The Songcatcher

Book Description

Capturing the enduring beauty of the Appalachian mountains where she sets her novels, Sharyn McCrumb returns with a beautifully written, historically accurate tale of a song's passage through history-from the 1700s to the present, from the shores of Scotland to western North Carolina...where a folksinger longs to rediscover its haunting tune.

"Quite charming." (Los Angeles Times)

"Once again McCrumb has earned her place among the ranks of America's top storytellers. (Tampa Tribune)

"Intriguing...suspenseful." (Orlando Sentinel)

"McCrumb writes with quiet fire and maybe a little mountain magic." (New York Times Book Review)

Customer Reviews:

Haunting & Lyrical.......2006-08-05

I've had this one on my bookshelf for some time and just recently, in the mood for a good story, I picked this one up. I wish I hadn't finished it. It is a tale of a people that traveled from Scotland to the USA to the Tennessee/North Carolina mountains. This book travels back and forth from 1751 to present ~~ tracing the footsteps of a lineage and a haunting ballad that has been preserved in the family over the generations.

Lark McCourry is on her way home when her plane crashed in the mountains. She is haunted by the memory of a song that she had heard as a child, a song that was brought over to the States by her ancestor, Malcom McCourry, who was kidnapped as a child off the coasts of Scotland. He eventually became a lawyer in the States, fought in the Revolutionary War, raised a family, and headed off to the Wilderness Road to North Carolina, where he raised a second family. He passed the song onto his descendants, one of whom is Lark.

Lark is a famous folksinger on her way home to seeing her dad, with whom she has a rocky relationship with and is trapped in the plane that crashed. While waiting for help, she also asked for help in relocating this ballad to preserve it.

While the song travels over the years, McCrumb writes of people who lived in different times and their little stories become enmeshed with one another in a trickle of humanness and bits that make up the world today. Those ancestors of Lark's were all unique individuals who struggle to get ahead and still have a deep abiding love for their mountains and heritage.

It is a beautiful haunting story ~~ one to keep as a reminder that there are just some things that are worth preserving, a family song, a memory and family. It's a great book ~~ and one to cherish.

8-4-06

Intriguing Characters.......2006-01-11

A book with a folksong as hero? I liked the idea and soon was engrossed in McCrumb's world and intriguing characters.

The novel centers around a contemporary singer's search for a song heard years earlier at a relative's funeral. The story is told by a number of viewpoints which vary from past to present, a technique which might be distracting were not the various characters so interesting.

Chief among them is Malcolm McCourry, who is kidnapped as a child from his home on the Scottish island of Islay, becomes a lawyer in New Jersey, then, in his middle years, abandons wife, children and profession to become a pioneer in the North Carolina wilderness where he builds a new life with a common-law child-bride.

Malcolm's descendant, Linda Walker, who has re-named herself Lark McCourry and honed a career as a folksinger, is the one who seeks his song and provides the modern storyline. While returning home to the mountains to see her ailing father, her plane crashes and she uses her cell phone to contact 911. She talks the dispatcher into joining the hunt for the song and he complies as a means to occupy her mind during the rescue effort.

Based in part on McCrumb's own ancestors (Malcolm McCourry, for one), the novel combines elements of genealogy, history, mountain lore, ghosts, mystery and, of course, music. In fact, the song at the crux of the whole is actually an original composed by the author.

I have to confess this is the first of McCrumb's Ballad series I've read. But, it won't be the last.

Family Story.......2005-03-21

This is a great story. It could make everyone who reads it become interested in geneology. Sharyn McCrumb at her best writing a true story from her family.

THE SONGCATCHER is a wonderful book........2004-07-29

In the "old" days, people in the United States actually spent part of their leisure time "spinning yarns," telling stories true and exaggerated or fake and farfetched. It is hard to imagine, in this day of the computer, people passing anything down to each other without putting it on a hard drive first. However, in Sharyn McCrumb's wonderfully intricate THE SONGCATCHER, a young woman searches out her family legacy in a song that has been passed through the generations, which tells her more about where she came from than any legal document ever could. This is a yarn if there ever was one.

Lark McCourry is a contemporary girl with one foot firmly in the past. As a folksinger, she finds all music fascinating, but the song passed throughout her family ties is special. Brought to existence by one Malcolm McQuarry, an ancestor who moved to the States from Scotland in 1759, it was learned aboard an English ship and traveled with Malcolm all his life, from Morristown, New Jersey to Western North Carolina. The song gained new strength and purpose as the McCourry family suffered through the American Revolution, the Civil War, and the other great upheavals that shaped a nation...and a family history as well. Lark must turn to Nora Bonesteel, a friend of her father's, for information --- Nora has the ability to talk to both the dead and the living, and Lark needs to explore both realms in order to discover the real meaning of the song.

McCrumb is a writer compelled by an inner truth to look at life from all sides. Her characters are deep and enriched with truly human attributes (Lark's father will start to feel like a member of the family halfway into the story), and the whole thing reads like her own family history. You get the sense that the author has been here before, in this territory, living among these people, listening, watching. I felt like some secret had been spilled bravely by her, a tale of a family that had been rightly protected until her eager writer-self convinced them to let her tell their adventures to everyone. THE SONGCATCHER has that spectral quality.

THE SONGCATCHER is a wonderful book (and, by the way, was recently made into a wonderful film by Maggie Greenlaw and is available on video). Once you get the story of this song inside your own head, you will hear its music in your heart as well.

--- Reviewed by Jana Siciliano

Fictionalized family tree story is a treat.......2004-07-29

Sharyn McCrumb has given us a fictionalized version of her family tree, and it's a treat.

John Walker is dying and his housekeeper summons his estranged daughter home. His daughter, Linda, now a famous folksinger known as Lark, suffers an accident on the way home, however, and is stranded on a mountainside with faint chance of rescue. To see her through her ordeal, the 911 officer she managed to reach on her cell phone before the battery died promises to track down a folk song she heard when she was a child.

Interspersed with the events taking place in the present day is the story of Malcolm McCourry, a young Scots lad kidnapped by sailors in 1759, when he was nine years old. Although I was a bit confused the first time the story jumped back two hundred years, it didn't take me long to make the connection between Malcolm McCourry and John Walker, and I followed the subsequent years and generations with interest.

A quick read, and enjoyable.

Songcatchers: In Search of the World's Music

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"Music connects us with the soul."
The Best Thus Far Of Hart's Many Outstanding Books

Songcatchers: In Search of the World's Music
Mickey Hart , and K.M. Kostyal
Manufacturer: National Geographic
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 079224107X
Release Date: 2003-06-01

Book Description

For 30 years now, Mickey Hart has been on a quest&#!51;to search out and record the wealth of different musics in the world, many of them little known. He's also been fascinated by the recordists who came before him, themselves pioneers in the sound-capturing field, and the extraordinary technological developments that have made their work possible.

Songcatchers looks at our universal appreciation of music and the reasons why, over the past century, technology and curiosity have carried the shamanic chants of Siberia, the dying folk music of isolated European villages, and the ecstatic gamelan sounds of Bali to music lovers all over the world.

The personal tales of the songcatchers are full of romance, derring-do, and intrigue: some of them were scholars, others adventurists, and a few full-fledged spies. The machines that made their work possible progressed from the early treadle-powered phonographs that allowed sound waves to imprint wax cylinders to magnetic tape that captured sound in iron oxide particles to the digital domain of today.

Hart ventures across time and continents in following the songcatchers and their machines, and throughout it all he celebrates music and its ability to transcend the mundane and transport the human spirit.

Customer Reviews:

"Music connects us with the soul.".......2004-12-03

When I bought this book ,I was buying it with my 40 year old son in mind.I thought I would glance at it, and Boy ,am I glad I did.My son enjoys Rock,and even plays a bit of it.I have'nt developed much of a feel for it,but really like Classic Country,Folk,Bluegrass ,Soul,Irish ballads and some Rock and Roll.As a matter of fact,I have heard of The Grateful Dead and Jerry Garcia but I didn't even know that Mickey Hart was their drummer.So,I guess I'm really out of my league writing a review on this book;but here goes anyway.
This book bowled me over in a couple of ways.It really convinced me that all music is important and precious.That goes for Hank Williams singing "The First Fall of Snow",Woody Guthrie singing Philadelphia Lawyer,Elvis singing "Love Me Tender",Sinatra singing "New York,New York",Patty Reilly singing "The Town I Love So Well",the music of the Rain Forest,regional and tribal music from around the world, and even my son's Rock.
As a great lover of books,I can't begin to imagine what it would be like if we had nothing that was written prior to 1879.Well,that is exactly what Hart makes us think about,because there is not a single sound that was made befor that date,recorded,and can be replayed today.That thought is mind-boggling;and how many have even given it a thought?
Hart has made major contributions in trying to get the world's music recorded,particularly music from remote areas and cultures.A year or two ago I got the Asch Recordings,Vol.1-4 of Woody Guthrie ,by Smithsonian Folksways Recordings and even though I enjoy it very much,I had no idea what the background of it was--but thanks to this book,I can now appreciate it.
It takes someone with the talent and dedication of Mickey Hart to get involved and is certainly fortunate that he is on the Board of Directors at Smithonian Folksways.
Music and sound are as important as any other aspect of a culture and if not recorded is lost forever.
Just think about it ,we have the physical remains of the ancient pyrimids of Egypt to look at or even visit,there are all kinds of written material surviving,but not a single sound of the activity and the songs that must have been sung as they did their work.We dont't have to go back 4000 years;there is not a single battle sound ,music or song surviving from the Civil War.That's why what Mickey Hart has to say in this book is so important.

The Best Thus Far Of Hart's Many Outstanding Books.......2003-08-12

Mickey Hart is in full-boogie these days touring with The Dead, and millions of fans are grateful they're back on the road. But lest anyone misunderstand the depth and scope of Mr. Hart's broad musical background, this book should be considered essential reading. He has painstakingly researched and documented recorded music in a way that I quite honestly never considered in any formal way. Best of all, he's illuminated the historical process and power of recorded music on a global platform, all-the-while presenting it in the most readble and accessible manner. I believe this is the best of Mr. Hart's many outstanding books on music. No wonder he works for the Smithsonian. Scholarly, yes. Boring, not for a single word.

2 HBs by Sharyn McCrumb: She Walks These Hills & The Songcatcher

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2 HBs by Sharyn McCrumb: She Walks These Hills & The Songcatcher
Sharyn McCrumb
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000VC63S0

Product Description

Hardbacks

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Mr. Songcatcher and Company
May Justus
Manufacturer: Doubleday & Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000J4NA5Y

Appalachian Songcatcher: Olive Dame Campbell and the Scotch-Irish ballad.: An article from: Journal of Cultural Geography

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Appalachian Songcatcher: Olive Dame Campbell and the Scotch-Irish ballad.: An article from: Journal of Cultural Geography
Arthur Krim
Manufacturer: Thomson Gale
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Journal of Cultural Geography, published by Thomson Gale on September 22, 2006. The length of the article is 7220 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Appalachian Songcatcher: Olive Dame Campbell and the Scotch-Irish ballad.
Author: Arthur Krim
Publication: Journal of Cultural Geography (Magazine/Journal)
Date: September 22, 2006
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 24 Issue: 1 Page: 91(22)

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Songcatchers: a musical community.(arts in the community)(Songcatchers): An article from: Westchester County Business Journal

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Songcatchers: a musical community.(arts in the community)(Songcatchers): An article from: Westchester County Business Journal
Emily Seife
Manufacturer: Westfair Communications, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Westchester County Business Journal, published by Westfair Communications, Inc. on February 28, 2005. The length of the article is 445 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Songcatchers: a musical community.(arts in the community)(Songcatchers)
Author: Emily Seife
Publication: Westchester County Business Journal (Magazine/Journal)
Date: February 28, 2005
Publisher: Westfair Communications, Inc.
Volume: 44 Issue: 9 Page: A10(1)

Distributed by Thomson Gale

5 Ballad Mysteries - The Rosewood Casket - Ballad of Frankie Silver - Hangman's Beautiful Daughter - Songcatcher - She Walks These Hills

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5 Ballad Mysteries - The Rosewood Casket - Ballad of Frankie Silver - Hangman's Beautiful Daughter - Songcatcher - She Walks These Hills
Sharyn McCrumb
Manufacturer: Signet
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000KFV9AU

Product Description

5 mass market paperbacks. Ballad Mysteries - The Rosewood Casket - Ballad of Frankie Silver - Hangman's Beautiful Daughter - Songcatcher - She Walks These Hills

Customer Reviews:

Overall, an amazing adaptation!.......2005-07-22

The BBC did a wonderful job adapting Tolkien's classic trilogy into 13 episodes. The voice work was well done and highly evocative, and it made the 14 hours of flight time during which I listened to the dramatization very enjoyable. I particularly liked the depictions of Samwise, Perigrine and Merriweather.
Be aware this is an ABRIDGED version of the trilogy, but all the important portions are touched upon. I believe this product to be worth its price. Also, it would make a great gift for any Lord of the Rings aficionado.
I give this dramatization 4 stars only because I loathed the depiction of the Nazgul, particularly the Nazgul King. He spoke like a foppish Sherriff of Nottingham, not the servant of the dark lord Sauron whose very name set men to terror-stricken flight. Fortunately the Lord of the Nazgul doesn't speak that often, and when he does the incongruency between who he's supposed to be and how he sounds may strike you as comical. It rather reminds me of the incongruity betweem former heavyweight boxer Mike Tyson and his high-pitched squeaky voice.

Book Description

The classic guide to understanding and controlling one of the most common and frustrating behavioral problems.

Based on years of counseling, psychologists Jane B. Burka and Lenora M. Yuen offer a probing, sensitive, and sometimes humorous look at the problem that troubles everyone. Revealing the reasons we put off tasks-fears of failure, success, control, separation, and attachment-the authors outline a practical, tested program to overcome procrastination. Candid and understanding, Procrastination is a must-have today for anyone who puts everything off until tomorrow.

Customer Reviews:

Wordy.......2007-10-11

I agree with the review by DeLonzor - I couldn't bear reading this book because I found the text very "bogged down" myself. Not that it isn't an excellent workbook for the procrastinator. I decided that it's so wordy because one of the goals of the authors must be to lull (i.e., hypnotize) their readers into being more proactive, and to do that you have to use lots of words and examples of situations, to penetrate all the types of mental/emotional blocks readers will put up as they read this book. Obviously this style works because it certainly put me to sleep! Being a fan of REBT (Albert Ellis) myself, I prefer something a lot more to the point, like "Living Without Procrastination" by Susan Roberts, which briefly lays out the research about who does it and why and simply and succinctly describes what each person can do to nudge themselves toward action. So, I'm not knocking the book here, just want readers to know there are other options. No matter which style one prefers, reading a book on procrastination, especially in these overstimulating times, is good for anyone's soul, and for simply increasing one's enjoyment of the world.

EXCELLENT INSIGHT!.......2007-10-02

Finally I've found something that can help me overcome the hurdle of procrastination! I know there are different variations and how it affects each of us, but this book outlined behaviors, thoughts, and tactics that describe me to a "T"! I'm happy to know that I'm not crazy...and others share my struggles. If you think you're having more than a "lazy day"...since I seem to have MANY--this book may help you overcome your procrastination issue.

What's holding you back? (1).......2007-09-06

"Procrastination" by Burka and Yuen is clearly the beginning of an answer to what's holding us back from doing things. It is a kind of behavior that masks many problems. It gives a name to the behavior, gives a plausible set of reasons why we do it, and gives us something to do about it.

In a word, fear is the general cause of procrastination, but the authors do a fine job of unpacking that suitcase. With numerous examples to choose from, it is easy for us procrastinators to find some others who do it our way. And just as interesting, some people do it other ways that we haven't recognized before.

Recognizing we are not alone is really a good first step to moving on.

In the second half of the book, the authors begin to show us how to overcome the inertia of procrastination's gravity. I found the "taking stock" inventory of areas of procrastination very helpful. Following the inventory, they suggest a plan of action and ways to make progress.

Procrastination is a more wide-spread problem than most of us want to admit. Perhaps that's because it hits too close to home. What these authors have done is to bring the problem out in the open and deal with it head-on.

Highly recommended. (Don't put off buying it, now.)

Don't put off reading this book!.......2007-07-18

I procrastinate only in certain areas, and I found from reading this book that this is normal. (Whew.) I found myself thinking I was terribly busy but didn't seem to get things done. I read this book and as other reviewers have stated, I felt that many section were directly addressing MY issues. I have since begun to implement some of the strategies and "tools" for dealing with procrastination. WOW! It is wonderful. Things that I have put off for months (like calling a plumber to fix the leaky toilet) are done. And it was so simple. I wonder why I ever put it off. I intend to read this book again in a month or so, as I am sure I will pick up more tips the second time around.

WoW.......2007-05-21

I cant put this book down. If feels as if its talking directly to me and I'm greatful for it. This book has brought me to higher levels of consciousness.

Procrastination: Why You Do It, What to Do About It

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Best book for Procrastination!!
Great book. Must read!!!
don't put off reading this book!
Superb help for overcoming procrastination
A good book for beginning of the end of procrastination

Procrastination: Why You Do It, What to Do About It
Jane B. Burka , and Lenora M., Ph.D. Yuen
Manufacturer: Addison Wesley Publishing Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 020155089X

Customer Reviews:

Best book for Procrastination!!.......2005-12-12

I have read many books by top authors on Procrastination. Most say write a goal, concentrate on your A1 task etc etc. But the point is-they miss on why you do it? Until unless you figure it out, you can't solve this problem completely, atleast on long term basis. We all procrastinate atleast on some areas. Authors list reasons why we do it in a proper manner. It could be your environment, your interaction with your school teacher/professor/parents, showing how great you are by doing nightout before exam and still passing etc etc. I feel to deal with it properly--one has to know the reason. I guess it is best in that sense and feel everyone should read it. (I would suggest everyone read the first chapter here in this site, especially the cycle of procastination)
Thanks to authors for writing such a great book :)

Great book. Must read!!!.......2005-09-23

Great in helping you identify the reasons you procrastinate and how you can solve them.

don't put off reading this book!.......2003-11-25

I bought this book YEARS ago, maybe as many as ten years ago. Ironically enough, it took me three years to finally read it! Really. But I'm glad I finally read it. It helped me understand why I procrastinate, and provided some useful strategies to overcome it. I became a better student, worker, friend and family communicator. I've recommended it to lots of folks. In fact, I was just looking to buy a copy for a friend of mine and thought I'd take the opportunity to further spread the word about this wonderful book.

Superb help for overcoming procrastination.......2003-10-19

I'm a clinical psychologist, university professor and professional coach and one of my main specialties is helping people combat procrastination and writer's block. This is the first book I recommend to people who want to reform self-defeating habits of procrastination.

Burka and Yuen present sophisticated explanations of the many reasons why we habitually delay important but unpleasant activities. Then, in the second half of the book, they provide tips and tactics to help us overcome procrastination.

This book is psychologically sophisticated and one of the few self-help books that I've read with understandable explanations of why our bad habits develop and why they are so difficult to extinguish. The paralyzing fear of failure is vividly outlined. Less obvious, to most of us, and very well explained here, is how we may be ambivalent about succeeding. The reasons that some people procrastinate in order to rebel are described - for some of us, hostility may be a factor. On the other hand, Burka and Yuen illuminate ways that we may use delays to remain secure and comfortable. These many methods of self-sabotage really got me thinking when I first read the book, and have led to many insights and changes in the students and coaching clients I work with.

In the section on taking action, Burka and Yuen suggest ways to evaluate areas of difficulty, set priorities, manage time, organize activities, reduce stress, enlist support from others, follow through on efforts to change, and achieve goals.

The book is well-written, and provides clear and compelling examples. When I first read this book more than a decade ago, it helped me get my own dissertation done. I'm delighted that it is still in print. I frequently recommend it to the graduate students I teach, the faculty I coach, and the people I work with in psychotherapy.

A good book for beginning of the end of procrastination.......2003-06-01

This book really looks at the source of procrastination, and illustrates that this behavior can be overcome. It caters to the self-esteem, and gives encouraging support for dealing with procrastination once and for all. It explains how to with it yourself, as well as how to manage others who procrastinate. It also demonstrates the devestating effects of procrastination on a persons life.
I thought it was very easy to read, except one part where you finally get too anxious and have to skip ahead. I suggest fighting the urge to skip Part 1, because it's true that the techniques in Part 2 aren't sufficient without understanding why you procrastinate.

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Procrastination: Why You Do It, What to Do About It
Jane B.; Yuen, Lenora M. Burka
Manufacturer: Addison Wesley Publishing Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000HVTX1Y

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Procrastination - Why You Do It, What To Do About It
Jane B., Ph.D. & Yuen, Lenora M., Ph.D. Burkha
Manufacturer: Addison-wesley Publishing Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000RJ90B4

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PROCRASTINATION: WHY YOU DO IT, WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT
Jane B. & Yuen, Phd, Lenora M. Burka
Manufacturer: Addison-Wesley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000NUMZ5U

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Procrastination: Why You Do It, What to Do About It
Jane B., Ph.D. and Lenora M. Yuen, Ph.D. Burka
Manufacturer: Addison-Wesley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000V8YZV6

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Procrastination: Why You Do It, What to Do About It
Jane; Yuen, Lenora M. Burka
Manufacturer: Addison-Wesley Pub Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000NY2OXE

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Procrastination Why You Do it What to Do About it

Manufacturer: Addison Wesley Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000I6WYEG

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You can make that cake on the cover.

wonderful...

Another Goodie From Martha!!

Martha Does A "Good Thing"

Definately Classic Martha

Martha Stewart Living Annual Recipes 2002 (Martha Stewart Living Annual Recipes, 2002)
Martha Stewart
Manufacturer: Oxmoor House
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
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Martha Stewart Living Annual Recipes 2003 (Martha Stewart Living Annual Recipes)

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The Martha Stewart Living Christmas Cookbook

Favorite Comfort Food: Classic Favorites and Great New Recipes

ASIN: 0848724496

Customer Reviews:

You can make that cake on the cover........2004-03-24

I bought this book because the cover looked like the ultimate challenge.

My mother is one of those effortless bakers who cheerfully delivers gourmet sweets that look like they are straight out of the case at a pastry counter. I was visiting home when I bought this book and proudly told her, "I'm going to make THAT tomorrow NIGHT for my dinner party," jabbing my finger at the 16-layer cake on the cover.

She balked immediately and urged me to reconsider, recommending a three or four layer cake to start. She recounted my many cake failures (gently, of course) and told me not to overextend myself. More determined than ever, I trusted Martha and my own direction-following skills, and made that cake.

Martha's process is simple, thorough (above all, I hate cooks that assume you'll fill in the blanks), and graceful. The cake cook time to make, true, but did not require too much money (short ingredient list) or baking skills (my repertoire is as limited as my pantry). Every other recipe I have made from this book (try the Chocolate Pistachio Biscotti) has turned out beautifully.

Martha made a chef out of me and can make one out of you.

wonderful..........2004-01-22

This is a wonderful cookbook. I have several others that I use to make dishes, but I can always count on Martha's recipes to be the best. I have yet to make an average or bad dish using one of her recipes. They always come out great. The book has good pictures and a wide skill range for the recipes- from easy to difficult. It's packed with lots of recipes and side hints to help with anything from picking ingredients to preparations. The deserts are particularly wonderful. I love to bake and all of the deserts come out great- apple sauce cake, lemon bluberrry pound cake, coconut patties to name a few. Highly recommended.

Another Goodie From Martha!!.......2002-09-16

Love her or hate her, the woman has some GREAT recipes!! Everything from basic to show-stopper!! You will be so amazed at the results. Altho some pictures of the recipes look like you need to be a professional baker or trained at the Culinary Institute, they are actually easy. I have yet to make a recipe here that people do not ask for the recipe. A great addition to a cookbook collection. Many of Martha's highly requested recipes included.

Martha Does A "Good Thing".......2002-07-25

Yes, I'm reviewing a Martha Stewart cookbook. Martha Stewart as a person, has received a ton of criticism, some founded and some not. Though not a diehard fan, I can appreciate her do-it-yourself approach to good living. I now have two Martha Stewart cookbooks.

This particular cookbook is the recipe compendium of all Martha Stewart Living issues for 2001, plus a few recipes from her special topic issues (weddings, baby, kids). If you have every issue of the magazine, you'll not need this cookbook. For the rest of you, read on.

Chapters represent each month's issue, and along with the featured recipes for the month, include recipes from the regular columns: Dessert of the Month, Good Things, What To Have For Dinner, and Fit to Eat.

Browsing through this cookbook is like walking through a buffet. You'll find a varied assortment of dishes that will please just about everyone; from the basics like "Spaghetti and Tomato Sauce 101" to more elaborate meals like "Beef Rendang with Broccoli". Regardless of the recipe, I found each recipe clearly written and easy to follow.

My first experience with this cookbook was not something simple and safe. Oh no, I had to pick something that required time, patience, and steady nerves. I selected to make "Alma Etheridge Wilson's Roanoke Sixteen-Layer Chocolate Fudge Cake". If you ever see this cookbook, a slice of this particular cake appears on the cover.

Making this cake also required breaking in my new KitchenAid stand mixer. The sweat broke out on my forehead with the thought. What had I gotten myself into?

The only secret to this fun (yes, I said fun) cake is to follow the directions. No matter how much you want to, do not over bake it. Each layer is so thin that it will dry out or burn before you know it. The only thing missing from this recipe is an estimated time of completion. I made the mistake of starting the cake after dinner and didn't finish until sometime after midnight. The results were worth it. A delicious and gorgeous cake that had everyone wondering how I did it.

Another recipe that was a knockout was for "French Onion Soup". I've never had it, never wanted to try it, and turned my nose up at it if offered. I'm not a major fan of onions. I selected this particular recipe because my fiance said he liked it and I wanted to add another "new food/dish I've tried" to my growing list. For anyone who has never had French Onion Soup, unless you are allergic to onions or cheese, you must try this recipe! For those who love French Onion Soup but were afraid to make it thinking it might be too difficult, try this recipe.

The hardest thing about this recipe is having patience to not stir the onions too often while waiting for them to caramelize. I made this over the weekend and after my first taste, wanted the whole pot for myself. This is one of those recipes that are so simple, whether you make your own beef broth or use canned, you'll want to make it often.

I have to say that I went into this cookbook ready to find all sorts of faults with it and I couldn't. Well, I did run into a few silly editing mistakes. Small things like in the index, Pork is shown as a sub-category for Poppy-Seed. It was frustrating initially looking for a recipe using pork until I noticed the mistake.

As for who would enjoy this cookbook? Just about anybody looking for recipes they can be successful using, for anyone looking for a variety of recipes to suite family and friends, for those who enjoy good cooking. The few mistakes I found were easy to overlook but still tarnish the shine of this cookbook. Not bad Martha, not bad.

Definately Classic Martha.......2002-06-07

What can we say? This is a very good cookbook, but not for the average cook on an "everyday" budget. But then, of course, Martha's tv shows are not for us either. Anyways, there are many good recipes, and I like Martha's shows and have her other books. But, in my opinion, her Comfort Foods Cookbook was her finest hour.

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Annual Recipes 2002
From the Editors of Martha Stewart Living
Manufacturer: Martha Stewart Living
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000SV3VTS

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