Book Description
The brand-new mystery series starring the brilliant, beloved, and slightly off-balance sleuth from the USA Network's hit show!
Monk's house is being fumigated, and he has nowhere to go. Fortunately, his assistant Natalie and her daughter are kind enough to welcome him into their home. Unfortunately, their home is not quite up to Monk's standards of cleanliness and order.
But while Monk attempts to arrange his surroundings just so, something else needs to be put straight. The death of a dog at the local firehouse-on the same night as a fatal house fire-has led Monk into a puzzling mystery. And much to his horror, he's going to have to dig through a lot of dirt to find the answer.
Customer Reviews:
quirky but interesting.......2007-07-31
Unlike many other reviewers, I don't watch the show, but after reading this book, I think I might like to try watching it. It seems like some reviewers complain because Natalie isn't the same in the book as on TV, but that didn't bother me at all, since I don't know her on TV. Monk is an unusual, and clever detective who finds clues that almost nobody else could spot. The book reads like a cozy, which is fine with me. There is very little hard drama to it. Mostly we just sit back and enjoy the personality of Monk as he gripes about germs wherever he goes.
Awesome!.......2007-03-08
I'm a huge Monk fan. After getting through Seasons 1-4, which I got for Christmas, I was looking for more. I found the books, and thought why not give it a try. Mr. Monk and the Firehouse is an excellent read. Quick and easy, yet suspenseful, just like the show. The first few pages started out kind of "slow", and I was worried it wasn't going to be as good as the show, but once you get about 1/3rd into the book, it gets really good. The story is told by Natalie, which is hilarious. If you've seen the show, it's really easy to picture everything that is going on, it's almost like you're right there with them. Even if you haven't ever seen the show, the book is still worth a read. It's great!
Entertaining Book!! .......2007-02-21
I love the series Monk and have always been a fan of Tony Shaloub, he is the funniest guy ever. Loved him as Antonio in Wings and equally so in Monk. This book had me laughing out loud, I kept seeing Mr. Shaloub through the book as I read, His mannerisms etc. There is mystery and humor throughout. This was actually the first one I read and I went right out to buy Mr. Monk and the Blue Flu and Mr. Monk goes to Hawaii. Can't wait to get to them.
Very entertaining and a change of pace, truly enjoyable! Hope Mr. Goldberg as more on the way, fun read.
If you enjoy the show you'll enjoy this book!.......2007-01-29
The author does an excellent job of capturing the feel and characters in the television show! Monk's assistant, Natalie Teeger, narrates this episode, which begins with her daughter Julie requesting Adrian Monk's help in finding out who killed the fire department's dalmation that used to visit Julie's class at school. Of course, the case soon expands to include murder, which Monk is quick to include in his investigation. Everybody is exactly as they are in the TV show, which makes this book perfect for fans of this unusual, very entertaining, and often both highly amusing and warm crime drama! Don't mess with Monk!
Like cozying up in front of the TV.......2007-01-10
Lee Goldberg's Mr. Monk Goes to the Firehouse is the first book in a series of mysteries based on the charming television show "Monk," which stars Tony Shaloub as the brilliant, obsessive-compulsive detective Adrian Monk. Monk, a former policeman whose eccentricities cost him his badge, regularly consults with the San Francisco Police Department, helping his one-time partner Captain Leland Stottlemeyer solve ostensibly unsolvable homicides. Monk's genius for detail allows him to notice things other investigators overlook, and Monk pretty much always gets his man--the one exception being that Monk has been unable to solve the mystery of his own wife's murder.
Goldberg's novel, told from the perspective of Monk's assistant, Natalie Teeger, finds Monk investigating a series of related murders, beginning with the death-by-pickaxe of a firehouse dalmation. The quest for Sparky's killer leads Monk far outside his comfort zone--as far, in fact, as the city dump, where the germophobic detective dons a hazmat suit to dig for incriminating garbage. Monk has to wrestle his demons through the rest of the story, too, as he is forced to live in Natalie's house while his own comfortably sterile apartment is being fumigated.
Fans of "Monk," the series, will not be disappointed in Goldberg's addition to the franchise. The story's plot and the characterization of Monk strain credibility in a few spots, but on the whole the book is a great read. The mystery is engaging, but the best thing about Mr. Monk Goes to the Firehouse is the dialogue, which is sometimes laugh-out-loud funny. I don't know how the lines would come across to readers who have never seen the television series (though I can't imagine that a TV tie-in is likely to have a large audience among people unfamiliar with the show), but the dialogue struck me, at least, as vintage "Monk." Reading the book was an experience very much like cozying up in front of the TV for a good episode. I look forward to reading the second book in the series, also by Goldberg, Mr. Monk Goes to Hawaii.
Debra Hamel -- author of Trying Neaira: The True Story of a Courtesan's Scandalous Life in Ancient Greece (Yale University Press, 2003)
Product Description
A Novel based on the Televison Series created by Andy Beckman
Customer Reviews:
Mr. Monk Goes To The Firehouse.......2006-07-30
Obsessive. Compulsive. Detective.
First in an all-new series of original mysteries starring Adrian Monk, the brilliant investigator who always knows when something's out of place...
Monk's house is being fumigated, and he has nowhere to go. Fortunately, his assistant, Natilie, and her daughter are kind enough to welcome him into their home. Unfortunately, their home is not quite up to Monk's standards of cleanliness and order....
But while Monk attempts to arrange his surroundings just so, something else needs to be put straight. The death of a dog at the local firehouse - on the same night as a fatal house fire - has led Monk into a puzzling mystery. And much to his horror, Monk is going to have to dig through a lot of dirt to find the answer.....
--- from books dustjacket
Book Description
A re-creation of the American Revolution from the British point of view --and a dramatically different picture of the birth of our nation.
Using firsthand accounts--journals, letters from British officers in the field, reports from colonial governors in the colonies--Michael Pearson has provided a contemporary report of the Revolution as the British witnessed it. Seen from this perspective, some of the major events of the war are given startling interpretations: for example, the British considered their defeat at Bunker Hill nothing more than a minor setback, especially in light of their capture of New York and Philadelphia. Only at the very end of the conflict did they realize that the Yankees had lost the battles but won the war. From the Boston Tea Party to that day in 1785 when the first U.S. ambassador presented his credentials to a grudging George III, here is the full account of "those damned rebels" who somehow managed to found a new nation.
Customer Reviews:
Another Great Book on the American Revolution!.......2006-12-22
"Those Damned Rebels" is another well researched, well written and compelling book on the American Revolution. While presenting the Revolutionary War from a British perspective, it succeeds admirably in stripping away some of the distortions and myths surrounding both sides.
The book also presents a realistic picture of the world's greatest power at the time attempting to put down a revolt for the understandable reason that British leaders believed that if they failed, their whole empire would collapse. There is thus a great deal in this history that resonates deeply today as Americans struggle with the future of their military involvement in Iraq.
Two aspects of this book are particularly noteworthy. The first is the tremendous resistance among the British themselves to military involvement against the North American colonies, a resistance that undermined the King's political and military commitment to quelling the American revolution. Centered in Parliament and supported by parts of the British media, such resistance provided "those damned rebels" with a great deal of political and moral support.
A second aspect is the key role played in the American victory in 1782 by allies - especially France, Spain and Holland. All provided troops, weapons and equipment and expanded the American revolt into a world war. It was a war the British had problems sustaining.
According to author Michael Pearson, it was the threatened involvement of Russia in support of the Americans that finally broke British resistance to a settlement with the revolutionaries.
This is a tremendously good read and suitable for either student or scholar of the American Revolutionary War. But there is also a great deal in America's first long war that rings true today as Americans struggle in another long war to quell a revolt in Iraq.
Well written, exciting even!.......2005-11-21
A very readable book. Contemporary events and characters in England, the colonies, and Europe are presented in a way which enables the reader to see how their interaction affects the war. Important characters are well developed, and the battles are described in just enough detail that they remain exciting.
A major flaw is the lack of readable maps. ( I nearly wore out my atlas.) Most of the reproductions of original maps are virtually illegible, and a good portion of each map is obsured by the book binding.
Couldn't put it down.......2003-07-01
I'm not a history buff. But having taken my son on a trip around Revolutionary War sites in Vermont and New York, I became interested in knowing more about the fascinating characters I was just learning about. This book is not only quite readable, its focus, clearly different from the "same old same old" that we get in the States, made that long war much easier to understand.
I was truly amazed to learn what the people on both sides had to deal with day in and day out. Entire battles, for instance, could be won or lost depending on the direction of the wind or whether illness had swept through the camps in the previous week.
I was also able to see Britain as a country very much like this one is now: powerful, with much of its considerable wealth (for those times) concentrated in the hands of a few, with a government paying only lip service, to a great extent, to the ideals by which it is supposed to be governing.
If you read this book only for enlightenment as to how we are now following in the footsteps of that once-great world power, it's worth it. (The similarities between the two Georges are fascinating.) But to learn, also, how very courageous as well as how very human the Patriots were is both comforting and awe-inspiring.
A Very Good Historical Account.......2003-02-06
`Those Damned Rebels' was originally published in 1972 in hardback and later re-released in paperback in 2000. I am glad that DaCapo Press decided to re-publish this title, as it's one of the better one-volume accounts of the American Revolution that I have read for some time. As the sub title indicates this book is mainly the war as seen though British eyes but after reading the book I think it's without any particular bias.
The author uses numerous first-hand accounts and reports from the participants to reconstruct the events as they appeared to the soldiers, sailors, commanders and politicians at that time. This is so well done that the narrative never bogs down or becomes boring. The story is told in such a fluid and informative manner that it literally sweeps you into the history of the monumental events of this period.
The author covers all the main highlights of this war, from Bunker Hill to the surrender at Yorktown but he also supplies information on many of the smaller battles and skirmishes throughout this war. Nor does the author exclude events in Britain and Europe and the ramifications of battles won and lost in America on those seats of power that were involved in this conflict from afar.
The story moves from the battlefields of America to the Kings Court and Parliament in England and into the Courts of France, Spain, Russia and Holland. The events are told in manner that gives the reader a feeling of "authentic immediacy of an eye witness".
In over 402 pages of narrative (hardback version) the story told gives the reader a full account on the birth of the United States of America. The only gripe I have with this book (the 1972 edition) was the standard of the maps. In this edition they were taken from original maps of the time which I suppose fits in with the author's intention but are pretty useless to the modern reader to track events.
Overall I found this to be an easy to read book and I am sure that most people who enjoy this period of history will have a great time reading this account.
Excellent.......2002-07-14
It's too bad this book is listed as out of print but it's worth the effort to hunt it down. It gives an interesting account on the Revolutionary War from the eyes of the English. Too often Americans are only exposed to our perspective of the battle but in this struggle (like the rest of life) there are at least two sides to each story.
Great book.
Book Description
This book has four stories that share the trials and tribulations of several different characters. "The Book of Requel" tells the life and story of Requel, an angel-vampire crossbreed. In this story he fights with God, his mother Lilith, and his best friend, Alan, just to get the world to change to a better place. "The Black Spider" follows a killer who rapes, tortures and then kills young girls. "Psycho Dreamer" is a story about an autistic boy who is beaten by his father and he gets revenge in an unusual way. "Remorse of the Seven Sins" is a story that shows everything you do will come back to you. In the end, the things you do might prevent you from entering the ever-after.
Book Description
Master storyteller Fred Saberhagen continues his Berserker series, detailing humanity's war with the dreaded Juggernaut-like machines programmed to destroy all life in the galaxy.In the Twin World planets, Prairie and Timber, Plenipotentiary Gregor is determined to serve his government. Even if it means executing innocent Huvean hostages, invaders from another planet. And even though Gregor's granddaughter, Luon, is in love with Reggie, a Huvean.But now the Berserkers are threatening the Twin Worlds, crashing a scoutship, capturing the planets' president, and reprogramming his brain to suit their violent agenda. And only the Huveans, in a desperate reprieve, can save the Twin Worlds' populace from annihilation.
Customer Reviews:
Disappointing.......2006-06-08
Earlier books in this series had led me to expect much more than this installment delivered. Sadly, it reads like the work of someone who has run out of new ideas, and is milking the old ones for all they're worth.
We don't really learn anything new about the berserkers. We don't care much about the characters. There's precious little science in this science fiction. And the book itself could probably have been 10 percent shorter if Saberhagen's characters could just stop using his made-up swear word (it's "motherless").
Out of respect for earlier books in the series I finished reading this one, but I can't see myself picking up another. If you enjoyed the berserker books do yourself a favor and skip this one, and leave those pleasant memories intact.
Berserkers Deserve Better.......2005-06-15
Berserkers are among the archtypical monsters of science-fiction. They are machines capable of self-replication and self-
repair that exist for no other purpose than to eliminate life, which of course has predictable consequences when said machines encounter humanity. The Berserker represents several common themes of science fiction--the potential danger of artificial intelligence, the wisdom of unleashing the ultimate weapon, the unknown dangers of space, parallells between artificial and natural intelligences, etc. Unfortunately, none of these ideas are explored in this book. The original stories were great, but Berserker Prime doesn't come close to delivering on its promise.
first contact with the Berkserkers.......2005-02-04
This would be called a prequel, going back to the situation briefly sketched by the Carmpam first historial in the linking material in the first collection of Berserker stories. Mankind has spread to the stars, and two star systems are on the brink of war. And a Berkserker shows up. Having been a Saberhagen fan since my first delireous reading of Changeling Earth (part of Empire of the East), and still remembering my first discovery of his Berserker stories with pleasure. And I liked this one. I enjoyed seeing Hemphill as a cadet, a fascinating character who appeared in three of the original tales. And I especially like Saberhagen's wry use of Asimov's Three Laws set against the presence of the murderous berkserkers.
Total Disappointment.......2004-05-12
Having grown up reading both Saberhagen's Berserker series and Swords series I was excited to see that the Master had put out yet another Berserker novel. That was where the excitement ended.
This book is beyond bad. It is terrible. I forced myself to finish reading it, desperately hoping that some twist of plot would make the effort worthwhile. There was none.
Flat characters. Full of clichés. Bad stereotypes. Limited plotline. Overall, shallow and uninteresting. But it gets worse - there is one characters that is obviously supposed to be Saberhagen himself.
Like the pro athlete that we watch achieve greatness then stay in the game past their prime and fall quickly below mediocrity before our eyes, I only wish that Mr Saberhagen had walked away from the keyboard years ago so that we could remember him going out with a bang, not this flat fizzle.
solid but typical Berserker tale.......2004-01-10
The inhabitants of the twin planets Prairie and Timber feel euphoric having defeated the Huvean invasion. However, as Plenitpotenary Gregor prepares to have the Huvean prisoners executed over the objection of his granddaughter Luon who loves a Huvean, the Berserkers invade the twin-planets.
The Twins do not know much about these robots except that they are ancient construct killing machines. Ironically, only the Huvean might be able to stop the raiders, but they are prisoners with death awaiting them. Will the Plenitpotenary negotiate life for life or will he remain stubborn in face of the Berserker assault that means with no help certain Twin pandemic genocide?
Fans of the Berserker series will enjoy this solid but typical ninth book. The story line is fast-paced and filled with plenty of action and the usual Cecil DeMille-size cast. Though the valiant good guys without thought are willing to die for the Twin-Huvean cause, the Berserker robots are as malevolent as ever. An interesting underlying theme throughout the plot is Fred Saberhagan's Laws of Robotics: (1) a simple output is better generated by machine; (2) situations when values should determine outcomes, humanity needs to supersede computers. Though quite predictable as a normal Berserker entry, this still remains a prime space opera.
Harriet Klausner
Average customer rating:
- A book for Real Food lovers.....
- Food and Family are intermixed for the guilt free
- 10 star delicious book
- a disappointment
- Rare Intelligence, Well Told, by a Major Food Writer
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Mediterranean Grains and Greens: A Book of Savory, Sun-Drenched Recipes
Paula Wolfert
Manufacturer: William Morrow Cookbooks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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General
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Mediterranean
| European
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| Cooking, Food & Wine
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Healthy
| Special Diet
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Vegetables
| Vegetables & Vegetarian
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Paula Wolfert's world of food: A collection of recipes from her kitchen, travels, and friends
ASIN: 0060172517 |
Amazon.com
Paula Wolfert's Mediterranean Grains and Greens shares her adventures as a cultural explorer. Her discoveries show the probing of a culinary scholar and the passion of a true amateur. The result is a rich tapestry of information, images, and alluring recipes. Even if you don't cook, you will be entranced as this culinary Scheherazade spins her tales of a thousand-and-one discoveries and delights, which, in this case, are all real.
Typically, Wolfert introduces her recipe for Wheatberries, Lentils, and Rice with Fresh Herbs by regaling you with information about many other pulse-and-grain dishes from Spain to the Middle East that you have probably never heard of. She then enchants you with the story of how a Cretan chef shared this particular recipe, and explains that on Crete, there are three names for this type of soup: one is rooted in ancient times, one is linked to a local festival, and the third uses a play on words.
Few recipes in this, Wolfert's fifth cookbook on the Mediterranean region, are familiar. Her goal is to open our eyes to ingredients like green wheat, farro, mallow, and Tuscan kale. Some of the work records recipes for earthy, traditional dishes that are fast disappearing from the table as women in Mediterranean countries no longer have the time to make them, and as prosperity pulls people away from this "cooking of the poor." This book should also inspire wider demand for wild greens such as tart purslane, spinach-like lamb's quarters, grains like farro, and other unfamiliar Mediterranean ingredients. Wolfert also suggests substitutes, since many of the greens are interchangeable with chard, arugula, watercress, or spinach.
For simple dishes, try Escarole Stuffed with Capers, Golden Raisins, and Pine Nuts; Egyptian koshery, a blend of rice, lentils, pasta, and browned onions; and Winter Squash Pilaf with Bulgur. Bread bakers will be intrigued by recipes that use barley, semolina, and chickpeas. --Dana Jacobi
Book Description
Paula Wolfert is passionate about the Mediterranean -- its landscape, its people, its culture, and above all, its rich culinary tradition. Her five earlier cookbooks celebrated the sensuous pleasures of the Mediterranean kitchen and introduced a previously uninitiated American audience to an exciting new way of cooking and eating.
In her eagerly awaited Mediterranean Grains and Greens, Wolfert continues that tradition, focusing on the delectable grains and greens-based dishes she discovered as she spent five years traversing the Mediterranean region, from Spain in the west toIsrael, Lebanon, and Syria in the east, with stops in France, Italy, Turkey, and Greece.
Here are bountiful breads (Mirsini's Spiced Barley Bread); mouthwatering pastries (Spicy Beef, Olives, and Capers in Semolina Pastry Turnovers); nourishing comfort soups (Garlic Soup with Leafy Greens); crisp salads of mixed greens, cooked green salads, and savory grain salads (Samira's Tabbouleh with Parsley, Bulgur, Cinnamon, and Cumin); unusual desserts (Tunisian Homemade Couscous with Golden Raisins); and accompanying sauces, condiments, and seasonings. Though Mediterranean Grains and Greens is not a vegetarian cookbook, meat, fish, and poultry, when they appear, are used primarily as condiments and flavor enhancers rather than the main focus of a meal.
Throughout, Wolfert explains the historical and cultural significance of her dishes, sharing traditional preparation techniques as well as her adaptations for the American home kitchen. Ever conscious of the availability of ingredients in this country, she recommends readily available alternatives found in grocery stores and farmer's markets. Whether foraging for wild "apron greens" in the Turkish countryside, "listening" to risotto in Venice to tell if it's ready to eat, making homemade rustic pasta on the island of Crete, baking Sardinian flatbread the old-fashioned way, scrambling eggs with kofte along the Euphrates, or preparing the unusual "black paellas" of Valencia, Paula Wolfert shares her adventures in the engaging first-person stories that accompany each recipe. This comprehensive collection invites Paula Wolfert's loyal fans and followers to rediscover the joys of Mediterranean living, cooking, and eating right along with her. Like her earlier works, the enticing, wide-ranging Mediterranean Grains and Greens is destined to become a kitchen classic, a book that every serious cook, armchair traveler, and lover of good food will want to own.
Customer Reviews:
A book for Real Food lovers............2007-08-26
I had high expectations for this book when I had a look at it on Amazon. What appealed to me especially was that it was a book about greens and grains. When I received the book, I looked through it page by page. I had high expectations about the number of recipes in the book, and was initially disappointed. It is a very romantic book, telling tales of the author, Paul Wolfert's experiences with cooks in traditional regions. Whilst these anecdotes are interesting, and lend a traditional flavour to the book, I would have appreciated more recipes. In one part of the book she spoke of how many hundreds of recipes she'd collected in her travels, then she puts only a small portion of them in the book. Also there are many pages which are filled with too much blank space, which if there had been better editing, much more could have been included in the book. Having said that, it is about 350 pages, and full of recipes, so it's not all as bad as it may sound!
Having given my criticisms, I do like the book. I was delighted to find a recipe for real, authentic Cous Cous, made the old-fashioned way! I'll have to try that one. I have made only one recipe so far (I only recently received the book) and it was a Garlic Soup with Leafy Greens from Spain. It was absolutely DELICIOUS!!! So I'm not as disappointed as I was, as the quality of the recipes, at first try, are high. I have the need to have a number of recipes on hand that aren't based on animal or dairy products, and I have found that very many of her recipes, if they include these ingredients, look as if they could easily be adapted not to include them. Being someone who really loves vegetables, this is a great book, there are so many recipes which feature vetetables. They are also the Mediterranean vegetables which I grew up with in California. This isn't one of the new types of books from chefs with 'good ideas', they are recipes which have stood the test of time, and proven themselves delectable. There are also good looking recipes for many different types of grains. She has recipes such as: 'Rusk Salad with Tomatoes, Capers, Olives and Lemon' from Greece (and all the tourists get is the standard Greek salad!); Mirsini's Spiced Barley Bread; Field Greens, Rice and Pumpkin Torta (Italy); Black Sea Soup with Cornmeal, Leafy Greens, and Mushrooms (Turkey); Medley of Wheat Berries, Lentils and Rice with Fresh Herbs (Greece); Summer Sorrel and Chervil Soup (France).... Ok, I'm getting hungry...
I still have high hopes for this book, and expect as I make more recipes it will become a favourite on my shelf. That's saying something. I've had so many cookbooks over the years, but if one is going to last, I need to be able to make more than just a few recipes from it - I need to use it often and regularly. So I like the book. I don't think, however, it will top my favorite book 'Greek Monastery Cookery' by Archimandrite Dositheos. It is a compilation of recipes from the moasteries of Mount Athos in Greece, the recipes are traditional, and I purchased it at the same time, and have made about 10 recipes so far. Everything has been delicious, and it is a warm and cute book - there are interesting things done in the translation into English! But I don't recommend it for beginning cooks, one needs to have some experience as things such as cooking times and temperatures are not always included.
I've given 4 stars due to the quality of the dish already tried, which speaks a lot about the other recipes, I feel. I haven't given it 5 starts due to the amount of space which could have included more recipes.
Food and Family are intermixed for the guilt free.......2006-03-09
Shame people have memories. Food brings back memories. Who can be in an Armenian household with their grandmother cooking the feast and not remember the genocide? This is a very good cookbook which only mentions what anybody cooking this food would be thinking about from time to time.
10 star delicious book.......2006-01-11
A Book of Savory, Sun-Drenched Recipes says it so well.
Various studies show that Americans compared to their European, Middle Eastern and Asian counterparts eat far less vegetables and far fewer types of vegetables and our health and obesity rates show it.
Fortunate for me, I grew up savouring vegetables of all kinds and pass this love onto my son. Which is why I love giving this book to friends who don't know vegetables beyond potato, tomato and corn.
Some of my friends have discovered that their child(ren) love as an example the authors recipe on page 304, Tender Young Greens with Tomato and Onion from Greece, which is stuffed in warm pita bread. The recipe calls for young salad greens found in most American produce sections, some herbs, tomato and garlic with virgin olive oil and salt.
Or the Sorrel, Spinach, and Artichoke Ragout recipe of France on page 308. Which calls for baby artichokes, fresh lemon juice, thin sliced onion, and carrots, whole cloves spices and white wine with a bit of diced salt pork for seasoning. Her bean section should make any serious eater happy, since the recipes are easy and delicious, as well as economical.
a disappointment.......2005-04-30
Possibly because I had been led to expect that this would be a wonder, I found it lacking when I bought it through mail order, sight unseen. I found it to be annoying in several ways. 1) There was an irritating amount of self-promotion in naming other cookbooks of Wolfert's along with other recipes not in this book. 2) I prefer a book that isn't so big on the big type. I'd rather have had more IN the book. 3) The recipes seem more California than Mediterranean, but that might be an unfair criticism. I don't live in California, but have experience with Mediterranean food. Perhaps I'm jaded, too, having other cookbooks from the region that perhaps are just too hard to compete with, though a new good one is something I'm always ready to treasure.
All round, though, I was disappointed. But I gave this book to an English friend who likes to cook, but who had never seen a dried fig till I showed her, and she loves it.
Rare Intelligence, Well Told, by a Major Food Writer.......2003-12-21
One of my greatest pleasures is to read a book by an author whose reputation has gained my respect even in advance of my having read any of their works. This was certainly the case when I started this book by Paula Wolfert of whom I have been reading for several years. With Elizabeth David and Claudia Roden, she is one of the three great distaff writers of Mediterranean cuisine. This is just appropriate because, as Ms. Wolfert says early in the book, the cuisine of the Mediterranean is the cuisine of women. Even so macho seeming an authority as Mario Batali confirms that most of his recipes he steals from Italian mothers and grandmothers.
This book is a pure delight for foodies to read. The depth of personal research and understanding of the material is palpable. At the same time, Ms. Wolfert exercizes one of the most valuable traits of the knowledge business in that she liberally shares with us the sources of understanding. I have no knowledge of her middle eastern sources, but names like Harold McGee, Shirly Corriher, and Nancy Silverton grace the pages with their contributions to Paula's treatise.
As the subtitle `A Book of Savory, Sun-Drenched Recipes' indicates, this is primarily just that, a book of recipes where the primary ingredient is either a grain or a green or both from a Mediterranean cuisine. But, Paula spends a considerable amount of room on introducing her subjects with valuable information, all of which is helpful and some of which is surprising. Three of my favorite discussions are:
1. Catalogue of greens by taste and by the best way to prepare them. Even books dedicated to the topic of vegetables do not give as good a precis on how to approach leafy green foods as a class. An added attraction is anechotes on episodes where Paula has accompanied people on wild greens collecting excursions.
2. Description of how to make couscous and the debunking of myths about the preparation, lead by the statement that couscous is not a pasta.
3. Essay on Spanish rice dishes grouped under the heading of arroz OTHER THAN the famous paella Valenciana. It is no surprise to learn that a true Spanish arroz must be made with a Spanish rice such as Calasparra, which can absorb up to two and a half times its weight in liquid. The Italian arborio and carnaroli rices will come close, but they are not the real deal.
Another intellectual virtue in this book is that Ms. Wolfert makes a significant effort to not repeat material from her other books, but to refer the reader to them instead. When she does, she specifically quotes the earlier volume.
The chapters in this book are:
A Bowl of Leafy Greens
Bread and Pastries
Soups
Appetizers
Salads
Light Meals
Main Course Dishes
Side Dishes
Sweet Greens and Grains
Sauces, Condiments, and Seasonings
Plus notes on wild edible greens and a generously long mail order sources appendix.
One little serendipitous encounter was when I discovered the John Cope and Company in the list of mail order sources. This was a great surprise, as Cope produces but a single product, the PENNSYLVANIA DUTCH speciality, dried corn! It turns out this is an excellent substitute for toasted corn kernels in a Turkish dish of chard stuffed with veal, corn, and mint. Who knew!
As always, Ms. Wolfert's recipe narratives are highly detailed, giving the reasons for doing each step along the way, and run the fine line between recreating the authentic dish without putting too great a strain on resources available to the typical American chicken.
In thinking about all the things the Food Network has been neglecting to tell me in their programming, it just occurred to me that it would be absolutely delightful to see a short series on major American and British food writers such as Wolfert, Ruth Reichl, Jim Villas, Diana Kennedy, and many more. Just give them 30 minutes to discuss anything they want. I cast that idea on the waters.
This book belongs on the shelf of anyone who is seriously interested in food.
Books:
- Naked in Death (In Death, Book 1)
- Nuevo México Profundo: Rituals of an Indo-Hispano Homeland
- O Crime Do Padre Amaro (Classicos da Literatura Portuguesa)
- Offshore, Human Voices, The Beginning of Spring (Everyman's Library (Cloth))
- Oh Danny Boy (Molly Murphy Mysteries)
- Patient Prayers: Talking to God from a Hospital Bed
- Pleasures and Ponderings: From Nun to Nudist to Now
- Princess of Wands
- Prior Bad Acts
- Red Hot Murder: An Angie Amalfi Mystery (Angie Amalfi Mysteries)
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- 1984
- The Return of Superman
- Tales of Taliesin : A Memoir of Fellowship
- Sunset Western Ranch Houses
- Synchronicity: The Inner Path of Leadership
- The Last Tycoons: The Secret History of Lazard Frères & Co.
- The Marshal and the Murderer
- Instructional-Design Theories and Models: A New Paradigm of Instructional Theory, Vol. 2
- Smart Communities: How Citizens and Local Leaders Can Use Strategic Thinking to Build a Brighter Fut
- If Wishes Were Horses
Mr. Monk Goes to Hawaii (Mr Monk 2)
Mr. Monk and The Blue Flu
Mr. Monk and The Two Assistants (The Monk Series)
Monk: The Official Episode Guide
Monk - Season Four
