In "Sweets," Tim Richardson takes us on a magical confectionery tour, letting his personal passion fuel the narrative of candy's rich and unusual h...
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reviews
Apr 14, 2007
Brandy
rated it: 
If I retain even half the information in this book, I'd be surprised. He spends a long time on the history of the sugar trade and the early uses of it, which gets a little dry and repetitive, but then it picks up again once he starts getting into the chronology of candy.
Biggest quibbles: how impressed the author was with himself (how many times did he refer to himself as an "international confectionery historian"?), and the lack of serial commas. I understand that this bo More...
Biggest quibbles: how impressed the author was with himself (how many times did he refer to himself as an "international confectionery historian"?), and the lack of serial commas. I understand that this bo More...
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Jul 05, 2010
Susannah
rated it: 
Perhaps I have very high standards both for food writing and for historical writing, but this was disappointing. I started it years ago and put it down and then picked it up again as bedtime reading. It's a weird mixture of personal anecdote/opinion, history and description. Normally I would like such a grab bag of genres but I lost the chronology in the mix and the 'story' wasn't compelling enough to create it's own thread. The parameters of his topic seem very fuzzy and I sometimes wasn't c
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Oct 23, 2009
Emily
rated it:
This should have been called either: 'A History of Sugar' or 'A History Focused on British Candy'. It was sooooooo boring. I, a person who loves loves loves candy/sugar/chocolate and books about such, was bored out of my mind. The book had detailed lists of how much sugar was taken on trips by kings in the 1600s and other blah blah blah stuff.
I think that if I was British or had ever been to England, that maybe I would have been more intrigued. But when the author goes on and on More...
I think that if I was British or had ever been to England, that maybe I would have been more intrigued. But when the author goes on and on More...
Feb 01, 2009
Kate
rated it: 
Thoroughly enjoyable, from start to finish. I started reading "Sweets" while I was waiting for a plane in Baltimore. By the second page, I was wandering the airport in search of a sweet. Tim Richardson truly is a lover of candy, and his passion comes across loud and clear--it's infectious!
May 06, 2010
Paige
rated it:
Writing is okay, but as a true lover of candy, this book was a treat. It's about the history of candy marketing, manufacture, and (naturally) consumption. This is the kind of nonfiction I can handle.
Feb 13, 2010
Vintagebarrio
rated it: 
This is not for the faint of heart. It's a seriously dense read, but worth it if you really love the subject. Generally funny. Fascinating research. Slightly tedious at points, but exhaustive.
Jan 08, 2011
Michael
rated it:
Claiming to be the first international history of the manufacture and of course eating of confectionery.
A bit repetitive in places, but it was an interesting read.
A bit repetitive in places, but it was an interesting read.
Jul 08, 2009
Rory
rated it:
This was..dare I say...kinda boring. And way too British for an American candy-lover (candy's something that, if you love it, you also love the vocabulary of it...and you want the cultural details to match up!).
Dec 15, 2011
Annie
rated it:
i love non-fiction and I love candy, but I thought this book was a total snooze.
Feb 19, 2009
Sharon
rated it:
Took me more than a year to read; last 100 pages easier than the first 200. Thick with detail and anecdote and history, hard core facts. Candymakers are curious! And what a business! I feel much more informed about something I took for granted, sweets! Curious that I finished reading "Sweets" on Valentine's Day!
Jul 30, 2007
Erica
rated it:
While this wasn't a bad read, the style was staid and the material got fairly redundant. You've got to be really interested in candy to sit down and read this straight through. It's not bad to pick up and put down on occasion, though. To be honest, I'm not sure I completely finished it.
It's very British.
It's very British.
Sep 21, 2008
Liz
rated it:
I bought this book on a whim in a used book store and I found myself really enjoying it. After reading his chapter on Toblerones I craved them for about three months and I still fervently desire to get myself some rose flavored turisk paste.
Jan 09, 2010
Sally
rated it:
Love the fonts, chapter headers and title page styles. It's like reading a Farrell's menu!
***
Didn't finish - fairly dense material! Was in the mood for lighter material, I suppose; nougat as opposed to gobstoppers! lol
***
Didn't finish - fairly dense material! Was in the mood for lighter material, I suppose; nougat as opposed to gobstoppers! lol
Dec 17, 2009
John
rated it:
More of a global focus than (the American) "Candyfreak" - gets kind of bogged down in historical detail, but rallies at the end for a view of "sweets around the world".
Jan 05, 2008
Nicole
rated it:
There are actually candy historians! A well-written, fun look at candy around the world, from its inception to the present day.
Jan 08, 2012
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