There needs to be an Eva Ibbotson companion cookbook. Really. All of her books are full of the most delicious sounding meals and sweets, many of which I have not the slightest idea how to recreate. The snow-white meringue swan from A Countess Below Stairs? The unnamed but lovingly described Brazilian delights from A Company of Swans and Journey to the River Sea? No idea where to start. But, thankfully, when it comes to one of her most frequently mentioned treats, vanilla kipferl, I know exactly what to do. Theoretically. I mean, I’ve eaten enough over many Christmases that I should know exactly what to do! In practice, they’re not quite as I had remembered them but they are very, very close (I used store-bought vanilla sugar rather than homemade, which I think is difference I’m tasting and I had a lot of trouble making them as small as they really should be). Ibbotson’s are always made with almonds whereas our family recipe calls for walnuts but I’m willing to overlook her misguided preference (not that almonds wouldn’t also be delicious). For now, these are the perfect accompaniment to my reading of A Glove Shop in Vienna and Other Stories.
The Captive Reader 
I love this idea! A Song for Summer is full of food – good and bad, and so is Madensky Square. My mouth is watering at the sight of your vanilla kipferl.
A lovely idea!
Yum! Love the idea as well…but I wouldn’t be able to get out the front door if I read along with her books. 🙂
That should be if I “ate as I read along.”
Oooo, those remind me of the Greek powdered sugar cookies, kourambetha, we make and which I do pretty well with, but, nope, not as good as my grandmother’s were. Sigh.
Those look amazing – we’ve always had those sorts of things in Austria at Christmas
I simply adore Eva Ibbotson’s books and am so sad she is no longer with us. I have been collecting her titles for years and for quite some time many of them were out of print. Your picture shows the same edition of Glove Shop in Vienna that I own and I love it. Madensky Square is also another one of hers that is quite enchanting.
Many of her books have been reissued as Young Adult books with new covers and while I am delighted they are available, I really don’t think they were aimed at that market. I could be wrong, naturally….