Too long by half, and then again so. There are simply too many minor annoyances here, and not enough variety to fuel the...
A you-gotta-hand-it-to-'em story of building a new life and business in a foreign land that sinks in a quicksand of logorrhea.
Ever the entrepreneurs, the Blanchards sold their Vermont-based gourmet food business and poured the profits into a seaside restaurant on the sleepy but celebrity-strewn Caribbean island of Anguilla. As narrated by Melinda Blanchard, the story is launched with an unfortunate number of clichés ("As our taxi made its way westward, I counted the ways I loved this island") that gratefully subside, only to be replaced by writing that replicates the thought process enough to throw sand into even the most devout friend's eyes: "It's just too formal. Pretty but stiff. People come to this island to relax. I don't want our dining room to be hushed and uncomfortable. Guests need to feel more like they're at our house for dinner, rather than at a stuffy restaurant. Elegance, but no attitude." There are the standard bothers—“island time," customs agents, the unavailability of ingredients, the cistern running dry, and paying $215 to replace a $3 part—but Blanchard reminds readers often enough that "I felt unaccountably happy" and "I felt preposterously lucky." Comments, such as "This reminds me of that little restaurant in Nice" or "Bob suddenly remembered an East Hampton wedding we had attended at a magnificent beach house," fall like bricks; then Blanchard scrambles for some balance: "Bob was honored to be sharing fish soup with these men" (read: humble though they may be). Ultimately, the story settles down to one kitchen tale after another, some more amusing than others, although they begin to fade into each other after a while.
Too long by half, and then again so. There are simply too many minor annoyances here, and not enough variety to fuel the Blanchards' story and keep readers' interest turning over.Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-609-60694-8
Page Count: 288
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2000
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...
Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").Pub Date: May 15, 1972
ISBN: 0205632645
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Macmillan
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972
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
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
