Customer Comments

This is a straight forward cookbook for some of my very favorite dishes. From simple tabbouleh and hummus to more complex dishes, the format is beautiful and easy to follow. Peppered with historical notes and commentary, it's become one of my favorite cookbooks in just a few weeks.

I found this book highly appealing to the scientist in me. I study plant breeding and genetics (so much of which has been converted to the 'gene ripping' in Bacigalupi's book.) There are some stretches, but ultimately the Calorie Companies of today own more than most are aware. Seed banks as the last vaults of our lost domesticated heritage and countries trying to protect themselves from growing plagues stand at the center of this novel while genetically engineered humans and cats fight for their right to exist in this dystopia. Well worth the read.

I admit that I picked this book assuming it would be one of the many non-fiction travel books that I was either unimpressed by or bored by. I doubted I'd even bother finishing it. I started it on an airplane, assuming that as soon as the trip was over I'd put it down or trade it for something more interesting. Instead, I found myself snatching moments while my friends went to primp their hair or find their wallets. I devoured the story of the culture, language and people. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in anthropology, linguistics or humans in general. Dr. Everett's lifelong relationship with the people of the Amazon gives this travel novel a true depth that doesn't exist in those novels which are written by experts after only 2 weeks. His compassion for his subjects and his desire to truly understand and empathize with them is inspiring and is something that we can surely learn from.

Usually I read swashbuckling tales of adventure, but I also really like non-fiction. What a treat to find both in one book. Part murder mystery, part natural history, part sociological analysis, part legend and part real-life drama, this book is gripping. It takes you to a far part of the world, the Amur Valley in eastern Russia, and leaves you with a better understanding of the threats this amazing tiger is up against and the tenuous line humans walk when they live with tigers. I highly recommend this true story to anyone who is curious about survival, of tigers or of humans, in harsh environments.