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Category: Nonfiction

Review: Gudrun’s Kitchen

[ 1 ] February 3, 2012
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Rating: 0 (from 0 votes)

Reviewed by Jenna Arthur

What do home cooks look for in a cookbook? Delicious food, easy to follow recipes and crowd pleasers of course! Gudrun’s Kitchen is one part cookbook – full of delicious recipes of soups, stews, candies and puddings – and another an exploration of a family’s story and culture through food. The family history part of the book starts off with a woman named Gudrun, whose home was always filled with love, laughter and children.

Gudrun’s children pulled a collection of their mother’s recipes, handed down through generations, for this outstanding cookbook. Each recipe offers a Norwegian flavor that will leave Norwegians and Americans alike with a warm belly and a taste of home. The recipes are easy to follow and never leave you guessing on where to go next.

The main dish recipes range from a succulent fried chicken to a more spicy and tongue tantalizing curry with rice and lentils. Sweet dishes do not disappoint either. Try the applesauce cake – it is delicious! I have always loved ethnic food, and this beautifully bound cookbook did not disappoint. I give the authors four out of five stars on taste, story, and presentation. Join Gudrun in her kitchen every night and leave your family with a happy belly and a taste of home!

Rating: ★★★★☆ 

Jenna lives in the bustling city of Pittsburgh, PA with her fiance and her two beautiful cats. Along with her passion for reading and the literary world, she is also an artist, writer, environmental activist, creative coordinator and aspiring culinary genius. She believes there is nothing better to her then a good book, and lives one cover to the next.

Review copies were provided free of any obligation by Wisconsin Historical Society Press. No monetary or any other form of compensation was received.

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Review: Letters From a Distant Shore by Marie Lawson Fiala

[ 4 ] February 2, 2012
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Rating: +2 (from 2 votes)

Reviewed by Alyssa Katanic

Letters from a Distant Shore, by Marie Lawson Fiala, is a mother’s memoir about her son’s unfortunate experience with AVM (in easy terms: a bad artery to vein connection in the brain), which ruptured, causing a brain bleed. Fiala describes going through their son’s comma and waking, brain damage, hospital experiences, and the deep faith and prayer from around the world that carried them through.

Such a memoir is one to be read with tissues close at hand, yet it is also uplifting as Fiala shares the family’s experiences with healing prayer, and the family, friends, and strangers who surrounded them with love, encouragement, and support.

Ultimately, Letters from a Distant Shore is a story of hope. Hope that our struggles will transform our inner selves for the best. Hope that we have more loved ones thinking of us and praying for us than we realize. Hope that we can walk through life’s tragedies, one step at a time, and truly make it through.

Fiala’s writing and relating is highly skilled and beautiful. Her well-read mind shines through the included quotes and references.

Best of all, their family’s story ends (or rather continues) happily ever after – as much as this life can.

Letters from a Distant Shore is a book that will encourage you to hold the children in your life that much closer, with that much more patience for their difficult days, and thankfulness for every day that you have with them.

Rating: ★★★★☆ 

Visit Fiala’s website to learn more

Alyssa is a wife and stay at home, homeschooling mother of five, with two boxers, two cats, a soft shelled turtle named after Bob the Builder, and 7 frogs (admittedly a homeschooling project gone froggy). In all her spare time, she loves to read and believes that there is no such thing as having too many books!

Review copy was provided free of any obligation by Pasta Queen PR. No monetary or any other form of compensation was received.

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Review: Catherine the Great by Robert K. Massie

[ 12 ] January 31, 2012
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Rating: 0 (from 0 votes)

Reviewed by Colleen Turner

I remember, like many people I am sure, briefly reading about Catherine the Great and her unique place in Russian history while in school, smashed together with so many other historical figures. But who was she really, and what experiences lead her to become such a dynamic woman and leader? Robert K. Massie does a wonderful job giving us a well rounded, complete history of not only this unique persona but the people, country and world around her from her birth into a German family of minor nobility in 1729 to her death as empress of Russia in 1796.

While it is impossible to discuss all aspects of this rather large tome (the book tips the scales at over 600 pages), it is important to note that the author not only highlights the political, religious and professional aspects of this sovereign but gives us a clear view of who Catherine was as a woman and what shaped her decisions in every avenue of life.

Raised under her mother’s ambitious wings and without much familial affection, Catherine was shuttled off to Russia at fourteen to become the wife of Peter Ulrich of Holstein, the designated heir for the current Empress Elizabeth of Russia. Catherine was excited to escape her unhappy childhood and ambitious for how high her star might rise. What she faced, however, was a man-child of a husband who preferred military toys and humiliation to showing his young bride any love, and an empress who kept her isolated and lonely. She had been brought to Russia for one purpose: to produce an heir to the throne. Since her marriage remained unconsummated for nine years, this was not an easy task.

Catherine sought passion, companionship and happiness with twelve lovers over her lifetime (three of which are believed to have fathered her three children and one of which played a key part in bringing her to the throne) but power struggles, jealousies and an inability to balance her personal life with her role in society made it impossible for Catherine to find the love she had so often sought.

It wasn’t until Empress Elizabeth died and Peter became Emperor in her place that Catherine was able to glimpse how her many years of loneliness and abasement at their hands would come to an end. Her intelligence, humor, grace and compassion endeared her to the nobility, church, military and the vast Russian population, all of whom were angered by the changes made by Peter III, and a coup successfully placed Catherine II on the throne as Empress in her own right. While Catherine’s thirty-four years as Empress faced difficulties such as war, disease, religious conflicts and the horrific issues of serfdom and peasant uprisings, she also worked to establish a world of Enlightenment with improvements in tolerance and justice, medicine, education and the arts. While she refused to rule alongside anyone (including her son and heir) she did establish herself, to the best of her abilities, as a “benevolent despot” and took her role as mother of the Russian people to heart. She loved her adopted people and did her best to leave Russia a better place than she came to at fourteen.

While historical non-fiction can so often come across as dry, boring and riddled with excessive facts not necessary to the key topics of the book, I didn’t find this to be an issue with Catherine the Great. I won’t say for a minute that this is a quick and easy read (there is simply too much information to declare that) but I will say that the book flows well and is organized in a way that never made me feel bogged down in the facts. If you take the time and savor the experience, you should come away from this book feeling satisfied that you thoroughly know one of the greatest women in history.

Rating: ★★★★☆ 

Colleen lives in Tampa, Florida with her husband, son, their dog Oliver and their fish Finn. When not working or taking care of her family she has her nose stuck in a book (and, let’s face it, often when she is working or taking care of her family as well). Nothing excites her more than discovering a new author to obsess over or a hidden jewel of a book to worship.

Review copy was provided free of any obligation by Random House. No monetary or any other form of compensation was received.

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Review: Your Time to Bake by Robert Blakeslee

[ 4 ] January 30, 2012
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Rating: +2 (from 2 votes)

Reviewed by Jen Kulman

No exaggeration, Your Time to Bake by Robert Blakeslee is the perfect book for someone who is interested in learning to bake. Not only do you get to see photos of each finished product, but there are also columns of in-progress photos for each recipe. Exactly what a beginner needs to feel confident as they move along – visual proof they are on the right track. You know you found a great guide when page three is “How to Read the Recipes.” with a sample illustration page. Blakeslee is not taking any chances – Your Time to Bake is written with the assumption that the reader may be using the oven for sweater storage. I think that’s a fantastic approach!

The first three chapters are incredibly important for a person who is new to baking. It is here that basic ingredients are explained, and introductions to kitchen equipment are made. I love how there is an illustration for every single kitchen gadget, from oven mitt to pastry dough blender. This section also contains a thorough index of baking terms with easy, concise definitions. Possibly the most useful is the section that explains and illustrates commonly used techniques. You can actually see and compare the differences between whipping and folding, learn how to grease and flour a pan, trim a pie crust, and more.

As for the actual recipes, I think Blakeslee does a great job of offering a wide selection of baked goods. He includes the expected chapters on cookies, pies, breads, and cakes, but also devotes an entire chapter to cheesecakes and one to puff pastry. New York Strawberry Cheesecake looks super impressive, but the illustrated steps make it seem like a snap to throw together. Actually, all the dishes seem manageable thanks to his clear directions and step-by-step photos. Even treats that can be a bit involved, like Rugelach and Biscotti, seem very approachable. Your Time to Bake really does a fantastic job of making the kitchen accessible to every person, no matter how little baking experience they may have.

It is also worth mentioning that this is also a pretty humorous cookbook. I think the puns and wordplay are meant to help you remember that baking doesn’t have to be serious business. You can still make accurate measurements a priority, while ensuring that your time in the kitchen is enjoyable. During the introduction, Blakeslee mentions that his mother “was an absolutely amazing cook, but she couldn’t bake her way out of a paper bag.” This book can save you from that fate.

Blakeslee previously wrote Your Time to Cook (see our review), an equally useful guide for learning how to cook. Check out yourtimetocook.com for sample recipes from both books.

Rating: ★★★★½ 

Jen lives in Michigan with her husband and six year old son. She writes reviews of children’s books on her blog, FIRR-Kids and loves filling her own shelves with cookbooks.

Review copy was provided free of any obligation by Square One Publishers. No monetary or any other form of compensation was received.

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Review: Death in the City of Light by David King

[ 7 ] January 29, 2012
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Rating: +3 (from 3 votes)

Reviewed by Lauren Cannavino

The amount of research and time needed to construct high-quality historical non-fiction must be staggering and author David King did an excellent job of producing an intriguing, in-depth book.

The story of the shadowy and twisted life and crimes of Dr. Marcel Petiot in Nazi-occupied Paris is detailed, thorough and dark. King mixes police information, conversations, recollections and actual case-related documents to tell the tale. Dr. Petiot used the ruse of a French Resistance escape route to lure victims to his home and dispose of them, while hoarding their clothing and keeping their riches. Once discovered, his victim count continued to rise and his twisted mental state and behavior would become exposed over a long period of time.

Police were called to a home at 21 rue Le Sueur after reports of a heavy and pungent smoke coming from the building. When the police arrived and entered, they were immediately faced with charred human remains, suitcases, scattered clothing and a strange room that resembles a torture chamber. When it was discovered that Marcel Petiot was the owner of the home, the search for the doctor began. What unfolded was a search that involved the Resistance, family members of Petoit, the Gestapo, local authorities and the underlings of Paris.

Petiot, while not mentally stable, was quick, very intelligent and created a story and an escape that made his capture hard to come by. His victim count was potentially over one hundred and when he was finally apprehended, the trial of the doctor was sensational. The details that were revealed were extremely sinister and often hard to believe, especially when the dark past of Petiot’s life came out. As a reader, I could only wonder how he had evaded arrest for so long, at any point of his life.

Death in the City of Light: The Serial Killer of Nazi-Occupied Paris is a well-researched and exciting book that focuses on a dark event within an already dark period of time. King does a nice job of filling in tiny details, names and places without becoming boring or tedious with his descriptions. King was also able to compile a lot of information into a fast-paced narrative that never seemed to lag or read like a textbook.

Rating: ★★★★☆ 

Lauren Cannavino is a graduate student, freelance writer, wine lover, and avid reader. Random musings can be found over at www.goldiesays.com.

Review copy was provided free of any obligation by Crown. No monetary or any other form of compensation was received.

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Review: Fast Media, Media Fast by Dr. Thomas Cooper

[ 4 ] January 26, 2012
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Rating: +1 (from 1 vote)

Reviewed by Shannon Hopkins

Do you ever feel as if the world around you is moving too quickly, that you are drowning in a constant stream of stimuli, that you have forgotten what it means to be you?

In Fast Media, Media Fast, Dr. Thomas Cooper discusses the increasing speed and saturation of media of all forms in the world, and establishes a framework for taking a “media fast” – for divorcing yourself temporarily from all of the outside noise in order to rediscover the individual within.

The book is divided into four parts: Part 1 discusses the how and why of a media fast; Part 2 is an indictment against fast media, charging that fast media damages every aspect of our physical, emotional, and environmental well-being; Part 3 highlights group fasting and cultural groups who are continuously separated from media; and Part 4 highlights the “Ultimate Choice” between speeding up and slowing down. This division is convenient for those who simply want to try a media fast, allowing consumption of only those sections that are relevant to their goals.

Cooper outlines several methods, potential purposes, and goals for those intent on a media fast. He also encourages personal observation of feelings and trends before, during, and after a fast, the better to evaluate the effects of the fast on one’s approach to consuming or creating media. Two appendices provide even more detail on the ways one can successfully fast.

While his perspectives are compelling, reading past Part 1 is difficult due to Cooper’s stream-of-consciousness writing style. Many points are reiterated, and there is little organization of his thoughts beyond the chapter headings. There are also several editorial issues: extra or missing words make sentences awkward; punctuation errors are jarring to one’s concentration; and in two separate chapters he misspells the names of different countries (Colombia and Kiribati, the latter being correctly spelled in the preceding and following paragraphs).

Cooper notes that “…I had originally intended this to be three books: one for the general public, one for teachers leading classes on media fasts, and a third for their students.” (p. 111); despite his justifications for consolidation, a two-or three-part book series would have made this a more coherent and enjoyable read. I will use Cooper’s suggestions for taking my own media fast, but otherwise Fast Media, Media Fast is merely another contributor to the media overload against which Cooper rails.

Rating: ★★★½☆ 

Shannon lives in Cleveland, Ohio with her fianc é and a room full of books that she peruses when she isn’t trolling Apartment Therapy for new decorating ideas. In her free time she enjoys maintaining her blog, The Writer’s Closet, planning her wedding, and baking tasty gluten-free treats.

Review copy was provided free of any obligation by Newman Communications. No monetary or any other form of compensation was received.

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Review: For Men Only by Shaunti & Jeff Feldhahn

[ 3 ] January 21, 2012
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Rating: 0 (from 0 votes)

Reviewed by Poppy Johnson

For Men Only is a handy pocket guide into the minds of women. It follows the logic of how women think or behave at various times in their lives. The book shows men how to listen to women, instructs them on what not to say and gives tips on getting along with women in romantic relationships. The book also includes responses from female respondents who explain how they would feel in regard to various relationship issues.

For Men Only is grey-tabbed on the edges of the pages and separated into sections on sex, beauty, listening skills, security, emotion and reassurance. Each chapter has bullet points, examples, call-out quotes, truths about women, exceptions to the rules, quizzes for the reader, definitions and solutions to typical problems presented in relationships. It tells men what not to say in many emotional situations, and explains to men when they are missing the point with the women in their lives.

One section that I thought was incredibly sensitive and handled well was the one relating to the desire levels of men and women. Men’s level of desire is usually higher than women’s but interestingly, the authors point out that men use sex as a relief from the daily grind while women have to pull themselves out of the daily grind (taking care of the family, work obligations), in order to feel ready for being sexually assertive. Because women are typically caretakers in the family, they do have more distractions.

The authors of For Men Only truly see the women’s position in male and female relationships. I’d recommend this book to anyone over 21 years old who wants to know more about relationships in general.

Rating: ★★★★★ 

After a decade of working in several NYC law departments and teaching, Poppy decided she enjoyed writing full-time. She currently works as a freelance writing consultant, and lives with her husband and sons on the East Coast.

Review copy was provided free of any obligation by Multnomah Books. No monetary or any other form of compensation was received.

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Review: Branded Beauty by Mark Tungate

[ 5 ] January 18, 2012
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Rating: +2 (from 2 votes)

Reviewed by Shannon Hopkins

Many women put a considerable amount of thought into the cosmetic products they buy: questions of color, consistency, and ability to diminish signs of aging/promote a clearer complexion/help achieve an individual ideal of beauty ricochet through the brain while a woman stands in the beauty aisle and decides between Cover Girl and Rimmel, L’Oreal and Maybelline.

What they don’t consider, however, is the evolution of cosmetics and the marketing strategies that have insinuated beauty products into our everyday lives. Why did names like Chanel, Estee Lauder and Max Factor enter the public vocabulary, and how have they continued to thrive? In Branded Beauty, Mark Tungate acts as more than a beauty biographer; rather, he uses his expertise as a brand communicator to shed light on a multi-billion dollar industry in which many of us participate, but few of us truly understand.

How has marketing changed the way we look?

Tungate presents the truth and rumor behind the most famous names in cosmetics, not to judge but instead to lay a foundation for understanding the marketing strategies that catapulted them to the center of our consciousness. Moreover, he gives a well-rounded history of cosmetic use that explains how women and men have viewed cosmetics as an indicator of status and wealth, and a weapon against aging, for several thousand years. He underscores the historical belief that pale skin, light hair and wide eyes are the definition of beauty, and how modern cosmetic brands have shifted their marketing to include other races and cultures while, paradoxically, still promoting this increasingly outdated ideal.

Tungate organizes a wealth of information in short, manageable chapters, written for the casual reader interested in beauty, marketing, or both. There is a handy list of “Beauty Tips” at the end of every chapter that summarizes the topics he has covered, which also makes this a reasonable selection for guided reading in any marketing course or reading group.

Branded Beauty is part primer on the evolution of the cosmetics industry and part industry case study, in which the company profiles highlight the elements of successful real-life marketing strategies. Students of marketing can easily apply Tungate’s lessons on creating, implementing, and understanding a marketing strategy to any brand or industry – or to help them define their own brand.

I highly recommend this book for anybody who wants a comprehensive example of marketing in action, as well as for the everyday cosmetics consumer interested in the fascinating history behind the products she buys.

Rating: ★★★★★ 

Shannon lives in Cleveland, Ohio with her fianc é and a room full of books that she peruses when she isn’t trolling Apartment Therapy for new decorating ideas. In her free time she enjoys maintaining her blog, The Writer’s Closet, planning her wedding, and baking tasty gluten-free treats.

Review copy was provided free of any obligation by Kogan Page. No monetary or any other form of compensation was received.

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