Review: Pride and Prejudice

Pride and Prejudice

by Jane Austen

What a chore. I've enjoyed the movie adaptations. I've seen of several of Jane Austen's works. Maybe that's why I thought I'd enjoy reading this book. The main characters were interesting, so I can't quite but my finger on why I didn't like it. Maybe it's my current state-of-mind, but I won't read Austen for pleasure again. Normally, I the sort of person who prefers the book to the movie, but not in this case. I wouldn't have made it past the first 100 pages had I not rented the 1995 BBC / A&E mini-series. It's an excellent adaptation and the movie kept me engaged enough to finish the book. (Originally posted as SquareSpot on PaperBackSwap.com.)

Review: Immortal Milk

Immortal Milk: Adventures in Cheese
by Eric LeMay

Not so much an expert's guide to cheese, this is a book about the love of cheese. You'll learn about cheese itself, but the author also feels free to muse all about the topic. (There's an entire chapter about the word 'cheesy.') It ends abruptly, but the appendices makes up for it. The appendices page upon page upon page of pairings for cheese - whether you like beer, wine, chocolate, fruit, or meat. (Originally posted as SquareSpot on PaperBackSwap.com.)

Review: The Food Truck Handbook

The Food Truck Handbook: Start, Grow, and Succeed in the Mobile Food Business
by David Weber

A how-to guide that is practical and inspiring. It's also challenging with plenty of reasons NOT to get into the food truck business. The author is president of a food-truck advocacy group and wants to encourage business owners to use high-standards and honesty. Includes lots of interviews with food truck owners. (Originally posted as SquareSpot at PaperBackSwap.com.)

Review: Everybody Loves Ramen

Everybody Loves Ramen: Recipes, Stories, Games, and FunFacts About the Noodles You Love by Eric Hites
For a tongue-in-cheek cookbook, this turned out to be almost all fluff. Every other page is padded with a recipe journal: When did you serve this dish for the first time? Whom did you share it with?... And most of the 'Ramen Factoids' were stupid: "One pound of ramen noodles weighs the same as one pound of gold. But you can't eat gold." I like silly, but facts like this are lazy. But the book wasn't all terrible. The stories about ramen were fun - college prank type of tales. The title is right: I do love ramen... just not this book. And, I'll admit, I am keeping it for the recipes. (Originally posted as SquareSpot on PaperBackSwap.com.)

Review: Word Warriors

Word Warriors: 35 Women Leaders in the Spoken Word Revolution

Edited by Alix Olson

This is what every anthology should be - eclectic and yet relevant. The best part of this book is each poet's personal essay. Each essay is only a few pages long, but together they cover lots of topics, ideas, and emotions. Issues such as... asking ‘why write?' or ‘ why perform?', being transgender, competing in slam poetry, musing about race, raising the quality of art, rejecting labels, teaming up with other artists, etc. Read this if you are a woman or a writer. Read this if you feel young, jaded, creative, or ostracized. You'll find something to identify with, to be inspired by, and to be shocked by. (P.S. Don't be discouraged by the forward. I thought it was the worst poem in the book. Skip the forward and tackle the the rest of the poems with an open mind and heart.)" (Originally posted as SquareSpot onPaperBackSwap.com.)