Hot Weather Foods

            Here are some ideas for hot weather meals, bound up in some recently published cookbooks.

            Cool Smoke: The Art of Great Barbecue is written by Tuffy Stone, a World Record-breaking champion pit master who has traveled throughout the world on the competition circuit. He provides tips on how to handle smoke, fuel, and fire during the cooking process, and then continues with recipes for rubs, sauces, brines, mops and sprays and dishes made of pork, beef, poultry, and seafood. Recipes for some sides, salads, and desserts round up the collection. Colorful photos and clear text simplifies meal preparation.

            Great Vegan BBQ without a Grill: Amazing Plant-Based Ribs, Burgers, Steaks, Kabobs, and More Smoky Favorites is written by Linda and Alex Meyer, who are the authors of the food blog Veganosity. Using a grill pan or cast iron skillet instead of an outdoor grill or smoker you can prepare plant-based barbecue, burgers, kabobs and other entrees along with sides and salads, dips, sauces and rubs.

            A la Mode: 120 Recipes in 60 Pairings: Pies, Tarts, Cakes, Crisps, and More Topped with Ice Cream, Gelato, Frozen custard, and More is written by Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarborough, popular cookbook writers and QVC favorites. Not just apple pie and vanilla ice cream, this book features more unusual recipes and combinations to please your palate.

Travel Ideas

            In the summertime, or anytime, planning a trip can be almost as much fun as the travel itself. Here are some new books for your enjoyment.

            111 Places in Queens That You Must Not Miss, written by Joe DiStefano, offers the opportunity to sample the many ethnicities of the world in one borough. Whether you are interested in food, the arts, religious edifices, shopping, and more, this concise yet informative guide, accompanied by plenty of color photos, will encourage you to visit our next-door neighbor.

            National Geographic Guide to State Parks of the United States, Fifth Edition offers concise, descriptive reviews of more than 950 parks within the United States, accompanied by full color photos of several of them. Listings are arranged by region of the country and then by state.

            Road Trips: A Guide to Travel, Adventure, and Choosing Your Own Path, is written by Jen CK Jacobs, an editorial photographer who has published work in several books and periodicals. This is a different type of travel book; it describes eight different trips, from solo traveler, to romantic getaway, to those shared by friends and gives tips on packing, snacks, photographing the sights, and more.

            The Solo Travel Handbook: Practical Tips and Inspiration for a Safe, Fun and Fearless Trip, is a Lonely Planet publication designed to answer many of the questions solo travelers have, such as managing your money, meeting people, staying connected, health, safety, and others.

Walking the Americas: 1,800 Miles, Eight Countries, and One Incredible Journey from Mexico to Colombia is written by Levison Wood, a British explorer whose previous books tell of his adventures walking the length of the Nile River and of the Himalayas. Here we follow him and his friend Alberto on a trek that took over four months and 1,800 miles, from Yucatan, Mexico to Colombia..

Books for and about Older Americans

               Join us in celebrating May as Older Americans month by reading one or all of these recently published books.

            Aging Gracefully: Portraits of People Over100 is compiled by Karsten Thormaehlen. It features photographic portraits of 52 people who have lived beyond 100 years, accompanied by enlightening annotations about their lives.

            Aging with Care: Your Guide to Hiring and Managing Caregivers at Home is written by Amanda Lambert. This guide helps readers in finding superior at-home care for one’s aging parents or other relatives, based upon the level of attention they need. Real-life stories are included.

            Happiness Is a Choice You Make: Lessons from a Year among the Oldest Old is written by John Leland, a reporter. Here he recounts his time spent with six of New York's oldest inhabitants, all eighty-five and older, who share their wisdom about aging, life quality, and the art of living.

            Nomadland: Surviving America in the Twenty-First Century is written by Jessica Bruder. The award-winning journalist sets out on the road to explore the new phenomenon of “workampers” who are migrant workers made up of transient older Americans who took to the road after discovering that their social security came up short and their mortgages were underwater.

            The RBG Workout is written by Bryant Johnson, the personal trainer for Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. The fully illustrated book details her twice-weekly exercise workout, including warm-up, strength training, and cool-down that all of us can follow in our own homes.

            Who Will Take Care of Me When I’m Old?  Plan Now to Safeguard Your Health and Happiness in Old Age is written by Joy Loverde. The book asserts that growing old does not mean a decline into helplessness, and argues that it is essential to have a plan in place in order to maintain a high  quality of life in later years.