#the land of milk and honey

[theodorejamisonseville]

“Look at the little pigglies!”

“I’ve never seen this episode before! It wasn’t on my old VHS collection.”

“Anyway, it was a really good episode!”

[claudia-nomusaabara]

what if somebody severely misunderstood the name 'land of milk and honey' and went there thinking it was a frozen yoghurt shop

Lololol!!

Thankfully that hasn't happened yet!

It's a highly secure sex club geared towards wealthy clients that specializes in dominatrixes and exploring fetishes!

I can imagine the embarrassment of a client's guest going here and expecting five-star ice cream and yogurt!

[claudia-nomusaabara]

@bottomvalerius

Kiss on the foot: Reverence; Worship; Gratitude; Submission

[kbookblurbs]

The Land of Milk and Honey - C. Pam Zhang

5/5 - ephermeral and atmospheric; indulgent; ethical dilemmas and appetite abound

This is a novel about appetite and guilt. It's about food as a love language. It's about sex and power and the end of the world. Its about hunger. Privilege. Love & fear. The simplest way I can introduce the novel would be to say, "What would you do for a good meal?"

This is all to say that I loved the novel. It feels lavish and yet not entirely there. I can't explain in any succinct way, only to say that if you like dystopian science fiction and you like the Bear, you will like this book.

[smokefalls]

Imagine Persephone for the first time in the absolute intoxication of dark, her senses stretching languid, the cave as moist as lover’s breath. The feast, the chair, the plate, the fruit: red. Imagine a story whose moral is mute desire.

C Pam Zhang, Land of Milk and Honey

[henrysglock]

Hi okay yes so I'd like to circle back around to something I said in June of 2023:

"...thinking about Vecward "hates the system" Creel and the fact that the US Military is a huge shared enemy for both him and the Party. The military is after El, thinking she's the one behind all this, which the Party isn't going to stand for. Meanwhile, they're also trying to put an end to Vecward's apocalypse (while being the very people who sanctioned the abuse he suffered), which he isn't going to take kindly to. So I'm like. What do we think the chances of either an accidental or purposeful "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" situation are. Because El and Henward were allies once, and he still doesn't seem to want to kill her, even now he knows she's a threat to him (which...there's something deeper about that than we've been told, I'm certain of it). And even if it is accidental...it would still fit within that pattern of "we're different from each other, but not as different as we like to think we are". Vecward wouldn't be hesitant with the military, I'm sure. I'm also sure he won't be siding with them. That's 100% against his whole manifesto. They certainly aren't on his side, and they very much could present as big a threat to him as El [does]...they've dealt blows to the UD in the past, especially in ST2 with the controlled burns. I mean, I'd hate to see what napalm might do to the UD, if those lab torches garnered such a massive response. It would be in his best interest to eliminate the military, and fast.

Then, with this verse from the Presbyterian church coming out:

The meaning behind it:

All the Holy Trinity coding surrounding Henry, El, and the Mindflayer/Eddie's little monologue about finding lost sheep vs the whole "returning to God" thing from the church sign, and the title of 5.07:

I'm just...hm. We got the bridges. We have a unifying goal. We've got bible references.

Anyway the web is dense and I could go through each connection step by step, but I trust y'all to get the point: there's a theme of reconciliation, specifically between the characters who have heavy ties to the bible (El, Henry, so on and so forth).

If the characters want [insert problem] problem to go away, they need to stop fighting and reconcile...per the church sign, they specifically need to do so instead of relying on "normal" human means—which is, in the case of ST5's overarching conflict, the military.

Keeping my fingers crossed that Apollo hit me with his dodge ball of prophecy on this one.

[hotelsongs]

Persephone was no fool, I realized upon rereading the myth. Aida asleep beside me, her breath sour and sweet. Imagine Persephone for the first time in the absolute intoxication of dark, her senses stretching languid, the cave as moist as lover’s breath. The feast, the chair, the plate, the fruit: red. Imagine a story whose moral is mute desire.

Land of Milk and Honey, C Pam Zhang

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

The Dedication of the Firstborn (Deuteronomy 15:19–23)

1 Then the LORD said to Moses, 2 “Consecrate to Me every firstborn male. The firstborn from every womb among the Israelites belongs to Me, both of man and beast.”

3 So Moses told the people, “Remember this day, the day you came out of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; for the LORD brought you out of it by the strength of His hand. And nothing leavened shall be eaten.

4 Today, in the month of Abib, you are leaving. 5 And when the LORD brings you into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Hivites, and Jebusites—the land He swore to your fathers that He would give you, a land flowing with milk and honey—you shall keep this service in this month.

6 For seven days you are to eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the LORD. 7 Unleavened bread shall be eaten during those seven days. Nothing leavened may be found among you, nor shall leaven be found anywhere within your borders.

8 And on that day you are to explain to your son, ‘This is because of what the LORD did for me when I came out of Egypt.’ 9 It shall be a sign for you on your hand and a reminder on your forehead that the Law of the LORD is to be on your lips. For with a mighty hand the LORD brought you out of Egypt. 10 Therefore you shall keep this statute at the appointed time year after year.

11 And after the LORD brings you into the land of the Canaanites and gives it to you, as He swore to you and your fathers, 12 you are to present to the LORD the firstborn male of every womb. All the firstborn males of your livestock belong to the LORD. 13 You must redeem every firstborn donkey with a lamb, and if you do not redeem it, you are to break its neck. And every firstborn of your sons you must redeem.

14 In the future, when your son asks you, ‘What does this mean?’ you are to tell him, ‘With a mighty hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 15 And when Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the LORD killed every firstborn in the land of Egypt, both of man and beast. This is why I sacrifice to the LORD the firstborn male of every womb, but I redeem all the firstborn of my sons.’ 16 So it shall serve as a sign on your hand and a symbol on your forehead, for with a mighty hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt.”

The Pillars of Cloud and Fire

17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them along the road through the land of the Philistines, though it was shorter. For God said, “If the people face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” 18 So God led the people around by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. And the Israelites left the land of Egypt arrayed for battle.

19 Moses took the bones of Joseph with him because Joseph had made the sons of Israel swear a solemn oath when he said, “God will surely attend to you, and then you must carry my bones with you from this place.”

20 They set out from Succoth and camped at Etham on the edge of the wilderness. 21 And the LORD went before them in a pillar of cloud to guide their way by day, and in a pillar of fire to give them light by night, so that they could travel by day or night. 22 Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place before the people. — Exodus 13 | Berean Standard Bible (BSB) The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible, BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee. This text of God's Word has been dedicated to the public domain. Cross References: Genesis 15:18; Genesis 50:24-25; Exodus 3:8; Exodus 3:20; Exodus 10:2; Exodus 12:2; Exodus 12:14-15; Exodus 12:29; Exodus 12:37; Exodus 12:51; Exodus 14:1; Exodus 14:11; Exodus 14:19; Exodus 22:29; Exodus 34:20; Numbers 14:1; Numbers 9:15; Numbers 33:6; Deuteronomy 17:16; Joshua 1:14; Isaiah 4:5; Matthew 23:5; Luke 2:23; Acts 7:15-16; Acts 13:17; 1 Corinthians 5:8; 1 Corinthians 10:1; Hebrews 11:22; Hebrews 11:27

Commentary on Exodus 13 by Matthew Henry

Key Passages in Exodus 13

1. The firstborn are sanctified to God 3. The memorial of the Passover is commanded 11. The firstborn of man and beast are set apart 17. The Israelites go out of Egypt, and carry Joseph's bones with them. 20. They come to Etham 21. God guides them by a pillar of a cloud, and a pillar of fire

[florallylly]

eddie munson be pathetically and grossly in love with steve harrington challenge

[the-garbanzo-annex-jr]

[withheartsaligned]

#oc_tober | introduction

a review from the first umbral moon edition in the seventh astral era of the eorzea chronicle: 'a land of gold and spice' by hikari gakunin is a stunning follow-up to her debut novel, 'void's notes'. gakunin is a breathtakingly fine writer, with an assurance and expertise to her craft that make it hard to believe she has only written two novels. in 'a land of gold and spice', she tells the tale of a chef from ala mhigo working under the employment of a member of the syndicate, weaving a scathing criticism of the inequality of survival between sensual depictions of carnal pleasures and luxurious meals. her third and highly anticipated book 'neath brightest sun' is expected to be published later this year, though there are whispers of a potential delay, following gakunin's enrollment into the eorzean adventurer's guild.

[dwellordream]

- C Pam Zhang, Land of Milk and Honey

[spindleprick]

Innocence and tragedy were applied to her young face like makeup,

C Pam Zhang, Land of Milk and Honey

[bookquotesforthesoul]

To me that wine was fig and plum; volcanic soil; wheat fields shading to salt stone; sun; leather, well-baked; and finally, most lingering, strawberry. Psychosomatic, I'm sure, but what flavor isn't?

C Pam Zhang, Land of Milk and Honey

[smokefalls]

I can see now that I was hungry for love that summer. For something to love: a bite, a dream, a person, a meal, a field, a piece of a world worth believing in.

C Pam Zhang, Land of Milk and Honey

[bloodmaarked]

land of milk and honey // c pam zhang

first published: 2023 read: 03 november 2024 - 10 november 2024 pages: 232 format: paperback

genres: fiction; adult; literary fiction; speculative fiction; food favourite character(s): it's the way i didn't care for anyone least favourite character(s): the (unnamed) main character

rating: 🌕🌕🌗🌑🌑 thoughts: first of all, sorry to r.f. kuang who convinced me to pick up land of milk and honey when, at her talk in london last month, she recommended books by east asian authors that she'd recently read and love. my good sis led me astray - she made it sound way more interesting than it was! i buddy read this with my sister (who had this on her tbr for different reasons) and it's fair to say that despite our different reading tastes, we both realised fairly quickly that this book was not for us.

i had quite high hopes in the beginning. the idea that a chef gets caught up in among the rich and elite who are escaping a smog that is killing the world's plants and animals (and therefore, the world's food supplies) sounds really interesting. i feel that kuang leaned into the dystopian vibe a little when she described it, and honestly i would've liked to read the book she described much more than what we actually got. instead, it was a book mostly centred around an anonymous chef who compromises her ethics, sleeps with her employer's daughter, and "cooks" weird foods - all told in the dullest way possible. the writing style was somehow both pretentious and bland, and gave me nothing to work with. if there had been a crumb of excitement in the writing of the food, i might have at least found enjoyment in visualising the delicious meals, but that was lacking too. the themes the author wanted to discuss were there (in their most simplistic form i fear), yet i honestly came away feeling like the book had nothing to say.

the three main characters - the chef, her employer (both unnamed), and the employer's daughter Aida, were all dull dull dull. at first i found it quite intriguing that the main character was a mostly blank slate, but actually i feel like i could've done with more info, to give me something to invest in. all three characters were unlikeable on top of being boring, and i truly didn't care what happened to any of them in the end.

what i'm most thankful about is that this book was short, but i'm shocked that the story managed to feel so dragged out. i really had to force myself to pick it up and get it over with. i can't recommend this because i have no idea who this would work for.