Read
March in Minnesota is a time of planning and dreaming. India Hicks: Island Style is a dreamer’s guidebook. Author and photographer India Hicks is the granddaughter of Lord Mountbatten, the goddaughter of Prince Charles, and the daughter of famed interior designer David Hicks. All of these men play a role in her decorating style and her definitions of home. She lives on Harbour Island in the Bahamas with her partner, David, and their five children. She incorporates history and memoir into the text, along with her design guidelines: grouping makes the ordinary extraordinary; reupholster, repaint, reuse; and love your family. Available at Barnes and Noble.
-Maureen Millea Smith is a librarian at the Edina Library and a Minnesota Book Award-winning novelist.
Drink
From the melting snow to the hope of budding spring trees and flowers, in March I crave the lively, mouthwatering notes of a fresh white wine. And when I think fresh, fun and zippy in the wine world, I think of sauvignon blanc. A grape that grows from the Loire Valley of France to parts of California, Chile, Spain, Australia, Austria and one of its juiciest regions, New Zealand. Often erupting with notes of bright grapefruit and cut green grass, New Zealand’s “Savis” are fresh, inviting and explosive. Try the Doctors’ sauvignon blanc. It shows characteristics of its famed Marlborough terroir but approaches the senses softly, with tender notes of guava, kumquat, tangerine and hibiscus, making this wine seductively approachable. Also it comes in at a low alcohol point, so it pairs with virtually anything on your spring table. Available at France 44.
-Leslee Miller is a certified sommelier and owner of local wine consulting firm, Amusee.
Listen
One of the most influential R & B artists in the past 20 years is writer, producer, recording artist and 11-time Grammy winner Kenny ”Babyface” Edmunds. His new release, Return of the Tender Lover is a message about feeling good through music. Instrumental in the careers of artists like Paula Abdul and Michael Jackson, Babyface takes his winning sounds back into the studio to create nine original pieces. He brings legendary A-listers, including Nathan East on bass and Greg Philliangaines on keyboards. El DeBarge sings on “Walking on Air,” and After Seven sings on “I Want You.” Babyface’s lead single, “We’ve Got Love,” says even if we’ve got nothing else, we’ve got love. What else would you expect from R & B’s No. 1 tender lover? Available on iTunes, Amazon and babyfacemusic.com.
-Patty Peterson is an award winning vocalist and Jazz 88, KBEM radio host.
