Greetings from South Dakota! We’re Bobby & June George, co-founders of The Baan Dek Montessori. We also run an app company, called Montessorium. We now have the great pleasure of being authors of two very special Montessori books from Abrams Appleseed, Montessori Letter Work and Number Work.

Recently, several lucky members of the Abrams team were invited to take a behind-the-scenes tour of Grand Central Terminal, in advance of the 2013 publication of Grand Central Terminal: 100 Years of a New York Landmark by the New York Transit Museum and Anthony W. Robins. Our tour guide was the talented and knowledgeable Danny Brucker, who deftly guided us through hidden walkways and secret ladders to Grand Central’s hidden places.

Breakfast and baking are two very important things to me, which is why I was immediately drawn to the beautiful, expansive CakeLove in the Morning: Recipes for Muffins, Scones, Pancakes, Waffles, Biscuits, Frittatas, and Other Breakfast Treats by Warren Brown. I’ve also been to one of Brown’s bakeries in Washington, DC and I’m truly a fan of his work and the incredible path he took to becoming a baker!

I was talking on the phone with Chris Blank (Blog Wrangler) about what my topic for this month. I had missed yet another Blog Meeting and was trying to come with a plan when I glanced across my desk and through the door at my neighbor, Lindy. Lindy is not a big eater. Lindy rarely leaves her desk, as far as I can tell, but I do notice that she likes to snack. I was watching her have a snack when I decided I’d do a little post on favorite snacks here on the sixth floor, so I took myself over to Publicity and Marketing and then to Production to see what people are eating.

As a child of the 80’s, I may not have been around for the actual release of the STAR WARS movies—but as a daughter of a nerd (thanks, dad!), the movies soon became a family favorite in our household.

How was I to know that, what feels like light-years later, I would be lucky enough to work on a book called The Strange Case of Origami Yoda? My inner nerd rejoiced! At long last, my tendency to be nerdy would pay off.

I can see why Julia Child was always happiest when she had a cat in her home. I’ve had my new kitten, Pepper, for about four weeks now. I’m a first time cat owner but she has already become such a wonderful part of my life. When we adopted her it was a spur of the moment decision, and it was such a huge commitment that I wasn’t completely sure I was ready for.

Me Earl and the Dying Girl is the funniest book I have read this year. And when I say book I don’t just mean young adult, I mean adult books as well. Just to be clear. This is why I knew I needed to find someone who had the whit and edginess that Jesse Andrews put into the story to design the cover. That lucky man turned out to be Ben Wiseman. Ben up until recently had only designed book covers for adult books. An impressive list of adult titles I might add. Such as…

This August 15th would have been Julia Child’s 100th birthday, and in celebration and admiration of her work and influence, Abrams Image is publishing Julia’s Cats: Julia Child’s Life in the Company of Cats Barey and Therese Burson. From Julia’s and Paul’s letters and original interviews with those who knew her best, Barey and Burson have gathered fresh stories and images that offer a delightfully intimate view of a beloved icon. Read on for their reflections on the making of this book.

When one has a craving for dumplings, one should scour the pages of Memories of Philippine Kitchens by Amy Besa and Romy Dorotan. Last week, I had this exact craving, so I borrowed this charming and mouthwatering book from a co-worker’s bookshelf (thank you Ivy). I headed straight to the back of the book, where the dumplings can be found! My filling choices were plentiful: roasted beet (yum!), oxtail, edamame, mushrooms, and more! But the Pan-fried Corn and Mushroom Dumplings triumphed; I just can’t say “no” to fresh summer corn.

Artepublishing’s first publication is Great Impressionist and Post-Impressionist Paintings: The Musée d’Orsay. The ebook has all of the features of a traditional fine art book (200 illustrations with text), but it also has over three hours of audio, and over 500 curated hyperlinks to everything from other relevant museum collections, to videos, to the complete works of some of the artists, and even to related books and exhibition catalogs (such as the 1867 catalogue of a Manet exhibition). All of this for $7.99 at the iBookstore; unheard of for an art book!