The Things I Want Most: The Extraordinary Story of a Boy's Journey to a Family of His Own

The Things I Want Most: The Extraordinary Story of a Boy's Journey to a Family of His Own
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Great story, tremendous strength

Best of its kind I have ever read

A book that will touch your heart...

A must read for any human being !!

A wonderful display of love and determination

The Things I Want Most: The Extraordinary Story of a Boy's Journey to a Family of His Own
Richard Miniter
Manufacturer: Bantam
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0553379763
Release Date: 2000-02-01

Amazon.com

A straightforward story of a troubled foster son and his family, The Things I Want Most shows just how much persistence can pay off when it comes to family relationships. Funny, alarming, encouraging, and always honest, the book covers Mike's first year with his large foster family and all the struggles the family went through to make him feel both welcome. His needs and frustrations are central to the book, as are his parents' creative--and often desperate--solutions. There's a lot to think about here, including what makes a real family and how to achieve open communication in any group of people. Told through a combination of standard narrative and conversational snippets, this is a quick and engrossing read that any parent can relate to. But for anyone interested in becoming a foster parent, the book should be required reading: the first-hand accounts will provide all kinds of valuable insights into the special concerns of this kind of parenting. With an epilogue rounding out the past with a brief mention of family members' current activities, you'll feel like you spent the day getting to know a neighbor--and being pleasantly surprised with some of life's happy endings. --Jill Lightner

Book Description

The remarkable story of a couple who risked everything to open their home--and their hearts--to answer an abandoned child's wish.

It was a small note buried in the file of a deeply troubled eleven-year-old boy--a plea for a normal life Rich and Sue Miniter couldn't ignore:

The Things I Want MOST:
A family
A fishing pole
A familyThe Miniters heard in that simple note the voice of a frightened child who wanted what all children want and need: someone to love who would love them in return.

So they brought Mike home to the cozy country inn they'd restored and managed in rural upstate New York. There, over the next year, they would try to make Mike's dream come true. But first they would have to work through the fear, anger, and distrust that accompanied this boy who had lived his whole life with the label "severely emotionally disturbed." For the biggest obstacle to Mike's happiness was Mike himself, who gave the Miniters every reason to give up but one--the power of love.

When Richard and Sue Miniter decided to open their home--and their hearts--to a foster child, they couldn't imagine the frustrations and joys, the breakthroughs and setbacks, not to mention the emotional toll, that awaited them. Here is the remarkable true story of how their lives changed forever with their decision to answer an abandoned child's wish for THE THINGS I WANT MOST. -->

Customer Reviews:

Great story, tremendous strength.......2000-07-13

An uplifting account of one boy's struggle to overcome a disadvantaged life. If you liked this, definitely check out "The Wanderer" by Ken Grant of Massachusetts (1993)

Best of its kind I have ever read.......1999-09-07

This book is the best personal account of fostering/adopting an older child that I have ever read. It is a natural for a "made for TV" movie, with its dramatic story, picturesque setting, and cast of "characters." I laughed, I cried, I sobbed. In Miniter and his wife, we see the mixture of naivete/ignorance, denial, and audacity that goes into the decision to bring a "disturbed" youngster into one's family. The book also reflects the reality that formal treatment plans are limited (and sometimes unrealistic) and that "real life"-- honest emotions and reactions, normal expectations, natural consequences-- can be a strong motivator in turning around dysfunctional behavior. To the reader who is NOT an experienced foster/adoptive parent, I would offer a few minor cautions: 1) Miniter makes no mention of receiving any kind of training before taking the boy into his family. If that was indeed the case, that's a major flaw in the "Harbor" program. Prospective foster and adoptive parents of kids in the child welfare system should receive fairly extensive training in areas such as what to expect when the children come into your home, how the system (and particular agency) works, and how to manage difficult behavior. 2) Miniter would probably be one of the first to point out that this book is not a blueprint for others but is instead ONE case study, of ONE youngster, in ONE family. The Ministers' experience notwithstanding, psychotropic medication and/or psychotherapy are important-- if not essential-- components in some youngsters' healing, and respite care and parent support groups can be lifesavers for some "therapeutic" parents. 3) Miniter says he ignored some of the safety precautions recommended by his agency, and suggested that (hunting) guns were readily accessible in his home. Having weapons easily available in ANY home with kids (even "normal" children!) is foolhardy, and most agencies REQUIRE pretty sensible safety precautions.

A book that will touch your heart..........1999-02-02

This book teaches many lessons. First and foremost that the husband-wife relationship plays such a major role in raising children, and it showed in this book. The relationship between Rich and Sue is an admirable one, one that not is not so common after so many years of marriage. With that bond of love, they raised a house full of kids and later in life, were able to take on one more kid, very different from their own. They gave it 1000% and stuck with it through thick and thin. What they did for "Mike" is untouchable, precious and blessed. God Bless the Miniters and the best of luck to "Mike" in his future endeavors to become a chef.........This book more than once will put a lump in your throat and a tear or two in your eye...To learn more about children, about sacrifices, about life, you must read this beautiful story !!

A must read for any human being !!.......1999-02-02

This book is not only for those who are adopting or work with disturbed children, but it can serve as a valuable lesson for those who have never been in these situations. It is necessary to know that trouble derives from the early years of a child's life and how important it is to show affection, trust and caring to children at all ages.

A wonderful display of love and determination.......1998-11-20

How many broken windows and hearts can one family endure? Obviously for the Miniter's there is no finite answer to that! What a family! I picked this book without having any clue of what it was about. Saw the jacket, the title caught my eye and that was all it took. I was drawn in almost immediately. I am a 20-something woman, that is not married, has no children and is not adopted. I have not encountered many, if any, foster children and I still found this book to be an incredibly moving story. To Richard and Sue and the entire family- you have most certainly earned my respect and admiration. If only we could all be as patient, understanding and as loving as you are! What a great testimony to the good in the world- thank you for sharing your story. I truly hope that you encounter only good fortune in the future, no one family deserves it more than you!!

Beautiful Boy: A Father's Journey Through His Son's Meth Addiction

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Beautiful Boy: A Father's Journey Through His Son's Meth Addiction
David Sheff
Manufacturer: Houghton Mifflin
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Binding: Hardcover

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Sheff’s story is a first: a teenager’s addiction from the parent’s point of view—a realtime chronicle of the shocking descent into substance abuse and the gradual emergence into hope. Before meth, Sheff’s son Nic was a varsity athlete, honor student, and awardwinning journalist. After meth, he was a trembling wraith who stole money from his eight-year-old brother and lived on the streets. With haunting candor, Sheff traces the first subtle warning signs, the denial (by both child and parents), the three A.M. phone calls (is it Nic? the police? the hospital?), the attempts at rehab, and, at last, the way past addiction. He shows us that, whatever an addict’s fate, the rest of the family must care for each other too, lest they become addicted to addiction. Meth is the fastest-growing drug in the United States, as well as the most addictive and the most dangerous—wreaking permanent brain damage faster than any other readily available drug. It has invaded every region and demographic in America. This book is the first that treats meth and its impact in depth. But it is not just about meth. Nic’s addiction has wrought the same damage that any addiction will wreak. His story, and his father’s, are those of any family that contains an addict—and one in three American families does.

Two Lands, One Heart: An American Boy's Journey to His Mother's Vietnam

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A must for any library, anyone interested in Vietnam

Two Lands, One Heart: An American Boy's Journey to His Mother's Vietnam
Jeremy Schmidt
Manufacturer: Walker & Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Library Binding

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ASIN: 0802783589

Customer Reviews:

A must for any library, anyone interested in Vietnam.......1999-08-17

Two Lands, One Heart: An American Boy's Journey to His Mother's Vietnam by Jeremy Schmidt and Ted Wood -- what a gorgeous book for anyone interested in Vietnam, the refugee experience, the going back to your native land or family's homeland! The photographs are wonderful and the text is factual, interesting and fun. I bought this book hoping it would be at least mildly interesting for my Vietnamese-American students--what a delight to receive the book and to realize that all my students would enjoy the story and photos. It's hard to find good stories about Vietnam. I applaud the authors/photographer for putting out such an intelligent, sensitive and enjoyable book. Adults as well as kids will love it. It would be a perfect book for teachers who have Vietnamese students, but anyone would like to learn about Vietnam from this charming book.

BENJIE'S PORTION: The story of a boy born in slavery, and his journey from Nova Scotia to a new colony for freed slaves founded in Sierra Leone in 1787

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BENJIE'S PORTION: The story of a boy born in slavery, and his journey from Nova Scotia to a new colony for freed slaves founded in Sierra Leone in 1787

Manufacturer: THE WORLD PUBLISHING COMPANY
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000I675KE

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A True Picture of War, and the real victims
Jimmie Joe is a natural born author

A Boy and His Journey
Jimmie Joe
Manufacturer: Authorhouse
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Book Description

I ended my writings loving two small Korean Children I?

Customer Reviews:

A True Picture of War, and the real victims.......2002-06-16

Jimmie Joe does not write to entertain, he writes to tell exactly what War does to young men, and to those who live in War's path. If you can read this without tears, you must be from another planet! Every Vet who has seen action has vivid memories, this Vet not only describes the horror of war, but the rage and frustration that comes later when he learns of decsions that reveal betrayal and 'ego-trips' that caused many deaths. I pray that Jimmie Joe has finally obtained some Peace with the memories.

Jimmie Joe is a natural born author.......2002-05-21

Granted I have special interest in the subject of this book, my father was kia in Korean, so being a child of a man who died before seeing him, this book makes it easier for me to understand what happened and why, and I thank Jimmie Joe so very much for giving me this gift. Unless you don't have a heart, you will be crying when you read this book, but it's so worth it. Awesome book, great work Jimmie Joe.

The Boy Grows Up: The Inspirational Story of His Journey from Broken Boy to Family Man

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The Boy Grows Up: The Inspirational Story of His Journey from Broken Boy to Family Man
Richard McCann
Manufacturer: Ebury Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0091908647
Release Date: 2007-02-27

Book Description

In his first book, McCann told the harrowing story of how he and his sisters were left motherless when the Yorkshire Ripper killed his first victim. Here, he comes to terms with the loss of his childhood by talking to others, learning how to accept what has happened and move on.

From the Hardcover edition.

Boy Wonder and the Big Burns, a photographer, his autistic son and their most fascinating journey through the wildfires of Glacier National Park

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Boy Wonder and the Big Burns, a photographer, his autistic son and their most fascinating journey through the wildfires of Glacier National Park

Manufacturer: Glacier Geographic
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 0978535405

Product Description

Boy Wonder and the Big Burns, a photographer his autistic son and their most fascinating journey through the wildfires of Glacier National Park. Stunning photography and touching essays as award-winning photographer and writer Chris Peterson hikes hundreds of miles in Glacier as therapy for his autistic son, chronicling the journey along the way with camera and pen.

Spike: The Journey for a Boy & His Dog During the Great Depression

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This Border Collie and his Friend, Billy, Have My Vote!
A must read!

Spike: The Journey for a Boy & His Dog During the Great Depression
James C. McKay
Manufacturer: 1st Books Library
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0759626847

Customer Reviews:

This Border Collie and his Friend, Billy, Have My Vote!.......2004-04-26

This was a very sweet story about a boy who had to leave home during the depression to live with an uncle. He returned home briefly to retrieve his dog (best friend), Spike, and they encountered many adventures on their trip together to Uncle Dan's house. I thoroughly enjoyed this book -- read it over the weekend. There is a sequel entitled "Bill Creelman's Conflicts" which I have already started, and it, too, is fast moving, historically interesting, a great story, and fun to read. I would highly recommend both of these books, and I'm sure you will enjoy them as much as I have.

A must read!.......2003-04-03

A wonderful tale of a boy and his dog told from the point of view of the dog (Spike). A history lesson and gripping drama rolled into one. I highly recommend!

Coming of age--free-verse style: new poetry titles celebrate and encourage the spirits of youngsters.(Tough Boy Sonatas)(On My Journey Now: Looking at ... An article from: Black Issues Book Review

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Coming of age--free-verse style: new poetry titles celebrate and encourage the spirits of youngsters.(Tough Boy Sonatas)(On My Journey Now: Looking at ... An article from: Black Issues Book Review
Clarence V. Reynolds
Manufacturer: Thomson Gale
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Black Issues Book Review, published by Thomson Gale on March 1, 2007. The length of the article is 536 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: Coming of age--free-verse style: new poetry titles celebrate and encourage the spirits of youngsters.(Tough Boy Sonatas)(On My Journey Now: Looking at African American History Through the Spirituals)(Young Cornrows Callin' Out the Moon)(If: A Father's Advice to His Son, A Poem)(Book review)(Children's review)
Author: Clarence V. Reynolds
Publication: Black Issues Book Review (Magazine/Journal)
Date: March 1, 2007
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 9 Issue: 2 Page: 23(1)

Article Type: Book review, Children's review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Queen's Quarterly, published by Queen's Quarterly on June 22, 2003. The length of the article is 1883 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: A man of power and resource.(Gerhard Herzberg: An Illustrious Life in Science)(Book Review)
Author: J.W. Grove
Publication: Queen's Quarterly (Refereed)
Date: June 22, 2003
Publisher: Queen's Quarterly
Volume: 110 Issue: 2 Page: 243(6)

Article Type: Book Review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Gerhard Herzberg: An Illustrious Life in Science.

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Gerhard Herzberg: An Illustrious Life in Science.

ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000IC2K6W

Book Description

A journey within the hearts and bodies of those fighting anorexia/bulimia.

This book takes readers inside the minds, bodies, and feelings of anorexic patients and tells the stories of those who have successfully fought back from this disease. Through first-person narratives, readers get a rarely seen look inside this disease. Anyone who has suffered from anorexia/bulimia, or who has had a loved one struggle with it, will benefit from the insights in this book.

Customer Reviews:

Reader Review.......2006-10-12

This is just an awesome book. As a recovering anorexic, i have found this book not only hopeful and inspiring, but helpful and fascinating. It has made me think of my eating disorder in a whole new way. Instead of talking about afflicted people as "sick," it refers to "insiders" and discusses a way of thinking where one views their disorder as separate from themself, rather than who they are. It's fascinating and i highly reccommend it for people suffering from an eating disorder, those who are recovered, friends and family of sufferers, and just anyone who has an interest. great!

Highly recommended.......2005-11-05

As someone who has struggled with anorexia for over half my life, I have often found myself reading anything on anorexia I could lay my hands on; desperately searching for the reassurance that comes from knowing one is not alone in one's experiences, as well as for some elusive insight that might assist me in resisting anorexia's stranglehold over my life. Yet frequently I have come away from such reading feeling dissatisfied and disheartened. Not so with 'Biting the Hand that Starves You'; in this book I found so much of what I had been searching for and a whole lot more.

While the authors are not the first professionals to draw on `insider knowledges' (the knowledges of people with first-hand experiences of anorexia/bulimia), the prominence and the respect accorded to such knowledges is unprecedented. The result is a book that speaks compellingly of anorexia/bulimia, and crucially, does so in a manner that is never patronising, pathologising or didactical.

Providing exciting new ways of thinking and speaking about anorexia/bulimia, the book engenders a sense of hope - a 'commodity' that is often desperately lacking, yet so vital when it comes to resisting anorexia/bulimia.

I highly recommend the book to all readers, from those struggling with anorexia/bulimia, to their family and friends, and health professionals.

Waiting for this Great Book!.......2005-09-19

I only wish that Rick, David, and Ali had written this book years ago! Because Biting the Hand that Starves You would have been an incredible source of information, motivation, and hope when I was desperately struggling in the depths of my eating disorder.

I was thrilled to see that the book vividly illustrates the vicious dialogue that occurs between the eating disorder and the individual who suffers with it. Throughout my recovery, psychotherapist and author Thom Rutledge encouraged me to practice this very dialogue between my true self (Jenni) and my eating disorder (`Ed') over and over again, which was crucial to my finding the amazing freedom I experience today.

Biting the Hand that Starves You includes many uplifting, inspirational personal accounts that reveal people can and do beat anorexia/bulimia! Within the book, the authors compassionately share how you can really make practical steps to join the ranks of those who already walk that path of independence.

Unlike many other books, Biting the Hand that Starves You goes a step beyond just focusing on how to recover from specific eating disordered behaviors. It also talks about moving on and reclaiming your life --- providing great insight on overcoming perfectionism, taking risks, and even pursuing dreams and passions.

This is one book that I am glad I came across on the shelves of eating disorder literature. I just wish it would have appeared a little bit sooner!

Jenni Schaefer, author of Life Without Ed: How One Woman Declared Independence from her Eating Disorder and How You Can Too (McGraw-Hill)

Extraordinary book.......2005-08-15

Biting the Hand that Starves You is a very special book that it likely to change the way you view eating disorders. It contains many first hand accounts of women's struggles to free themselves from the ways bulimia and anorexia control their lives. And it maps out the nature of this control, which is beyond the attempt to control food and weight--it's tied to societial messages about how women should behave (take care of others, be nice to everyone, perform well in many arenas, etc.). The book is primarily written for therapists but will be helpful to others affected by bulimia and anorexia.

This book got me eating meals.......2005-04-13

I liked that the book doesn't discriminate against eating disorder patients. It doesn't blame the patient for the problem.

This book scared me and exposed anorexia as something outside myself and as an out of body voice that has influenced my thoughts since childhood.

Amazon.com

As many of us know, bialys are chewy, onion-topped rolls, delicious with a cream-cheese schmeer. They originated in Bialystok, Poland, from which they--and the Jews who made and cherished them--have all but disappeared. In The Bialy Eaters, food writer Mimi Sheraton traces the history of this traditional treat and recounts her pursuit of it from Manhattan's Lower East Side (now bialy central) to Bialystok and elsewhere. Her book is principally a tale of the men and women, many pogrom and Holocaust victims, who have lived to recall the once plentiful kuchen. If the story lacks the thrust and imaginative life another writer might have given it, it is still a compelling blend of culinary investigation and poignant cultural evocation.

After carefully drying and wrapping exemplary bialys from Kossar's bakery in Manhattan to take with her as memory jogs, Sheraton heads first to Poland. She encounters no true bialy in Bialystok (a hamburger-roll-like bun is proffered in its name), nor does she find one in Israel, Paris, or Argentina. Look-sees in Miami Beach, Florida; Chicago; Scottsdale, Arizona; and Beverly Hills, California, are more encouraging, but also reveal underbaked and undersalted versions made--horror of horrors--with cinnamon sugar, raisins, and blueberries. Her investigation achieves moving resolution, however, in the person of Pesach Szsemunz, an ex-Bialystoker and bialy baker who survived Auschwitz, Dachau, and "other concentration camps" and now lives in Australia. "In 1941," he writes Sheraton, "the Nazis came to us, and since then there are no more Bialystoker kuchen, no more kuchen bakeries, and no more Bialystok Jews. [No other] Bialystoker," he adds, "can tell you more." Yet, as Sheraton reveals in her touching book, bialys do live on, delighting those who eat them--a tribute to endurance itself and the power of everyday life. --Arthur Boehm

Book Description

A famed food writer tells the poignant, personal story of her worldwide search for a Polish town's lost world and the daily bread that sustained it.

A passion for bialys, those chewy, crusty rolls with the toasted onion center, drew Mimi Sheraton to the Polish town of Bialystok to explore the history of this Jewish staple. Carefully wrapping, drying, and packing a dozen American bialys to ward off translation problems,
she set out from New York in search of the people who invented this marvelous bread. Instead, she found a place of utter desolation, where turn-of-the-century massacres, followed by the Holocaust, had reduced the number of Jewish residents from fifty thousand to five.

Sheraton became a woman with a mission, traveling to Israel, Paris, Austin, Chicago, Buenos Aires, and New York's Lower East Side to rescue the stories of the scattered Bialystokers. In a bittersweet mix of humor and pathos, she tells of their once-vibrant culture and iconic bread, reviving the exiled memories of those who escaped to the corners of the earth with only their recollections--and one very important recipe--to cherish.

Like Proust's madeleine-inspired reverie, The Bialy Eaters transports readers to a lost world through its bakers' most beloved, and humble, offering. A meaningful gift for any Jewish holiday, this tribute to the human spirit will also have as broad an appeal as the bialy itself, delighting everyone who celebrates the astonishing endurance of the simplest traditions.

"On a gray and rainy day in November 1992, I stood on Rynek Kosciuszko, the deserted town square of Bialystok, Poland, and was suddenly overcome by the same shadowy sense of loss that I had felt in the old Jewish quarters of Kazimierz in Cracow and Mikulov in Moravia. To anyone who knows their tragic history, these empty streets appear ominously haunting, especially in the somber twilight of a wet, gray afternoon. The damp air seems charged with echoes of silent voices and ghostly wings and the minor-key melodies of fiddlers on rooftops.

"As a slight chill went through me, I had vague intimations that I was at the beginning of an adventure. I could not guess, however, that what had started as a whimsical search would lead me along a more serious path that I was unable to forsake for seven years. Even now I am not sure my quest is over, nor that I want it to be.

"The story began with my passion for the squashy, crusty, onion-topped bread roll known as a bialy and eaten as an alternative to the bagel. Widely popular in New York City and, to a lesser extent, elsewhere in the

Download Description

The legendary food writer tells the poignant, personal story of her worldwide search for a Polish town's lost culture and the daily bread that sustained it.

A passion for bialys, those chewy crusty rolls with the toasted onion center, drew Mimi Sheraton to the Polish town of Bialystock to explore the history of this Jewish staple. Carefully wrapping, drying, and packing a dozen American bialys to ward off translation problems, she set off from New York in search of the people who invented this marvelous bread.

Instead, she found a place of utter desolation, where turn-of-the-century massacres, followed by the Holocaust, had reduced the number of Jewish residents there from fifty thousand to five.

Sheraton became a woman with a mission, traveling to Israel, Paris, Austin, Phoenix, Buenos Aires, and New York's Lower East Side to rescue the stories of the scattered Bialystokers. In a bittersweet mix of humor and pathos, she tells of their once vibrant culture and its cuisine, reviving the exiled memories of those who escaped to the corners of the earth with only their recollections, and one very important recipe, to cherish.

The Bialy Eaters transports readers to a lost world through its bakers' most beloved, and humble, offering. This tribute to the human spirit will also have as broad appeal as the bialy itself, delighting everyone who celebrates the astonishing endurance of the simplest traditions.

Customer Reviews:

A fun little history.......2007-01-10

We purchased this book because my daughter is doing a history project about bialys. This is a well-written book on a unique subject--a resource I certainly did not expect to find when we started searching for information. I enjoyed Sheraton's journey in search of the history of the bialy, as well as the "perfect" bialy.

Bialys, bialys, bialys!.......2005-02-05

There were a few things I really enjoyed about this book, as I found it both educational and enlightening when it discussed the various Jewish communities around the world, particularly in France and Argentina, as well as how completely devoid of Jews Bialystok has become. Her discussions about food and how they can trigger such powerful childhood memories were also insightful and thought provoking. However, the real jewels of this book were the conversations and letters with ex-Bialystokers, some of which could bring you to tears. Their memories of what once was bring home just how much was lost by the destruction of Jewish Eastern Europe by the Nazis and completed by the Communists, on a very personal, individual basis.

Now for the problems. As someone else mentioned, Sheraton did not visit any overseas locations until an expenses paid business trip provided her with the opportunity. I didn't find this so unusual, as traveling the world can be quite expensive. However, I found her not traveling to Australia since no one would pay for it to be more than a little strange, considering she was doing research for a book like this. However, it made for a better read in the end, as she spared us what I found were her often times tedious descriptions and asides of the places she visited and people she met. There were also paragraphs where she would be talking about one thing one minute, such as quoting one of her respondents and then abruptly change the subject, which oftentimes made for a jarring read. While her style of writing may work in magazine articles, it often failed to keep my attention and it was often marred by some awkward sentence structure, especially in her attempts at flowery prose.

Lastly, since the decision was made to include pictures in the book, I could have done with less description and more visuals, especially when it came to taking pictures of modern day Bialystok, as well as other cities and people she met and visited. And the pictures she did take, such as that of Bialys, were poorly taken, with no actual close-ups of the food itself, which there really should have been more of.

So while The Bialy Eaters may be an interesting and often educational personal exploration of a wonderful food (I'm particularly obsessed with Kossars' bialys) and a world that no longer exists, I expected so much more. But what is there is certainly worth reading, especially if you've ever eaten and loved a bialy.

Not By Bialies Alone.......2001-12-28

Mimi Sheraton's work about a special bread and the people who made it echoes her subject matter. The Bialy eaters is itself moist, crusty, sensual, and characterized by a depressed hole in its centers. The hole is not due to any shoddiness in Ms. Sheraton's craft; it is the loss of some 60,000 beautiful soles and their rich culture that is the underpainting of her fine portrait of a special bread.

Her doomed but dogged pilgrimage back to Bialystok, the source of the Bialy, is commendable for its integrity. Reading true, it involves a tale sadly too familiar for many of her readers, myself included. But it was her descriptions of bialies and pletzels, which I remember from my childhood in Baltimore, still warm from the baker's oven, that were the source of my lost night's sleep. I salivated and ruminated over the tastes and smells of my past. Sheraton shows shows how food is more than calories and carbs and taste and smell; it is also culture and history, art and, at its very best, a poetic expression of love. I can't wait to try the recipe.

It's not about the roll.......2001-11-10

Sheraton comes out with two statements that are on the surface contradictory: the best bialys (and the customs used to eat them) were from Bialystok, but the bialys she most enjoys are from the places she is most familiar (ie, Kossar's). For instance, even though every Bialystoker she encounters states that you absolutely do not split the roll open, she states that she still continues to do this because she finds it awkward not to. Fair enough. However, other variations of the bialy, such as the amount of onion used and the generosity of poppy seeds on top, she seems to feel are intolerable. And that's fine, too, because what she is really saying- and what just about everyone she interviews is saying- is that the bialy you love best is the bialy you grew up with. When all is said and done, it isn't about the specific recipe or food as much as it is about the past. The food you grew up with is one of the strongest links to your past. This is what Sheraton is really writing about; when the Bialystokers talk about how much they miss the bialy they grew up with and how inferior the modern versions are, what they are really mourning is the loss of the home they lived in. That the exact method of producing the bialy has been lost is just one more testament to the world that was destroyed in the Holocaust.

My mother went to visit my sister in New York recently, and I asked her to bring back some bialys. Surely the bialys in New York would be better than the bialys I eat here in Boston. Not even close. My bialy has definite merits over its New York counterpart (abundant onions and poppyseeds, huge and fat, not flat), but it wasn't simply that. My bialys are the ones I've grown accustomed to eating and remind me of the neighborhood I buy them in and the people I eat them with. I cannot imagine losing all of that, and every passage of this book that spoke about those losses brought tears to my eyes.

Read this book and fall in love with an old bread and a lost world.

A lovely and unusual work of nonfiction........2001-08-10

I grew up on Grand Street near Kossar's bialy bakery, and Ms. Sheraton comes close to making me taste those delicious breads once again. Her language is descriptive about food in much the same way that a good novelist makes you see something common differently through deft imagery. Unless you are a major nitpicker, you'll enjoy this gentle, respectful, and fun book. And if you haven't tasted a genuine bialy, on your next trip to NYC please do take a sidetrip to Grand and Essex and pick up a bag--onion, not garlic, for reasons the author addresses--fresh and warm out of the oven. In a world of mass-produced blandness, I can see why Ms. Sheraton wrote this book, seeking the secret behind something unique.

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