couldn’t be more excited to start her sophomore year. Not only is she the assistant stage manager for the drama club’s production of Hamlet, but her crush Brandon is directing, and she’s rocking a new haircut that’s sure to get his attention. But soon after school starts, everything goes haywire. Emma’s suddenly promoted to stage manager, her best friend, Lulu, stops talking to her, and Josh—the sweet soccer player who’s been cast as the lead—turns out to be a disaster. It’s up to Emma to fix it all, but she has no clue where to start.

One night after rehearsal, Emma stays behind to think through her life’s latest crises and distractedly falls through the stage’s trap door…landing in the basement of the Globe Theater.

It’s London, 1601, and with her awesome new pixie cut, everyone thinks Emma’s a boy—even Will Shakespeare himself. Dropped into the middle of the original production of Hamlet, Emma gamely plays her role as backstage assistant, jumping at the chance to experience theatre history and rub shoulders with legends. But the Globe’s Hamlet has its own problems, and once Emma starts traveling back and forth through time, things get really confusing. In which reality does she belong? And can she possibly save two epically tragic productions of Hamlet before time runs out?

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About Molly Booth

Molly Booth grew up homeschooled in Massachusetts with her four boisterous siblings. She stage managed for three different community theatres in high school. Her first college was Bunker Hill Community College in Charlestown, MA; she then went on to study writing, literature, and Elizabethan history on a very cold hill at Marlboro College in Vermont. There, she wrote the first drafts of Saving Hamlet, her debut novel, coming 11/1/16 from Disney Hyperion. Her second book, Nothing Happened, will be coming spring 2018.

Molly also writes for The Mary Sue, and sometimes other sites like HelloGiggles, The Tempest, and McSweeney’s.  She spends most of her time snuggling her adorable dog Suzie, pet rats Meg and Marigold, and Harriet the queen cat.

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