Anna, shows how strength, when applied with focus can overcome the obstacles of life. With two children,single and a woman, she uses each expeience to build on. Nothing keeps her down.

I am learning to live a low fat life and have looked at and read several books that were boring and preachy. This book makes it easy to catch on and understand why we all should eat differently. It's also funny. It's like sitting at my neighbor's kitchen table and chatting while a great dinner is being prepared

Maura Laverty's Full & Plenty 2: Fish & Meat is a traditional Irish cookbook presenting over 450 recipes for classic Irish soups, fish, vegetables, meat, poultry, game, leftovers and sauces. All recipes have been kitchen-tested to ensure mouth-watering results. In addition to the recipes, Full & Plenty 2 also features numerous cooking tips and techniques, from the five classifications of soup to how to preserve beans, to an anecdotal story that illustrates the proper function of a sauce. From Steak and Kidney Pudding; Pork Pie; and Potato Soup; to Cornish Pastries; Kidney Stew; and Liver in Cider, Full & Plenty 2 is highly enjoyable not only as a source for preparing unique menus for delicious dinners, but also as wry armchair reading for those who enjoy to peruse cookbooks with a little extra zest for digression.

Mother Wonderful is a quirky and hilarious cheesecake genius. She begins her book by describing how cheesecakes saved her marriage- the general idea is that while a youthful hour glass figure my tempt a man away from the fold, sweet cheesecake concoctions will always bring him back.

This is the only cheesecake book I know that gives away trade secrets. While other cheesecake books have beautiful pictures, the recipes never give enough details- and my cheesecakes never come out picture perfect. Myra Chanin does not offer temping pictures, but time tested, detailed directions. She gives away the secrets of how to keep your crusts crunchy, and the cheesecake custardy and uncracked.

Most of the cheesecake recipes in the book are award winners. Many are creative and original. I made her Jamoca cheesecake last Thanksgiving and I was told by five people that it was the best thing they had ever eaten. Pumpkin pies went uneaten while the entire cheesecake disappeared before breakfast.

This book is worth reading as well as using. But before you bake remember Mother Wonderful's advice, do not bake when you are depressed. Take to your bed with someone amusing instead.

I bought this book when I was first learning cake decorating and it is the ONE book I would not be without. It is the most essential book I have found for learning. It includes most of the fundamental basics of tier cake construction that the others leave out. This woman shares her many years of experience with the reader in an easy to understand fashion, and it takes you from the very beginning to the very end. Like planning the design with the bride, how many servings, etc. And it ends up with transporting the whole creation to the location. These are all areas that you can really benefit by learning from someone else's experiences and mistakes. The basic elements of planning, baking and construction are covered in detail here. There are plenty of recipes, serving charts,and diagrams. Actual cake designs are not covered,because as we all know there are a million and one other books out there full of pictures. Instead, there is a section that helps with design placement, execution and proportion. This book is mainly what you need to fill in the holes that the decorating books don't teach you. Alot of common sense and basic tips, gleaned from a wealth of experience in the cake decorating industry. If you really want to learn how to create wedding cakes, this is the best eleven dollars you will ever spend!

I have been married 9 months now..and could not find any muffins that my husband liked. I fixed a couple out of this book and WOW, he loved them. He's not much of a bread eater...but loves those muffins! Thanks!

My daughter craved stimulation as an infant. She loved simple finger play games such as pat-a-cake, but I couldn't remember the words or hand motions to many others (how DO you get from a steeple to a church full of people?). When I went to our local bookstore in search of a book on finger play rhymes and directions, the clerk couldn't praise this book enough. Joanna Cole's books are EXTREMELY easy to understand, with step by step caricatures picturing hand placement and motion. My now three year old daughter enjoys looking through the book as well as singing the songs. This book comes highly recommended.

Patch is greatly appealing. We've been enjoying patch books since my daughter was first born. The stories are short and interesting for little ones. The illustrations are delightfully perfect! This book is all about patch baking a cake, with a bunch of pull tabs, turn dials to bring the book to life. My toddler is so entertained by this book. Buy it!

My son is now 2 years old but became obsessed with this book at about 18months old. He begs for the "cake book" almost daily. The pop-ups are incredible and the storyline is both clever and fun to read. It is especially a favorite for grandma to read since she is the heroine in the end...

This book is excellent, well worth reading.
Walter Frey's experiences on his way to the top of the culinary world will make you laugh. This is truly a great success story with a happy ending. (Plus a lot of excellent recipes along the way.