Kwanzaa is an invented holiday, created in 1966 by African- American Maulana Karenga, who, Copage (a New York Times Magazine editor) here says, ``synthesized elements from many African harvest festivals.'' Observed throughout the week after Christmas by an increasing number of black Americans, it is loaded with symbolic rituals and capped by a feast on December 31 or January 1. As Copage describes it, the holiday is approached in a spirit of ``jazzy'' improvisation: Some celebrate Kwanzaa instead of Christmas, some after, and some ``Kwanzafy'' their Christmas celebrations. And, as with any celebration, the food is crucial. Copage, who writes well and with a mercifully light touch, has put his book together in the same spirit, including African folktales, profiles of black Americans, anecdotes and significant events from black history, and a lot more. It's all relatable to black pride and Kwanzaa principles, thus proper food for thought for families celebrating this evolving holiday, though often far removed from the purview of a conventional cookbook. Still, cookbook it is, with more than 125 recipes—ranging from grilled marinated rabbit to sweet-potato muffins—that do full justice to black cuisine as it has evolved in Africa, Brazil, the Caribbean, and the American South. The recipes and Copage's concise and personable background notes show respect for the food as well as the culture—and they outclass any existing Kwanzaa material by leagues.
Pub Date: Nov. 18, 1991
ISBN: 0-688-10939-X
Page Count: 324
Publisher: Morrow/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1991
BOOK REVIEW
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 1955
ISBN: 0670717797
Page Count: -
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1955
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