Home, Garden, and DIY
March 2018

Recent Releases
Chinese Soul Food: A Friendly Guide for Homemade Dumplings, Stir-fries...
by Hsiao-Ching Chou

What it is: a cookbook that just might replace your take-out menus. Written by a talented chef whose parents ran a Chinese restaurant in Missouri and taught her traditional Chinese homecooking, Chinese Soul Food covers key ingredients, techniques, equipment and more. 

Recipes include: Pork and Chinese Cabbage Dumplings, Green Onion Pancakes, Spring Rolls, Hot and Sour Soup, Mongolian Beef, Mu Shu Pork, Cashew Chicken, and Chou's famous Pot Stickers. 
Niki Jabbour's Veggie Garden Remix: 238 New Plants to Shake Up Your Garden and...
by Niki Jabbour

Who it's for: gardeners who want to branch out and grow unusual vegetables. Using a "Like this? Then try this!" approach, Jabbour describes all sorts of veggies that readers may never had heard of -- and gives growing instructions. Lovely, colorful photos enhance the friendly writing style.

Want a taste? If you like cherry tomatoes, Jabbour recommends you try ground cherries, Cape gooseberries, tomatillas, and less familiar varieties of cherry tomatoes, such as the sweet Snow White.
The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning: How to Free Yourself and Your Family from...
by Margareta Magnusson

What it is: a charming (really!) look at decluttering from a Swedish point of view that's especially helpful if you are downsizing or have reached a certain period of life.

Read it for: commonsense musings and advice from a pleasant guide who's "somewhere between 80 and 100 years old."

Want a taste? "Death clearning is not about dusting or mopping up; it is about a permanent form of organization that makes your everyday life run more smoothly."
Focus on: Hygge
Hygge's a word of Norwegian origin that’s used by the Danish to mean cozy, content, comfortable, companionable, and such. Want more hygge in your life? Check out the books below!
 
The Book of Hygge: The Danish Art of Contentment, Comfort, and Connection
by Louisa Thomsen Brits

What it is: a quiet, thoughtful guide with color photos and inspiring quotations that explains all the things hygge can be and encourages readers to embrace it in their own way. Half-Danish author Louisa Brits shares practical advice, too. 

Want a taste? "Hygge is a feeling that most of us know but can't quite define. To give a name to an experience is to pay attention to it."
How to Hygge: The Nordic Secrets to a Happy Life
by Signe Johansen

Featuring: home advice, lifestyle tips, lovely photos, and a wide variety of recipes (both sweet and savory). This engaging book by a Norwegian chef and writer uses the concept of hygge to demonstrate how readers can embrace cozy in all areas of their lives.

Chapters include: Outdoor Pursuits, The Nordic Kitchen, Healthy Hedonism, Design & Home, and Kinship, Conviviality & Openness.  
The Little Book of Hygge: Danish Secrets to Happy Living
by Meik Wiking

What it is: a cheerful look at how to be happy by bringing more hygge into your life. Offering practical advice (lighting a candle equals instant hygge) and thoughtful ideas, this little book can help readers find big pleasures in small comforts.

Author alert: Meik Wiking is the CEO of the Happiness Research Institute in Copenhagen (where they light candles in the office every day); he wrote this book to explore hygge's connection to happiness. If you like his style, check out his latest, The Little Book of Lykke.

 
Contact your librarian for more great books!Call InfoLink at 519-743-7502, or visit http://www.kpl.org/maywesuggest/ for more reading suggestions. 
Kitchener Public Library
85 Queen St. North
Kitchener, Ontario N2H2H1
519-743-0271

http://www.kpl.org/