Book Description
Sasha Jensen has returned to Paris, the city of both her happiest moments and her most desperate. Her past lies in wait for her in cafes, bars, and dress shops, blurring all distinctions between nightmare and reality. When she is picked up by a young man, she begins to feel that she is still capable of desires and emotions. Few encounters in fiction have been so brilliantly conceived, and few have come to a more unforgettable end.
Customer Reviews:
Entertaining and Original Writing.......2007-01-21
I read the present work and then followed up by reading Rhys's big hit, the novel Wide Sargasso Sea.
As a general reader I still preferred this present novel to Sargasso Sea. Here she lets her imagination run wild as she describes the partially alcohol soaked life of a young woman living in post WWI era Paris. The feel and structure of the book is original and the prose and structure has a bit of the feel of Joyce's classic A portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. It was written by Rhys in her younger days, decades before her big hit.
As noted by others, it describes the pessimistic thoughts of a woman living near the bottom of society. She lives in a state of depression and loneliness, alone in her own in a world. She has not lost her looks and she is able to attract the odd man into the story. This adds to the complexity of the plot.
Rhys follows the present novel a few decades later with her big hit novel, Wide Sargasso Sea. It was a commercial and literary hit. It is based on the less original idea of extending some elements of the story of Jane Eyre. That limits or forces her story to converge with the plot elements of Jane Eyre. The present work is just Rhys on her own with no limits. Personally, I like the present story for that reason. It is fresh and original.
This is a great but short read, which I found fascinating and entertaining. The Penguin version has a good introduction to the life and work of Jean Rhys which is very useful to read after reading the novel.
Dark look inside a woman's mind.......2002-04-18
"Good Morning, Midnight" tells the story of Sasha Jensen in post-war Paris. The author gets inside Sasha's head and exposes to the reader her low sense of self-worth and her misaligned priorities. We get glimpses into Sasha's past to give clues as to what has brought her to this state of depression. Sasha cares too much about what others around her think of her; she is always concious of how she must appear to waiters in cafes, people on the street and workers at the hotel where she is staying. She is always putting thoughts in their head of how they must percieve her. Sasha also does not have her financial priorities straight since she buys a fancy new hat and plans on buying other new items for her wardrobe and in the meantime is neglecting to eat.
I found "Good Morning, Midnight" a fascinating insight into a woman in a "low" psychological state. This book is not recommended if you are looking for an uplifting, feel-good story. "Good Monring, Midnight" would probably lead to great discussion for book groups.
Reading this book has left a mark on me..........2001-03-12
I have a sentence from 'Good Morning Midnight' tattooed on my right arm. There is no higher acolade.
Delicately Violent.......2001-01-11
It is no wonder that after the publication of this novel people assumed Jean Rhys had committed suicide. It is a dark, introverted, soul-searching novel. It's brilliance lies in the compassion with which Sasha is treated. This is a woman who is unquestionably at the end of her tether. Life occurs almost unconsciously to her. She drinks non-stop and thinks of fashion before eating. But these aren't superficial choices. They are the few soft whispers of a woman about to go over the brink. Throughout the novel you are given brief glimpses of her past as a shop assistant and the troubles in her marriage. In themselves the troubles which result from them are not ample enough to drive a normal woman to such desperation. You feel that the reason for her state of mind is more the result of a profound neglect of her individual spirit by men. She is led on to believe in a progression of being, but is abandoned to clutch at the ghosts of her old haunts in Paris. This is a sharp contrast to the ideas that we have about artistic scene of Paris in this time period. It is a more sincerely concentrated personal experience than most accounts. It is interesting to think of the end in contrast to the jubilant yeses of Molly Bloom in Ulysses. Sasha's yes is one of doom and resignation to a world that has flown past her.
Despite its depressing character, this novel is a fascinating look at a tendency to sink into a psychological state often ignored. It is also a subtle portrayal of an identity built on a knife's edge. Luckily, Ms Rhys did survive this novel (however unhappily). It is a miracle that she did considering the violent lack of self worth of Sasha; to have imagined such a person must have been terrifying indeed.
"Last night was a catastrophe...".......2000-10-09
Just about every night is a catastrophe for Sasha Jansen, the heroine of Jean Rhys's excellent novel. In less than two hundred pages, Rhys has effectively captured not only the bitter sentiments of the "lost generation" but also the huge scope of thoughts and experiences of a lonely brand of humans alienated by a cruel, hyprocritical society. The theme of the book comes straight from Sasha's mouth:
". . . And I'm very much afraid of the whole bloody human race. . . Who wouldn't be afraid of a pack of damned hyenas? . . . And when I say afraid -- that's just a word I use. What I really mean is that I hate them. I hate their voices, I hate their eyes, I hate the way they laugh . . . I hate the whole bloody business. It's cruel, it's idiotic, it's unspeakably horrible . . . Everything spoiled, all spoiled."
The frightening thing about this book is that Rhys successfully cuts through human illusions and comes out with a stark, brutal view of society as a "pack of hyenas." She suggests society is this way because people are insecure and must appease their egos through cruelty to others, but she does not entirely believe or accept this as a valid excuse for cruel behavior. This is a common theme in Rhys's books -- society committing spritual murder through cruelty -- and it is never shown better than here.
Sasha's bitter plight is quite realistic (it's obvious Rhys has had these experiences herself) and the social commentary biting, told through lean and somewhat dream-like stream-of-consciousness prose. The long dialogues and battles of wills between Sasha and the gigolo culminate in a tense, unforgettable ending -- an excellent book by one of the most underrated authors of the Twentieth Century.
Book Description
This is the story of one man's attempt to find refuge from his demons in nature, and his ultimate surrender to it. Good Morning Midnight is an existential adventure story-thrillingly reported, brilliantly composed, provocative, and incisive.
Customer Reviews:
Good Morning Midnight.......2006-03-21
Great book, I was touched by Chip's thoughtful writting of such a wonderful, but sad, life and death. It is so sad that friends and family allowed these men to suffer through depression without finding a way to getting them help. It's a message to all of us to help those who can not help themselves.
The Tragic Story of A New England Legend.......2006-03-18
This is a powerful book. Mr. Brown examines the life of Guy Waterman, a man who became the personification of the Old Man Of The Mountain. Guy was an amzing man who workedin fields ranging from speech writing in Washington, to jazz pianist, to winter caretaker of an AMC hut.
There is no hero-worship here. The book examines Guy's dark side as well; his early divorce, chronic depression, the deaths of his two sons, and his eventual suicide.
A well-penned epilogue.......2004-04-25
This very artfully told tale was truly page turner for me. Thick with literary references, Brown's story of Guy Waterman reflects the complexity of a multi-talented individual, appreciated by many, but omniouly least of all by himself.
I came away with a very strong feeling that Guy Waterman was truly a unique individual. His successes far outweighed his failures. But his ultimate failure was to recognize that hardmen mature into wisemen. Old Men of the Mountain types, who regale their friends and cohorts with lessons and values of challenging and living amongst the mountains. No matter how far flung the challenge, a mountaineer's ultimate objective is to return from his/her adventure to share the experience; the cold, the hard breathing, the colors, the wind and their intimate feelings of wonder or survival. Regretfully, Guy's inner-self, his demons, contested his own outwardly generous, steadfast and friendly personality.
For me, Brown's story reacquainted me with several names and places familiar in mountaineering circles. It also cleard my long held confusion between John Waterman the highly acclaimed, albeit daring alpinist, Guy's son and Jonathan Waterman the prolific author of Alaskan mountaineering.
HOWEVER, as an end note the publisher editorial and Author INCORRECTLY stated that Krakauer wrote about John Waterman. The book Into the Wild was the story of Chris McCandless, by J.Krakauer.
A beautiful glimmer of a man's interesting life.......2004-02-13
After just finishing the book I found myself wanting to write the author and thank him for letting the reader into another world, a very personal one, of a man who had experienced so much in the ways of life, love, and death. The book flows with it's constant references to Guy Waterman's own writings as well as great literary works. I felt a part of the waterman clan ,without intruding, after reading the book. It has been a long time since a book made anything so real with out being too heavy handed. The adventures are amazing, both in the outdoors and with the human emotions. A fantastically orchestrated work; Chip Brown has proved himself as an outdoorsman and writer.
Total disappointment.......2004-02-03
I can only hope that Guy Waterman's final freezing hours atop Mt. Lafayette were less painful than trying to get through this book.
If there's a good story in here somewhere, it will take a search and rescue party to find it among Mr. Brown's endless rambling and superflous language. Here's an example, lifted randomly from the third chapter: "Although the Farm was only eight miles from downtown New Haven, where Professor Waterman taught physics at Yale, it seemed a world apart, a kind of Connecticut Shangri-la exempt from the privations of the Great Depression and far from the portents of the Second World War, and impossible, really, to separate from the enchantment of childhood itself, part place, part time, part the memory of that theater of spirits where Mother is forever calling you home from the woods with a silver whistle and Father is ushering you to bed with a lullaby on the grand piano."
Despite his impressive credentials, Brown writes like a novice who is more concerned with constructing elaborate sentences and displaying vocabulary than capturing the reader's interest and telling the subject's story. Shame on this book's editor for not hacking it to shreds.
Book Description
Hailed by the New York Times as "the master of form and sorcerer of style," Reginald Hill is undoubtedly at the top of his form in this gripping story of a mysterious death that echoes one in the past.
"Somewhere distantly a church clock began to strike midnight. In the muffling fog, it sounded both familiar and threatening, like the bell on a warning buoy tolled by the ocean's rhythmic swell."
Good Morning, Midnight
Yorkshire's coppers Andy Dalziel and Peter Pascoe are investigating the suicide of prominent businessman Pal Maciver. It seems to be a clear-cut case: he shot himself while sitting at his desk in his locked study.
But things are not quite what they seem. When Pascoe digs deeper, he finds threads going back to another, almost identical death -- that of Maciver's father. And even more disturbing: Pascoe's boss, Detective Superintendent Dalziel, was the officer on that case.
With Dalziel checking his every move, Pascoe is forced to lead his own investigation, plunging into the past to uncover truths about the Maciver family, particularly Pal's relationship with his step-mother, the beautiful and enigmatic Kay Kafka. He soon realizes that the implications of Maciver's death stretch far beyond the borders of Yorkshire. And when a key witness -- exotic hooker Dolores, "Lady of Pain" -- disappears, the death takes on a far more complicated and mysterious face.
Customer Reviews:
Not bad........2005-11-30
Pal Maciver's body is found behind locked doors. The shotgun close by is obviously the weapon of choice. All signs SCREAM "suicide" ... and that is what Detective (DCI) Peter Pascoe's boss wants him to list it as and close the case. However, Peter simply cannot bring himself to do so.
Peter's boss, Detective Superintendent Andy Dalziel, was the officer that investigated the "suicide" of Pal's father ten years ago. Both Macivers died exactly the same way. Pal's stepmother and an arms dealer make it all murkier still. One thing Peter knows for sure: the answers could shatter the police department to its very foundation.
**** A very good mystery, but the "suicide behind locked doors" scenario has already been played to death. The author does manage to throw in a surprise or two though. If you are a fan of this series or simply enjoy a good mystery, I can certainly recommend this one. ****
Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.
Hill's "Midnight" is OK but it could have been much better.......2005-09-18
This is a satisfactory entry--but no more than that--in a long-running and entertaining series. Fat Andy Dalziel of the outrageous name is always worth the price of admission. (In some future outing he should become involved with an American southerner named Taliaferro, thus affording opportunity for 400-plus pages of trans-Atlantic mispronunciations.)
At this stage of his career, Hill has taken to mixing genres. In this book, without digging too hard, we find comedy of manners, international thriller, police procedural, locked room puzzle, English country house mystery, multi-generational epic and literary navel-gazer. Unfortunately, none of these elements has quite enough freedom to soar, nor do they manage to blend together into a satisfactory whole. The locked room story, for example, shoots itself in the foot (so to speak) right at the beginning of the book. At the end of the book [SPOILER ALERT!] the Emily Dickinsonian literary thread turns out to be ... irrelevant, a mere McGuffin.
I suspect that Reginald Hill's long-term triumphs have been enough to ensure that his publishers apply little save the most mechanical sort of editing to his hefty manuscripts. It is hard, of course, to argue with success, but "Good Morning, Midnight" would be a better book if an editor with blue pencil poised had asked some hard questions of Hill. There are really too many narrative strands to form much more than an unsightly tangle. The final answer to a big "WHY?" question just isn't massive enough to bear the accumulated weight of the hundreds of pages we have traversed to get to it. The backstory of the series is becoming unwieldy. The character of Hat Bowler, another preposterous name (there are more), simply does not make any sense at all in terms of THIS book, except as an annoying weakling. Sergeant Wield, on the other hand, is strong enough but he is given nothing to do. He is a player listed on the program who is given the opportunity to stride on stage, bow to the audience, collect a polite round of recognition applause and then obliged to depart before affecting the shape of the drama in any degree.
Then there is the matter of language. British editors should have a stick bearing the motto "You write in American at your peril" with which to beat English authors over the head. As an American long-ago transplanted to Canada, I still occasionally stumble over the very much more subtle differences between 'Murrican and Western Canajan. Hill's Americans sometimes sound almost as hilariously wrong as dear old Agatha Christie's, not so much in their vocabulary but in rhythm of speech and sentence structure. (Come to think of it, Hill's Yank does say "reckon." In all my life, I have heard just two Americans say "I reckon": Gary Cooper and John Wayne, and then only in movie westerns.)
"Good Morning, Midnight" does have one estimable advantage over several other outings of the series. DCI Pascoe's wife, the egregious Ellie, makes only perfunctory appearances. True to form, as other Amazon reviewers have noted, even in her brief turn on stage she manages to sound a profoundly wrong note on one of her many false fiddles. It is a measure of Hill's talent that with Ellie Pascoe he has managed to create the complete Anti-Nora Charles, the most distasteful cow in all of contemporary mystery (and perhaps any) fiction.
Interesting English police procedural.......2005-09-06
It's a strange death, but it seems indisputable that it's a suicide. There's a locked door, a bare toe with a shotgun, and no extraneous fingerprints to be found. The only problem is, Pal Maciver has precisely duplicated the suicide of his father ten years earlier. Now, what kind of man would do that? Although his boss tells him to rule the death a suicide and turn over the case to the uniformed services, DCI Peter Pascoe senses something he can't quite put his finger on. There's the dead man's family--all weird and definitely equipped with both money and hatred. Then there are the little details of the case. Two glasses are clean while the others are dusty--and where is the bottle the dead man had been drinking from. When he learns that his boss had been in charge of the investigation of the father's suicide, Pascoe is even more torn.
Pascoe's investigation turns up sexual misdeeds, lies, and brushes on the corners of a large company that just might become the next recipient of the American Securities and Exchange Commission's attentions. Finally, even his boss, Detective Superintendent Dalziel, is forced to agree that there's something going on--and that they need to continue the investigation.
Author Reginald Hill spins an interesting take on the classic 'locked room' mystery. Readers know from the start that Pal's death was a suicide, but we're still pulled into the investigation--and the mystery that lurks beneath the mystery.
Hill tosses out plenty of hints of what Pascoe is likely to find, eventually. Too many hints, I thought. In fact, that might be the key weakness in an otherwise fascinating book--the reader knows too much, too soon, and spends too much time waiting for the police to catch up.
Still, GOOD MORNING, MIDNIGHT makes for an entertaining read as Pascoe and Dalziel try to game one another, each trying to bring about some hint of justice in their own way, but finding the other obstructing what they do.
A satisfying return to form for Hill.......2005-05-02
I was glad to see this book come out and even happier to read it. The past few Reginald Hill books in the Dalziel and Pascoe series have been entirely too cerebral for a simple sot like me and I started to actually resent Reginald Hill for ramming home his blinding intellect so fiercely. He must have gotten that out of his system, because in "Good Morning, Midnight", we have a really nifty, twisty mystery with the usual great attraction/avoidance between our beloved inspectors Dalziel and Pascoe. This doesn't mean that Hill deprives us of Dalziel's fantastically literate musings (and I'm sure I only "get" a small percentage of these) but they aren't the centerpiece. The story is. And there is nothing so delicious as a good old-fashioned "body in the library" mystery with lots of nasty family members involved. It is even better when the ugliness goes back a few generations and we get an intriguing backstory as a result. I still wish Ellie Pascoe would get a life and that Dalziel's love life would pick back up again, but that might have made too weighty and dense a story. In truth, this one was just right.
Another Winner From Hill..........2005-04-22
... but I must agree with the reviewer here who calls Ellie into question. She (Ellie) is SOOO over-the-top feminist, why does she put up with repeated rape attempts from another woman, and still refer to her as a good friend? It is the one discordant note in this one. If I were *really* going to nit-pick, I might add that I wish I knew if Hat Bowler ever does realize what his departed lover had actually been guilty of, a book or two back??? Does Mr. Hill neglect this, simply because he feels it is unimportant to the current story line? If that is the case, then why mention Hat's pain at all? It seems it would be a good thing for Hat to know just how seriously twisted his late lover had been. Perhaps it would ease the grief, or if not, even better, perhaps it would behoove him to be very cautious in future, before giving his heart away.
Thank God these are not real people! :-)
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Good Morning: Midnight
Kim Rosenfield
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Amazon.com
Ophelia Speaks by Sara Shandler is a clever response to Mary Pipher's bestselling Reviving Ophelia. Shandler reveals telling portraits of teenage girls in this book, a compilation of essays, poems, and true-grit commentary from a cross section of teenage girls (or Ophelias), throughout the country. The book succeeds because it gives voice to their deepest concerns and their too-often frenzied lives. Because she's a college student, Shandler considers herself a peer of these adolescent girls, able to tap into their collective consciousness.
Shandler is as determined as she is a sharp reporter in chronicling the lives of these young women. To research the book, she sent out a mass mailing of 7,000 letters to high school and junior high school principals, counselors, and teachers explaining her book project and urging them to encourage teenage girls to contribute.
The topics covered run the gamut, but they include parental expectations, racial relations, and faith, among others. Sadly, eating disorders are an all-too-popular topic. The good news is that Shandler's contributors offer up some real insight for their peers. In one essay titled "Food Is Not My Enemy," Elizabeth Fales "calls us to a new feminism. In the old feminism, our mothers fought for the right to choose abortion. In our generation, we must fight for the right to eat."
The book also gives practical insight for parents who may find it hard to relate to their teenage daughters. In a nutshell, it appears that adolescent girls want unconditional love from parents who can be confidants without being overly critical. --Peg Melnick
Book Description
At age sixteen, Sara Shandler read Mary Pipher's Reviving Ophelia, the national bestseller that candidly explored the unique issues that challenge girls in their struggle toward womanhood. Moved by Pipher's insight yet driven to hear the unfiltered voices of today's adolescent girls, Shandler yearned to speak for herself, and to provide a forum for other Ophelias to do so as well.
A poignant collection of original pieces selected from more than eighthundred contributions, Ophelia Speaks culls writings from the hearts of girls nationwide, of various races, religions, and socioeconomic backgrounds. Ranging in age from twelve to eighteen, the voices here offer a provocative and piercingly real view on issues public and private, from body image to boys, politics to parents, school to sex. Framing each chapter are Shandler's own personal reflections, offering both the comfort of a trusted friend and an honest perspective from within the whirlwind of adolescence.
In these pages, you will see your best friend, your daughter, your sister--and yourself. At once filled with heartbreak and hope, in these pages Ophelia speaks.
Customer Reviews:
Alyssa's Review.......2005-12-09
Ophelia Speaks by Sara Shandler, is a book filled with heart warming stories from adolescents everywhere. Although this novel discusses mature content I feel that girls everywhere should read this novel. Ophelia Speaks discusses these issues in a mature and open minded fashion. In our English class we're learning how women are objectified in today's society. Ophelia Speaks discusses everything from rape and drugs to pregnancy and abuse. I feel that it's important for girls to have knowledge in what is happening in the world, regardless of age. I enjoyed reading Ophelia Speaks because the novel was based on true stories. Since these stories are true they give the reader an opportunity to connect with them on a personal level. I consistently found myself reading this book outside of school, which is rare. I recommend this book to people, especially women, of all ages. On a personal note I would suggest bringing a box of Kleenex while you read this book. I feel that it is just as important for men to acknowledge these issues especially since they have an active part in most of these issues. It is important for people to acknowledge and learn from experiences, both traumatic and remarkable. And especially since we are the future it's necessary that we learn from the past to prepare for life. This book conveys the message that you're not alone in life no matter what the circumstances are. It is important to know that rape is not your fault as well acknowledging that you're not alone.
A Huge Waste of Time.......2005-05-02
I've never seen a larger waste of literary effort than I did in Ophelia Speaks by Sara Shandler. I am (...)old and, as the targeted audience, I found nothing redeeming hidden among Shandler's shameful pages. Perhaps if Shandler had advertised a different prospect, I would not be so mortified for her hideous compilation. However, considering that she wished to voice the confusion found among adolescents, I must say, I think she failed miserably. The submissions are threaded with poorly written pieces and the polar extremes of teenage horror. Death, rape, abusive boyfriends, bulimia, cutting- you name a traumatic experience, and I'll bet you it's in there. It seems odd to me that the book was supposed to advocate an "adolescent's search for self," because, with all due respect, this was a terrifically depressing collection. Seriously. Play hide and go seek all you want with the optimistic stories, but you'll be searching for quite some time. One of the sorry pieces that truly ticked me off was "The Body Under Assault", a testament to the bleak and destructive attitudes of teenage drama queens. How is this person's horrific disorder EVER going to help me "find myself" or obtain a positive outlook? Also, not one piece reflected my own opinion. Shandler managed to pluck the most polarized stories so that she failed to represent the opinions of your average adolescent altogether. Instead of optimistic, soulsearching entries, I found myself lost amongst rabid quests of nightmarish ex-friends, forests of self-pitying tales of trauma, and barren plains of the problems that fester in nuclear families. How is a regular teen supposed to find any sort of guidance through such morbid tales? Not to mention that Shandler seems to pride herself with the belief that she's this determined, successful, understanding undergraduate. Think again...and again, and again, and again. Shandler's little tidbits of insight preceding each chapter left me craving to meet her only so I could quiet her self-righteous nuggets of wisdom. Save your money and forget the book!
GIRLS NEED MORE .......2005-04-26
Okay, I know there is a place for a book that is filled with girls' worries and sorrows and anguish. But for my money, it's more valuable to give a girl a book that does not just reflect her angst, but that offers solutions, tips, hope, and empowerment. The best book I know about for girls (preteen and teen) is GIRLTALK: All the Stuff Your Sister Never Told You which recently came out in a fourth edition. I read it as a teen back in 1985 and recently gave the fully updated book to my nieces--who loved it.
Telling it like it is.......2004-05-17
In reading this book, I found it to be exactly like the life of a teenage girl. Anyone could read this book and get something out of it. In idea, it reminds me of the Chicken Soup series, but I enjoyed how it only focused on teenage girls and the struggles that they face. Excellent Read! Get it today!
Ophelia Speaks:Stereotyping all female adolescents.......2004-02-25
'Ophelia Speaks' by Shandler is a poor attemp at writing on Shandler's part. I had to read this book for my SOC 204 class, but otherwise I would have never picked this book up to read. I found the book to be only a collection of letters, stories and poems that Shandler had collected from adolescent girls. Most of these entries did not capture the true life of adolescent girls but instead glamourized the stereotypes that society has about female adolescents. The author, at the time of collecting these reading, was only 17 and it seems as if she was just putting this book together to make a few extra bucks. As well, I believe that since she sent out a letter asking for submissions for the book, I feel that the girls that wrote the entries, were meerly looking for some sort of fame by having their entries in this book. I also cannot stand how the author's experiences never reflect the experiences of the writings; this further indicates that the writings are not accurate. The author also never comes to any conclusion after a chapter. She could have given some psychological/sociolgical/physiological reasoning behind some of the girls experiences.
I would not refer anyone to read this book. It was a waste of time and money.
Save your money and spend it on better things.
Book Description
From short movies to full-length feature films, characters from the great Disney movies are often seen sipping soups, consuming cakes, or sampling any number of gastronomic delights. One hundred and one delectable recipes, based on favorite food scenes from the films and created by award-winning American chef Ira Meyer, are collected in this colorfully illustrated cookbook. Savor Snow White's Gooseberry Pie, Ariel's Bouillabaisse, or spaghetti and meatballs from Lady and the Tramp. Disney Recipes is a treat for the entire family, with easy-to-follow instructions that include tips for how to involve kids in the preparation. Sprinkled throughout with original artwork and beautiful stills from the movies, this is one tasty treat.
Customer Reviews:
Good going Ira Meyer!.......2006-02-11
Compared with Disney's Mickey Mouse Cookbook, this one is just as good, and worth checking out because it's so updated--it contains new movies not made in time for the other book, and many rarer Disney cartoons as well. The beginning has a section dedicated to recounting the history of food as featured in Disney animation. The rest of the book is then divided into categories of recipes inspired by Disney characters and movies. Each recipe is assigned to a particular character (it often makes perfect sense because the character is somehow directly connected with the type of food, and other less obvious matches manage to make sense anyway because the recipe is symbolically linked with the character.) A couple of them are given to entire movies as well. The recipes also contain a quote from the movie (frequently food-related), shots and sketches from the animation, and notes on serving suggestions, variations, details, and what kids can do to help prepare each dish. For those that include alcohol, it's always suggested that it be replaced with apple juice or something more kid-friendly.
The book presents some good-looking desserts and breakfasts and even features a recipe for pet treats--Kanine Krunchies, as seen in "101 Dalmatians." Some of the recipes have photos of the finished product and some don't. Three beverages comprise the final chapter, including Herculade, the soft drink of heroes.
One feature of the book I especially liked was the provision of nutrition facts for the recipes--though many of them are astronomical in the measurements. For instance, I find it very hard to believe that the Oliver & Company dry-roasted chicken contains 616 grams of saturated fat in a single serving. Unless the serving is sized for a t-rex or they intend to kill the people who eat it, I really get the impression that a good number of these charts must be inaccurate. On that note, a few extremely tasty-looking recipe ideas like Si and Am's Thai appetizers or Mushu's egg rolls and juk have high numbers too (and, of course, things like King Midas's hamburger). But on the other hand, there are some delicious-looking recipes which, even if you use the ingredients exactly as printed, are very good indeed on the nutrition factor. Baloo's jungle ambrosia salad of various fruits and Cinderella's herb and egg white soup fit this category.
There are some recipes you just can't miss if you're doing a Disney cookbook, such as Lady and the Tramp's spaghetti. This book also includes such appropriate ones as the Walrus and the Carpenter's oyster salad, Kuzco's (even though this should be labeled as Kronk's) spinach puffs, and Widow Tweed (of "The Fox and the Hound")'s cheddar soup with herbed crisps. The Cheshire Cat's marinated fish salad is attractively bright in color and looks a possible good choice for even a non-seafood-fan in general (such as me).
Honestly? The only one thing in the book that looks truly unappetizing is the "Treasure Planet" Astral Soup. The photo of the bowl shown is terrifying to me; in the soup I can see tentacles, shells, large claws, and entire bodies of sea creatures lying there with eyes glaring up at me.
So overall, a good score for this book.
Great Cookbook for Kids.......2004-02-26
This is probably one of the better children's cookbooks there is, for several reasons. 1. All of the recipes are based on Disney movies and/or characters that most children know, although some are from movies I've never seen, and less recognizable characters that I've never even heard of, and I've been a Disney fanatic for years. 2. All the recipes are realativly easy, although some have foods that picky eaters wouldn't want to eat. The book is laid out in a good format. It has appetizers first, then soups, then entrees, etc. It also has beautiful pictures and pencil sketches of the characters, as well as quotes, mostly having to do with food. There is also at least one recipe from each movie up through Mulan, which is fairly recent. There is also several pages of safety tips, "from the characters." Overall this is a very good cookbook for children who want to help prepare meals with there parents.
Outstanding Recipes by Chef Ira Meyer!.......2003-12-07
If you haven't already purchased a copy of this outstanding cookbook - hurry before they sell out! This beautiful book is chock full of delicious recipes and all of our favorite Disney characters. The recipes are easy to follow for both young and old, and it will keep you coming back for more. I have purchased over 20 copies of this magnificent book for family and friends. All of the recipes are easy to follow, delicious to eat, and have been extremely well received by my guests. If you want to look like a pro in the kitchen, this is a MUST for your collection. Bravo Chef Ira! Looking forward to your next book!!
Terrific Book for beginners to pros.......2003-12-07
I know the author and waited in anticipation to be able to buy and try out his recipes. He has never given me bad advice on any cooking problem and his recipes are realy terrific. My grandkids have decided we will fix one recipe a week out of the cookbook till we have tried them all. I am looking forward to making the recipes as they are simple and not complicated, and I have cooked since I was old enough to use the stove. Besides they sound very delightful and in teresting. My grandkids like it as it gives them their part in fixing the dish and tells them what movie it came from. I have showed it to several friends who now want to own their copy, and excited that i know the author it makes it even more special to me. I hope I can get him to autograph it for me down the road.
Enchanting...........2003-11-25
Upon receiving this book as a gift, I was so enthralled and impressed with it's creativity and enchantment, that I purchased 30 more for people on my holiday list with children.
It is a wonderful book, filled with memories of wonderful Disney characters, that have been brought back to life with Chef Ira's wonderful recipes. Yet, above all, Chef Ira has included with each recipe, the participation that a child can do, to complete the recipe...
Thanks Chef Ira, Disney Recipes: From Animation to Inspiration is the best I've ever seen!
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