The Year the Swallows Came Early by Kathryn Fitzmaurice

Welcome to Day 1 of the Kidz Book Buzz 3 day tour for the delightful book The Year the Swallows Came Early by Kathryn Fitzmaurice! For those who have not heard of, or seen, this book - run to the nearest store, library, online book site and get your hands on a copy now!! You will be transported into the world of Eleanor "Groovy" Robinson from the very first page. Deemed as a children's book, this is a story that will engage both young and young at heart, within it's pages.

The Year the Swallows Came Early revolves around Groovy and her love of cooking, food prep/planning and her deep desire to one day go to culinary school. Her life suddenly takes an unexpected turn and she must come to terms with many things that she never thought she would have to - including reaching deep within to find forgiveness for someone dear.

For today's tour stop, I thought it would be fun to focus a bit on Groovy's love of food. Within the story, Groovy puts together a list of food connections, which she cleverly deems "Foodology"

"Half the word coming from food, of course, and half coming from astrology. I decided that if you could look it up in the dictionary, it would say: (noun) the study of food; the way certain foods remind people of things." **this passage taken from page 256 of The Year the Swallows Came Early

The following is Groovy's list:

scrambled eggs = talking to Mama in the fog

chocolate-covered coconut candy = our house

one of Luis's tacos = the swallows coming back

white chocolate = Marisol

How true it is that certain songs, smells and foods bring back memories from the past. I loved how Groovy came up with Foodology and wanted to expand on that, by making my own list.

My list:

~~ chocolate malt o meal and buttered toast = chilly childhood mornings

~~ cooked green peppers = late night family pizza and movie as a child

~~ strawberry shakes = when I was 10, I had to have an upper/lower GI done and had to drink this nasty chalky strawberry liquid for it. Afterwards, we went to Hardees and I got a strawberry shake, which I could not finish and to this day cannot stand the taste.

~~ cheesy scrambled eggs = braces

~~ fudge = my grandma (she made the best fudge in the world)

~~ pan fried fresh fish = camping and fishing trips with my grandma and grandpa

These are a few things that always come instantly to my mind with these particular foods. It's amazing how a certain food can be like wrapping up in a warm blanket of comforting memories. For Groovy, food and working with food is a comfort and a great enjoyment. It is an extension of herself - as many of our own hopes, dreams, talents and enjoyments are an extension of each and every one of us.

So, what about you? What are your food connections? What foods would you put down on your list of "foodology"?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Please be sure to stop back by tomorrow to learn more about this not to be missed book, The Year the Swallows Came Early and to learn more about Eleanor "Groovy" Robinson!

In the meantime, please stop by the other awesome blogs on this tour:

A Christian Worldview of Fiction
All About Children’s Books
Becky’s Book Reviews
Booking Mama
Cafe of Dreams
Dolce Bellezza
Fireside Musings
Homeschool Buzz
Hyperbole
KidzBookBuzz.com
Looking Glass Reviews
Maw Books Blog
Never Jam Today
Novel Teen
Reading is My Superpower