I picked up a bunch of falafel filled sandwiches from our local pita place, so the kids could have a taste of Magnus Chase's favorite food. You can check out this Good Eats chickpea episode if you aren't familiar with falafel. We watched it while eating our pitas. It's quite educational.
Rick Riordan's latest hero loves falafel. My bunch...
...let's just say they're not all fans of Middle Eastern flavor (and don't even ask about the hat). The book though, has been a pretty big hit with those of us, T (age 18) - avoiding his college textbooks, D (age 12), A (age14) and yours truly, who are reading it. The children are all fans of the Percy Jackson series, but haven't cared much for Riordan's Egyptian sagas. This book, set in the 9 worlds of Norse mythology, has recaptured their interest.
In fact, they're enjoying the story enough, that I might have to re-read an old high school favorite of mine (just to make sure it isn't too colorful for their sensibilities - I was a lot more liberal in my youthful reading selections than they usually care to be).
If I remember right, pizza was the food of choice for Adam's Norse god encountering characters - pizza and something about clean, white, linen sheets.
We all like pizza (even my youngest), and clean sheets, and now have a new interest in Norse mythology. Plus, the next book in Riordan's new series doesn't come out until October. We're going to need something to read in the meantime.
I will try to make falafel one of these days. I am a big fan after all my trips to Israel. We all enjoyed Magnus Chase OK, but the book seemed a bit like a video game scenario - one mini quest after another with a mini-boss battle on each level. Not enough character development for me.
ReplyDeleteI hadn't really thought about boss battles, but that does fit. I'm assuming character development will continue on into other books. I like the little hints of deeper stories as each character is introduced. My main complaint is all the references to pop culture that won't translate into a long lasting story - they're fun for current readers though, even if they're a short-sighted literary device on Riordan's part.
ReplyDeleteMiddle Eastern cuisine hasn't gone over well here either. I liked the new book, but it wasn't my favorite of his. I really liked the Egyptian ones, and wish there was a follow on series. Though I will of course be getting the next Magnus Chase book the day it comes out and reading it in a very short time thereafter.
ReplyDeleteI laughed at the look on your daughter's face! She was not impressed, was she?!
ReplyDeleteI thought they looked quite tasty, although I've never actually tasted falafel before.
I love falafel, but it is pretty spicy...
ReplyDeleteFalafel is one of my favorites, but the kids aren't big fans. I'm tempted by the Magnus Chase book, but the children chose to do that Egyptian Veritas Press curriculum this year, and so I recently bought the first book in the Egyptian series because I'm hoping to spark an interest in it soon. :-)
ReplyDeleteI wonder if they'd prefer homemade ones. We used this recipe: http://www.ayearofslowcooking.com/2008/05/crockpot-falafel-recipe.html for years, but top them with {dare I say this} homemade ranch dressing. We also don't do them in the slow cooker, but on the stove top in oil or butter..
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