Not sure why I didn't have any of my Morganville books marked as own or read, but these are definitely a guilty pleasure of mine. Not sure why I didn't have any of my Morganville books marked as own or read, but these are definitely a guilty pleasure of mine. ...more
In Murder at Mansfield Park, Lynn Shepherd has taken Austen's notoriously least popular work and turned it on its head. Rather than take the typical aIn Murder at Mansfield Park, Lynn Shepherd has taken Austen's notoriously least popular work and turned it on its head. Rather than take the typical approach and write a spin-off, where the story continues on or follows a minor character, Shepherd presents an alternate telling of the story, one in which downtrodden wet blanket Fanny is a pampered and officious heiress, and Julia Bertram seems to have more in common with the Fanny we know. Mary Crawford (one of my favorite characters in Austen, honestly) seems to share a backbone with Lizzie Bennet; she is a thinking woman, very aware of the follies and inconsistencies of the people around her. She is perhaps a bit more gentle than Lizzie, but she has something of the same spirit, and I think Shepherd succeeds in her goal of convincing the reader to just go with liking Mary and hating Fanny, which is something that creeps up on you when reading Mansfield Park.
But Murder at Mansfield Park isn't just a straight-forward alternate reality retelling of Austen's classic; it's also a full-blown whodunit murder mystery, with the country atmosphere and the self-absorbed people creating a sort of "Clue" atmosphere. I'm not sure that this book will be to the tastes of Jane purists (who would possibly gasp themselves into a swoon at some of the goings-on), but truly, the attention to detail in the language, and the character and world building are quite impressive. When I first sat down to review this, I started to say that this could have been it's own story independent of Jane, because so much is changed and wholly different than Jane's work. But I realized I didn't want to say that; it's not quite what I mean: the story does stand on its own, independent of Jane, however, I feel like having the known-Jane characters adds this fantastic layer that wouldn't be there otherwise. It's very clever and interesting, a neat little blending of Regency romance and murder most foul: as if Jane Austen and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle had a warped little lovechild. And if that doesn't have you intrigued, I have not done my job... ...more
I should probably start by saying I'm not Jewish. I can't attest to the "Jewishness" of this kosher cookbook. My knowledge of kosher laws extends to "I should probably start by saying I'm not Jewish. I can't attest to the "Jewishness" of this kosher cookbook. My knowledge of kosher laws extends to "no pork" and "no meat and dairy togethah". That is all. But. But, I like to cook, and I like to be able to cook for all of my friends, and if I'm eating something, I don't care if it's kosher, vegetarian, vegan -- or magical, for that matter -- it just has to taste good. So to all of the other non-Jews out there (Gentiles?) who are wondering why the hell you should spend your time reading this review or picking up this cookbook, let me tell you -- because it's awesome.
This is a really well put-together cookbook with a good diverse mix of recipes (both in content and difficulty). There is a full-color picture of ever single recipe, and I can't stress enough how impressive and important that is. My mouth watered flipping through this book. I tabbed a lot of recipes as to-make, and that's always a good sign when in the market for a cookbook.
The goal of the book, it seems, is to appeal to a younger set, and on that, I think it's fairly successful. I mean, it still may not be the most usable fora college kid in a dorm with only a hot-plate, but the recipes offered are easy to follow, there's a great variety in terms of skill and taste, and there is a section in the back devoted to party planning and bringing it all together. I ♥ this, and I love when cookbooks have this, even if I don't actually need help planning a party or hostessing. Reading through it just gets you in the mood for a little shindig.
The recipe I ended up making was a recipe for scones. It was a pretty standard scone recipe, other than that it had an egg wash rather than a cream wash, which I guess isn't that out of the ordinary. I made it for my bookclub's discussion of Soulless (and another member made treacle tart!) Along with the tea and cocoa I brought, it was kinda perfect, and the scones turned out just as scones should (mine were blueberry). I will be making them again, and trying more of the recipes in this book.
[Note: I received a copy of this for review.] ...more
I read a decent enough review of this from someone I trust to make me think that I should give it a try, so when the author approached me about revie
I read a decent enough review of this from someone I trust to make me think that I should give it a try, so when the author approached me about reviewing, I agreed even though I've been trying to stay away from self-published/vanity press/etc works. And I hate to do this, I really do, because I think there is heart in this book. But this is one of the most fractured, stilted, didactic pieces of something I have read in some time. I went in circles for days before I sat down to write this review, and I couldn't come up with any other way to say it. I just -- hmm.
I feel like I need to rein myself in a bit because I'm not intending to be mean, I know this is someone's baby, and she was nice enough to send it to me, and there will be people that will love this, and love to read it with their children. And in a way, that's what it reads like. It reads like a meandering bedtime story told by a distracted parent to a constantly-interrupting child, giving a sort of simple but incomplete feel to the story. Things just seem to happen out of nowhere, with no real impetus, and then they're over and the next thing happens. There's no real flow or -- I don't know if this will make sense, but it was a little too much like storytelling and a little too less storywriting.
In the end, it just was. It reminded me of the scene from an episode of family guy where they have a tangent about the Canadian film festival, and it was just this pointless little story where nothing happened and the dialogue was stitled and simple. That's how I felt reading this. Maybe not fair, maybe it's just not the story for me, but there you have it.
This is a total guilty pleasure 5. Full review to come, but I wasn't expecting to like this as much as I did.This is a total guilty pleasure 5. Full review to come, but I wasn't expecting to like this as much as I did....more
I'm fairly indifferent on this one. It's not a "bad" cookbook, necessarily -- the recipes, though nothing very original, are good basics and starters I'm fairly indifferent on this one. It's not a "bad" cookbook, necessarily -- the recipes, though nothing very original, are good basics and starters for people who want to know how to make pretty common recipes (Eggplant Parmesan, Mac and Cheese, stuffed potato skins, etc), but have maybe never tried to before. These are the quick types of recipes that you can get anywhere, and they are straightforward and use some shortcuts, like jarred sauces, etc. I'm not opposed to that in itself (it is how most of us cook on the day to day), but I do think you have to be clear about what type of book you're pushing. Is it semi-homemade ala Sandra Lee, or is it from scratch? I didn't realize when I picked it up that it wasn't from scratch, so if you don't know that going in, it may irritate you. (Or, if you already know how to dump a jarred sauce on breaded fried eggplant, you may find this pointless. Again, it's just a matter of how you cook at home.) There are a lot of basic "entry-level" recipes (<-- I amused myself with that one), as well as some more intricate recipes for the more adventurous cook. Looked at this way, the book can be used progressionally, building your skills over time. It's also a nice basic reference on recipes you want to be able to throw together quickly.
Setting the recipes aside, though, I was not even a little bit pleased with the design of the book. There is no table of contents, which immediately means I'm setting that cookbook back on the shelf. If I can't open it up and see a list of the food I'm going to be making, I don't want it. As I flipped through the book, I realized part of why there is no TOC -- the book's organization is a mess. Or, I guess there just isn't one; there's no scheme to it, no rhyme or reason. There are no real "sections" that you typically look for in a cookbook. There is no meat section or desert section, as one would come to expect. Nor are the recipes set up in "meal" order, a try entree with this side with this dessert type of thing. Recipes are somewhat set out like with like, but not in any type of progression, and there are no dividing pages to let me know I'm moving on from Poultry into Pasta, etc.
I was also very disappointed at the lack of pictures in the book. We eat with our eyes first, and you may look at a recipe and think 'eh' but look at the glossy delicious photo of that same recipe and feel the need to make it, asap. This was a lost opportunity on the part of the book's designers -- whenever there was a picture, the food looked absolutely delicious, but they were so few and far between that the overall impression was blah.
There are some recipes I intend to try (when I'm not sick, as I don't think my family wants food cooked by Typhoid Misty...), and when I do I will update you. For now, I would say pick this up only if you are a basic cook who needs a good variety reference without complication, or if it's at your local library and you want to give it a browse....more
First off, I have to thank Tiffany and Eric (both of Quirk books), the former for suggesting this one to me, and the latter for sending it. Thanks, guFirst off, I have to thank Tiffany and Eric (both of Quirk books), the former for suggesting this one to me, and the latter for sending it. Thanks, guys!
This little craft book is absolutely delightful! It's compiled from a wide variety of sources, so there's a little something for everybody, no matter your aesthetic or crafting skill level. Nearly every page I turned elicited an "Ooh, I wanna make that!" or an "Oh, that's just awesome!" There are decorative ideas, costume ideas, gift ideas, party snacks -- it's sort of limitless. Especially when you consider the inspiration factor. An idea you see in the book may spur another idea, which dominoes into something all its own.
The design is really nice, too. It's not a huge bulky book, and it has nice-sized full-color photos of all of the crafts. There's also a section in the back that has info on where to get some of the products used, as well as an extensive list of independent sellers from etsy and the like (many of whom were contributors on the book.)
I fully intend to make some of these and (just sayin') the winner of the Helluva Halloween Tricks and Treats Grab bag may end up with a little something from one of my favorite ideas in here...
Basically, if you're crafty, or you're looking for a fun project to do with your kids or girl scouts troup or mom's club or whatever gets you to get your craft on, I'd pick this one up. It's worth it....more
In Dreams Begin is such interesting for me, in concept and execution. Though I think there are a lot of people out there that are like "W B who?" andIn Dreams Begin is such interesting for me, in concept and execution. Though I think there are a lot of people out there that are like "W B who?" and who would hate a storyline that bounces back and forth between past and present (and between different characters bodies), these things really attracted me to it. I'm not going to lie, I like me some poetry, Yeats included. And I also am a fan of stories that strive to recreate or even rewrite the life of a real person, not in a biographical way, but as a work of fictitious art. It fascinates me. I also like stories that shift back and forth, so long as I don't feel like it's a cheap device used to build suspense and keep me on edge in an otherwise laaame story (I'm talking to you, Dan Brown). Skyler White does it well. When the story shifts -- even frustratingly in the middle of something -- it feels natural and real, not gimmicky. I liked both worlds that were created, and I like who Laura is in both.
The romance, too, worked for me. Things come quick, and you know I'm normally not a fan of that, but in this, again, it felt right. It worked for the story and the fantastical aspects of it. All of this -- the time-shifting, the body-switching, the revolutionary ideals, all of it work together in this grand way to create a sense of destiny, in which case the romance between Laura and Yeats doesn't seem at all far-fetched: it seems fated. I feel a little differently about Ida, the little nutjob, and her 'romance' but the fact is, I liked her, too, and it worked on its own level. And there was sexytime. Boy, was there sexytime. Occasionally in crypts, but who's counting?
I talked a bit in my review for White's debut and Falling, Fly about her poetic style. There, it didn't always do the story justice, but here it almost always works very nicely. There are times when it's a little overwrought or confusing, but for the most part, White has a knack for phrasing something just so. Things will be going along as normal and then she'll describe something in a certain way, or say such and such of the characters, and it just kind of stops you in your tracks. You can see it. As strange a turn of phrase as it may be, you absolute
I do have similar warnings as I did in and Falling, Fly, though. This book is not for everybody. Because of the time- and body-switching, it probably could get very confusing for some people, and it definitely takes it out of the 'light read' category; you do have to pay attention. Also, the poetic prose will turn some off and confuse others, without a doubt. And of course, there is AFF's steamy test*. But all in all, I think In Dreams Begin is an improvement over AFF. White has found her niche and created something pretty compelling here. And she made me want to read about the real lives of Maud and Yeats. And that's saying something.
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<--- And this is W.B. Yeats. Sexy bastard.
*Quick 'steamy' test: how do you feel about the word 'cock'? If you just cringed, skip this. If you sat up straighter and said 'where?' go out and grab a copy....more
4.5 It's difficult for me to explain this book without giving away something vital. But I'll try anyway.4.5 It's difficult for me to explain this book without giving away something vital. But I'll try anyway....more
When I first started Random Magic, I was pretty enthused. I'd been chatting with the author, and her emails were hilarious and scattered in a fun, quWhen I first started Random Magic, I was pretty enthused. I'd been chatting with the author, and her emails were hilarious and scattered in a fun, quirky way, and the book seemed much like those emails. It was quirky and scattered and absurd and random for sure, and I look a good bit of quirky/absurd/random in my life. (quirksurdom?) The book was more sort of a series of weird little vignettes that were connected by this search for Alice (of Wonderland fame), and for about 1/3 of the book, I was willing to go along with it. Things were funny, I was enjoying myself, and though there was always a part of me that said this is certainly not a book for everyone, I did think it was the right book for me.
But apparently it's about 1/3 the book for me, because as much as I enjoy random quirky weirdness, at some point, I just wanted to get to it already. The vignettes started to feel too drawn out and, well, random, and though they were always funny on their own, with so manypiled together, one on the next on the next on the next, it just got to be too much. The frenetic zaniness was really fun in the beginning, but by the middle I was just wishing for some restraint. It was like everything that was in Soren's head -- every. little. thing. -- made it to the page, and though each of those things was a fun little gem, it was a few gems too many. Save some for the next necklace, this one's weighing me down.
So it's kind of a weird one for me to review. I liked what I read, but I wanted to stop reading... I just wanted to have some sense of where it was going; I wanted an end in sight, some idea that there was plotting involved, planning and forethought and not just "sit down and write, and whatever happens, happens." I think I could have found this truly enjoyable if there had been some restraint, if Soren had saved some of the antics and vignettes for another book, and instead focused on making the ones in this one fewer but stronger. But it is a fun read, if at times overwhelming, and there are certainly those who like it quite fine as is. [check out vvb32 reads or the "Winterlong" Random Magic Tour for more]...more