10 Great Books I Bet Your Child's Teacher Hasn't Read

I love to give books. Giving a book is like giving a bit of myself. The trick, of course, is to match the reader with the book and to find something they haven't read.  Since many teachers are also readers and they are all about to finally have some time to read, a book makes the perfect end-of-school gift. Here is a short list of not currently popular books by some great authors; you may even find something you'd enjoy yourself!

• A Girl Named Zippy: Growing up Small in Moreland, Indiana by Haven Kimmel. This often hilarious, always surprising, surreal trip into the 70s and 80s is so much fun to read, you forget it's a memoir. The perfect book for someone with a sense of humor. 
• Cold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann Burns. This lovely novel paints a picture of life in the small-town south through the eyes of a pre-teen boy.
• Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier. For the lover of historical fiction, this story will satisfy! Set near the end of the Civil War, it's the tale of two protagonists, each fighting their own private battles.
• A Voyage Long and Strange: On the Trail of Vikings, Conquistadors, Lost Colonists and Other Adventurers in Early America by Tony Horwitz.  This is the history you probably did not learn in school, exhaustively researched but thrillingly presented by this award-winning journalist. Perfect for life-long learners and history enthusiasts.
• Confederates in the Attic by Tony Horwitz. This was the first book I read by Horwitz and the reason I read the others. It is a compellingly told story of the south most of us will never see. It's a little unsettling but you just cannot stop reading it. 
• Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne. If the recipient in question is under 50 years old, they probably never read this book which used to be required reading for all students. Verne is an adept storyteller and this adventurous book falls into the realm of light, fun reading. An especially good choice for those with a love of travel.
• Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Saffron Foer. You may have seen the movie but nonetheless, this book is a must read. 911 was the catalyst for the protagonist's unraveling of long-held family secrets. This is an extremely well-told story and keeps you on the edge of your seat.
• The I Hate to Cook Cookbook by Peg Bracken. Recently republished for its 50th anniversary, I actually own the original version, handed down by my mother. This is the perfect cookbook for busy moms and others who may even like to cook but need some tried and true quick meals.
• The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender. Perfect for the sci-fi or fantasy lover, this is a good book for any novel lover. I won't give it away here but this book has some very surprising twists and turns, perfect for summer.
• The Water is Wide: A Memoir by Pat Conroy. This prolific author has produced so many wonderful stories but this memoir is my favorite. It is the experience of his early years teaching poor children in South Carolina and, more importantly, what he learned about himself as person. Teachers may have read this book, given the subject matter, but I'm betting if they are under 45 years old, you're safe!

What books do you love to gift?

Sweet, Simple and Affordable Teacher Gifts

We have a lot of teachers to gift and while we sometimes have a good idea for someone, it's nice to come up with something generic we can give to lots of people. This fits the bill: Hot Chocolate Truffles.  You drop a truffle in a cup of hot milk, stir it up and viola! You have the richest, most lovely cup of hot chocolate.

I found a recipe and then adjusted it to my taste. I saw a recipe for regular truffles that tasted like Mexican Hot Chocolate and borrowed the spices from that recipe to make a batch of Mexican Hot Chocolate Truffles too!  Here is our final recipe:

• 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 4 oz good dark chocolate (at least 70% cacao), chopped fine
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1/4 cup  sugar
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

• Cocoa powder, crushed candy canes, instant espresso powder powdered sugar, mini marshmallows, sprinkles etc. for rolling

Using a double boiler, combine all ingredients except vanilla. Heat, stirring, until smooth. Right when it looks really terrible and hopeless, it is just about to come together.  If you don't have a double boiler, do what I do and use a bowl instead.  When smooth and shiny, stir in the vanilla and put the bowl in the fridge for at least 1.5 hours to firm up.

When firm, use a 2 tablespoon scoop to place it on wax paper on a sheet pan. Freeze for 1 hour or more.

Remove the balls from the sheet; roll in your hands to smooth, and roll in toppings.  We mix our espresso powder and our cocoa with powdered sugar because these are not overly sweet.  We shape our espresso ones like coffee beans.

Mexican Hot Chocolate Version:

Follow all the directions above but add to the hot mixture:  

• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp. cayenne

We roll these in red sprinkles so you can tell them from the others. (And as you can see, I write on the freezer tray so I remember these are different!)

PS -- When I had them all done, I found this cute presentation with a stir stick included.  May do that the next time!