Customer Comments

Though marketed for teens, this beginner's knitting book is perfect for anyone who wants to explore different easy projects. The introduction on the basics is very clear. The projects are basic, but with a twist on execution. They cover hats, scarves, bags, ponchos, sweaters, one-day projects, and blankets. Also included is information on how to start a knitting club, where you and others can meet regularly and knit together. The spiral bound book lies flat, which is important when reading and knitting at the same time.

When I read Anthony Bourdain's "Medium Raw: A Bloody Vanentine to the World of Food and the People Who Cook," I am transported to a small, slightly seedy pub in New York. It is as if this stranger, Anthony Bourdain is sitting next to me at the bar drinking his fourth vodka on the rocks. He is slightly tipsy, and in need of confessing his decade of insights. I listen, and he spills his guts. In his remarkable autobiographical, confessional style, Anthony Bourdain begins in an illegal feast of endangered animals, wondering why he has been invited to this feed where the top chefs from the country are huddled under a cloth to devour a tiny bird, head, feet, and all. I read on, he is upset, truly believes he is not worth shit in the kitchen compared to these honored few at the table. I am there, with him, encouraging him to open up, get it off his chest. He continues to confide in me, the reader, using his acerbic vocabulary and desire to reveal his past sins and observations of the culinary world around him. Along the way, I realize that here is a man who has matured, perhaps because his is now a loving father, and understand that, for Anthony Bourdain, it is imperative for him to share his revised insights with the world. After" Kitchen Confidential," Bourdain became an international culinary celebrity, the result of this celebrity was his television series on world cultures. In "Medium Raw: A Bloody Valentine to the World of Food and the People Who Cook," Bourdain revises some of his comments on celebrity that he abhorred and now finds himself in. It is imperative that we, the reader, know he is having second thoughts on his original observations. The reason I love reading Anthony Bourdain, is that he writes beautifully in the first person, moving from four-letter expletives to thoughtfully descriptive adjectives. As the reader am right there as he shares his insights on his transformation from unknown to infamous. He desperately needs to confessor, and has chosen me.

The cookbook is simply amazing. She takes foods we all know about and, through the magic of herbs and spices, creates wonderful tasty dishes. I have tried several. What I especially like is the way I can make my own custom herb/spice mix and add to the recipe. She has opened a new door to the world of cooking from India.