Inside Village Books

The Joy of Bickies

This week's "bickie," compliments of Jessica, has the lightness of a sponge cake and the butteriness of a pound cake. The recipe, Orange Rum Cake, from The Joy of Cooking, doubles easily and holds together well. Jess used the Crunchy Almond Topping from page 798 which included blanched, sliced almonds and sugar 'glued' by butter to the bottom and sides of the pan... this made a great 'crust' although she suggests more almonds could be used than called for, by at least half. Delicious and goes great with any book for an afternoon of reading!

Recipe Request

At Village Books last week Connie served a cake for the Maisie Dobbs-Jacqueline Winspear signing, and some of you wanted the recipe. It is the East 62nd Street Lemon Cake from one of Connie's favorite cookbooks, Book of Great Desserts by Maida Heatter. Enjoy!

A Sad Day in the Book World

Like many of you, I was shocked and deeply saddened by the announcement that Dutton's Brentwood Books will close its doors on April 30, 2008. I think of Doug and Dutton's as the heart and soul of literary Los Angeles and can't quite imagine the book world without them. Back in 1997, when I had the half-brained idea of quitting my law firm and opening a bookstore (what! are you NUTS!!), I went to talk to Doug about the idea. Like every other person I spoke to, he tried to talk me out of it, but after seeing my determination, he gave me some solid advice and sent me off in the right direction to educate myself and figure out how to actually try to pull this off.

Timeless Recommendations

A good book is eternal.

Every reader is looking for the next great book and Village Books takes care to steer you in the right direction. Browse through our past favorites and you'll find a gem that's just right for you. Check out Village Books' Greatest Hits