The blog I found on a library shelf

In the past month I have really jumped into the blogosphere, aided greatly by my setting up subscriptions on Google Reader. I had found that I had several that I enjoyed reading when I saw them featured in Facebook posts, but couldn’t keep track of all of them or where to find them when a post link wasn’t available. I’m currently following 30 blog, ranging from mamas comically journaling their daily lives, to DIY-ers making me excited about what it may be like to someday be a homeowner, over to artsy-fartsy types who want to share their myriad of ideas with the world. Whenever I find a new blog that captures my interest, I add the URL to my subscriptions. If I ever find myself losing interest in a blog, I can simply just remove the subscription from my Reader (although that’s only happened once, so far). And for the blogs that I specifically love, I’m slowly sharing those with you, my five readers (seriously, sometimes I really wonder how many of you are out there. My stats only give me hits, not individual readers…hmmm).

The next blog I want to introduce you to is one I did not discover online. I found Orangette at the library, in fact. I was chasing Emma up and down the long aisles between Science Fiction and Historical Autobiographies, picking at books that sparked my interest as I walked by. As I turned the corner between J-L and M-O, I saw this book, definitely in the wrong place, just leaning up against a bookend, looking super cute. As my daughter rounded the corner out of sight, I picked the book up. Suddenly, from behind me, a female voice said “That’s a wonderful book”. I turned and thanked the random woman, then tucked the book under my arm and dashed after Emma’s shrieks four aisles down. In an odd moment of free-time, I curled up in a blanket on the recliner and started to read. I was delighted immediately by Molly’s passion for food and family, and how those two things were paired in her mind so strongly. Every chapter had a new story of life and the recipe that went along with it. Her writing style was simple and sweet, and I actually found myself wanting to try to make the foods she spoke of.

After a couple days of reading through it, I happened to read the back cover. In the little biography part, it was mentioned that she had a blog, which was where the book truly started. I immediately went over to the laptop and pulled up the site. Pretty much everything I loved about the book was sitting there online. She doesn’t post daily, or even weekly, but I love it when her updates show on my blog feed. Every post is accompanied by polaroids that she takes of her food and kitchen, which I absolutely love, and a recipe that makes the core of her story. She’s very unassuming, even to the point that her URL still has .blogspot in it. I love that she didn’t feel the need to make it all about her, but just simply wants to keep a journal of something she loves, food.

I encourage you to introduce yourself to Molly through her blog, but I also recommend picking up her book at your local library. I promise it will make you smile, which is always good.