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Curtis Sittenfeld calls this debut "a truly brilliant and amazing first novel."

Cecilia Rabess’s debut novel, Everything’s Fine, is poignant, punchy, and chock full of the kind of book discussion fodder we devour. Meet Jess and Josh. They’re fast nemeses in college who later come face to face and desk to desk at a corporate bank post-grad. Josh is everything that Jess stands against; Jess is exactly who Josh wants by his side. To call this a simple romance, though, would be doing this story a radical injustice.

Their relationship is far from simple, as 2016 politics take center stage in seemingly every corner of their lives. As Jess explores the galvanization of her ethics and her professional life, facing all-too-typical hurdles in her career trajectory, her personal relations suddenly feel quite… wrong. Josh has big feelings for Jess, but the rigid expectations of the powers that be in his life threaten their love.

You’ll feel it all alongside one of our favorite protagonists of recent reads — and won’t want to wait to deconstruct every last detail.

Everything's Fine

by Cecilia Rabess

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Crispy Falafel

From The Feel Good Foodie Cookbook by Yumna Jawad

The Feel Good Foodie Cookbook

by Yumna Jawad

Jess and Josh have a rocky start to their relationship, but before long they’re lunchtime pals, popping out of the climate-controlled highrise to trawl the city streets for high-quality food truck fare — a rite of passage, if ever there were one for young professionals.

We’re taking our recipe inspo from there and serving up a platter of falafel, courtesy of The Feel Good Foodie Cookbook. Yumna Jawad says you’ll want to fry the falafel the old-fashioned way, in a pan with hot oil, and that you’ll want to start with dry, uncooked chickpeas, rather than the canned stuff, for optimal results. Her recommendations are data backed — just the way Jess and Josh like things.

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INGREDIENTS

1 pound dry, uncooked chickpeas
1 tbsp salt
3/4 cup fresh parsley
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
1 large yellow onion, roughly chopped
1 garlic clove
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp baking powder
Neutral oil, such as canola oil, for frying

STEPS

1. In a medium bowl, cover the chickpeas with water. Set aside at room temperature to soak for at least 12 or up to 24 hours.

2. Drain the chickpeas. Rinse and dry them well.

3. Place the chickpeas and salt in a food processor. Pulse to fine pebble-size pieces. Add the parsley, cilantro, onion, garlic, cumin, coriander, and pepper. Blend until the mixture turns into a thick paste, scraping down the sides as needed. Remove the blade from the bowl, then cover the bowl of the food processor and refrigerate for 1 hour (this allows the batter to set).

4. Remove the falafel batter from the fridge. Sprinkle the baking powder over the top, then gently fold it throughout.

5. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and another large baking sheet with a double layer of paper towels. Set aside.

6. Using a medium spring-loaded cookie scoop or your hands, scoop, firmly pack, and roll about 1-1/2 tbsp of batter into a ball and add it to the parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining batter. Don’t worry if the balls feel a little loose at first -- they will bind once they fry.

7. Heat 1 inch of the oil in a large high-sided frying pan over medium heat. When a small piece of batter dropped into the oil begins to sizzle, carefully add 10 to 12 of the balls, being careful not to crowd the pan. Fry until golden brown and crispy, 3 to 3-1/2 minutes per side. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the cooked falafel to the paper towel-lined baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining uncooked falafel.

8. Transfer the falafel to a serving platter.

Excerpted from THE FEEL GOOD FOODIE COOKBOOK by Yumna Jawad. Copyright © 2024 by Yumna Jawad. Used by permission of Rodale Books, an imprint of Random House, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

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You know that feeling when you finish a stunning novel and want nothing more than to dig into discussion but just don’t know where to start? Yeah, us too. Kick off your contemplation or conversation with these discussion questions.

Get the questions

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Everything’s Fine got us thinking about other fabulous novels we’ve read about women in the workplace. Click through to check out some of our absolute favorites. Take your pick and get ready to be swept into a few nine-to-fives that will blow your mind.

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Domaine Gilles Coperet Fleurie Les Roches 2021	Le Petit Silex Sancerre
We’re going with our red wine pick — the Domaine Gilles Coperet Fleurie Les Roches — because it’s a perfect pairing for our recipe, below. What’s more? We can absolutely see Jess and pals pulling out a bottle of this, slightly chilled, as they catch up on their weeks on a chill Friday night.	On one particularly perfect date night, Josh makes Jess linguine, and opens a bottle of sancerre. We’re splurging a smidge for this Le Petit Silex Sancerre. This bottle is crisp and a little bit floral. If we were Josh, we’d make sure to fix up a seafood pasta for a particularly delectable pairing.

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