It’s a Holly Jolly Season

Saralyn Richard is the author of the Detective Parrot series and several standalones. Look for her newest novel, Mrs. Oliver’s Twist, in the coming months at www.saralynrichard.com.

This time of year, everyone has holidays on their minds, and authors are no exception. In real life, we re-enact family traditions and start new ones. We cook and eat, we shop and give gifts, we sing and watch movies. We catch up with family members and far-flung friends. We celebrate the natural world and the spiritual. We count our blessings and give thanks. We share with those less fortunate, and we indulge in more random acts of kindness than at any other time.

Holiday spirit livens up literature, too. Even in the darkest mysteries, characters observe Thanksgivings and Christmases and Chanukahs and Kwanzaas. The celebrations add humanity and warmth to tense and difficult situations.

In the second Detective Parrott mystery novel, A Palette for Love and Murder, Thanksgiving falls right after the murder. The surviving significant other invites a small number of guests for dinner, and she serves comfort food, including a hearty mushroom barley soup*. (Brandywine Valley, the story’s setting, boasts the title, Mushroom Capitol of the World.) Despite the atmosphere of grief and loss, the dinner party provides fellowship and friendship, the things that sustain us during difficult times.

Some of the characters in the first Detective Parrott novel, Murder in the One Percent, celebrate Christmas, shortly after the demise of one of their fellow partygoers. Yes, there is shock and sadness and grief, but the holidays keep rolling on, lightening up the tension, even if only temporarily.

The holidays often have nothing to do with the plot. Instead, they add symbolism to the setting and characters, providing underlying messages about morality, kindness, generosity, philosophy, and spiritual growth.

I love to read books that take place during holidays and birthdays. I also love to receive books as gifts. Easy to wrap, durable, entertaining, and educational, a treasured book reminds me of the connection I have with the giver, who has selected the story specifically for me.

While you’re enjoying the holly jolly season and all its symbolism, perhaps you’ll find time to prepare the mushroom barley soup:

6 C defatted beef stock or low-sodium broth
1 carrot, thinly sliced
1 celery rib, thinly sliced
1 onion, finely chopped
3/4 lbs. mushrooms (white, crimini, or other)
1/2 C barley
Salt
Fresh-ground pepper
Parsley to garnish

Combine all ingredients, except parsley, in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil, cover partially, and cook over moderately low heat until vegetables and barley are tender, approximately 30 minutes. Add salt and pepper if needed. Garnish with parsley and serve.
Can be refrigerated for four days. Per serving: 160 calories, 26 gm carbohydrates, 3 gm fat, 10 gm protein, 5 gm fiber.

Happy holidays to my fellow blackbird writers and to everyone in the reading and writing community.

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Saralyn Richard is the author of Naughty Nana, Murder in the One Percent, and A Palette for Love and Murder. You can find out more about her on her website, saralynrichard.com, or follow her on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.