Nile Valley Books, 1921 Gerrard St. E., Toronto

On our daily walks, we somehow always end up peeking in the window of Nile Valley Books (scroll down to 'Black Bookstores').


What first drew our eye to this unique bookstore, besides its inviting presence, was the vibrant cover of Island Counting 1 2 3 by the divinely talented Frane Lessac.




Nile Valley Books has irregular hours, so it took us a while to have the opportunity to shop there. It was a magical experience for jr cookie monster to finally have the book he'd be admiring in his hands. He just held the book while I poked around and spoke with the Nohsakhere Ibrahim, the gentle, kind and ever so knowledgeable book lover owner.

Together he and I caught the end of a radio show about lead painted toys & recalls. He shook his head with disbelief saying 'wasn't lead outlawed decades ago'?! Though I wanted to stay and chat, my eldest tiny book lover was anxious to get home and devour his new book (which to this day remains one of his and his sister's favourites).

If you live in TO or are ever around, make a point to visit this wonderful book haven.
Currently their window is dedicated to Black History Month - the few featured cookbooks look tantalizing.






Nile Valley Books
1921 Gerrard Street East (west of Woodbine, north side)
Toronto, ON M4L 2C2
Tel: 416 686-7441
Toll Free: 800 368-0079
sokoto@on.aibn.com
Contact: Nohsakhere Ibrahim

HUNGRY PLANET: WHAT THE WORLD EATS

Two of my many hobbies includes reading and being frugal. So you can imagine how grateful I am libraries *still* exist. Getting the automaton call telling me that 'one or more items' I've requested has arrived gives me butterflies. At yesterday's pick up I was delighted to see that one of the books waiting for me was HUNGRY PLANET: WHAT THE WORLD EATS by Peter Menzel and Faith D'Alusio.

I've only had a chance to glance at a couple family portraits - with two hyper monkeys dangling off my legs 24/7 it's difficult to absorb the massive effect of this beautiful looking book. I can not wait for 'alone' time to read, look at the detail in each photo and try out some real recipes!