Friday 5ive- September 23, 2022

Welcome to the Friday 5ive, a weekly post featuring five things that caught my attention this week.

It's hard to believe that summer is over and fall has begun. I know my youngest sister is so happy about that.

1) Fall is here, so it's time to change my seasonal/holiday book display from summer to fall.

2) I went with my cousin to a taping of the Rachael Ray Show last Friday. Rachael's set is one of the loveliest ones I've seen, it's very much in keeping with her Adirondack home style. The crowd is much smaller than it was pre-pandemic and I felt sympathy for Tom Kelly, the substitute warm-up comedian. He really had to work hard to keep the audience energy up with fewer people in the audience. Following the taping, we went to Eataly for a birthday lunch for my cousin. I had my favorite pasta dish, Quadrati , a spinach and ricotta filled ravioli in a butter-lemon sauce topped with pistachios. It was tasty and I liked their two course lunch for $22. 

Photo courtesy of my cousin Mary Beth

Tasty Quadrati ravioli

3) It's Banned Books Week, and this takes on more urgent meaning this year as more people are pushing to ban books they don't like in school and public libraries. Most bookstores (including the Book Cellar where I volunteer) and libraries have dedicated displays of Banned Books. You might be surprised at some of the titles- many of them are considered classic literature. I bought two new t-shirts to wear to work, the #FReadom one benefits a project to highlight the positive work being done by school librarians.

Book Cellar Banned Books

4)  I was happy to see that season six of The Good Fight began on Paramount+. The cast this season is phenomenal, led by Christine Baranski and Audra McDonald. Andre Braugher joins as a new partner, and Alan Cumming returns as attorney Eli Gold, father to Sarah Steele's Marissa. I especially enjoyed seeing Mary Testa as an opposing attorney in episode two, she performed at the ArchCare gala last October and she is wonderful. 

5)  The book I read this week is appropriate for Hispanic Heritage Month. Bárbara Mujica's historical novel Miss del Río is a fictionalized account of the life of Mexican actress Dolores del Río. Del Río escaped with her family from Durango in Mexico, fleeing the revolution led by Pancho Villa. Delores met a director and became an successful actress, but her personal life was less successful. She had a series of marriages that didn't work out, she didn't always choose wisely. Delores' story is told by her childhood friend who becomes her hairdresser, and their lives couldn't be more different. I love reading fictional accounts of real people, and Dolores befriends Frida Kahlo and Marlene Dietrich, and becomes romantically involved with Orson Welles. A good historical fiction always has me wanting more, and I immediately began to search out more information on Dolores del Rio. If you liked Taylor Jenkins Reid's The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, (as I did) you'll want to read Miss del Río. My full review posts October 4th.

Have a safe, healthy week. Happy Fall!