Water Like a Stone: A Novel (Duncan Kincaid/Gemma James Novels)

Water Like a Stone: A Novel (Duncan Kincaid/Gemma James Novels)
Average customer rating:

Thank goodness for Deborah Crombie!!

A Wonder in the Winterland of Rural England

Murder on the canal

Twisting Paths Forge New Relationships

Enjoyable Mystery

Water Like a Stone: A Novel (Duncan Kincaid/Gemma James Novels)
Deborah Crombie
Manufacturer: William Morrow
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
British Detectives | Mystery | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books
Police Procedurals | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books
Crombie, Deborah | ( C ) | Authors, A-Z | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books
General | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0060525274
Release Date: 2007-02-06

Book Description

When Scotland Yard superintendent Duncan Kincaid takes Gemma, Kit, and Toby for a holiday visit to his family in Cheshire, Gemma is soon entranced with Nantwich's pretty buildings and the historic winding canal, and young Kit is instantly smitten with his cousin Lally.

But their visit is marred by family tensions exacerbated by the unraveling of Duncan's sister Juliet's marriage. And tensions are brought to the breaking point on Christmas Eve with Juliet's discovery of a mummified infant's body interred in the wall of an old dairy barn—a tragedy hauntingly echoed by the recent drowning of Peter Llewellyn, a schoolmate of Lally's.

Meanwhile, on her narrowboat, former social worker Annie Lebow is living a life of self-imposed isolation and preparing for a lonely Christmas, made more troubling by her meeting earlier in the day with the Wains, a traditional boating family whose case precipitated Annie's leaving her job.

As the police make their inquiries into the infant's death, Kincaid discovers that life in the lovely market town of his childhood is far from idyllic and that the dreaming reaches of the Shropshire Union Canal hold dark and deadly secrets . . . secrets that may threaten everything and everyone he holds most dear.

Customer Reviews:

Thank goodness for Deborah Crombie!!.......2007-08-13

I just discovered her wonderful series a couple of months ago. I read one of them and went back to the library to get everything else of hers they had or could get on inter-library loan. I think I've now read eight and loved every one of them. (I thought that was all of them, but I read here --O joy--that there are eleven in the series. Now to try to remember the titles of the ones I've read and find the other three.)

I say, "Thank goodness for Deborah Crombie" because I'd almost decided the classic English mystery--literate,well-plotted,wonderfully atmospheric,not too graphically gory or depressingly misanthropic or gratuitously salted with the author's politics--is a vanishing genre. (Caroline Graham being a notable exception, but her books are agonizingly far between.)

I can't imagine anyone will be disappointed with any book in this series. Crombie is consistently interesting and inventive. I chose this one to review only because it was the first one on the list.

Her characters are believable and likable and their personal lives never dominate or distract from the story. She is obviously a loving student of British history, architecture and geography, and maybe the most memorable feature of her novels is the care she takes--sometimes with exquisitely drawn inside-cover maps--to acquaint readers with the various locales the stories are set in.

She was a real find for me. I hope she has many more books in her.

A Wonder in the Winterland of Rural England.......2007-08-13

Crombie has taken her two erstwhile London coppers (Kincaid and James) and sent them out to the Cheshire (near the Welsh Border) where Duncan grew up. They have gone out to Duncan's parents farm for a real 'English Country' Christmas. It will also give Gemma and Kit (Duncan's newfound son) a chance to meet the 'family'. We are introduced to Duncan's parents (Hugh and Rosemary) his sister, husband and children (Juliet, Caspar, Lally and Sam) and assorted old friends (such as Chief Inspector Ronnie Babcock).

Of course there has to be a murder(s) or there wouldn't be any reason for the book. But blending into the standard Police Procedural is a fine discussion of the 'narrowboats' and the people who have made a living on them for more than the last hundred years. In the nineteenth century they plied the canal system, delivering goods like long haul truckers; except that they lived on the boats. They were only seven feet wide so that they could pass each other on the canals. Few of the boats are used this way anymore and a way of life is dying off. Crombie writes a great peaen to these people.

Though out of their jurisdiction, Kincaid and James are able to get involved peripherally with the conivence of DCI Babcock. More than seeing the investigation unfold, we see a newfound respect for each others professionalism between Kincaid and James. The strengthening of their bond as they both still deal with the loss of Gemma's baby (in the last book) is both thoughtful and realistic. Crombie also does a marvellous job of pursuing that age old antagonism that builds between and mother and daughter, as the child comes into womanhood. A fine novel.

Murder on the canal.......2007-07-07

Superintendent Duncan Kincaid takes his partnet, Gemma and their respective two children, Kit and Toby, on a Xmas visit to his parent's home in Cheshire where Gemma is entranced by the pretty buildings and the proximity to the canal and to the canal boats. Duncan's sister, Juliet, who lives nearby, is beginning renovations to an old, local barn when she breaks through some mortar to find the mummified body of an infant, lovingly wrapped and sealed in the wall. The local police, headed by an old friend of Duncan's, are called in and the usual proceedings begin, even though it's obviously an old crime and it happens to be a freezingly cold Xmas Eve. Duncan's newly restored son, Kit, is fascinated by his cousin Lally, the strange and tormented daughter of Juliet, suspected of drinking and drug taking and, altogether, a surly, uncooperative teenager with a huge chip on her shoulder. When the body of former social worker, Annie Lebow, who lives on one of the canal boats is found on the tow path with her head bashed in, suspicion falls on another canal boat owner with whom she had been publicly arguing on the previous day. It's a very good murder mystery with very interesting characters, set in a completely different location..that of the canal boats and their inhabitants.

Twisting Paths Forge New Relationships.......2007-06-11

Home for the holidays is never a relaxing vacation when combing members of a collective family. Gemma James dreads visiting Duncan Kincaid's traditional parents. She has no trite answers as to why they have decided not to assume a formal union. All of her personal worries become insignaficant when Duncan's sister Julie discovers the mummified body of an infant child and a retired social worker is murder.
The boat people of the canals of Cheshire, bring their stoicism and suffering to the heart of a story where families unite and disintegrate. The complex relationship of Duncan with his son and his pride in Kit's growing maturity is contrasted by the rebellion of his niece and the agony of his sister. Deborah Crombie uses the landscape to tell an nontraditional Christmas holiday in "Water Like a Stone." Yet, in the end there is a moment of peace, or a slice of life that isn't sugar-coated. A must read for anyone who loves a complex mystery written with razor-sharp style.
Together Gemma and Duncan find their way to a surprising solution to a complex case where they are bystanders in the investigation.
Nash Black, author of "Qualifying Laps" and "Taxes, Stumbling Blocks & Pitfalls for Authors 2007."

Enjoyable Mystery.......2007-05-27

I always enjoy Crombie because, though she's writing about murder, she doesn't depend on graphic violence. I found this to be a satisfactory blend of mood and descriptive settings. The pub scenes put me right there, as did the scenes along the canals. A good read that was over too soon.

Water Like a Stone: A Novel (Duncan Kincaid/Gemma James Novels)

Average customer rating:

Water Like a Stone: A Novel (Duncan Kincaid/Gemma James Novels)
Deborah Crombie
Manufacturer: William Morrow
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000N9Y202

Customer Reviews:

a deep, rich novel of Darkover's early days.......2003-09-17

This Darkover novel is set in Darkover's Age of Chaos. It is set several hundred years after Darkover Landfall. The ruling powers in Darkover ruled in what feels like a feudal system. I would compare this period in Darkover's history to the European Dark Ages. At the beginning of the novel we are introduced to Donal, an 8 year old boy. Donal is the son of a woman who was the mistress of Mikhail Aldaran, lord of the Aldaran. Mikhail raises Donal like his own son, despite Donal being the child of another man. Donal's mother dies giving birth to Dorilys, the only living child of Mikhail.

The first section of the novel serves to introduce us to some of the major players of the novel and also works as a perfect setup to describe the world and background of the characters that will act throughout the novel. The ESP type abilities hinted at in Darkover Landfall exist in a wild, but powerful form. These abilities are called Laran, and the ruling classes are participating in a breeding program to both harness and control these laran. This breeding program has a huge flaw and drawback, few children actually live past childhood. When they start to become in full possession of their laran, death is by far the most common result. Another common result is emotional instability because of the laran. This is the world and heritage that Dorilys was born into. After she was born the novel skips ahead 11 years. Donal is now a man and beloved by Mikhail. Dorilys is a spoiled child with a wildly powerful laran.

This novel deals with the personal implications of the laran breeding plan as well as how the feudalistic society plays out in Darkover. Dorilys has been handfasted (or, betrothed) but since she has no control over her laran, when she gets frightened she lashes out with her power and unintentionally kills with it. Donal wants to marry Renata, but the circumstances with Aldaran force him into a different alliance. Renata was sent by the nearby Tower (where those with Laran work with their power) to help train Dorilys to control her laran. We are also introduced to Allart, a former monk but potential heir to the throne at Thendara. He has been hiding away trying to control his laran (he has the ability to see all possible futures resulting from every action and potential action), but is involved in this story, too.

While Darkover Landfall was little more than an introduction to the world of Darkover and how it was founded, Stormqueen! was a much richer novel. In this novel, Bradley gives us a sense of the world and strong, well written characters. It was easy to get wrapped up in the story, and it was intense at times. Reading Stormqueen only confirmed my desire to keep reading the Darkover series. Excellent fantasy novel.

A Cautionary Tale.......2002-10-17

"Man is the only animal that thinks not to improve his race...Should we not seek to better ourselves as well our world and our surroundings?"

This is a quote from Stormqueen, but it won't be long before someone raises this question in the real world, or before we have the scientific capacity to create such a future. Marian Zimmer Bradley's prescient tale, written in the '70's, explores the very real consequences, the temptations and dangers, of such genetic manipulation.

For those not familiar with Darkover, think of it as the Middle Ages with psychic powers. It is warlike, patriarchal and pre-industrial. The lack of machines is made up for by crystals, or matrixes, which greatly amplify naturally occuring psychic powers, or laran. These have been developed to take the place of mechanical technology, for both peaceful or warlike means. (There is a striking and again, prescient, parallel between the "relay screens" and the internet.)

Like any talent, skills vary from person to person. These psychic gifts being the very foundation of Darkover civilization, people have been bred over generations for specific gifts, much like an animal breeding program. For the resulting children, death is common, as is mental/emotional instability.

All of the characters in Stormqueen have lives maimed by the breeding program. Mikhail of Aldaran has seen all of his children die; Allart has been cursed with a gift that shows him all possible consequences of each act; Renata has worked desperately to have a life beyond a childbearing pawn; Donal is forced into an intolerable situation due to his stepfather's desire for an heir.

And of course there is Dorilys, the young Stormqueen, a child with a gift far beyond her ability to handle it. A lesser writer would have made Dorilys a one-dimensional spoiled brat or "witch girl." The typical male SF writer would probably have turned her into an evil sex nymph. (See lurid cover art, which is the original from the '70's.)

In Bradley's hands, Dorilys is a fully human young girl, sometimes arrogant and spoiled, but also courageous and loving. These two aspects of her character pull her either way; until the end, it's never certain which will prevail.

The story does have its rough spots and slow places. I could have done with a little less about Allart and Cassandra's marriage, for example. You won't miss much if you skim those chapters. Since it was in there, I would have preferred a little more about how Cassandra grows from a highly dependent, girlish character into a tried and true woman.

As another reviewer noted, this is a tragedy in the classic Greek sense. At each turning or crossroads, there seems only one option, yet inevitably it leads to a tragic conclusion. The flaws of more than one character bring about the tragedy, but still it's hard to see how it could have been avoided.

This book is powerful sci-fi/fantasy with underlying serious issues. If you are concerned about some of the questions the world is facing, Stormqueen will speak to you.

I also recommend MZB's other early Darkover novels: Hawkmistress, Heritage of Hastur, Thendara House, even The Forbidden Tower (though it's not a favorite). They all feature intelligent characters dealing with complex ethical or emotional questions, with plenty of action thrown in.

Can't put it down.......2000-12-06

"Stormqueen!" was the second Darkover book I read. It shows that good writing is when you read a book, and no matter how awful things are going on in the story, no matter how much you want to put it down for sheer exhaustion (emotionally and physically!), you just can't, you have to see it through. The characters are some of the best MZB ever created; compelling, well-drawn, and so familiar to the way people feel and act, be it noble or obscene. No one does anything by halves in this book; you've got all the ingredients for a titillating mix. Love found, and lost; unrelenting hatred; jealousy; incest; coldly manipulating authority figures; exotic locales; action and adventure! It sounds like the usual fare for your daytime soap, but in "Stormqueen!" it works. You'll fall in love with Allart and Donal, and have mixed feelings about the Stormqueen herself. A great enjoyable read!

Way too wild!.......2000-06-09

This was the first Darkover book I ever read, when I was about eleven. I found it fascinating but confusing. I didn't really appreciate it until after I had read The Forbidden Tower and The Bloody Sun. Even those these novels are set hundreds or even thousands of years after the Ages of Chaos in which Stormqueen is set, they give you the background necessary to understand what was going on in this novel. The bewildering references to terrifying mental weapons, the complex and hubristic (and eventually lethal) laran breeding program, the leroni, the bits of casta (e.g. barragana, nedestro etc) that are scattered through this novel are clear as day when you've read a couple of the others. Nevertheless this is one of the very best novels of Darkover, and the terrifying laran properties manifested by the characters in this novel make the laran of later days seem paltry by comparison. Some of the best characters in the series are present in this novel; Donal, Renata, Dorilys and Allart really are terrific. It's funny, but if anyone has ever read Jennifer Roberson's Chronicles of the Cheysuli I swear her Donal (Alix's son) was modelled on Donal Delleray. Similarly, Allart actually reminds me of Lew Alton - I think it must be the torment in him from his gift, a torment that MZB repeatedly illustrates convincingly. Although the adult characters in this novel have more control over events and show more character development, Dorilys, the Stormqueen of the Hellers, is a character who will linger long in the reader's mind. She is a powerful force, almost as elemental as the environment she controls. Her shadow looms over the whole series subsequent to this novel, with frequent references made to her legend, numerous women named after her and even her preserved body enterred in perpetuity at holy Hali. My sincerest dissapointment in the Darkover series is that the two characters who seemed most likely to rival Dorilys for sheer fire (as well as laran potential), Clendori and Alanna Alar, were never given their own book.

Disturbing and beautiful, like its protagonist.......2000-05-17

Most Darkover books I *can't* put down. This one, I *had* to put down here and there because it was so disturbing -- I guess I needed the reassurance of knowing I was on Terra after all. :)

This is not an easy book to read, but it is WELL worth the effort. As you might expect of someone who was considered "precocious" as a girl, I could definitely identify with Dorilys the Stormqueen. But don't let the book's title lead you to ignore the other well-drawn characters -- Dorilys would certainly enjoy the attention if she were around for it, but there are other powerful and interesting characters central to the sad tale.

Stormqueen! is the kind of book you want to read and get a good friend to read so that you can discuss all the issues it brings up -- the ethical questions it raises have no easy resolution either within the story or in real life, but the book is worth reading and the issues it raises worth discussing.

5 Titles in Darkover Series - Two to Conquer - Keeper's Price - Stormqueen - Shattered Chain - Star of Danger
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5 Titles in Darkover Series - Two to Conquer - Keeper's Price - Stormqueen - Shattered Chain - Star of Danger
Marion Zimmer Bradley
Manufacturer: various
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000RZJBH6

Product Description

Multiple books shipped as one item for your convenience. Save on Shipping/Handling charges.

The Ages of Chaos/ Stormqueen! And Hawkmistress!

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The Ages of Chaos/ Stormqueen! And Hawkmistress!

Manufacturer: Daw
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0739450301

Marion Zimmer Bradley - 5 Darkover Novels - Sharra's Exile, The Forbidden Tower, Free Amazon's of Darkover, StormQueen!, City of Sorcery (Darkover)

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Marion Zimmer Bradley - 5 Darkover Novels - Sharra's Exile, The Forbidden Tower, Free Amazon's of Darkover, StormQueen!, City of Sorcery (Darkover)
Marion Zimmer Bradley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000WQT0L2

Product Description

Set of 5 novels from the Darkover series: Sharra's Exile, The Forbidden Tower, Free Amazon's of Darkover, StormQueen!, City of Sorcery.

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STORMQUEEN! A Darkover Novel
Marion Zimmer Bradley
Manufacturer: Daw Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000O7LOEA

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Stormqueen!, A Darkover Novel
Marion Zimmer Bradley
Manufacturer: New York: DAW Books, Inc. Donald A. Wollheim, 1978
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000O3KEPO

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Stormqueen

Manufacturer: New Amer Library
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000HKO4UA

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Stormqueen! (Darkover Ser.)
Marion Zimmer Bradley
Manufacturer: Daw
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000GRJPRQ

Without a Net: The Female Experience of Growing Up Working Class (Live Girls)
Average customer rating:

Excellent Book

A depressing look at the feminization of poverty

I couldn't relate to all of this, but...

Without a Net- Michelle Tea

finally

Without a Net: The Female Experience of Growing Up Working Class (Live Girls)

Manufacturer: Seal Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
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The Chelsea Whistle: A Memoir (Live Girls)

ASIN: 1580051030

Book Description

While many recent books have thoughtfully examined the plight of the working poor in America, none of the authors of these books is able to claim a working-class background, and there are associated methodological and ethical concerns raised when most of the explicatory writing on how poverty affects women and girls is done by educated, upper-class journalists. It was these concerns that prompted indie icon Michelle Tea—whose memoir, The Chelsea Whistle, details her own working-class roots in gritty Chelsea, Massachusetts—to collect these fierce, honest, tender essays written by writers who can’t go home to the suburbs when their assignment is over. These wide-ranging essays cover everything from stealing and selling blood to make ends meet; to “jumping” class; how if time equals money, then being poor means waiting; surviving and returning to the ghetto; and how feminine identity is shaped by poverty. Contributors include Dorothy Allison, Diane Di Prima, Terri Griffith, Daisy Hernandez, Frances Varian, Eileen Myles, Shawna Kenney, Siobhan Brooks, Terry Ryan, and more.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent Book.......2007-07-09

Very well written I would recommend it to anyone interested in the expericences of working class females.

A depressing look at the feminization of poverty.......2006-04-21

Edited by the working-class lesbian feminist author and activist, Michelle Tea, "Without a Net" powerfully documents the diverse lives of women living in poverty. While this inclusive multi-narrative text dramatically testifies to the strength of low-income women in the United States, it fails, however, to provide any real collective strategy for female resistance to capitalist exploitation. Nevertheless, I applaud this book for holding the mainstream feminist movement accountable for its classism and insisting, once-and-for-all, that economic justice is integral to women's liberation.

I couldn't relate to all of this, but..........2005-09-22

My parents divorced when I was 7 years old. My mother had primary custody. She was the first in her family to get a college education, even though she had to go back to night-school to finish her degree due to my arrival on the scene. Dad had a master's degree in social work, never a big money-making field. So, during my early years, we were fairly poor and I spent a whole lot of time with many different babysitters while Mom labored in the white-collar world to move us up from working class to middle class.

I don't have many memories of my poor years. When I was 6 or 7, I do remember pretending a porcelain cat bought at a yard sale with my grandmother was actually a Barbie doll, because we couldn't afford a real Barbie at the time. But I was young and didn't really figure out that money was at all tight until middle school. Then the typical image-conscious BS became part of my existence. I always worked to make extra for school clothes, so I could keep up appearances. I had to have the "right" Levis. The "right" WBLM t-shirt. The L.L. Bean tote bag purse. I couldn't look like one of those Salvation Army rejects. Thrift stores were not cool where I came from, possibly because the racks were filled with redneck cast-offs. Kids can be so stupid.

This book gave me a couple of "Aha!" moments, particularly when the contributors wrote about fish-out-of-water feelings when functioning within different social castes. Though I grew up working and then middle class, I went to a very upper class college. There were definitely times when I felt like I was "passing," as some authors put it. My upbringing remained a part of me, but not as some deep-seated shame. I felt power from my roots. It was nice to read about other women who also felt working class pride, pride in their survival skills and values.

I could also relate to the sense of loss of those who felt somewhere in between their class of origin and their current economic class. You can't really go home again, after a certain point. Yet, you never feel like you fully belong where you are either. You have to create a place for yourself. And that's what a lot of these women write about: finding their place.

Without a Net- Michelle Tea.......2005-09-03

This is absolutely one of my favorite books- I've recommended it to everyone and so far no one's been disappointed, regardless of their gender or class background. Amazing book- raw and powerful, an inspiring collection of work. Many of the stories can be really painful or difficult to read, but altogether the collection leave a bold and positive impression of strength and beauty in unexpected (or overlooked) places. It's also a great introduction to a lot of kick-ass female writers that you might not be familiar with.

finally.......2004-03-25

In a society that addresses classism as little as it does michelle tea and the authors of this book do marvels. I did cartwheels reading essays about why its messed up to say things such as 'ghetto' and the offensiveness of white-trash themed parties. I would love everyone to read this book, or at least my middle-class and upper-class activist friends. Class too often gets added on as just one more -ism without ever really being addressed... this book shows that it needs to be, but not in mouthfulls of long feminist theory, but in wonderful first person narratives that are inspiring and thought provoking. Michelle Tea continues to by my sheroe. As do theauthors in this anthology. Read it :)

Average customer rating:

does not compute
18 short stories diverge from the popular futuristic visions
A snapshot of the future of Science Fiction
A few gems, but very inconsistent.
Excellent thought out anthology

Live Without A Net
Lou Anders
Manufacturer: Roc Trade
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Anthologies | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

General | Science | Subjects | Books

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Futureshocks

ASIN: 0451459253
Release Date: 2003-07-01

Book Description

Imagine a future without cyberspace...without virtual reality...without AIs and simulations...and without the Web.

What would you do? What would you fear? What wouldn't you know?

Explore a future without a net in these stories of alternatives to the "information age" by Lou Anders € Stephen Baxter € David Brin € Paul Di Filippo € Pat Cadigan € John Grant € David Hutchinson € Alex C. Irvine € Terry McGarry € John Meaney € Paul Melko € Mike Resnick and Kay Kenyon € Chris Roberson € Adam Roberts € Rudy Rucker € S.M. Stirling € Del Stone, Jr. € Charles Stross € Matthew Sturges € Michael Swanwick

Download Description

"Imagine a future without cyberspace...without virtual reality...without AIs and simulations...and without the Web. What would you do? What would you fear? What wouldn't you know?

Customer Reviews:

does not compute.......2005-11-13

This is a spotty collection. The premise -- a world without computers -- is certainly interesting. The antho, sadly, did not live up to its potential.

Some of the stories are excellent, thought-provoking, and moving: Alex Irvine's "Reformation," Del Stone Jr.'s "I Feed the Machine," and John Meaney's "The Swastika Bomb." A few were truly dreadful -- loosely related at best and/or more style than substance -- including a couple I couln't even make it through. Most were solid, but still dissapointing, on topic, but not credible as to how or why computers weren't in this world. One, John Grant's "No Solace for the Soul in Digitopia," was simply porn with (at its end) a veneer of alternate-universe's clothing.

The closest thing to a common thread was biotech of one sort or another replacing some functions of silicon computing, and the inherent differences of the two computing approaches. When done well (about half the time), that made for something to think about.

18 short stories diverge from the popular futuristic visions.......2003-10-08

Lou Anders edits Live Without A Net, a fine anthology of stories from masters of speculative fiction. 18 short stories diverge from the popular futuristic visions of a cyber-controlled future to consider alternative futures where cyberspace does NOT rule. Here you'll find winners by Brin, DiFilippo, and others who present startlingly different worlds.

A snapshot of the future of Science Fiction.......2003-10-01

This is an excellent compilation of stories. If you are interested in understanding how science fiction and fantasy are morphing into a new and facinating genre, then I highly recomend this book. It is a snapshot of the medium as it reaches a tipping point and shoots into the future. I have bought 4 books from authors whose short stories I read in this anthology. I highly recommend this book not only for the content, but also for the reading lists it will help you build.

A few gems, but very inconsistent........2003-07-16

Edited by Lou Anders, the sci-fi anthology Live Without a Net (all never-before-published stories, save one) imagines a variety of sci-fi-tinged worlds, future, past, and, present, in which IT, the Internet, and AI as we conceive of it do not exist. Introducing this limitation is an intriguing concept, and the end result is five or six very good stories, a bit of remarkable crap, and some filler.

The best stories are Adam Roberts' "New Model Computer," which puts an O. Henry twist on post-Singularity fiction; Michael Swanwick's "Smoke and Mirrors," an amusing set of short-shorts featuring the author's retro-Victorian rogues, Darger and Surplus; Charlie Stross' "Rogue Farm," David Brin's "Reality Check;" S. M. Stirling's PKD-style head-scrambler "The Crystal Method;" John Meaney's "The Swastika Bomb," a WWII spy epic in an alternate history of advanced biowarfare; and my pick for the best story of the book, Del Stone Jr's frightening doomsday cult scenario, "I Feed The Machine."

Unfortunately, most of the rest is unengaging filler or just plain awful. John Grant's "No Solace For The Soul In Digitopia" consists largely of painfully detailed descriptions of the narrator depositing his seed into his various parallel-Earth wives, and Grant is no better than most sci-fi writers when it comes to sexual matter. The most inexplicable inclusion of the anthology is Alex Irvine's "Reformation," which infuses some Islamic mysticism into a straightforward cyberpunk yarn about a hacker/Internet-revolutionary. Irvine's story completely breaks the "no Net" theme of the book and is terribly out of place. Best left undescribed are "Frek and the Grulloo Woods," Paul di Filippo's "Clouds and Cold Fires," and Dave Hutchinson's "All The News, All Time, From Everywhere."

I'd check this book out at a library for the good stories, but hold off on buying it.

Excellent thought out anthology.......2003-07-03

The underlying premise to this eighteen story collection is based on no Internet communicating between the many to the many. This reviewer not only read the book, but also asked her college IT major son do so too (that in of itself is a miracle that he left the hyper realm for the printing realm). Based on this unscientific sample of two (still 67% of the household population), the reaction to the tales will differ depending on the age (and experiences) of the reader. Those ancient baby boomers and fountain of youth older generations know first hand an unwired world of dial phones in which the consumer could choose any color as long as it was black. To that group, the stories will seem like alternate history as it is not much of a stretch to believe that the alternatives might have been viable at one time. To those whose braces are wireless cell phones from the birthing room, the book will still find reading it fun, but it will feel more like a fantasy or science fiction anthology.

The tales are cleverly written so that the much of the audience, regardless of age or experiences, will find LIVE WITHOUT A NET as an entertaining short story medley that is worth the time away from hyperspace HTML to enter the world of printing text.

Harriet Klausner

Live Without a Net
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Live Without a Net
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The New Making of a Cook: The Art, Techniques, And Science Of Good Cooking
Average customer rating:

you really do want this book

Madeleine Kamman's book

A great resource

The Greatest Cookbook Ever Written

Superb Text and First book on cooking. Buy It!

The New Making of a Cook: The Art, Techniques, And Science Of Good Cooking
Madeleine Kamman
Manufacturer: William Morrow Cookbooks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0688152546

Amazon.com

Professional cooking schools have used Madeleine Kamman's The Making of a Cook since it first appeared in 1971. She has now revised it to reflect newer techniques, the availability of a wider range of ingredients, and the recent American aversion to fat. She suggests eating fats in moderation, and includes recipes for cholesterol-free gingerbread and more. Fundamentally, Kamman teaches classic French technique as applied to American ingredients. For example, she carefully explains how to make a classic espagnole sauce as chefs have made it for centuries and also provides, as an alternative, a brown stock made in the microwave.

A good chef must understand food chemistry; any good cook is fascinated by the hows and whys of the kitchen. Kamman gives the information that a professional requires, with clarity anyone can understand.

The main drawback to The New Making of a Cook is that its size makes it awkward to have in the kitchen, though you will want it handy for recipes such as Stuffed Pork Butt with Apples and Pistachios; the Pilgouri at Delphi, a bulgur pilaf studded with Feta cheese; Chocolate Puff Pastry; and Kamman's brilliant quartets of recipes for vegetable stir-frys and steamed chicken breasts.

Book Description

The Making of a Cook became an instant classic upon its publication in 1971. Since then much has changed in the way America cooks and The New Making of a Cook meets these changes head-on. This fully revised edition teaches every technique used in todays homes and professional kitchens, from julienning vegetables to roasting meats to steaming fish to baking bread. With years of experience teaching Americas top chefs how to cook, Madeleine knows what works and why.

Today's cooking is much more heart-healthy, and The New Making of a Cook is filled with low-fat cooking techniques, along with hundreds of recipes that extract maximum flavor from the least required amount of fat (though culinary indulgences still remain). In addition to techniques and recipes, The New Making of a Cook tells the important whys of cooking-why meats brown in the pan; why egg whites stiffen when they are beaten.

The New Making of a Cook is an extraordinary and indispensable reference from an extraordinary teacher. Completely rewritten for todays cook, it will become a classic all over again.

Customer Reviews:

you really do want this book.......2007-02-01

I remember watching Madeleine Kamman on television many years ago; she used heavy skillets and casseroles that spoke to me. Since then, I have always wanted one of her books. This one reminds me of her. It's passionate in a quietly serious way. She tells you why you don't like something that she knows you would if the food had been prepared properly. You believe her and you just want to try her recipe. The method and ingredients are so straitforward that you know she's right even before you taste. She tells you what wine or beverage pairs best with your meals, why your bead dough has disappointed you, and when to save an expensive ingredient for a special occasion. Lest you think her a snobby foreigner, she recommends good old Corningware pie plates for baking the truly all-American pie. Everyone can cook from this book--novice to pro, those who think cooking is drudgery to those who can't get enough of it.

Madeleine Kamman's book.......2007-01-19

"The New Making of a Cook: The Art, Techniques, And Science Of Good Cooking" is a book that should be on the shelf for use in every kitchen.

A great resource.......2006-07-06

Quite the informative book on cooking, which is just what I need. It explains the science and techniques of cooking which is what I have been looking for for a very long time. Recommended to all who love the sweet pleasures of cooking!

The Greatest Cookbook Ever Written.......2006-03-21

There are only half a dozen or so cookbooks that I trust implicitly and recommend without hesitation; this book is one of them, and is clearly king of the hill. That makes this cookbook the best ever written. Not until I re-read this second edition did I realize what a terrible cook I am. Now, when I wish to know how something should be done, this is the book I reach for. This is not a comprehensive collection of all common recipes you will ever need, so I do not always find the recipe I need here. Note that many 'standard' recipes are absent; recipes are chosen for training value. Upon reading this book, it is rather hard not to be inspired to go out and become a better cook, no matter what your skill level.

The original version of this book was a terse, didactic affair. Her information was so impeccable, that it began to be used in cooking schools as a text. With this in mind, the author re-wrote the book, adding a mountain of educational information, making a real textbook suitable for use in professional cooking schools. It is the best of its type. This new version, at 1200 pages, is double the length of the original. You will find many clever things not found anywhere else, viz a still-frozen sorbet, and a trick to measure the Baume of a syrup without a saccharometer. Almost all recipes have a sidebar that recommends specific wines to serve with each recipe. It has the courage to regularly recommend beer instead of wine due to the strong flavors of the respective recipe.

The chapter on eggs was excellent. The first 20 pages have more stuff on properly cooking eggs than all of my other cookbooks put together, and this includes a couple of professional ones. It gives you much info that can only be learned from experience as a breakfast cook (and stuff you certainly will not find in any cookbook I know of), e.g. an egg cooked en cocotte is not only easier for kitchen staff to make, but looks a heck of a lot better than a real poached egg on the plate. Several times in the egg chapter, the author sent me dashing into the kitchen to check out her info. Some of her info was very different, and even exactly opposite of how I was trained in various restaurant kitchens. Darn if she wasn't right every time. If you have some foodservice experience, check out her recipes for creme anglaise, bavarian cream, and folding order for foam-based cakes. This chapter also has what amounts to a souffle master class.

The sauce chapter has special merit. Kamman offers a complete discourse about history, preparation techniques, and proper usage of classic sauces. Interestingly, she offers very few actual recipes; contrast this with a standard cooking textbook with dozens of recipes with the student's head swimming with mother and secondary sauces and remembering what ingredient turns what sauce into what other sauce. This is the only book that admits reality: sauce espagnol is too expensive to make in a restaurant, brown stock is of academic interest to culinary students only, and that in her own home, demi-glace was made exactly twice for special occasions. Note that her world of sauces starts almost exclusively with primary veal stock (you will need several pounds of veal breast to make this, and there are no alternatives or substitutes). The section on emulsified sauces is exemplary, and I wish more foodservice professionals would read it. With her production method for Bearnaise, there is no reason why even a modest restaurant cannot offer it on a routine basis.

The respectful treatment of vegetables is exemplary, and demonstrates how these wonderful foodstuffs ought to be treated. Those who are in the habit of torturing their vegetables (this includes several famous TV chefs) will have an epiphany with Kamman's sensible and wonderful approach to vegetables. This is the only book I know of that has a comprehensive treatment of swimming fish and mentions the temp at which fish is properly cooked (140-165 F). The meat chapter is what amounts to a master class. The advice on adding salt and pepper to meat, oven temperatures, and pan juices is quite sensible. It shows how difficult it is to properly cook meat, and how tasty when properly prepared. Those who know soup only through the canned supermarket stuff or 'light and healthy' recipes in lifestyle magazines will discover a whole new world in Kamman's rather parochial attitude.

The baking chapter has a clear-headed dissertation on flours. It explains in detail flour measurement, protein percentage, and the various flours she uses by name (most cookbooks do not mention specific brands but just refer to them elliptically; not Kamman). It insists that pate brisee be made up using fraisage. Atypically, she recommends against using removable bottom pie plates or tart pans (she is absolutely correct: anyone who has never used a white ceramic tart pan or glass pie pan has never enjoyed proper crisp, firm, flavorful, un-soggy pie or tart crust). The advice on hand kneading bread dough is absolutely correct (if your dough and technique are correct, kneading will take 10 minutes). Cakes get rather shortchanged.

My main complaint is the lack of a proper table of contents. Some chapters are quite long and have good internal organization, but subsections are not listed in the TOC and you are left to pretty much thumbing through a 100+ page chapter or combing through the index with a magnifying glass.

It has chapters: basics (100 pp,), egg (100 pp.), stock (150 pp.), sauce (100 pp.), vegetable (100 pp.), grain (125 pp.), meat (200 pp.), fruit (100 pp.), and baking (150 pp.). It has an impressive bibliography, so the culinary student can start to build a personal culinary library.

Superb Text and First book on cooking. Buy It!.......2005-09-06

`The New Making of a Cook' by Madeleine Kamman is hands down the very best first cookbook for everyone from rank beginners to experienced amateurs who learned cooking at their mother's knee. If you do not own a copy of this book and are serious about cooking, stop reading this review now, go to the top of the page, and click on the button to add this to your shopping cart.

No cookbook can do everything, but at over 1200 pages, this volume comes about as close as you can expect a good cookbook to cover every major important subject, including a healthy dose of material on nutrition, sanitation, ingredients, cooking with wine, cooking equipment, references, and the `why' of cooking. And, Ms. Kamman gives us expert opinions on each and every subject. On every topic with which I typically evaluate a cookbook, this one gets between an A- and an A+, and it covers each and every one of those points.

The weakest part of this book may be its title. Were you to browse cookbook titles without noticing the heft of this volume, you may mistake it for a memoir, such as Ms. Kamman's excellent `When French Women Cook' which is a memoir with great recipes from all around France. In fact, it is a superb course in cooking, and it is, in fact, used as the textbook for many cooking schools. The books to which this volume should be compared are the Culinary Institute of America's `The New Professional Chef', Wayne Gisslen's `The Chef's Art' and Anne Willan's `The Good Cook'. The first two of these are very reliable, but just a bit too much oriented to the professional. The last is excellent on technique, but leaves out just about every other subject covered by Kamman.

While the material in this book is heavily based on modern and classical French cuisine and technique, it is not another book on French cooking. That is, it does not compete directly with rival Julia Child's `Mastering the Art of French Cooking', which remains, in spite of Kamman's book, still the best source of training in French cuisine and recipes. The book also does not compete with that other great manual of French technique, Jacque Pepin's `Complete Techniques', although these two books side by side virtually cover the entire range of good culinary instruction. One would need to go far to improve on a collection with these two books plus the `Larousse Gastronomique'.

Possibly the only weakness I found in this volume was the fact that the brief chapter on cooking with wine seemed to deal entirely with wines from France and California, plus the fortified wines of the Iberian peninsula (port and sherry). While I cannot fault the author too much for this short chapter in such a wide-ranging book, I did feel an important chance was missed.

However, the author more than made it up to me in her truly remarkable and comprehensive bibliography. For the serious student of cookery, this feature alone was worth the price of admission. Kamman missed virtually no major author available to modern American customers of Amazon.com. Child, David, Olney, Hazan, Kennedy, Bayless, Beranbaum, Reinhart, Ducasse, Pepin, Claiborne and many others are all here. The only notable absence was Alan Davidson's three-volume reference on fish of the Atlantic, Mediterranean, and Southeast Asia. One cannot even complain about the number of titles in French and Italian, as there are plenty of English language sources.

This is virtually the only cookbook I can think of where it may pay you to start at the front and moving through the book, prepare as many different dishes as your finances and market will allow. It is that close to, for example, studying an excellent book on Chess, where each chapter covers an important part of the game, with gradually more difficult exercises.

One of the things about the book which most appealed to my neo-primitive `Whole Earth Catalogue' attitude was the fact that the book gave such good recipes for so many commonly available commercial products such as soft whipped butter and quick stocks.

And, on the `hard stuff', Mme. Kamman is uncompromising in her insistence on quality, as when she gives general rules for dealing with stocks. And yet, while she gives us the professional's take on stock making, she is quite well aware of the fact that the amateur will simply not make stock that often, and tells us how to handle things when we make stock two or three times a year.

The very best perspective I gained from this book is the fact that French cooking, at least French cooking of the last 50 years is simply not about high fat content. Just the contrary is true. In fact, Ms. Kamman seems to have figured out the story of French women and fat long before the recent popular book on the subject came out earlier this year.

Just one more comparison to place this book. While it has many hundreds of recipes, it is not like `The Joy of Cooking' or any other `1000 Recipe' collections. It gives great detailed treatises on all major culinary techniques important to the cooking of Western Europe, but it does not, for example, give us 15 different recipes for an omelet. It just gives us one of the very best essays on how to make a good omelet with a few pointers which even escaped Elizabeth David's excellent little treatise on the subject.

If you can only afford a single cookbook, but you really need one, this should be the one. If you are embarking on cooking as a hobby, this should be your first!

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