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August 15
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Elizabeth
added:
Simplexity: Why Simple Things Become Complex (and How Complex Things Can Be Made Simple)
by Jeffrey Kluger
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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May 28
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Elizabeth
gave
to:
Pigeons: The Fascinating Saga of the World's Most Revered and Reviled Bird (Hardcover)
by Andrew D. Blechman
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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recommended for: City folk
read in May, 2008
Elizabeth said:
"I really felt this book didn't have enough information about the actual pigeons. There would be little tidbits scattered randomly throughout the narrative, but no in-depth explanation about why the pigeons has certain traits. There was no real discus...more
I really felt this book didn't have enough information about the actual pigeons. There would be little tidbits scattered randomly throughout the narrative, but no in-depth explanation about why the pigeons has certain traits. There was no real discussion about their community relations amongst the flock, and I certainly agree that the author couldn't hide his disdain for them.
Maybe I'm just spoiled by John McPhee.
I gave it three stars because it was worth reading, but not as exciting as I'd hoped....less
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February 16
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Elizabeth
gave
to:
Our Babies, Ourselves: How Biology and Culture Shape the Way We Parent (Paperback)
by Meredith Small
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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read in August, 2005
Elizabeth said:
"Every person about to have a bay should read this. Not a parenting book, but an anthropological look at WHY Americans parent the way we do as compared to other cultures. Why do we routinely refuse to nurse a baby who wants to nurse, simply becasue so...more
Every person about to have a bay should read this. Not a parenting book, but an anthropological look at WHY Americans parent the way we do as compared to other cultures. Why do we routinely refuse to nurse a baby who wants to nurse, simply becasue some arbitrary time (that the baby sure didn't pick) has not passed/ Why do we insist on an infant sleeping alone, away from family, and all night WAY before they are ready, and are willing to go to great lengths to achieve this goal? The short version is, Americans value independence so much that they feel it should start at birth. Luckily, some of us know independence comes from security, not fear, and so feel no need to push the birds out of the nest before their wings are fully formed....less
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Elizabeth
gave
to:
Have Fun. Learn Stuff. Grow.: Homeschooling And the Curriculum of Love (Paperback)
by David H. Albert
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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read in December, 2007
Elizabeth said:
"So every time I read something from this author, his chirpiness sort of annoys me, but the message of his essays still comes across well. These are essentially unschooling anecdotes about his children and his own learning experiences. Some of them se...more
So every time I read something from this author, his chirpiness sort of annoys me, but the message of his essays still comes across well. These are essentially unschooling anecdotes about his children and his own learning experiences. Some of them seem really scattered, but the basic gist is, as with most unschooling first-person books, that the children (and really anyone) will learn what they want to learn when they want to learn it. This will be in spite of what you do, and often better than you could have taught them. It offers plenty of reassurance when I have my "unschooler's panic", but I seriously doubt my kids will ever be as unbelievably amazing as he portrays his children to be. I'm confident, however, that J and sibling will do what they need, and learn what they love, and this book supports that assumption....less
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New comment on Elizabeth's review of
Salt: A World History
reply to this comment
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May 21
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Elizabeth
gave
to:
The Corner: A Year in the Life of an Inner-City Neighborhood (Paperback)
by David Simon, Edward Burns
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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read in November, 2001
Elizabeth said:
"One of the things I appreciate about David Simon's writing is there is no constant pounding of " they're all just victims of the system." As a former reporter for "The Baltimore Sun", he's take sa journalist's factual accounts and...more
One of the things I appreciate about David Simon's writing is there is no constant pounding of " they're all just victims of the system." As a former reporter for "The Baltimore Sun", he's take sa journalist's factual accounts and infuses them withjust enough soul to make you care about, but not groan over, the people in his books. He's not afraid to point out personal and societal failings, which many non-fiction social commentary authors don't effectively do. I read a LOT of non-fiction social science, and everyone has an agenda, Simon included, but I am such an admirer of his voice that after I read "Homicide" when I was 13, I decided to be a journalist. Of course, when we wroked together in television, and I told him that, he told me to stick with television. I should have....less
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May 19
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Elizabeth
gave
to:
Rocco's Five Minute Flavor: Fabulous Meals with 5 Ingredients in 5 Minutes (Hardcover)
by Rocco DiSpirito
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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recommended for: people in a hurry
read in August, 2006, has a copy to sell/swap
Elizabeth said:
"This book is exactly what the title says, but it doesn't really suit the way I like to feed my family. A lot of store-bought sauces, and a lot of stovetop frying. Not the healthiest cookbook, but it would be perfect for someone who is tired of comin...more
This book is exactly what the title says, but it doesn't really suit the way I like to feed my family. A lot of store-bought sauces, and a lot of stovetop frying. Not the healthiest cookbook, but it would be perfect for someone who is tired of coming home and having pasta for dinner every night. I'd say each recipie takes less time to make than spaghetti. A great range of seafood dishes, and each recipie is a complete meal. I almost gave this book to a friend of mine who was getting married, because I knew she was a busy woman, but in the end my husband decided he liked some of the recipies in it, so I kept it. ...less
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Elizabeth
gave
to:
Happy Days with the Naked Chef (Hardcover)
by Jamie Oliver
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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recommended for: established cooks
read in August, 2004, has a copy to sell/swap
Elizabeth said:
"I really enjoyed this cookbook, and use several of the recipies in it as staples inmy family, most notably the chicken in milk and the sweet and sour pot-roated chicken. There are a few recipies that are not worth the effort, such as the rock hen in ...more
I really enjoyed this cookbook, and use several of the recipies in it as staples inmy family, most notably the chicken in milk and the sweet and sour pot-roated chicken. There are a few recipies that are not worth the effort, such as the rock hen in dough, but overall I' d say it's a lively book which really appeals to my desire for easy, "fancy" dishes. I'd say this isn't for some beginners becasue not every ingredient is measured exactly but I don't really think it would be much of a problem. The pot-roasted pork with fennell is AMAZING. The pictures are great, too, as I've always preferred cookbooks with pictures of every dish....less
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Elizabeth
gave
to:
Toast (Paperback)
by Nigel Slater
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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read in April, 2007
Elizabeth said:
"This book, a memior through food, kept showing little glimmers of promise, and then it would go nowhere. It seems the author wants us to beleive his stepmother killed his father by feeding him to death, but there was so little emotion attached to the...more
This book, a memior through food, kept showing little glimmers of promise, and then it would go nowhere. It seems the author wants us to beleive his stepmother killed his father by feeding him to death, but there was so little emotion attached to the idea that even this peice of drama was boring. Several highly dramatic moments appeared in this book, but the author gave no real reasons for including them, other than purient value. I'm not one that likes books that spell everything out for you, but things seemed disjointed, and it more as if he was writing a report on someone else's book than one of his own....less
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Elizabeth
gave
to:
Life of Pi: Student Edition (Paperback)
by Yann Martel
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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read in October, 2005
Elizabeth said:
"I thought this was an amazing book. It's been a while since I read it, but I remember that I liked the early parts where the main character talks about growing up around a family owned zoo. The discussion his fatehr has about the captive animals real...more
I thought this was an amazing book. It's been a while since I read it, but I remember that I liked the early parts where the main character talks about growing up around a family owned zoo. The discussion his fatehr has about the captive animals really translates well into a social comment on all people, not just animals. He basically says the captive animals do not miss the wild, as they've never known the wild. How can you miss what you do not know?
As someone who has lived all around the country, in some very different communites, I really felt this helped me explain diffeent cultures to people whojust wonder, "how can they live like that??' If you're used to having a coffee shop in walking distance to your house, youmiss it when you're someplace else, but the people who live ina rural area don't miss it, so of course they aren't aggravated by the lack of a Starbucks drive-through. It's not that they're ignorant or slow, it's just a different society. If more people uderstood that, and accepted that, ther would be a lot less conflict, I think. There's no reason to force your lifestyle on someone who doesn't want it, just because you think it's a better way to live....less
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