Simple instructions for how to make the household apron fit the frame of your life.
Proving that you don’t need fancy equipment or a doctorate degree in home economics to be a successful homemaker, Payne gives easy-to-follow advice. This eclectic, if sometimes dry, guide is a starting point for anyone struggling as a homemaker. The author shows how home décor can be both practical and economical when you rediscover the versatility of common household items, such as mason jars and clothespins. Cleaning does not have to be stressful, costly or dangerous when you are armed with confidence, knowledge and basic products like vinegar, baking soda and salt. Dining in is as exciting as going to a fancy restaurant when you are not afraid to undertake new endeavors such as canning, baking and entertaining. Payne discusses how she was able to feed eight guests a three-course meal for $70. She provides essential household survival lists such as a basic tool kit, which she hopes will encourage “creative problem solving, helping you to conjure up your inner Girl or Boy Scout.” The author expands outside of the confines of the house and into the garden with tips that can be useful even if you don’t have the space or patience to cultivate. With a quote from Eleanor Roosevelt—“You must do the thing you think you cannot do”—Payne effectively summarizes her own approach to homemaking. Useful dos and don’ts for the domestically disabled.
Pub Date: April 19, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-06-201470-2
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Harper Design
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2011
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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