Saving Agnes

Average customer rating:

britkit

The Problem With Rachel Cusk

This book deserves some credit!

It's not Bridget Jones

I see you and raise you ...

Saving Agnes
Rachel Cusk
Manufacturer: Picador USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Contemporary | British | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Literary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

The Country Life: A Novel

In the Fold

A Life's Work: On Becoming a Mother

The Lucky Ones

The Temporary

ASIN: 0312252560

Book Description

Agnes Day is mildly discontent. As a child, she never wanted to be an Agnes--she wanted to be a pleasing Grace. But alas, she remained the terminally middle class, hopelessly romantic Agnes. Now she's living with her two best friends in London and working at a trade magazine. Life and love seem to go on without her. Not only does she not know how to get back into the game, she isn't even sure what the game is. But she gives a good performance--until she learns that her roommates and her boyfriend are keeping secrets from her, and that her boss is quitting and leaving her in charge. In great despair, she decides to make it her business to set things straight.AUTHORBIO: RACHEL CUSK is the author of The Country Life.She lives in Sussex, England, with her family.REVIEW: "A novel so much more than just clever and sharp that it might be said to be wise....Cusk has heart and depth in abundance, and Saving Agnes showcases both." (Abby Frucht,The Village Voice Literary)REVIEW: "With poignancy and piquancy, this humorous British novel chronicles a career woman grappling with bad skin, lost love and a nagging dissatisfaction." (People)REVIEW: "Smart, subtle, stylish and witty." (The Boston Herald Sunday)REVIEW: "Quirky but appealing characters and wry social commentary. . . Exquisite and sometimes diabolical." (Publishers Weekly)REVIEW: "Cusk writes some of the neatest and funniest prose observed for years." (Newark Star Ledger)REVIEW: "Clever, very funny." (Tampa Tribune)REVIEW: "Cusk's prose is funny, in an intellectual way." (The Christian Science Monitor)

Customer Reviews:

britkit.......2004-02-19

A brilliant, startlingly well written, tears down yer face funny debut. Rachel perfectly captures what is like to be set adrift in a big city with the feeling that life and love are somehow eluding your world, and to have the aching suspicion that you are somehow too nondescript for the wonderful and spectacular things others seem to attract so easily.

The Problem With Rachel Cusk.......2003-09-15

I have read The Temporary, Country Life, The Lucky Ones, and A Life's Work. Suffice it to say, I like the way Rachel Cusk writes. This book, however, was a stinker. The problem with Cusk is that she forces the reader to be made more aware of the writing than of the story itself. I would find myself re-reading entire paragraphs because my mind had wandered off. I am used to reading "capital L" literature - Lawrence, Hardy, etc., so this isn't a question of incomprehension or preference for simple writing. Rather, it's about being confronted by the messenger as opposed to the message; you never quite sink into "story dreamland" because of the stilted, infuriating writing.

This story is stupid and bewildering mostly because the main character is thoroughly unlikeable. She is defensive, self-absorbed, and emotionally immature. Her friendship with Nina (her flatmate) is so fraught with mutual animosity and mean-spiritedness, that it was difficult to read; depressing, in fact.
This was Cusk's first novel and I'm glad I read it last as she has definitely improved. However, she still features women who are somehow cold and when you finish reading, you completely forget about them. It doesn't warm you through - there are no regrets when the last page is turned.
Cusk needs to focus on telling really good stories instead of trying to impress the reader (or critic)with her long-winded sentences and big words where a smaller one would have had much more impact.

This book deserves some credit!.......2003-05-27

I am surprised that there have been so many 2 star reviews, and they leave me wondering if these readers have actually read the entire book. The first part of the book was admittedly rather dry, and I was tempted to chuck it aside. But I hanged on because of Ms Cusk's beautiful prose. And I'm really glad I did. She really has a way with words, and many a time, she just wowed me with the way she expresses complex emotions so fluidly. The second half (starting from the working day description if my memory has not failed me) is brilliant. I couldn't put it down. This book doesn't engage the reader with much action, but rather, with what goes on in Agnes's mind. Thus, if you are looking for an action-filled plot, this book may not entertain you. But if you enjoy observing human emotions and behaviour, as well as life's little ironies and nuances, pick this up right away!

It's not Bridget Jones.......2003-04-03

Although this is an OK book, it is nothing like Bridget Jones except that both characters work in London publishing houses. There are one or two interesting side characters (Greta's pretty good), but Agnes is just whiney and self centered without much humour. The author seems more concerned with pretty sentence structure than plot.

I see you and raise you ..........2001-05-21

I agree with most of the musings above about the beautiful writing but the convoluted plot. Part of the problem was the transitions between the detailed flashbacks of her old relationship and her vague, distantly drawn present one. I understand as a writer why she chose to be deliberately vague about the new one but it felt too much like a literary conceit at the expense of clarity, which made me bristle.

However, the dealbreaker for me was the glossing over of a rape sub-plot. It's introduced merely to give Agnes YET another epiphany laden journey through London and then is handled in the final pages with an infuriating off hand comment that the rape having done this character a favor.

I don't want to be a knee-jerk American and demand a cathartic revenge laden handling of the rape, but then again, there's got to be a happy medium between that and blithely brushing it off.

Very disappointing.

Average customer rating:
Saving Agnes
Rachel Cusk
Manufacturer: Recorded Books, LLC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio Cassette
ASIN: 0788721119

Product Description

Winner of the British Whitbread First Novel Award, Saving Agnes is a delight to the ear of any listener who enjoys the English language at its best. Rachel Cusks prose, rich with poetic imagery and insight, is spell-binding. Agnes Day is not quite certain of her own identity. Defining herself by her past failures and fearful of her future, she trudges through her days despising her editing job and searching for that special someone to help her forget the lover who jilted her. Although her naive attempts to bolster her self-esteem culminate in a series of one-night-stands and an affair with a mysterious heroin addict, Agnes indomitable sense of humor somehow sustains her. Narrator Jenny Sterlins British accent is the perfect accompaniment to a creation that is meant to be appreciated aloud in its native dialect. Her reading captures every nuance of mood and language to give listeners an unforgettable listening experience.

Average customer rating:

Saving Agnes
Rachel Cusk
Manufacturer: Picador
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000UJGLOK

Average customer rating:

Saving Agnes

Manufacturer: Picador
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000G9OXLW

Average customer rating:

Saving Agnes
Rachel Cusk
Manufacturer: Macmillan
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OIE8H4

Average customer rating:

Saving Agnes

Manufacturer: Macmillan
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000GL4HXY

Book Description

When doctors diagnose Onizuka with a brain aneurysm, they reveal he could become comatose if he experiences severe head trauma. Despite the news, Onizuka jumps headfirst into a fight to protect Yoshikawa against Shibuya's gang. Although Onizuka wants to prove that he's no chicken, he might just end up a vegetable!

Customer Reviews:

BUG PARK.......2007-09-11

BUG PARK

James Hogan delves into the world of micro robotics, corporate greed, and the realm of virtual gaming to create this extremely entertaining novel.

Let me sum the book up like this; teenage friendship, a cheating step mother, an easy going scientific father, the fathers military minded best friend and business partner, micro sized robots ran by DNC: Direct Neural Coupling, Ex-business partner wishing to steal the patent for DNC.

This book was much more entertaining than I had expected.The story starts with a bang and ends with an atomic blast.Bug Park is a light read and comes across a bit different than other works by Hogan.I was truly upset that I ran out of pages to read. James Hogan has been added to my must read authors list.

I highly recommend this book.

Welcome to the world of the very small.......2005-09-02

At first glance at the cover you might think, gee, this is a kid's book. A book about bugs and tiny robots and adventure. But this book is not for kids.
It has greed and murder and physics and explosions and tiny chainsaws. It has a complexe plot, interesting characters, great technology and even a feel good ending.
Oh, and don't forget guns, money and lawyers. A great book. But of course, this is JAMES P. HOGAN.

Telepresence in an Insect Microcosm.......2003-10-30

In Charles Scheffield's excellent novel, THE NIMROD HUNT, micro-miniaturized man-shaped mechanoids battle live spiders and warrior ants. The human controllers become immersed in attacks on nests or anthills via telepresence. The electronic sensorium provided by the mechanoids' sophisticated sensors temporarilly replaces normal human senses.

In BUG PARK, James P. Hogan updates the same idea to create a futuristic amusement park game. People battle insects by putting their controlling 'consciousness' inside tiny bug-sized, man-shaped "mecs". When a mec is seriously damaged or rendered inoperable by an ant, the human operating that mec is unceremoniously thrown out of the game for "dying."

Hogan uses DNC, direct neural coupling, a technology yet to be invented, to pull this off. DNC shuts down our normal senses and replaces them with sensory input from the mecs. DNC allows Eric Heber, one of the teenage protagonists, to control the movements of the "Taki" mec as if its limbs were his own.

I have been an avid reader of James P. Hogan's works since his classic first novel, INHERIT THE STARS. Even though BUG PARK is a juvenile novel, the science and technology are as fully explained as anyone would ever want and most adults will also enjoy this book,

Readers will love the rapid, breath-taking pace of BUG PARK. Indeed, I can easily see how this novel could become a major blockbuster motion picture with its exciting mix of cutting-ege technology, kids in peril and corporate corruption.

(Are you listening DISNEY Corp.?)

No Bugs : Johnny Quest vs. The Evil Step-Mother.......2003-02-02

Mr. Hogan did a fantastic job with the physics in this book. That is the one thing that kept me reading more than anything else. What I was disappointed in, is that fact that with a title of "Bug Park", there are so few insects/arthropods of any kind in the story, it is like eating a McD's cherry pie, and finding only one cherry...very disappointing indeed. The story should be re-titled.

Also, one point to nit-pick, for scientific names of any organism, when spelling the binomial name out, the genus is capitalized and the species is *always* lower case. On page396, "Limenitis lorquini"is what I am referring too, and the editors should be ashamed of themselves, because this is not the author's fault.

The story was enjoyable, the plot moves well, but the family structure was almost a direct parallel to Johnny Quest, including Bandit, I mean Batcat. I kept becoming distracted from the story as I read "Hoggi" instead of Taki etc., and like any good J.Q. story, the villain perishes in their own nefarious trap, leaving the hero's hands clean.

Finally, I enjoyed the little "Microcosm" joke at the end, I'm sure you will too.

Good juvenile hard-science sf.......2002-08-05

As I was reading this novel I thought, "This reminds me of Heinlein's juveniles." Sure enough, a few pages later Hogan uses the word, "Heinleinesque." Even though this book is ostensibly aimed at teenagers, it can be enjoyed by adults. Hogan does a wonderful job of describing reality from a bug's point of view. The hard science is good, and there is a great scene where the two boys, using nanorobots, attack a centipide the way a couple of knights would attack a dragon. And they're even saving a damsel in distress, although, since she is using a nanorobot, her body is safely someplace else. There's budding love, evil villains, murderous nanorobots, two teenage heros, and all kinds of goodies.

Bug Australia 2004 (Bug Backpackers Guide)

Average customer rating:

Bug Australia 2004 (Bug Backpackers Guide)
Tim Uden
Manufacturer: Bug Backpackers Guide
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Guidebooks | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Australia & South Pacific | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0958179611

Bug New Zealand 2004 (Backpackers' Ultimate Guidebook: New Zealand)

Average customer rating:

Bug New Zealand 2004 (Backpackers' Ultimate Guidebook: New Zealand)
Tim Uden
Manufacturer: Bug Backpackers Guide
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

New Zealand | Australia & South Pacific | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Australia & South Pacific | Travel | Subjects | Books

Guidebooks | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 095817962X

Bugs, birds and blizzards in the Yellowstone,

Average customer rating:

Bugs, birds and blizzards in the Yellowstone,
Harlow Burgess Mills
Manufacturer: Collegiate Press, Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Natural History | Nature & Ecology | Science | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B00086WGGC

Average customer rating:

Crawlin' bug
Stephen Alan Parks
Manufacturer: Poetry Pals
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Board book

Desert Watch or a Bird, Beast, Bloom or Bug for All Seasons

Average customer rating:

Desert Watch or a Bird, Beast, Bloom or Bug for All Seasons
Frances Berry Theobald Brainerd
Manufacturer: Anza-Borrego Desert Natural History
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Nature & Ecology | Science | Subjects | Books

Natural History | Nature & Ecology | Science | Subjects | Books

Average customer rating:

Desert Watch, Or, a Bird, Beast, Bloom or Bug for All Seasons
Frances Berry Theobald Brainerd
Manufacturer: Copley Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Spiral-bound

General | Conservation | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B000EYAZ6G

Product Description

The articles written in this book were written for and first published in "The Sand Paper," the monthly newsletter of the Anza-Borrego Desert Natural History Association. The Association is a non-profit corporation dedicated to educational and interpretive activities for, volunteer services to, and the promotion of historical and scientific endeavors in, the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. The book does not pretend to contain scientific treatises but rather compilations of personal experiences and reading, which, it is hoped, might apeal to the heart or the humor, the imagination or perhaps even at odd moments to the intellect of the reader. --- from book's preface

Toto Coelo: By the whole extent of the heavens

Average customer rating:

Inspirational
FAMILY FRIENDLY
Forty-three Years Today
Thought provoking - and then some!
The concept of God, seemed a little far fetched.

Toto Coelo: By the whole extent of the heavens
Bob Miller
Manufacturer: Hats Off Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

General | Spirituality | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1587363852

Book Description

Bob Miller spent twenty-one years traveling across North America and interviewing people from all walks of life about their conversations with God. He presents a cross-section of those conversations in Toto Coelo: By the whole extent of the heavens. Not one word was changed, added, or deleted to conform to some personal or secular belief.

Thought-provoking and fun, Toto Coelo inspires its readers to laugh, scoff, and shed a tear or two. If you are like most people who have read this unique book, you will never forget it.

Customer Reviews:

Inspirational.......2006-04-20

I found this little book to be /Inspirational/Funny/Sad/I wonder is that how God really is. Bob seems to have a much better undestanding of the "spiritual world" than most.That is why I enjoy reading his writtings so much.Thank You again Bob

FAMILY FRIENDLY.......2001-01-13

I am an avid reader.Having read many books through the years Christian and Non-Christian.I have been helped and blessed by some,entertained by others,but I found this book to be Inspired.I could give this to my teenaged grandsons,best friends,or my mother and all would be able to enjoy and relate to it. It is refreshing and insightful.It will allow you to chuckle,touch your heart and your soul.Give you peace of mind and spirit. Each home would profit by having this book accessible to family members and friends.Its message is profound and I would recommend it as a wonderful gift .

Forty-three Years Today.......2000-03-19

There are advantages of being a fulltime pastor for forty-three years. Then there are the disadvantages. I try as best I can not to dwell on the disadvantages. But the one that did bother me the most, was not being able to answer the questions of children. Adults seldom ask really hard to answer questions, like, What is Gods favorite color? or Are their toys in heaven? or Why is everything that is fun to do a sin? I remember this one well, Why did God choose the Jews instead of us? Forty-three years I have been talking about God, only to learn that I knew very little about Him. This book is The Spirit at work. A Minister who has not read this book is unlearned regardless of their education.

Thought provoking - and then some!.......2000-01-25

I liked a lot of things about this book. It's a short read in that it's a series of statements by folks with 'answers' from God in bold below them. Each statement/answer then is a stand-alone thought that can be read and appreciated for itself. I think that God watches Judge Judy on occasion. One person says, "God, I feel like believing in you is a complete waste of my time." God answers, "I know the feeling." Another statement hit home strongly with me. A man tells God that keeping his pickup truck from starting won't stop him from going out & getting drunk that night. God tells him the truck will start after he's gone back inside to say goodbye to his mother who won't be there when he gets back from the tavern. His Mom dies in his arms, in the house, 2 hours later and the man has not had a drink since.

Unfortunately, for me personally, there are several examples of answers from 'God' that perpetuate the 'fire and brimstone,' "You're going to burn in Hell forever" God that turned me off to Him years ago. Fundamentalist Christians will love them but I tend to take that kind of statement with a grain of salt and look for the loving message that I know underlies it if it's really from God. I highly recommend this book as something to have handy for a quick pick-me-up since you can open it almost anywhere and find a useful inspiration of some kind. Even the ones I disagree with make me think and that's not all bad. It was worth the price to me.

The concept of God, seemed a little far fetched........2000-01-24

A friend knowing my feelings about God, sent me this book. Be it a real or an imaginary God in this book, it is a God I can believe in. It feels good not hating television evangelist. It was the first time anyone had laid it out so clearly.

Swatting litter bugs: what agencies can do to decrease depreciative visitor behavior.(Research Update): An article from: Parks & Recreation

Average customer rating:

Swatting litter bugs: what agencies can do to decrease depreciative visitor behavior.(Research Update): An article from: Parks & Recreation
Amy Wirsching , Yu-Fai Leung , and Aram Attarian
Manufacturer: National Recreation and Park Association
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Management | Management & Leadership | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Conservation | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Parks & Recreation, published by National Recreation and Park Association on November 1, 2003. The length of the article is 2866 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: Swatting litter bugs: what agencies can do to decrease depreciative visitor behavior.(Research Update)
Author: Amy Wirsching
Publication: Parks & Recreation (Magazine/Journal)
Date: November 1, 2003
Publisher: National Recreation and Park Association
Volume: 38 Issue: 11 Page: 16(6)

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Average customer rating:

I Love it!

I'd say eat me but I'm meat.

My good 'ol standby cookbook, when I'm in a hurry

A great book for beginning vegans

Nice try.

La Dolce Vegan!: Vegan Livin' Made Easy
Sarah Kramer
Manufacturer: Arsenal Pulp Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
General | Vegetables & Vegetarian | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
Vegan | Diets | Diets & Weight Loss | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Vegan with a Vengeance : Over 150 Delicious, Cheap, Animal-Free Recipes That Rock

The Garden of Vegan: How It All Vegan Again!

How It All Vegan!: Irresistible Recipes for an Animal-Free Diet

Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World: 75 Dairy-Free Recipes for Cupcakes that Rule

Vegan Freak: Being Vegan in a Non-Vegan World

Accessories:

Tanita BC533 Glass Innerscan Body Composition Monitor

ASIN: 1551521873

Book Description

arsenalpulp.com :

Sarah Kramer is a vegan cooking superstar. Her first two books, How It All Vegan! and The Garden of Vegan, co-authored with Tanya Barnard, have sold well over 110,000 copies; both won the Veggie Award for favorite cookbook of 2003 and 2004 by VegNews magazine, and Herbivore magazine, in a cover story on Sarah, called her "The World's Coolest Vegan." Sarah returns with her first solo cookbook, featuring more of the delectable, easy-to-prepare recipes that vegans around the world have come to adore. For Sarah, vegan cooking—which eschews all animal products, including butter, milk, and cheese—can be an adventure in dining, without a lot of investment in time or money. In fact, most of the recipes in La Dolce Vegan! can be prepared in 20 to 30 minutes or less. From soups and salads to entrees and desserts, they are sure to inspire both committed and part-time vegans alike.

At the heart of the book is Sarah's commitment to the vegan lifestyle that has changed her life completely—from a childhood plagued with health problems to an adulthood filled with the pleasures and joys of living vegan. For Sarah, an animal-free diet will make you happier, healthier, and more content with the world around you. In addition to the wonderful recipes, there is a fun do-it-yourself section of vegan tips and non-food items. Learn to live the sweet life of veganism and you'll never look back!

Recipes include: Beauty and the Beet Borscht, Mocked Clam Chowder, Roasted Cherry Tomato Pasta, Sloppy Janes, Blessed Broccoli Stir-Fry, Apple Pie Pancakes, Carob Almond Truffles, and Tomato Soup Cake.

Now in its 3rd printing.

Customer Reviews:

I Love it!.......2007-09-20

I really enjoy Sarah's funny stories, comments, and helpful hints! Oh, and I love the recipes too! I am new to this whole "no animal product" cooking thing, and with this book I was able to dive right in and not miss one thing about my old food life! Thank Sarah for this great book!

Have a great day,

Sarah K.

I'd say eat me but I'm meat........2007-08-07

I borrowed this book, used it, and plan to purchase it. I admit I am disappointed with her use of repeating recipes more than once, and on more than one recipe. But this is more than I was disappointed in her using other people's recipes. I agree it does discourage me a bit to know that almost half of them are from people who emailed, predominantly Wolfie, than all from her. But I can really appreciate that she has a big enough following to gather them and that she gruelingly tested them and is sending them our way, as opposed to hogging them since they're not her creations. Don't these people who complain of this realize Betty Crocker's not just one person? I can appreciate others who don't like all the pix of her and none of food, but I don't find it egocentric. One thing about Sarah Kramer is that her cookbooks are fun! Veganism sounds so dull to so many, that I'm not only impressed at how she makes it exciting, but at how she compiles good recipes in a very easy to follow way. My only objection with her foods is that she seems to be heavy handed when it comes to salt. Also, my fake ham and fake fish didn't turn out as great as I'd hoped, but the rest was awesome! Besides, I haven't found any recipes like those anywhere else, or things like how to make her vegan marshmallows. And in her defense, I didn't follow the the ingredients completely, and if that doesn't make the right difference, I'm sure they can be tweaked. It would be nice to have that ahead of time, but that's an opinion and at least I have something to go on, which I find true with most cookbooks anyway. I also love the meatless balls and her choc chip cookies are possibly the best, vegan or non, ones I've found, among many other great recipes.

My good 'ol standby cookbook, when I'm in a hurry.......2007-04-02

This is it! The good 'ol standby when you know time is of the essence and you have to have dinner fast. I would compare this to the "Betty Crocker" in the typical diet world. You know you can turn to it and find a recipe and have dinner on the table in no time. There is a great mix of recipes, but I have to admit I really love her dessert recipes the best. I have taken some cookies to friends and they have commented on how good they were and even asked for the recipe. I explained that they are from a Vegan cookbook, but they didn't care. Unfortunately there are no pictures in this book (if that is something that you must have) but it hasn't stopped me and she hasn't written all of these recipes. Many are credited to other people and not everything is original -- you can find similar things on the internet. All in all a decent book to turn to when you are in a hurry and have some general ingredients on hand.

A great book for beginning vegans.......2007-03-17

Not sure exactly where the recent negative feedback is coming from on this book. I've been vegan for over ten years now. When my omnivorous guy and I got engaged, my mother-in-law didn't know anything about veganism or vegan cooking but was incredibly open to it--she thought it was an interesting new culinary challenge (yup, I lucked out in MIL department). This was one of two cookbooks she got.

Let me tell you, the recipes out of this book are AMAZING. They are very easy--anything that requires over 30 min of prep time is marked with a little clock, and the ingredients are very accessible. My MIL, with minimal experience cooking vegan, has made incredible feasts with this book.

For example, not only did she use it for holidays (Thanksgiving & Christmas); this cookbook was also the basis for a vegan-friendly bachelor party on the request of one of my fiancee's friends--all with fantastic results. Friends of ours have asked for the recipe to the fantastic chocolate frosting that for once isn't made out of chocolate chips, and the cake (a depression-era crazy cake with tofu that even my tofu-phobic brothers enjoyed and asked for more) to go with it. Just a moment ago, I finished a lunch of leftover fantastic peanutty soup that I made from a recipe in this book. I think we've found one recipe in the book that didn't really work well (a pie crust recipe), but everything else we've tried so far has been GREAT. In fact, MIL loaned us the book, and I am hard-pressed to give it back any time soon :)

Some recipes make a lot of food, but I like Sarah's idea of just inviting over friends for a dinner party to use it up, or I just freeze/chill it and eat it for lunch at work. I especially appreciate Sarah creating recipes that use whole cans of ingredients. Recipes that require half the can, leaving you to strategize using it up or leaving it to rot forgotten in the back of the fridge, drive me crazy.

I also appreciate that Kramer is very down-to-earth and not preachy--being vegan is at least as much about celebrating fantastic food as it is making a political point.

Sorry to gush. Yes, the recipes are easy, and sometimes, yes, they could be things that you might come up on your own. But for those of us with "cook's block", or those new to vegan cooking, this is a very good start.

Nice try. .......2007-02-26

So you know how the internet is chock full of weird recipes by everyone and their grandmother involving ketchup and mustard as the main seasoning ingredients and how most of it tastes only palatable?

Well, sadly, that's this cookbook in a nutshell.

I've tried six of these recipes and they all failed to pass muster in much the same way unrated recipes off the internet tend to. This doesn't surprise me too much since most of the recipes are actually recipes sent to the author by her fans and her friends. A nice thought but she really should have done some serious culinary editing. If a free recipe I've jacked from some website bombs I just shrug my shoulders - I should have known better. If a recipe from a cookbook I've payed about 20 bucks for bombs I get a little tetchy.

Sometimes people don't like a vegan or vegetarian recipe because they've never eaten tofu before or think that tahini is the misspelled name of a pacific island and why is it being called for in this recipe?! Sometimes people just aren't used to the way carob chips taste and get testy when they were expecting them to taste EXACTLY like chocolate chips. This is not my problem. I've been vegetarian for 12 years, vegan for 1 year, I grew up in a hippie household eating health food and I've been cooking for myself since I was ten.

I feel sad about having to write such an unfavorable review. Sarah seems like someone I would really like and the book does have a section of fun vegan stuff (plus cute retro pics of Sarah) that aren't without merit. However since her book is marketed as a COOKbook and not a neat-vegan-stuff book I feel obligated to warn other not terribly wealthy vegans to save their cash. If you want to know how to make a vinyl cuff that says vegan on it or think pictures of Sarah Kramer being silly are worth 15 dollars than go for it. If you want delicious vegan recipes look elsewhere.

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books