Dog Tags Yapping: The World War II Letters of a Combat GI

Book Description

A chronicle of war infused with uncommon cheer, Dog Tags Yapping: The World War II Letters of a Combat GI is a young man’s education in life and death and a narrative of war told completely in letters.

During World War II, thousands of high school graduates were drafted into the army to be trained in colleges as engineers or other technicians but instead were assigned to fighting units and joined the great assault in Europe after D-Day. One of those reprogrammed combat infantrymen was Morton Elevitch from Duluth, Minnesota. Elevitch’s cartoons, drawings, and extremely unconventional letters home—rescued from box-in-the-basement oblivion after a more than fifty-year dormancy—recover the story of one rerouted GI in a voice that is compelling and new. Embellished with a boyish flair, the quirky and playful documents collected here impart a distinctly personal and uncalculated record of war, family, and coming of age. “It’s much easier to wield a melancholy pen than to sit down and cry,” Elevitch declares to his father.

Sparkling with a patina of wit and the bittersweet allure of lost innocence, the words and letters of “Privitch Elevate” offer the immediacy of the events as they unfolded. With the ease and expertise expected of a more seasoned storyteller, the young Elevitch escorts readers through his basic training and departure for Europe, duty in Brittany with the 94th Division and departure for Germany, combat under Patton’s command, wounding by mortar fragments, convalescence in England, and his return to France with the Signal Corps to guard prisoners and await demobilization. But along with these letters are the stories of his relationships with his parents, his brother, the men of his company and even the prisoners of war. The author’s perspectives on the war radically change. Both comic and tragic in its treatment of war’s chaos and tedium, this sensitive personal history covers experiences from the adjustment to military life and the temptations of flesh to the pain of wounds and recovery and the exposure to foreign countries and cultures.

Presaging his career as a novelist and editor, Elevitch’s words and drawings sketch an audacious and highly imaginative portrait of a young man during an exceptional time in world history. Evocative of life lived and nearly lost, his jarring accounts of combat reveal a soldier who was wounded not only in body but also in soul, in a war that changed him forever—just as it changed everyone it touched. Reproduced here as they were originally written, alongside a gallery of photos and hand-drawn battle maps, Elevitch’s cartoons and letters were initially intended for only three persons. But with their unique historical value and affecting exploration of the human spirit, they resurface in Dog Tags Yapping and result in an exhilarating ride for all readers through his “wild bivouac of the mind.”

Customer Reviews:

An honest and vividly human account of daily life, hard times, joys and terrible travails.......2005-09-04

Dog Tags Yapping: The World War II Letters Of A Combat GI offers a glimpse into the catalyst of World War II through the eyes of former GI M. D. Elevitch, who earned the Purple Heart, oak-leaf cluster, and the Combat Infantryman's badge during his service. Collecting Elevitch's correspondence during the war, and illustrated with black-and-white photographs, Dog Tags Yapping is an honest and vividly human account of daily life, hard times, joys and terrible travails. Highly recommended.

Most Compelling War Memoir May, 2004.......2004-10-12

Bill & Gloria Broder from Sausalito, California USA ----
We were bowled over by Dog Tags Yapping . It is the most compelling war memoir we have ever read. Such fresh, original, buoyant,gorgeously-written letters. The battle scenes - so graphic , so immediate, so painful- are the best we've ever read. Thank you for having put the war into the your very special voice.
-- reprinted by persmission Oct 7, 2004

Unique Among WW II Memoirs.......2004-05-02

Morton Elevitch, by saving the letters he wrote to his family during the war, provides a unique memoir for our pleasure and information--his army experience in the central event of the Twentieth Century. The insightful and witty portayals of events and individuals in his collection of letters, along with his drawings, give the reader an insider's view of an eighteen year old becoming a soldier. I was in the same combat division (94th) and the same campaign, wounded two days before him, and his letters vividly represent what it was like to live and fight alongside soldiers of similar ages from so many different places. Great yapping, M.D.!

intimate view of a soldier at war.......2003-11-14

A very "witty", and at the same time, "sensitive", soulsearching view of a Soldier's "innerworkings", as he finds himself in the midst of a Survival/Killing Network that was WWII.
With his cartoons, his astute observations and written private thoughts in the form of Letters, you really get to experience what it was like to live as a soldier day to day in the trenches, while still remaining an intact Individual.

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The Meaning of Life

Manufacturer: Scribner
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Philosophy | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
Modern | Philosophy | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0684191954

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Portrait of a Logical Positivist

A fuller view

A Biography Superior To Its Subject

Why Was The Mediocre Ayer Taken So Seriously ?

The Oxbridge circus

A.J. Ayer: A Life
Ben Rogers
Manufacturer: Grove Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Philosophers | Professionals & Academics | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0802138691

Book Description

A. J. Ayer (1910-1989) was a man of startling complexity: an exceptionally rigorous and penetrating philosopher, he was also a dedicated hedonist and seducer. He traveled in the most glamorous social circles, yet his friends found him oddly remote. Internationally acclaimed author Ben Rogers brings the brilliant, strangely vulnerable author of the classic Language, Truth, and Logic to vivid life, along with the Oxford intellectual world where he met Isaiah Berlin, Ludwig Wittgenstein, and many other great thinkers and writers of the era. Colorful, intimate, and often poignant, this is a powerful biography of a provocative and unforgettable man whose ideas changed the landscape of Western thought. "Beautifully written, sympathetic, and sensitive ... [a] balanced and rounded picture of a very complicated man." -- Simon Blackburn, The New Republic "A readable and well-researched account of the life and career of a remarkable figure." -- Lynwood Abram, Houston Chronicle "A.J. Ayer lived a fascinating life and in Rogers he has found an ideal biographer....." -- Frank McLynn, The New Statesman "Rogers succeeds in capturing the spirit of a philosophical maverick who many loved to hate." -- Kirkus Reviews "Exceptionally good ... A.J. Ayer weaves the philosophical, public, and private strands of Ayer's life together most skillfully." -- The Economist

Customer Reviews:

Portrait of a Logical Positivist.......2005-03-10

A.J.Ayer stood in the tradition of David Hume, Bertrand Russell and the early Wittgenstein. For all of these, metaphysical statements, because they could never be verified by sense observation, were, in a philosophical sense "meaningless". Meaningful statements had to be precisely phrased and then verified by sense observation.

When Ayer was still a classical scholar at Eton, his interest in philosophy was aroused by Bertrand Russell; and his tutor at Christ Church, Gilbert Ryle, introduced him to Wittgenstein's work. Ryle was the only Oxford academic to have taken an interest in Wittgenstein; nor for that matter did Russell figure in the Oxford philosophy syllabus. Oxonian philosophers almost all came to the subject through the classics, whereas the Cambridge men had a mathematical or scientific background, which was so much more congenial to a branch of philosophy which aimed to pursue the subject with scientific rigour. Ayer's background was classical, too; but he responded enthusiastically to Wittgenstein (whom he still thought to be the Wittgenstein of the Tractatus: when the Philosophical Investigations were published, Ayer, like Russell, would think that Wittgenstein had gone soft.) He wanted to use the interval between his Finals and taking up a lectureship at Christ Church, to study under Wittgenstein. But Ryle thought the Wittgenstein cult was bad for both of them, and persuaded him instead to go to Vienna and study under Moritz Schlick, one of the leaders of the Vienna Circle. The Circle's philosophy, itself originally inspired by the Wittgenstein of the Tractatus, was becoming known under the name of Logical Positivism.

It could be said that Ayer was already a Logical Positivist before he went to Vienna; but certainly by the time he returned to Oxford, there was noone in England better informed about Logical Positivism than he. Ayer was the first to lecture in Oxford on Russell, Wittgenstein and Rudolf Carnap (a member of the Vienna Circle).

Isaiah Berlin persuaded Ayer to write a book on his theories, and the result was Language, Truth and Logic, published in 1936, when Ayer was only 26. The book itself would become a standard text of 20th century British philosophy. Ben Rogers writes: "The position he defended had become canonical, which was strange considering that it was hard to find anyone who agreed with it. Logical Positivism, as represented by Language, Truth and Logic was probably the school that under-graduate philosophers knew best, but it was a school that, from the beginning, most were taught to refute." But the refutations, such as they were, eventually came not from metaphysicians who had attacked the book so much from the beginning, but from philosophers who, like Ayer himself, were concerned with the meaning of propositions; and they included Ayer himself, who over the remainder of his life fine-tuned or modified several theories he had put forward as an impetuous and (Rogers maintains) as an angry young man - angry with the establishment at Oxford which, he felt, had at that time denied him the prizes and promotions that were his due, for reasons that had to do both with philosophical vested interests and with antisemitism.

One shortcoming of Rogers' book is that the arguments of scarcely any of Ayer's critics, with the exception of his main rival, J.L.Austin, are given a proper airing; and the criticisms that are stated of Language, Truth and Logic in the biography are largely those of Ayer himself in later life as he modified his original thesis.

The part of Language, Truth and Logic that drew the severest criticism from outside was the position known as "emotivism", which declared that moral judgments (as well as aesthetic ones) are no more than the expression of a speaker's approval or disapproval. Moral statements have to do with values, and values are not a proper subject of philosophy as such. This position made some opponents agree with a Westminster housemaster who described Ayer as "the most wicked man in Oxford". (Doubtlessly Ayer's reputation as a libertine was also seen as consequence of what he had written about morals.)

And yet Ayer, like Bertrand Russell, did have strong moral feelings and felt that he had to live up to them. Certainly these did not include conventional moral feelings about sexual behaviour; but he actively supported a number of progressive social and political causes. He even agreed in his retirement to become founder President of the Society for Applied Philosophy -an odd position for someone who had argued that philosophy had no role in advising people how to live. He now described that earlier idea as "rather insular": although philosophy cannot lay down moral codes, it can at least help people to clarify their moral choices. And, as a human being, we ought to make choices - as long as we don't think that they are grounded in philosophy as such. In this respect he spoke of commitment in much the same way as did the existentialists, for whose general philosophy, with its strong element of metaphysics, he of course had no sympathy. Ayer knew well that there were things outside of philosophy which were wonderful but about which philosophy as such has nothing to say.

The philosophical parts of Rogers' book are not always easy: he takes quite a lot of philosophical knowledge for granted. But even readers who do not have such knowledge will be fascinated by the image he gives us of this zestful man and of the society in which he moved. With all the many reservations one can make of Ayer's character (and about which even his wives were fully aware and articulate), he was hugely admired and loved as a person by a great many people: women, colleagues, students, and others. The author, who met him only once and for the most fleeting of moments, admits to liking and respecting him. One can deduce this also from the fact that the people who detested him (and there were some) make only a marginal appearance in the book.

A fuller view.......2001-08-02

Excellent! A very enjoyable read about a man I've heard disparaged more often than most in 20th century philosophy. While it's true Ayer's work seems to be fairly derivative, and still extremely influential, he was restating a vein of British philosophy that I for one feel pretty favorable about. On reading his life story, I find that Ayer did more than I knew to bring the anti-metaphysical views of his hero Hume to the public, the academy, and a large and interesting slice of cultural limelights. Sure, his flaws were many and glaring, and you'll find a clear cataloging of his vices in these reviews as well as the book itself. What was surprising to me was to read of his many less reported virtues, including an aversion to discipleship, an agile interest in philosophical developments throughout the world, courage in the face of wooly-headed public theism, and a valiant record of worthwhile public service (a rarity in the history of PHI giants). While Wittgenstein romantically isolated himself wringing his hands in the service of a semi-secular priesthood, Ayer made real gains in reforming British adoption, schooling, and discrimination against homosexuals.

And this points to what makes this book far more interesting to read than the lives of most British philosophers - He actually lived a life worth reading about! Hardly a famous cultural figure lived through post-war Britain without having dinner with Ayer. He even lectured the Kennedy family! For Ayer, philosophy and life were separate affairs for the most part (and of affairs you'll read plenty). He firmly believed that when one began to speak beyond the realms of empirical evidence, one risked speaking nothing but nonsense, and to his credit he seemed to mostly avoid the temptation. In my humble opinion, that is good for philosophy, bad for your fan club.

I for one gained from reading this book. While I don't see Ayer as a member of heroic pantheon to be emulated, I do have a new respect for this most "sensible" public intellectual.

A Biography Superior To Its Subject.......2001-07-12

"I warned you," Anthony Blanche said to Charles Ryder in Evelyn Waugh's Brideshead Revisited. "I took you out to dinner to warn you of charm. . . Charm is the great English blight. It does not exist outside these damp islands. It spots and kills anything it touches. It kills love; it kills art; I greatly fear, my dear Charles, it has killed you."

Anthony Blanche could have just as well been speaking of A.J. "Freddie" Ayer, for he was to philosophy what Waugh's Charles Ryder was to art: a celebrity more noted for being such rather than for his work, which is found to come up short. Overshadowed in philosophy by Wittgenstein and in both philosophy and celebrity by Russell (who had a unique talent of reinventing himself so as to appear new to each generation), Ayer is mainly known for one work, Language, Truth and Logic, a depressing tome that relegates anything that is not empirically verifiable or true in virtue of linguistic rules as meaningless. Questions of God and metaphysics are lumped in this category.

Despite being overshadowed by Russell and Wittgenstein, Ayer may have had the last laugh, for his influence on philosophy far surpassed theirs. As Rogers notes, Ayer wanted to put an end to philosophy. For Ayer, the only role for philosophy is the logical clarification of the concepts of science, rather than the quest for truth and ultimate reality.

With that stroke of the pen, Ayer succeeded to dealing philosophy a near mortal wound from only which she is now recovering. Ayer took philosophy from the general reader and rarefied it to the world of specialization and academia. Where once philosophers as Hegel, Schopenhauer, McTaggart, Bergson and Russell wrote for an educated public, today philosophers write for other philosophers. Instead of a search for ultimate truths, philosophy has become a series of problems made sterile in the world of academia.

But how could the iconoclastic Ayer accomplish this? The answer is simple: charm. Rogers astutely chronicles Ayer's smooth relationship and movement through the upper classes so often found in the environment of the English university. Ayer grasped quite quickly that if one can't out-think one's opponent, it is just as well to out-entertain him. And for that task Ayer was well suited. He became a sort of celebrity on the BBC, always playing the iconoclastic philosopher, whether debating Frederick Copleston on the existence of God for BBC radio or discussing the nature of knowledge for a televised lecture series. Learning from Russell's mistakes, Ayer eschewed the leftist radicalism that defined the later Russell in favor of a trendy leftist posture that guaranteed entree to the moneyed classes that dominated England and America.

Bur the real delight in Rogers's book comes when he describes not A.J. Ayer, thinker, but "Freddie" Ayer, hedonist, filling in what Freddie does not tell us in two volumes of autobiography. Unilke Alfred Jules, the Thinker, Freddie the Fop thought with a different organ, judging from his marriages and numerous affairs, sometimes seeing two or more women at the same time. There is a strange hilarity is seeing one of England's foremost practitioners of rationality being such a slave to his libido when not on duty. And Rogers does a first-rate job interlocking the two into a seamless whole, knowing when to switch gears and keep the reader's interest on the page.

The funniest passage in the book is the confrontation between Ayer and one Mike Tyson (yes, that Mike Tyson) who shanghaied a young Naomi Campbell into a spare bedroom during the course of a posh party with something other than debate on his mind. How does it turn out? I leave it to you to find out the power and limits of charm.

Why Was The Mediocre Ayer Taken So Seriously ?.......2001-02-11

A.J. Ayer was a second rate thinker not worthy of serious consideration. Unfortunately, many do not agree with my assessment of Ayer's ideas and his ill earned fame and influence persists even in this century. One may prefer to ignore Ayer, but pragmatically this is not wise. Ben Roger's splendid book does much to assist us to learn more about Ayer and those who worship the ground he walked on. Ayer is a quintessential example of how a highly rewarding career can be built upon deliberate iconoclasm and trendiness. Pseudo intellectualism is often warmly received by the Left leaning members of Great Britain's university milieu. In such a dilettante environment, one's ability to shock and entertain is valued far more than true intellectual brilliance. The author spends significant time dealing with Ayer's relationships with members of England's upper crust. This class of people psychologically eviscerated by self doubts and low self esteem are perfect cannon fodder for Ayer's pernicious charm.

Ayer gravitated towards a personal philosophy that served to rationalize away his faults and mistreatment of other human beings. The central premise of Ayer's so called philosophy (which is actually an anti-philosophy) is that only phenomena that can be ascertained within the severely limited parameters of Logical Positivism merit our attention. Thus, nothing is worthy of valid interest that cannot be empirically verified. Questions concerning love, God, values, evil, the possibility of life after death, are to be relegated to the dust bin of history. The very underpinnings of a viable social order are inevitably threatened by the tacit conclusion of Ayer's thoughts. Ayer was a charlatan who seduced his adoring faithful into embracing a way of looking at matters that legitimately belong to the realm of the hard sciences. Unfortunately, this approach fails miserably when addressing the unavoidable existential issues of human life.

I suspect that I'm encouraging people to read Ben Roger's book for reasons that will not entirely thrill the author. Roger almost certainly doesn't share my caustic appraisal of Ayer. That, however, is Roger's problem and not mine. We should read Roger's book to learn from the past so not to fall prey to similar nonsense in the future. Karl Popper, an ardent foe of Ayer's central beliefs deserves your rapt devotion. Popper is truly a giant for all time, and scathingly took Ayer and his ilk to task. I also whole heartily encourage the reader to obtain a copy of the recently released --The Abolition of Britain--by Peter Hitchens. Another work , --The Intellectuals--by Paul Johnson, takes an insightful look at other high profile individuals who have also done much damage to civilization. Johnson whole thesis revolves around the absurdity of pretending that one's personal behavior does not influence their intellectual life.

The Oxbridge circus.......2001-02-05

A.J. Ayer,whose book "Language,Truth,and Logic" introduced logical positivism to the English-speaking world, and which has become and remains a classic of philosophy, finally gets the biography he has long deserved. Ben Rogers,a philosophically-trained journalist, does a fine job of not only giving the details of Ayer's life,but of explicating his philosophy,as well as criticisms of it. The Oxbridge and London milieu in which Ayer moved is wittily and affectionately portrayed, so that we get to meet characters on the order of Wittgenstein,Ryle,Russell,and other dons and eccentrics. Ayer,after the success of Language,Truth and Logic,was once asked what came next, and he replied "Nothing comes next. Philosophy is over." An anecdote like this gives one both the flavor of the enfant terrible that was the young A.J. Ayer,as well as that of this interesting book. For an academic philosopher,Ayer had a surprisingly interesting life,and for those who want to discover its details this biography is highly recommended, to be placed along side Monk's Wittgenstein.

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Part of My Life (Oxford Paperbacks)
A.J. Ayer
Manufacturer: Oxford Paperbacks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0192812459

Ayers' Every man his own doctor: A family medical adviser ; containing knowledge that will promote health, cure disease and prolong life, describing all ... how to cure them by the simplest medicines

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Ayers' Every man his own doctor: A family medical adviser ; containing knowledge that will promote health, cure disease and prolong life, describing all ... how to cure them by the simplest medicines
J. Hamilton Ayers
Manufacturer: G.W. Dillingham
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B000881SNM

Fiestas De Ayer Y De Hoy En Espana (El Libro De Bolsillo)

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Fiestas De Ayer Y De Hoy En Espana (El Libro De Bolsillo)
Francisco J. Flores Arroyuelo
Manufacturer: Alianza Editorial Sa
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Evolution | Science | Subjects | Books

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A J Ayer: a life

Manufacturer: Chatto & Windus
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000HJNISU

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A. J. Ayer a Life
Ben Rogers
Manufacturer: Grove
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000GRPSFE

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A. J. AYER: A LIFE. SIGNED.

Manufacturer: Chatto & Windus
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000HFORD4

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The Meaning of Life and Other Essays
A.J. Ayer
Manufacturer: Weidenfeld & Nicholson
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Philosophy | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0297820419

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More of My Life
A.J. Ayer
Manufacturer: HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Philosophy | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Modern | Philosophy | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0002170035

Book Description

In this remarkable book, John Welshons weaves together his own personal awakening with those of others he’s counseled to create a deeply felt and beautifully expressed primer on dealing with grief. Grieving, says Welshons, offers a unique opportunity to develop deeper and fuller life experiences, to embrace pain in order to open the heart to joy. Written for those who have experienced any kind of loss — death, divorce, or disappointment — this book offers reasonable, reassuring thinking on dealing with the death of loved ones and ourselves, finding the inner gifts that promote healing, and much more. Awakening from Grief takes a rare and compelling positive look at a subject needlessly viewed as one of the most negative in life. This is a persuasive primer on drawing the joy out of grief.

Customer Reviews:

THE FINEST BOOK I'VE READ ON THIS SUBJECT!.......2007-09-15

This book offers us a unique and precious opportunity to open our hearts to the fullness of our human predicament. John Welshons' approach is both incredibly loving, and - at times - breathtakingly honest. He is an extraordinarily gifted writer, a wonderful meditation teacher, and a wise and compassionate counselor. He seems to have a basic trust in our inherent inner strength and wisdom. He skillfully guides us to finding a place of quiet, loving contentment within ourselves in spite of all of the curve-balls life often throws at us. Through sharing some amazing experiences of loss and disappointment in his own life, he demonstrates - repeatedly - how to find real and lasting joy in spite of life's uncertainties. This book is a wonderfully accessible expression of the very same wisdom shared by Stephen Levine, Pema Chodron, and Elisabeth Kubler-Ross . . . in a somewhat less esoteric and more immediately comprehensible form. Awakening from Grief has changed my life. I hope you will allow it to work its magic on you!

A True Comfort.......2007-02-04

It's been six years since I first read Awakening from Grief. I went through it slowly to savor all the support and advice and to write notes in the column. I hadn't lost anyone in that period, but still found the book gripping and useful. When my friend's brother died, I felt helpless, and rushed to the bookstore to buy and send a copy of this book to her. She read it in one day and was inspired to write a poem, which she shared at her brother's service.

Since then, I've made it a point to purchase a copy of this book for loved ones going through loss. When my father died last year, I re-read passages, and two entries were read at his services. So many people remarked how moving they found John Welshons' words. My brothers and I are donating two copies to the hospice ward, where our father spent the last moments of his life with us. The hospice social worker Xeroxed a copy of the poem ("... And no relationship created in love can ever die.") to display in the "family room" as she found it a true comfort.

This book sits on my bookshelf and is read over and over again. Another copy is in my lending library for anyone in need to borrow. I, and so many others, are grateful for the comfort found within these pages, which help us to find comfort within our hearts.

My light at the end of the tunnel.......2007-01-20

I found this book incredibly helpful when I was dealing with the death of my husband on 9/11. Even over 5 years later, I still refer to it for inspiration and have found the words to still ring true. I have found my way back to joy and this book offered me the light at the end of the tunnel during my long journey. I am forever indebted to John for his words.

disappointing.......2007-01-04

A friend who lost her husband was helped quite a lot by this book, so I can't be too critical here. And judging by many rave reviews it has helped folks. However, I found very little unique material. If you've read a number of "self-help" books such as works by Pema Chodron, Eckhart Tolle, S. Levine, you know what deep, moving and inspiring books are like. This seemed too obvious, comprised of near-platitudes. I hope that anyone who is grieving and looking for help might do a little more research, or maybe just get this one from the library before buying.

Helped My Husband and Me after many deaths in family.......2005-03-03

I recommend this book highly for anyone who is losing a close family member or friend to illness or who has lost someone and just are having a hard time coming to terms with why.

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Simple Smoothies!

Now *that's* a smooth move.

Great recipes--nice presentation

needs some formatting improvements for easier use

good recipies

The Smoothies Deck: 50 Recipes for High-Energy Refreshment
Lori Lyn Narlock , Mary Corpening Barber , and Sara Corpening Whiteford
Manufacturer: Chronicle Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Cards

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Super Smoothies Deck: 50 Recipes for Health and Energy

Slim Smoothies: Over 130 Healthy and Energizing Recipes Without All the Calories

ASIN: 0811823806

Book Description

Thirst-quenching smoothies are the quintessential modern refreshment and a cinch to make at home. Based on Smoothies ?(0-8118-1648-6—over 105,000 copies sold!), The Smoothies Deck features 50 sure-fire ?recipes for blended fruit drinks. Shown in tempting photos, Cool Hand Lime, Mango Madness, and the Sunset Sipper are just the beginning! The sturdy cards travel easy and clean up fast. Punch blend, frappe, or mix—it’s all delicious with The Smoothies Deck.

Customer Reviews:

Simple Smoothies!.......2006-06-04

Smoothies are a quick snack pick-me-up, or a simple breakfast idea. Do you crave a fruity, cool drink on a hot summer day? Want to add more fruit to your kid's diet? Smoothies just might be your answer!

Contained in this cute, colorful book are 50 recipes and full color photos of most recipes. Also included at the end of the book is nutrient information with each recipe, and there is even a chapter on alcoholic smoothies. This edition is made even better by the addition of the cards that are easily accessible in a pinch.

Some of my favorites include: ABC Smoothie (with apricot, coconut milk, & banana), Starburst, Cranzania, Polynesian Power Punch, Cookies & Cream, Raspberry Cappuccino, and Sunset Sipper. Enjoy!

Now *that's* a smooth move........2003-07-30

I have given this book as a gift four times. No kidding, and in my collection of some three hundred cookbooks, I don't think I've made over 1/2 the recipes in any book other than this one.

I first got this book in an attempt to get more produce into a picky child. It has worked extremely well to this end, but has also just been a boon for light summer time meals and snacks.

The most important technique to learn from this book is to prepare and freeze your fruit beforehand, making it unnecessary to add ice to your smoothie. One you get the hang of it, it is easy to always pick up some extra produce when shopping and freeze it in a single layer on a cookie sheet, and store it for later. You can keep a variety of fruits available this way. Out of fruits we had on hand this week we've made the 'Pea-Pine-Fu' (peaches, pineapple, tofu, white grape juice), and the 'Sweet Cherry-ot' (peaches, cherries, cherry juice, raspberry sorbet). I did have to buy two flavors of fruit juices to make these, however. Some careful and creative substituting could probably help keep you from having too many juices in the fridge. Regarding the fruit, the authors instruct you to peel most before freezing, but with fruit such as peaches, I leave the peel on for the added fiber. It does not seem to detract from the flavor or texture of the smoothie. Neither does using firm tofu instead of soft, but I would definitely stick with the silken type.

Probably the most frustrating thing about the book is that you may have made one recipe that calls for peach sorbet, and the next recipe calls for strawberry. The easy solution of course is to interchange sorbet flavors, which in some cases may impact the flavor of the smoothie. Sadly, I don't use the book much during the winter. Anybody planning to write a book about hot smoothies?

Great recipes--nice presentation.......2001-07-31

While the combinations may become dated in time (read: somewhat trendy), right now they sing. And the recipes are well-tested, which is very important to me in a cookbook. You can tell that they are because every smoothie I've tried has been just super. Some of the ingredients are a bit difficult to find but I have had fun seeking out mango nectar and the like. It's been worth the trouble.

One reviewer didn't like that the background color is the same on every card and, after thinking about it, I have to agree, but that doesn't detract from the experience too much in my view. I really love that I can search for a smoothie I'd like to try and I can stick the card on the 'fridge with a magnet until I can get around to making it. The handiness is such a treat.

The graphics on the verso of the cards are so attractive, the cards are a nice heavy weight and they have smooth, rounded corners. The colors are bright and smart. They feel great in the hand. These cards are definitely a keeper.

needs some formatting improvements for easier use.......2001-06-10

I am a cookbook collector and this new "card deck" style was very appealing to me. There are many delicious recipes and this card format is very easy to use when mixing up drinks (can't close itself in the middle of my mixing the drink, etc.). The recipes are easy to read and storing this deck of recipe cards in its' own little box holder doesn't take up much space in the kitchen. It is easy to store right next to your drinking glasses inside the cabinet. Most cards have beautiful photographs of the featured smoothie. The cards show the photo or a graphic on one side and then the recipe is on the other side.

My complaints have to do with some formatting and organization issues. First, if these recipes were in a book they'd be categorized and separated by chapters. When these recipes transitioned to a card deck format, the author did not use any kind of organization method to distinguish one type of smoothie from the other. With the subtitle of the deck being "50 recipes for high-energy refreshment" I was surprised to see things with alcohol and sweet dessert-only type smoothies. (That subtitle is a bit deceiving, and given that this deck is shrink-wrapped in plastic preventing browsing before buying, it is a little more bothersome to me.) But that is fine, I am interested in these smoothies, but would rather see some kind of categorization. For example: every single card has a teal background with the words in white font. Why not color-code the backgrounds by category such as "sweet dessert smoothies", "meal in a glass (very nutritive in nature)", "high energy", and "alcoholic"? All that would be needed is one background color for each type. Another idea would be to have small icons/symbols to note which type of smoothie it is, possibly near the top of the card so we can shuffle through quickly for the type of drink we want to make. As they are now, the only way to tell one smoothie type from another is to read through the ingredient list.

Fun, useful and delicious recipes!

good recipies.......1999-12-31

What a great little book that makes such good smoothies! The instructions and ingredients are easy to read and the smoothies are easy to make (healthy too!). An essential cookbook.

Smoothies: 50 Recipes for High-Energy Refreshment

Average customer rating:

Simple
Simple Smoothies!
Simple Smoothies!
8.8/10.0
A perfect blend...

Smoothies: 50 Recipes for High-Energy Refreshment
Lori Lyn Narlock , Mary Corpening Barber , and Sara Corpening Whiteford
Manufacturer: Chronicle Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Baking | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books

General | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books

Smoothies | Drinks & Beverages | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books

General | Drinks & Beverages | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0811816486

Book Description

Smoothie stands are popping up like espresso bars all over the country, but these refreshing drinks are a cinch to make at home. It takes just minutes to whip up a smooth concoction of succulent blackberries, sweet blueberries, chilled grape juice, and rich vanilla yogurt. Or to savor a juicy mango combined with ambrosial buttermilk, zesty fresh ginger, and tart lime juice. Smoothies is bursting with tempting suggestions for adventurous mixtures of fruits, flavorings, sorbets, yogurts, soy milks, and other deliciously healthful ingredients zinging with energy.

Customer Reviews:

Simple.......2007-08-25

This is the second smoothie book I've check out from my local library. The first I didn't care for, despite it's title implying it would be the only such book you'd need for smoothies, as most of recipes seemed to contain a laundry list of ingredients. This book was much more appealling in that the recipes were simple, often containing on three or four ingredients. There are some ingredients that may be harder to come by, but by and large I don't think there's anything terribly exotic. If someone is looking for a collection of "anytime" smoothie recipes, then this isn't the book for them as not all the fruits can be found year round in many grocery stores.

Also, as others have noted, the photos in the book are excellent and the layout is quite appealing.

Simple Smoothies!.......2006-06-04

Smoothies are a quick snack pick-me-up, or a simple breakfast idea. Do you crave a fruity, cool drink on a hot summer day? Want to add more fruit to your kid's diet? Smoothies just might be your answer!

Contained in this cute, colorful book are 50 recipes and full color photos of most recipes. Also included at the end of the book is nutrient information with each recipe, and there is even a chapter on alcoholic smoothies.

Some of my favorites include: ABC Smoothie (with apricot, coconut milk, & banana), Starburst, Cranzania, Polynesian Power Punch, Cookies & Cream, Raspberry Cappuccino, and Sunset Sipper. Enjoy!

Simple Smoothies!.......2006-06-02

Smoothies are a quick snack pick-me-up, or a simple breakfast idea. Do you crave a fruity, cool drink on a hot summer day? Want to add more fruit to your kid's diet? Smoothies just might be your answer!

Contained in this cute, colorful book are 50 recipes and full color photos of most recipes. Also included at the end of the book is nutrient information with each recipe, and there is even a chapter on alcoholic smoothies.

Some of my favorites include: ABC Smoothie (with apricot, coconut milk, & banana), Starburst, Cranzania, Polynesian Power Punch, Cookies & Cream, Raspberry Cappuccino, and Sunset Sipper. Enjoy!

8.8/10.0.......2005-12-18

First things first: everyone knows that the most important skill of a consummate smoothie-maker is that of improvisation, learning how to blend appropriate- but hopefully exotic- tastes together for a drink that is delicious. So why come up with a recipe book that shutters in such improvisation?

First of all, because no one wants to go through rounds of trials to determine the most delectable combinations. This is especially true when one turns away from the realm of fruit and begins getting involved with smoothies that incorporate less tropical ingredients: those that involve peanut butter, or chocolate, for instance, where knowing just the proper amounts (to avoid crowding out other flavors) becomes an important factor. And secondly, because getting started with a decent round of smoothie recipes assists those who are just beginning their relationship with the blender. Some of these smoothies will quickly become your go-to choices for summer mornings after a jog, some you may even mix up for a party on your patio (there is a section on alcoholic drinks); all-in-all, Smoothies presents a wonderful composite of superb treats guaranteed to cool you down.

As with any cookbook, the recipes themselves should always be the stars, and Smoothies does a commendable job of meting out that accomplishment. Each recipe is clear, succinct, and, most importantly, successful. Although I have not tried every recipe in this book, I have tried enough to know that each can come out looking picture-perfect. And don't bother about the reviewers commenting how hard it is to find the ingredients: if you shop for your family, you should be able to make a decent amount of these without leaving home. If you shop for yourself, why, you're already planning what you'll be eating in the coming week(s). Just make a mental note to pick up a pint of sorbet or kefir (fermented cows' milk- the most exotic ingredient in the book, and which they suggest can be substituted for plain low-fat yogurt)

Which brings us to another virtue of this recipe book: the pictures themselves. One almost wants to cut each picture out and frame it on the wall, they are photographed so attractively. In fact, and since this book has Amazon's "Search Inside!" feature enabled, I highly encourage you to do just that. Though those don't showcase any of the smoothies themselves, allow me to assure you: you're in for a treat.

A perfect blend..........2003-10-19

The food court near my seminary has recently opened a 'smoothie bar', and the bookstore manager has taken a fancy to it; hence, for my birthday, part of my gifts included this book on 'Smoothies'. In it are 50 fancy recipes for smoothies -- blender-produced fruit drinks that can be decadent, nutritious, or both! Gone are the days when one simply pushed a banana and milk in a blender. In this book are complex and intricate ideas for wonderful treats.

The book begins with a basic introduction to smoothies. Smoothies are for everyone, and there are appropriate smoothies for almost any time of day and any kind of taste. The nutrition and food/fruit guide at the beginning gives an overall view of things you need to know; particularly with regard to the fruit, preparation is important. Smoothies generally assume frozen fruit -- freezing in a certain way can lead to much greater convenience at the 'smooth' end. Similarly, the guide to different kinds of milk, juice, etc., and equipment for use is very handy.

Beyond this, the primary part of the book is organised into four sections, according to different kinds of smoothies.

**Wholesome Mergers**
These are for the health-food fans. Peaches, plums, nectarines, mangos, even rhubarb make an appearance in this section. There are sixteen recipes in all. Even the so-called 'Bad Boy' here is a healthy feast of boysenberries and blueberries.

**No-Moo Blends**
As the name would indicate, these smoothies are made from anything but standard dairy milk -- soy, rice, yogurt, tofu, anything but milk. Smoothies made with tea, with juices, with non-dairy products will be appreciated by vegetarian/vegan types, but also by others who won't know they're not supposed to like them!

**Decadent Medleys**
Here is where you can go wild with frozen yogurt, ice cream, chocolate additives, and the like. These are not just smoothies -- these are high-end, satisfying desserts. As the authors state, it takes tremendous willpower, upon making two servings, not to eat both servings yourself! Cheesecake, mocha, cappuccino -- anything sweet and decadent will do. Here is even a root-beer float like none other!

**Drunken Concoctions**
From the Tropical Teaser to the Sunset Sipper, these smoothies are just the thing for parties and small gatherings of good friends. Wine, rum, brandy, Grand Marnier, and more are used here, to no small effect.

The average smoothie takes only about ten minutes to make, given proper pre-planning and storage of the ingredients. The authors recommend storing and labelling in one-serving amounts, for ease of use later.

These are 'designer' smoothies -- they are not for the timid; the ingredients can be hard to come by (one needs a good quality grocer nearby). Yet these are delightful, unique treats, unlikely to be found even in the fanciest of restaurants and smoothie bars.

The book itself is a work of art, with stunning photography, innovative and modern graphic layout designs, full-colour format and sturdy, moisture-resistant pages (the better for the guide to be used in the kitchen). This makes a good recipe book and an interesting coffee-table book.

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