The Lamplighter: A Novel

Book Description

An atmospheric thriller set in nineteenth-century Edinburgh, Anthony O'Neill's elegant, darkly masterful novel is full of psychological suspense and first-rate horror.

Evelyn is a clever orphan at the Fountainbridge Institute for Destitute Girls. Enchanted by a cheerful lamplighter who fires the streetlamp outside her window each evening, she mesmerizes the other girls with flights of fancy. In a time before Freudian awareness of sexuality and the subconscious mind, such tales are forbidden by the institute's governor, who warns Evelyn to cease her nocturnal storytelling.

Evelyn defies him -- and is cast out of the orphanage and sacrificed to a shadowy figure claiming to be her long-lost father. Who is this man, and why does he lock Evelyn away in a hunting lodge?

Years later, the mutilated body of a professor of ecclesiastical law turns up on one of Edinburgh's finest streets; the grave of a famous colonel is ravaged; a shady entrepreneur is slaughtered while dashing for a train; and a retired lighthouse keeper is ripped to shreds while walking his dog -- all this after Evelyn, now a young woman, has reappeared in the city. What connects the victims? And what of Evelyn, anguished and appealing, who repeatedly claims to have dreamed the murders in great detail -- each time blaming a mysterious "lamplighter"?

Leading the official investigation is Carus Groves, a conceited yet effective police inspector desperate to cap his unremarkable career with a sensational case. Heading up the unofficial investigation is a disillusioned professor of logic and metaphysics, Thomas McKnight, and his assistant, Joseph Canavan, a strapping young gravedigger. Using reason, intuition, philosophy, and luck, these men race to solve the murders and unveil the source of Evelyn's torment, and in so doing penetrate the very gates of Hell.

Download Description

"An atmospheric thriller set in nineteenth-century Edinburgh, Anthony O'Neill's elegant, darkly masterful novel is full of psychological suspense and first-rate horror. Evelyn is a clever orphan at the Fountainbridge Institute for Destitute Girls. Enchanted by a cheerful lamplighter who fires the streetlamp outside her window each evening, she mesmerizes the other girls with flights of fancy. In a time before Freudian awareness of sexuality and the subconscious mind, such tales are forbidden by the institute's governor, who warns Evelyn to cease her nocturnal storytelling. Evelyn defies him -- and is cast out of the orphanage and sacrificed to a shadowy figure claiming to be her long-lost father. Who is this man, and why does he lock Evelyn away in a hunting lodge? Years later, the mutilated body of a professor of ecclesiastical law turns up on one of Edinburgh's finest streets; the grave of a famous colonel is ravaged; a shady entrepreneur is slaughtered while dashing for a train; and a retired lighthouse keeper is ripped to shreds while walking his dog -- all this after Evelyn, now a young woman, has reappeared in the city. What connects the victims? And what of Evelyn, anguished and appealing, who repeatedly claims to have dreamed the murders in great detail -- each time blaming a mysterious ""lamplighter""? Leading the official investigation is Carus Groves, a conceited yet effective police inspector desperate to cap his unremarkable career with a sensational case. Heading up the unofficial investigation is a disillusioned professor of logic and metaphysics, Thomas McKnight, and his assistant, Joseph Canavan, a strapping young gravedigger. Using reason, intuition, philosophy, and luck, these men race to solve the murders and unveil the source of Evelyn's torment, and in so doing penetrate the very gates of Hell. "

Customer Reviews:

Period piece with too much language.......2006-11-16

I'm all for exercising one's extensive vocabulary, but unfortunately Mr. O'Neil takes that to the extremes in his book "The Lamplighter." I will preface this review by stating I have little desire to finish the book because of O'Neil's overwhelming prose. Dear sir, we live in the 20th century (your book is copyrighted 2003), this is no longer the Victorian era, thus you should not be writing that way. There are easier ways to get your story out than to exhaust the reader by making them read the same sentence three times to understand it. The premise of the book is excellent and it did pique my curiosity, but I'm not in college anymore and I want to enjoy what I read.

Anthony O'Neill's The Lamplighter: a Paralleling World.......2005-12-12

The Lamplighter is an excellent thriller. The author, Anthony O'Neill, employs the use of a well-known Scottish philosopher, David Hume, to illustrate Evelyn's troubles. Specifically, the setting is similar to Hume's history. Next, O'Neill uses two of Hume's major philosophical questions. Finally, we see the very battle of science and superstition to parallel Hume's life. These paralleling points add to the novel's mystery and intrigue.
Foremost, we must note The Lamplighter's setting is in Edinburgh Scotland around the mid-nineteenth century. It was over a hundred years prior that David Hume was born, raised and taught in Edinburgh. Hume walked the very same streets. The setting is our initial introduction to this Scottish philosopher.
Now, we must look to Hume's first major premise. He questioned the concept of perception. He asked if someone leaves a friend in one room and goes to another, how does he know if his friend still exists without perceiving him in any way? The Lamplighter takes this notion and extends it to a greater degree. When Groves discovers the Mirror Society, he learns of their basic belief and fundamental question: if you look into a mirror, how are you not sure that someone else is perceiving you? In other words, you are but a reflection of an entirely mirrored universe and you have no core individuality. This question is surprisingly shocking but significantly contributes to the novel's eerie tone and impression on the reader.

The next paralleling aspect is the imagination. Hume toyed with the idea of what consists of one's imagination. One of his example is dreaming of a flying creature. A person does this by relating and associating ideas that a person has perceived. For instance, he takes the body of a lizard and the wings of a dragon fly and the person has imagined a flying creature. O'Neill, again, takes this notion to a greater degree. McKnight asks Caravan if it is possible that Evelyn's Leerie, if her dreams become intense enough, could become real? His proposal is if the imagination is capable of materializing? These questions further add to the novels thrilling plot and its twists and turns.
The final parallel is the transition to empiricism. Hume was a philosopher during the period of the Enlightenment and he defiantly argues that empiricism is the only way to know things. He argued we must rid ourselves of sources of superstition, prejudice and error. The battle present in The Lamplighter is the Enlightenment versus Superstition. A century or more after the scientific and rational movement, Edinburgh, Scotland is embedded with Enlightenment theories. But, unexplainable murders are committed and baffling creatures are seen during the night. Professor Bolan questions Grove about the necessity to never leave out the possibility of witchcraft and sorcery in his quest for truth. This is the question that many in Edinburgh are skeptical about. Could it be demons? Could it be supernatural things, unexplained by science? This battle indefinitely adds to the mystery and the tension.
Anthony O'Neill is a great author. By using Hume's own questions and either replicating them or taking them to a greater extent, he adds to his novel's mystery. The setting, the questions of imagination, the inquiry regarding the Mirror Society and the battle of science versus sorcery all intensify The Lamplighter's thrill, terror, and adventure. This novel is the detective story meets the thriller. From the novel's midpoint to the end, it is genuine page-turning suspense.

Thrilling!.......2005-12-05

Murder, mayhem and metaphysics in 1886 Scotland. A young orphan girl is dreaming brutal murders. Or is she committing them? Professor McKnight and his assitant Joseph Canavan are on the case. Or are they part of the dream? And what of Inspector Carus Groves, the bumbling Edinburgh detective? Is he so inept that he's bound to stumble upon the truth? This is a fascinating and multi-layered murder mystery, part Sherlock Holmes and part Umbert Eco. Not the least bit scary, but the tone is very different from most horror stories. Challenging, thrilling, and enlightening.

Disappointing.......2005-07-04

This book could have been so much better. The story was interesting for a while until the author got bogged down in a philosophical/religious quagmire. The characters aren't developed well and the ending was unbelievable.

Didn't suspend MY disbelief.......2005-05-08

Good writing and atmosphere held my attention for a time, but a descent into metaphysical, quasi-religious claptrap had me gasping in disbelief. I understand that tastes differ, but this was a waste of my time.

Emerald Enigma: A Bret Lamplighter Thriller

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Emerald Enigma
Emerald Enigma
Reviewed by Karen Morse
A little romance and a lot of thriller
WOW!

Emerald Enigma: A Bret Lamplighter Thriller
Cj Westwick
Manufacturer: Krell Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

General | Mystery | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books

General | Thrillers | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books

Spy Stories & Tales of Intrigue | Thrillers | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books

General | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0977600904

Book Description

Disasters seem to follow Bret Lamplighter around the Caribbean. His simple assignment of follow-the-emeralds changes drastically when he has to tackle government corruption, terrorists run amuck, and elegant organized crime lords. Author CJ Westwick throws both his hero and his audience into situations as immediate as the day's headlines and starts shooting.

So, grab a bag of techno-goodies and a gorgeous French secret agent; you're heading out to the beach and on into the jungle. Bret Lamplighter's looking for the emeralds. The killers are looking for Bret. The clock is ticking. . .

At least, Bret thinks it's just a clock.

An enticing mix of action, mystery, and suspense, Emerald Enigma is a compelling techno-thriller in which even the secondary characters are entertaining and provocative.

Customer Reviews:

Emerald Enigma.......2007-05-31

A most enjoyable read! Hopefully, this is the first in a long, long series. The protag is a gem, with a supporting cast of well-drawn, interesting characters. The gorgeous Caribbean setting is a plus, with the most beautifully drawn maps lightly done at the beginning of each chapter. Loved the book and am eagerly awaiting the next! Thank you Mr. Westwick for a great read.

Emerald Enigma.......2007-02-03

I enjoyed Emerald Enigma so much that I purchased additional copies as Christmas gifts and they were very well received.

Reviewed by Karen Morse.......2007-01-25

A character-driven international thriller, Emerald Enigma follows its protagonists from St. Martin to Colombia and into the high-stakes world of emerald and drug smuggling.

After the disastrous affair that resulted in his expulsion from the Drug Enforcement Administration, private investigator Bret Lamplighter vowed never to return to St. Martin. However, when Multistate Insurance offers him a huge commission to reclaim two thousand carats' worth of stolen emeralds, Bret decides to return to the island because he needs the money. While he knew he was persona non grata on the island, he never suspected that he'd be risking his life just stepping off the plane. Just as he realizes that he's bitten off more than he can chew, Bret meets Abby Duchamps, a sexy, young French secret service woman. Though she was assigned to tail him, they find themselves joining forces as Bret's case becomes more complicated and more dangerous.

It is clear that a lot of research went into this novel. From the subtle and not-so-subtle differences between the French and Dutch halves of the island, to the logistics of launching an air-breathing cruise missile from the water, these are the sorts of specifics that make the book seem alive. Unfortunately this attention to detail does not carry over to the novel's plot. Close calls and strange coincidences are par for the course in a thriller such as this, but Emerald Enigma's plot tends toward the improbable. From this reader's perspective, the novel contains an overabundance of plot devices. Beyond the shameless cliffhanger in the novel's epilogue, the profusion of convenient happenings make things seem just a little too easy for Lamplighter. That being said, Westwick does give the novel a welcome, believable, and altogether unexpected twist at the end.

A former military police officer, C.J. Westwick has worked as newspaper editor, advertising copywriter, and writer/producer of educational filmstrips. He is currently working on the second Lamplighter book, which will apparently take place in Russia and Ukraine.

Emerald Enigma is a reprint of Westwick's self published debut. Originally published as Caribbean Green in April 2003, the title met confused audiences when another self published mystery entitled Caribbean Green (that one by Carolyn Robbins) was also released that month.

A little romance and a lot of thriller.......2006-11-15

Bret Lamplighter is working as an investigator for an insurance company whose client has lost millions in emeralds when their courier was murdered. His job is simply to locate the emeralds, not to find the killer. The tricky part of this case is that it takes him back to the Caribbean island where everything went wrong two years ago, just before the DEA fired him.

The people behind the first fiasco know Bret is back on the island. When there are attempts on his life, he is uncertain whether they are in relation to the current case or the former.

There is also the beautiful French agent sent to keep an eye on him. Can he trust her or is she targeting him too?

The spies watching the spies watching the locals keep this thriller moving and the reader guessing who is helping and who hindering Bret's case. There are many twists and turns that keep the reader off balance and unsure about who can be trusted. Friends become enemies and enemies turn out to be friends.

Political intrigue, jungle guerrillas, and white sandy beaches all serve to lend local color to the Caribbean setting.

Be forewarned though, the cliffhanger ending will leave you anxiously waiting for the next installment.

Armchair Interviews says: What more can a fan of thrillers ask?

WOW!.......2006-10-14

This was a thriller I could not put down. The character development was outstanding. There were constant twists and turns. Although I am not a late night person, I continued to read this book into the wee hours of the night.

Please Cj Westwick, come out with a sequel soon.

The Lamplighter (American Women Writers Series)

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One of my favorite books of all time!
I love it!
The Lamplighter by Maria Cummins
One of the best books I've ever read.
Moving, well written, beautiful period piece.

The Lamplighter (American Women Writers Series)
Maria S. Cummins
Manufacturer: Rutgers Univ Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

United States | Short Stories | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

General | Women's Studies | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0813513324

Customer Reviews:

One of my favorite books of all time!.......2006-01-01

The Lamplighter has stuck out in my memory as one of the most beloved book I have ever read. I must have been 12 or 13 when I first discovered it. I don't know exactly how I came upon my copy, possibly my grandmother found it for me at an estate sale or a used book store. She knew I loved old books. My copy is so old that with each turn of the page the binding would crumple a bit more and the edges of the pages would crack with the slightest touch. I had to read it very gently, which added to the magic of the story. I was only able to read the story once due to the condition of the book, but have longed to go through the pages again. Though it has been at least 15 years since I read the book, my thoughts often drift back to Gerty. Her development through the book into an amazing, giving, humble, and compassionate person is wonderful and truly timeless. The book demonstrates the awesome power inside everyone to overcome circumstance and our own natural egos through self determination and steady guidance. I am so happy to have finally found a new copy of the book so I can pour through the pages again! My current copy sits in a zip lock bag tucked in a very safe corner. A few pages has disentegrated to the point that parts of the story are lost. I am so glad to know that it is not lost forever! I look forward to receiving my new copy and sharing it with my daughters.

I love it!.......2004-12-30

I'm not really 13, i'm 14, but i started reading this book just yesterday, and i can't put it down! i find if a very inspiaring book, especially for girls going through a rough time in their lives, like me. This book is full of emotion, i actually cried when.... oh wait, i can't tell you that! i hope you enjoy this book as i am.

The Lamplighter by Maria Cummins.......2001-04-23

This RARE book is a fabulous story for teenage girls...it shows them how an true Godly young woman should behave. Gerty learned how to control her self-centered desires and give of herself. The author give you a story full of mystery, Family and reverance to God. The central focus of the story is showing respect to others just because they need to be shown respect as a loving, caring and respectful way. Gerty, Emily, and the Graham family are wonderful examples how a family aught to act toward one another. We should use this story as an example of how we treat our fellow citizens--not cursing and shooting. This is a marvelous story about self-sacriface, because one person chooses to humble herself and do what is right.

One of the best books I've ever read........1998-09-17

This book is a classic. A friend loaned it to me years ago, after finding it in her attic. I didn't think I'd ever own my own copy, so I was very excited to find it here at Amazon. The story of Gertrude and the amazing people in her life is absolutely wonderful. No sex, no vulgarity, just a good story. The scene where Gertrude learns self-control has personally challenged me to not act like a spoiled brat! I highly recommend this book.

Moving, well written, beautiful period piece........1998-03-03

This book was a surprise. As my mother told me often of a book her mother read to her as a child and longed to have a copy of this book, I used a search company to locate this book. Having found this on the Amazon search I have ordered copies for all my aunts as well as my daughter and nieces. My mother was a very poor child and their books were extremely limited, the last book her mother read to her was "The Lamplighter". Curious and anxious to obtain this book for my mother's birthday, I purchased this book and read it prior to giving it to her. Cummins is an artist in detail. The dialect is intriguing yet still understandable for young adult readers. A piece with love, mystery, suspense - all qualities for a great read. Do yourself a favor, this book is well worth the wait - it brought tears of joy to my mother, myself and aunts. Enjoy!

Book Description

Elysium, according to its author, was technically her most difficult undertaking. It is the story of Lucina, the young ward of a Greek philosopher, surrounded by an exclusively masculine society, yet too clear-sighted to accept her rigid education. Later in life, as founder of a mystic cult in the young and primitive city of Rome, she discovers an existence that transcends death. Surrounded not by a masculine society, but by an equally exacting family which questioned her continually, Joan Grant fought to safeguard her past experiences and to relate the predicament of a priestess beset by "scientists" who want to know the how and why about everything and who, in their zeal to pick apart the mechanism and examine it, stop it from working. What Miss Grant tells us about Lucina is, perhaps, a way for her to unveil her own problems and offer us a glimpse at what she feels might be another future. The final lines of Return to Elysium are revealing. "I stood alone on the cliff above the sea as dawn spread phoenix wings across the sky. Today Lucina would be given a new name." Whatever the reader's opinion may be about reincarnation and insights into past experiences, there can be no doubt about the impact and the beauty of Return to Elysium as a work of high literary merit. "No novelist writing today," wrote the Daily Telegraph, "possesses more completely, perhaps than Miss Grant, what Henry James called 'the sense of the past."' "It is," reviewed the London Times Literary Supplement, "a constantly interesting and impressive book."

Customer Reviews:

Story of ancient Greece and Rome.......2004-01-24

Lucina of Greece was orphaned at a young age and brought up by foster parents; the story begins when she is 13 and is sent to a place called Elysium for study under the tutelage of her philosopher guardian. She is the only woman in Elysium and thought to be very unusual because of her superior intellect. Her life is a battle between cool reason and logic and her own intense psychic abilities, later there is pain because her great strength has little outlet in a female life. She flees Elysium with two companions to the young city of Rome considered by Greeks to be an inferior society. Some years are spent as priestess and oracle giver in a temple until she fakes her own death to escape with a lover and retreats into marriage. Eventually Lucina does return to Elysium for a breath taking ending.

First published in 1947 this is apparently an autobiographical account of one the author's previous lives, but even if you can't accept the idea of this as a past life recollection, at the very least it is a really great read for historical fiction fans, there is an authentic feel to it. Often very witty, the intense psychological explorations stimulate thought about the meaning of life.

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RETURN TO ELYSIUM
Joan Grant
Manufacturer: Methuen
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 038003414X

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Return to Elysium
Joan Grant
Manufacturer: New York: Avon Books, 1969
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000JWSYZC

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Return to Elysium

Manufacturer: Corgi
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000CSZK6O

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Return to Elysium
Joan Grant
Manufacturer: Avon
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000TXUWMY

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Return To Elysium
Joan Grant
Manufacturer: New York, New York: Avon Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000LGITJC

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The Psychotechnic League
Poul Andeson
Manufacturer: Pinnacle Books (Mm)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
Short Stories | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0523485964

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Psychotechnic League
Poul Anderson
Manufacturer: Tor Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Anderson, Poul | ( A ) | Authors, A-Z | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
General | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0812530594

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The Psychotechnic League
Poul Anderson
Manufacturer: Tor
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000GRGMXQ

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Where are the really boney bones?

Wonderful & Just a little Unusual

Great Recipes and Great Foodie Read. Buy It Now!

Lara McGraw

The bare bones revealed!

Bones: Recipes, History, and Lore
Jennifer Mclagan
Manufacturer: William Morrow Cookbooks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Meats | Meat, Poultry & Seafood | Cooking by Ingredient | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
General | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
Culinary Arts & Techniques | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
Meat | Animal Husbandry | Agricultural Sciences | Professional Science | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0060585374
Release Date: 2005-10-25

Amazon.com

There's a lot more going on in Bones than the glorification of beef marrow. True, you will want to serve roasted marrow bones after even a casual reading. Jennifer McLagan, chef, food stylist, food writer, and now cookbook author says this is where it all began for her, this journey that has become a singular determination to rehabilitate bones in the family kitchen: "Scooping out the soft, warm marrow and spreading it on crisp toast is a sensual delight. A touch of salt, and all is right with the world."

Bones is about meat on the bone, plain and simple. Beef or veal, lamb, game, poultry, fish--it matters not. If the meat is on the bone as it enters the cooking process, be that roasting, braising, steaming, baking, or grilling, it has every chance of being far superior to meat divorced of the skeleton. Think how boring skinless, boneless chicken breasts can be. But McLagan's underlying theme is about taking time to treat a product like meat with the respect it deserves. If you demand that it morphs into some sort of time-and-labor-saving protein package you end up with chicken fingers, not food. If it is about anything, Bones is about good food, and good food takes time. And time is the most precious ingredient any cook can add to the broth. The time it takes isn't a burden, it's where the cook truly learns and grows and matures.

McLagan divides Bones into sections devoted to Beef and Veal, Pork, Lamb, Poultry, Fish, and Game. Each section begins with a precise description of the basic animal from the skeleton on out before moving on to stocks, concentrated stocks, and consommés. As for recipe enticements you'll find Beer-Glazed Beef Ribs, Osso Buco with Fennel and Blood Orange Sauce, Spicy Korean Pork Soup, Roast Leg of Pork with Crackling, Olive-Crusted Lamb Racks, Lamb Shanks in Pomegranate Sauce, Poached Chicken with Seasonal Vegetables, Grilled Quail with Sage Butter, Coconut Curry Chicken, Sardines on Toast, Cantonese-style Steamed Fish, and Herb-Roasted Rabbit (one of four rabbit recipes!).

While the novice cook should not shy away from Bones, a firm foundation in basic western cooking technique is a plus. There's a lot of learning available between these two covers. Some of it is about meat and bones, some about cooking and serving, and some is about an attitude to bring to the kitchen: If you take a little time the rewards will be far superior to any shortcuts along the way. All of which makes Jennifer McLagan something of a revolutionary in our midst. --Schuyler Ingle

Book Description

Top food stylist and food writer Jennifer McLagan has a bone to pick: too often, people opt for boneless chicken breasts, fish fillets, and cutlets, when good cooks know that anything cooked on the bone has more flavor -- from chicken or spareribs to a rib roast or a whole fish. In Bones, Jennifer offers a collection of recipes for cooking beef, veal, pork, lamb, poultry, fish, and game on their bones.

Chicken, steak, and fish all taste better when cooked on the bone, but we've sacrificed flavor for speed and convenience, forgetting how bones can enhance the taste, texture, and presentation of good food -- think of rack of lamb, T-bone steak, chicken noodle soup, and baked ham. In her simple, bare-bones style, Jennifer teaches home cooks the secrets to cooking with bones.

Each chapter of Bones includes stocks, soups, ribs, legs, and extremities (except for whole fish -- they don't have any). Many of the recipes are simple, with the inherent flavors of the bones doing most of the work. There are traditional, elegant dishes, such as Roasted Marrow Bones with Parsley Salad, Olive-Crusted Lamb Racks, and Crown Roast of Pork, as well as new takes on homestyle favorites, such as Maple Tomato Glazed Ribs, Coconut Chicken Curry, and Halibut Steaks with Orange Cream Sauce. Stunning, full-color photographs of dishes like Rabbit in Saffron Sauce with Spring Vegetables; Grilled Quail with Sage Butter; and Duck Legs with Cumin, Turnips, and Green Olives are sure to inspire.

In addition to the recipes, Bones includes a wealth of information on a wide range of bone-related topics, including the differences among cuts of meat, as well as the history and lore of bones.

Customer Reviews:

Where are the really boney bones?.......2007-07-28

I had hoped that there would be more recipes featuring interesting and devious use of bones in cooking. What I get instead are: ribs.... The most interesting recipe was lifted from (and credited to) Fergus Henderson. Ah well.

Wonderful & Just a little Unusual.......2007-06-15

This will indeed sound strange: I am preferentially a vegetarian (which means that I love and prefer vegetables and such, but will also occasionally eat meat, but only if it's wonderful and worth it). "Worth it" does not begin to describe some of this food! I am also an experienced cook and a total foodie who owns several hundred well-used cookbooks, and I just loved this book. I received it as a gift and happily sat up half Christmas night just reading it and drooling. Marvelous information! Marvelous recipes! Excellent writing! If you've never experimented with cooking with bones--you must try. It's classic cuisine but somewhat unusual now in home kitchens. (How many people do you know who would recognize, let alone own a marrow spoon?) I loved this book SO much that I have now myself given it as a gift to the two best cooks I know--and I didn't wait for their birthdays or Xmas to roll around, either!

Great Recipes and Great Foodie Read. Buy It Now!.......2006-07-28

`Bones' by Australian chef and culinary writer, Jennifer McLagen, currently of Toronto, Canada is a major contribution to our understanding of so many things which are good about food, and which we have forgotten, or tend to ignore. There is a conventional wisdom, aphoristic expressions of which are sprinkled liberally about the margins of this work, which endorses the value of bones and the meat which lies closest to same. And yet, my mother, in the name of modern culinary frugality, and in spite of growing up in a Pennsylvania Dutch household that should have known better, constantly harangues me on not buying meat with embedded bones. This leads to all sorts of cases where I'm entreated to give up the joys of a leg of lamb on the bone, not to mention lamb shanks or `osso buco'.

The pretext is that pound for pound, the boneless meat is a better value for the money. This monotone doctrine is probably wrong much of the time even if one did a careful pound of protein per dollar analysis of the two products, but that misses the point. This book is one long argument for the value added obtained from bones with our meat.

One thing I wish to stress is that one should not assume this book is a long essay or memoir in the style of Peter Kaminsky's `Pig Perfect'. The subtitle, `Recipes, History, & Lore' is a quite accurate statement of the distribution of content between recipes and `other stuff'. In fact, one can easily acquire this book as a general cookbook on how to cook animal protein, as it covers protein on the hoof, on the wing, and on (and in) the water. Virtually the only kind of protein it does not cover are those beasties such as the crustaceans and mollusks who wear their stiffening body parts on the outside.

Specifically, the author has chapters on:

Beef and Veal, including Bison
Pork
Lamb
Poultry, including game birds
Fish, round and flat
Game, primarily venison and related meat on the hoof
Boneologue, with bone derived desserts, if you can believe it.

The two primary values derived from bone are gelatin and marrow. The first is one of those great universal ingredients, almost as valuable as lard or sugar, in the cooking of France. In fact, if one were to look for those things that most distinguish French cuisine from all others, it would probably include the use of gelatin in both stocks, desserts, and aspics used to keep food fresh on the buffet table. In comparison, marrow is almost a footnote, roughly similar to bottarga as an esoteric ingredient.

With the importance of bony gelatin in stocks, it is no surprise that virtually every chapter but the last begins with a recipe for the appropriate stock. So, this book becomes also a great reference for making meat and fish stocks.

It is no surprise that in a book on animal bones, there will be diagrams of the skeletons of each type of animal. This may be one of my few complaints about the book, in that for their relative importance, they are relatively small and poorly annotated. I can get much more by looking up the butchering diagrams in my Larousse Gastronomique. Similarly, I thing much of the discussion would have been much more illuminating if pictures of the various types of cuts were on display. This would have been much more valuable than the artsy black and white pics of cleaned bones and color pics of dishes, which I rarely look at in a cookbook anyway. But let us not let this distract you from a truly rich and readable cookbook.

As all recipes deal with bony cuts, I am especially pleased that so many of the recipes are braises. There are so many that Ms. McLagan makes special mention of the technique she learned from Thomas Keller's `The French Laundry Cookbook' of laying a circle of parchment paper on top of the braising meat and liquid. As Sara Moulton found out when she learned this technique from Jacques Pepin, this is not a personal `trick' dreamt up by some modern chef, it is actually a well-established practice in the French restaurant kitchen.

This is just one example of the great care Ms. McLagan applies to her recipe writing. Every recipe has its little hints and suggestions and warnings to prevent an inadvertent drying out. She is especially good on the proper technique of using the instant read or permenantly installed thermometer. This point alone makes the book important for amateur cooks.

The selection of recipes is just the right mix of familiar and unusual dishes. If you happen to own a substantial library of cookbooks, there is more than enough here to interest you. The recipes for game and the notes on cooking Bison and Beefalo alone are worth the price of admission.

For an average cookbook price, you get lots of great recipes for animal protein plus lots of entertaining wit and wisdom on making the most of the bones before the dog gets a hold of them.

Lara McGraw.......2006-04-01

A Fantastic cook book. I really enjoyed it and have given "Bones" many times as a gift. From the easy to follow recipes, combined with really interesting history and lore, followed up with incredible photography, "Bones" is the quintessential cookbook that everyone should have in their kitchens!

The bare bones revealed!.......2006-03-13

Jennifer McLagan's BONES: RECIPES, HISTORY, & LORE (0060585374, $34.95) covers all the basics about bones and their important role in flavoring. People may opt for boneless chicken, fish and cutlets - but anything cooked with bone in has more flavor, and BONES provides receipts for cooking everything with bones. Each chapters includes stocks, soups, ribs, legs and more; but most of the dishes are easy enough for the most basic home cook to duplicate. Traditional dishes move to innovative and international influences in each chapter, and while color photos do pepper the presentation, the meat of BONES lies in its recipes that celebrate and bring out the best in bone flavorings.

Average customer rating:

Bones: Recipes, History, and Lore
Jennifer McLagan
Manufacturer: Morrow Cookbooks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OF0HNQ

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