Other Good Things--
a page devoted to great food, great books, and other remarkable things
E-mail your suggestions to [email protected].
BOOKS...
If you have a reading list you'd like to share with others, please e-mail it to us at [email protected].
A list of Bindweed's recommended books:
House, by Tracy Kidder.
Anyone who has built or is going to build a house needs to read this one. Buy one for your relatives who are construction workers.
The Long Walk, by Slavomir Rawicz
A true story of a WWII escape from a Russian prison, and the ensuing walk through the Gobi Desert and Himalayas (and that's only part of the ordeal). A must-read for even non-readers--gripping, likely to be read in one sitting. Just recently reprinted.
Jayber Crow, by Wendell Berry
Perhaps the most moving novel ever written about simple lives and simple people, by an author who might very well be considered the best American writer of the twentieth century.
Sky's Witness, by C.L. Rawlins
A beautifully written work about a year in the Wind River Range.
Where Rivers Change Direction, by Mark Spragg
Wyoming memoir--about the West, but for any reader
Coming into the Country, by John McPhee
Nonfiction on Alaska in the seventies and eighties--McPhee's best, but anything by McPhee is great (though non-specialists will want to steer clear of his geological trilogy)
Into the Wild, by Jon Krakauer
Another nonfiction work ending in Alaska. A young man tragically decides to rough it in the bush, having only belief in himself and absolutely no survival skills. Krakauer's work could be considered a phenomenological study of naivety and willfulness.
The Periodic Table, by Primo Levi
Essays by an Italian Jewish survivor (who happened to be a chemist) of WWII
Winterdance, by Gary Paulsen
A humorous account of an amateur's entry into the Iditarod and its considerable trials.
Mysteries, by Knut Hamsun
Magister Ludi, by Hermann Hesse
Almost anything of Hesse's is a great read, but if you have to choose one, this is the best.
Little, Big, by John Crowley
A fantasy book written so remarkably vivid that it can charm even a non-fantasy lover.
Angle of Repose, by Wallace Stegner
The best of Stegner's fiction. Pick almost any of his non-fiction works for an excellent read, too.
The Whistling Season, by Ivan Doig
Set in the early twentieth century, this Doig book is on par with his earlier works (Dancing at the Rascal Fair, English Creek). "This House of Sky" , also by Doig, is one of the best nonfiction works devoted to life in the west.
The Secret Life of Cowboys, by Tom Groneberg
An authentic look at modern day life in the West
Dream Reaper, by Craig Canine
Nonfiction work following two rural inventors of a new type of grain combine from the field to the corporate headquarters. Fascinating read.
Thirteen Moons, by Charles Frazer
Better even than the award winning Cold Mountain, Thirteen Moons was worth waiting for (Frazer took the better part of a decade to write it).
LINKS...
For a great resource for outdoor books and information, particularly in regards to the West, go to ronwatters.com.
If you're interested in growing flowers for a living but don't want to get a master's in botany and business before doing so, the only real worldwide resource for doing so is ascfg.org.
For the best food sites click splendidtable.org, Lynn Rosetto Kaspar's home, and epicurious.com, where you'll find an incredible source for world recipes. For good food (including truffles!) try earthy.com and sunnylandfarms.com, which specializes in fruit products.
The best chalk bags in the world can be found at kriegclimbing.com.
try http://wolfeprints.com for a look at fine art with a different twist
for a list of idaho artists idahoartists.com
For sustainably grown fresh cut flowers hook up with http://floretflowers.com
EVENTS...
The Church That Pasta Built
Every year the Pingree, Idaho Catholic Community, many of them natives of Italy, gets together to make pasta for their Christmas Fundraiser. Jeriann plans to compose a book combining Italian recipes with a pictorial and literary history of these immigrants, who traveled from a village just sixty miles from Rome to the smaller community of Pingree in desert Idaho. Here are some photos from this year's get-together. Click on the image for a larger view.

Ansi hanging pasta Gary
Gary and Ansi Howard Kneading

Rolling Pasta Velia
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