Paola Gavin has done down-to-earth cooks a huge favor by proving that the words "French" and "vegetarian" can co-exist in peace and simplicity. Refreshingly short ingredient lists grace the pages, presented in an austere format which belies the tempting and tasty dishes that will result.

The multi-talented Al Sarrantonio, noted for his many contributions to the horror/science fiction field, now turns his dark eye toward the bone-chilling world of French vegetarian cooking. You'll cover your eyes in fright as the murderous Broccoli Rabe leaps from the steaming pot and screams horrific gibberish while performing satanic jigs on the kitchen counter. An army of undead Taters from Paree, berets set at unholy and rakish angles, march toward Newburgh, NY, leaving a path of death and destruction along with many unwanted peelings. My only gripe with this book was the ending--Julia Childs' overly gruesome and bloody struggle with a giant cyclops string bean just doesn't work for me. I certainly enjoyed the gor--and the many helpful tips on steaming rice--but when Julia's All-Girl Kung Fu Army emerges and kills the string bean with a barrage of Almondine, it just didn't ring true.

I found this book not only to be filled with the wonderfull works of Claude Monete but it also has a great insight to his life and the imprssion he left on modern art today. This book also contains full fold-out pictures of some of the artists best works. For anyone who has ever enjoyed any of Monets work you will love this book.

This book is a perfect addition to any art library. Having seen "Monet in the 20th Century" in Boston at the Museum of Fine Arts, I was well prepared for the exhibit by having read the book first. I found the exhibit to be an extraordinary example of Monet's achievment in his later years. This book focuses on the works of Monet starting at the start of this century right up to his death in 1928. All through this period of Monet's life and including the representation of the body of work produced within those years, this book never skips a beat. Although not an all-encompassing look at his complete works of that period, this book offers the best look out there of his paintings as well as his development throughout the last quarter-century of his life. I found it to be in keeping with what is already known about Monet's later years, but certainly not devoid of interesting insights. The quality of the book, it's contents, including all of the color plates reproduced within is very good. I would not have an art library without Monet representation, and this is the ideal book for an addition or a starter.

This extrordinary book covers the most impacting fragrances on both the public and the industry. From conception to development to launches, it gives a thorough history of these wonderscents.Each chapter is a spesific scent, covering the designer, the fragrance creators, the bottle development and all the dirty little secrets of how they got to the top. The book thoroughly covers 45 perfumes (I think he missed a few) including greats like Chanel #5, Shalimar,Anais Anais and Angel. Mr. Edwards also gives a composition rundown, But this is a little confusing if you are not familliar with his Fragrance Manual. Required reading for any fragrance nut.

At first glance, Perfume Legends is a beautifully illustrated coffee table book packed with fascinating stories about the creation and evolution of some of the greatest fragrances of the century. Dig deeper and you discover it's a valuable reference tool for anybody involved in the fashion or beauty business. Perfume is an art form, it captures the spirit of the times, and it's an eye-opening exercise to trace the evolution of fragrance through the history of the 20th century. It's also intriguing to read about the scientific breakthroughs that gave rise to new perfume notes, which greatly expanded the perfumers' repertoire. Michael Edwards obviously knows his subject intimately and he manages to share his knowledge in a readable way. He has clearly spent years researching the true stories behind the myths. The clever combination of scholarship, anecdote and brilliant pictorial material (some of it never published before) makes this book a must for anyone interested in the subject. Even people who just love fragrance will get a lot out of Perfume Legends. It's the only truly comprehensive reference on the subject of French female fragrance classics that I've been able to find. I heartily recommend it. It is ironic that Michael Edwards, who lives in Australia, was born in Africa and educated in England, seems to have beaten the French at their own game. They must be furious.

The Walnut Cookbook is filled with recipes that work. No complicated techniques or equipment (beyond a food processor) are needed to reproduce these delightful recipes. There are many desserts and salads, of course, but the appetizers and meat recipes are often brilliant. It is a very handsome trade paperback, with a heavy water-resissitant cover, a scattering of illustrations and photographs, and a beautiful lay-out. This book is a winner

This book has a very interesting section on the historial and health related-aspects of walnuts. Most people don't realize how beneficial for cardiovascular risk factors walnuts are, and the book outlines the "Perigord paradox" which points out how walnuts can favorably influence blood lipid levels. The recipes are fabulous, and have a genuinely French feel and taste. A must-have book.

Being a frog myself reading this book comforted me in my belief that our arrogance was justified, joke apart it is a jolly good read and ever so funny. Everyone should read it.

The French are an unpleasant lot, eaters of slugs and gooey bits of horse, tormentors of small animals, chewers of garlic, and the bane of personal hygene salesmen.

This book shows them at their worst, and although intended as humour, demonstrates that many a true word is said in jest.

The French Laundry is a beautifully photographed gastronomic delight!! This book is not just a "cookbook" from the reknowned French Laundry restaurant of Thomas Keller located in the wine country of California, it is much, much more. It is the story of a young man having a respect for food, how it is grown and harvested, along with respect for those that spend their time nurturing the food. He takes great joy in taking great care and overlooking no detail in the preparation of food for those who will surely enjoy it. He wants to develop this love and respect for food in those who eat his creations! Michael Ruhlman writes the story of the French Laundry and of Thomas Keller as well as the stories of those that supply the lamb, rabbit, mushrooms, cheeses, wines and produce.
The story alone is worth the reading, but the recipes put it over the top!! While some of the recipes may be too detailed for many "home" cooks, there is so much variety in the recipes that everyone can find something to try!! This is classic French culinary food with a terrific American twist.

Chef Thomas Keller's first cookbook The French Laundry ia a beautiful book and a must read for any professional cook.While so many celebrity chefs try to cash in on their fame with a quick restaurant cookbook, Thomas Keller seems to be trying to do something much different.His book is more about how cooking "feels" rather than the actual physical process itself. The recipes are all very workable for a professional chef but would be difficult for home cooks to execute. It really doesn't seem to matter though, because just reading it is enough. The photographs are wonderful and the "zen like" narratives about food from the Chef and his support staff are fascinating. His love and respect for what he does certainly shines through. I think this cookbook is a definite classic and well worth the price. A absolute must-read for anyone interested in food.

And you can't put it down, if you're a Foodie like me. The photography is gorgeous, for starters. I have severly damaged my copy by licking the stunningly detailed photographs. Thomas Keller's food is truly artwork, and the editor is to be commended for their excellent taste in putting this book together.

The text is a nice blend of the practical (including techniques as basic as vegetable prep) and utterly fanciful (garnish and sauce techniques that are uncommon outside $150/person restaurants). The five recipes that I have tried have all been exceptional, and assume only a moderate level of kitchen experience and a good working knowledge of basic technique. These are *very complex* recipes. I usually do one of the items with the rest of the meal coming from other, less fussy, sources. This is Tweezer Food taken to a genuinely tasty end, unlike some presentations that just look "good enough to eat".

A thoroughly well researched book. I found a few of the nit-picks a bit too trivial for my liking, but on the whole I found this book to be well worth the reading time.

One inaccuracy I did find was when the author mentioned that a computer can't turn itself on when the phone rings (this happened to Scully in "Ghost In The Machine"). I guess he's never heard of a PC with wake-on-ring.

This book is packed full with information on inconsistinces, science problems, the author's best lines, and tables of : How many times Mulder is jeopardy, How many times Scully is in jeopardy, and How many people die in a season. I loved it! This book is a must have for Die-hard X-Philes!

This book is simple yet fantastic. It has loads of facts, quotes and nitpicks without being predictable or samey. There are also interesting tables showing number of people dying per episode and so on. The layout gives the book an extra dimension too, being not too cramped and distinctive. This is only for the first couple of series, but any real fan should get it anyway. And if you're not yet an X-Files convert, you will be after reading this.

The central claim of this book--that France is actually adapting to globalization (whatever that means) better than the political rhetoric might suggest--is counter-intuitive and interesting. However, it is superficially researched and lumps together public opinion, social movements, interest groups, trade policy, etc., as if they were acting in the same field and part of a single, homogeneous phenomenon. Although the overview of trade debates in several sectors is interesting, the authors reduce antiglobalization politics in France to a nostalgic longing for French 'grandeur'. Such a label is perhaps applicable to some sectors of the French elite (Chevenement, Seguin, Pasqua) but certainly not to the wide variety of social movements and associations that focus on the democratic deficit and the increase of inequalities.

This is a wonderful book, thoroughly researched and very well written, which should satisfy both Francophiles and Francophobes alike! Gordon and Meunier offer a balanced account of a contemporary France that adapts remarkably well to globalization but hides this adaptation under a cloud of anti-globalization and anti-Americanization rhetoric.

"The French Challenge" is a MUST for anybody who wants to understand contemporary France. This is provocative book which has many insights into the love/hate relationship of the French with globalization. A very solid piece of work and a great read.

In "Merde Encore!," author Geneviève recommends that one should have looked over her previous book, "Merde!," because she "shall at times . . . assume knowledge acquired in the first." Thus, she says, "What I offer here is further exploration of colloquial vocabulary and idioms and, through them, deeper insights into the French psyche." So, while the layout of "Merde Encore!" is similar to "Merde!," there is a difference in tone between the two books. "Merde!" presents a colloquial and idiomatic French glossary, and "Merde Encore!" attempts to offer an outsider's view on the French psyche (in particular, on the Frenchman's psyche) in a rather sarcastic commentary interspersed with additional vocabulary. Here, Geneviève extends her thesis from "Merde!" (see the chapter on "Xenophobia and Racism") on the "innate French feeling of superiority" by indulging in lots of name-calling and stereotyping. In the interests of free speech, a glossary, dictionary, or phrasebook may offer "politically incorrect" terminology and usage. However, it is up to the reader to decide if a line has been crossed when an author chooses to perpetuate xenophobic stereotypes by using the words "Frog," "Froggie," and "Frog Pathology," and by offering undocumented commentary on the hygiene of the French, for example. Sometimes it is difficult to determine what is humour and what is not. (The foregoing remarks are offered by this reviewer as a disclaimer.)

"Merde Encore!" has thirteen short chapters: "Verbs" (i.e., the "moi-je" syndrome); "Suffixes" ("instruments of belittlement and contempt"); "Les Beaux Gestes" (with cartoons of French gestures, illustrated by Michael Heath); "Guillotined French" ("shortened" French words, like "cap" for "capable"); "Counting in French" (including "The Frog Clock"); "Sound Effects"; "The Most Popular Ingredients of French Idioms" (food and animals); "Anatomy of a Frog"; "Appee Beurzdé Tooh Yooh" ("Franglais"); "Allons Enfants" ("kiddie talk"); "The Cocorico Syndrome" (i.e., "Frogs on Wheels"); "Geography à la Française" (i.e., "the Parisians and the rest"); and "Your PH.D. Exam."

This book has quite a bit of useful idiomatic vocabulary and phrasing; it is also quite humourous. As to an insight into the French psyche or national character, I think not. For a more perceptive, witty, and insightful read on an outsider's view of the (Parisian) French, I highly recommend "French Toast," by Harriet Welty Rochefort. The irony of Geneviève's books (particularly the second one) is that they would be most appealing to an age group who should not be reading them!

This book assumes you have at least a full year of French behind you. It is not for beginners, even given the fact that most learners of a second language usually go for the "cinq lettres" words first. It was absolutely a must read for me when I visited Paris, and a bit of a help when I eventually visited Quebec. Lots of cultural nuances about the French (even body language is discussed), funny illustrations, and plenty of good intentioned advice... if a bit R-rated.

Ooh-la-la. This is a delightful gift for the friend who has a decent elementary grasp on the French language and a rolicking sense of humour. Written with great lingusitic dexterity, both in French aan in English, it will be treasured for years to come.

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"Our dreams are a second life."-Gerard de Nerval
"Dream---a scintillating mirage surrounded by shadows---is essentially poetry."-Michel Leiris

Michel Leiris' "Nights as Day, Days as Night": In the introduction to Leiris' forty year collection of dreams, Maurice Blanchot asks, "Who dreams in dreams? Who is the "I" of dreams? Who is the person to whom this "I" is attributed, admitting that there is one? Between the person who is sleeping and the person who is the subject of dream events there is a fissure..." The dislocation which seems to be the source of who exactly we are in dreams may spring from the fact that in our dreams everything takes on an almost theatrical aspect, sometimes we are spectator & sometimes we are actor, other times we are a combination of the two. One of Leiris earliest poetic mentors was Max Jacob, & two of the dreams related in the book involve him. In fact the manner in which Leiris records some of his dreams are reminiscent of certain of Max Jacob's prose poems. The following one by Jacob, "Literary Standards" would not be out of place in Leiris' book: "A dealer in Havana sent me a cigar wrapped in gold which had been smoked a little. The poets sitting with me said he'd done it to mock me, but the old Chinese who was our host said it was the custom in Havana when one wished to show great honor. I brought out two magnificent poems a scholar friend had written down translations of for me because I admired them when I heard them read. The poets said they were well-known and worthless. The old Chinese said they couldn't have known the poems because they only existed in a single manuscript copy in Pehlvi, a language they didn't know. Then the poets started laughing loudly like children while the old Chinese gazed at us sadly." As Blanchot stated in the introduction, "These were once dreams; they are now signs of poetry."

The greatest of the recorded events to be found in Leiris' book are the pages dedicated to dream elements overflowing into his waking life, communicating vessels. In the page dated May 4, 1943 Leiris describes a middle-aged man lurking around who seems to be nightmarishly fake, "A real cop or a mere civilian? Or nobody in particular? I asked myself the question but could not resist considering this shady character to be some sort of specter or macabre merrymaker who, having donned a terrifyingly contemporary disguise, was waiting for some shadowy carnival to begin."

In a few of the recorded dreams he notes that he realized he was dreaming & tried to wake himself up, he tells us it is usually by falling. This is a common dream phenomenon, & it may appear to be simple. We are having a nightmare, realize it is a dream, & then struggle to wake up. The interesting thing though is that it is usually after the realization we are having a dream that things in our dream become even more concrete & real, it is not just about waking up, it is almost as though we are trying to cheat death. Leiris records something similar which Blanchot called a turning back upon himself, "A movement anologous to the one that often tends to elicit similar screams from me just as I am about to awake. But in this case the movement was considerably more frightening; instead of those interminable pangs one experiences when emerging with difficulty from a dream, I was in a sense being precipitated downward by my dream, plunged into a sleep from which I would never escape, and which would be my death."

This book, first published in 1961, is commonly considered to be a companion to Leiris' great autoethnographic work, _Manhood_. It is simply a collection of recorded dreams spanning a couple decades. Beyond the fact that Leiris' dreams are interesting, what adds value to the work is that is that it's historical and biographical context can be reconstructed through Leiris' other work. Highly recommended for those interested in Leiris, surrealism, or the social network surrounding Georges Bataille.