by Kathe Lison ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 25, 2013
Whether Lison is ruminating on the short lactation cycle of sheep, the origins of rennet, or the grassy, lemony taste of a...
Her curiosity piqued by the multitude of French cheeses, essayist and self-proclaimed cheesehead Lison chronicles her tasty culinary journey exploring the art and science of French cheese making.
Since she grew up in Wisconsin, the nation’s largest producer of cheese, her “interest in cheese was inevitable.” Following a perusal of a French cheese encyclopedia describing more than 350 kinds of fermented milk, the author poses a basic question: “Why produce this crazy number of cheeses? I mean, why not just one nice sharp cheddar?” Lison’s query engendered nearly 7,000 miles of travel and the consumption of copious amounts of artisanal cheese. The author trekked from high alpine barnyards to sparkling multinational corporate headquarters, talking with shepherds and scientists. Along the way, Lison discourses on the merits of hand milking vs. portable milking machines and the history of the classification system, which consists of five basic types of cheese. The author explores what makes some cheeses so stinky and why, since the Middle Ages Roquefort, cheese and the concept of appellation have been intertwined. Lison attended what she calls a “cheese-tasting debutante ball” and explains the real meaning behind the Camembert War. “Camembert however, is the dream of the French cheese,” she writes, “a fromage so closely linked with Frenchness in the minds of people everywhere that just the name ‘Camembert’ evokes visions of berets and fleurs-de-lys.” The author laces the narrative with satisfying kernels of French agricultural history, especially data concerning the pressures of the post–World War II environment and its role in hollowing out the population of the French countryside.
Whether Lison is ruminating on the short lactation cycle of sheep, the origins of rennet, or the grassy, lemony taste of a spring goat cheese, readers will have all their senses engaged.Pub Date: June 25, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-307-45206-1
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Broadway
Review Posted Online: May 4, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2013
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by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996
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
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by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955
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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