Andrea Immer Visits on Monday, 6 December at 7:00 PM

Rakestraw's Readers Recommend
Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke (Bloomsbury, $27.95). What can I add to all the incredibly positive reviews this truly fabulous book has received? The story of Yorkshire magician Mr. Norrell and his pupil Jonathan Strange intrigues and delights. Part Jane Austen, part Harry Potter, and part Mikhail Bulgakov, in the end Clarke creates a fantastical vision of England's magical past that is all her own. Do not be put off by the length, even if you don't like fantasy, this is one of the best to come in around in quite some time.

Crowded with Genius by James Buchan (HarperPerennial, $14.95). In 1700, Edinburgh was a filthy provincial town still mired in the Middle Ages. By 1800, it was one of the most modern towns in all the world -- its streets were lovely, well-lit, its publishing industry giving voice to Britain's most original thinkers in art, philosophy, economics, and literature. In this lively and intelligent book, James Buchan not only tells the story of this century of transformation, but also explores its continuing echoes in our own era. If you have been longing for a worthy follow-up to Thomas Cahill's How the Irish Saved Civilization, then this is it. Very highly recommended.

The Final Solution: A Story of Detection by Michael Chabon (4th Estate, $16.95). In this elegant and compact homage to English literature's greatest detective, Michael Chabon imagines Sherlock Holmes living in long retirement deep in the English countryside. The arrival of a young refugee from Hitler's Germany, and his grey parrot, inspire Holmes to set out on one last quest. The solution may however outwit even the master. As always, Chabon's work is entirely compelling, witty, and sophisticated.

St. Ursula's Girls Against the Atomic Bomb by Valerie Hurley (Plume, $13). I cannot resist quoting Andrea Barrett's wonderful review of this book: "Raine Rassby, precocious, insightful, wryly funny, and hilariously brave, is the most engaging character I have met in some time. This beautifully written novel is sheer delight."

The Birth of Venus by Sarah Dunant (Random House Trade, $13.95). Set against the glittering backdrop of Medici Florence, young Alessandra Cecchi is to be married to a much older man. Unhappy though the marriage is, Alessandra is a child of the Renaissance who loves to draw. In this pleasurably over-wrought tale of love and passion, Sarah Dunant draws the reader into Alessandra's increasingly tumultuous world and life. Already a favorite of local book groups, The Birth of Venus is now available in paperback.

Fanny: A Fiction by Edmund White (Ecco, $13.95). Laura Miller said it best, "'She needed me to be conservative that she might be the revolutionary,' [Fanny] Trollope says of [Fanny] Wright in Fanny, and her willingness to play along, even after Wright has disappointed her many times, testifies to her generosity. Fanny, despite appearances, isn't about female friendship -- Wright isn't warm enough for real intimacy -- but about the wonders to be found in the bit players of history. White's Fanny Trollope is plain, modest, middle-aged, occasionally fussy and obtuse, sometimes catty, but also in her own way a great spirit, certainly more human than the crusading, imperious Fanny Wright. Her resilience, humor, curiosity and common sense simply cannot be crushed. She's like a great Dickens character with a dash of vinegar, and for some 370 pages you couldn't ask for better company."

The Great Fire by Shirley Hazzard (Picador, $14). It is one of the conventions of book reviewing to say that this book, or that one, is long-awaited. But in the case of Shirley Hazzard's magnificent novel, long-awaited is the literal truth -- more than twenty years passed between the publication of her award-winning The Transit of Venus and The Great Fire. Winner of the 2004 National Book Award, this generous and intelligent novel is set in London in the immediate wake of the massive disruption of World War II. Both Edith and I enjoyed this wonderful book.

Magical Thinking: True Stories by Augusten Burroughs (St. Martin's Press, $23.95). Fans of Burroughs's bestselling memoirs Running With Scissors and Dry will be expecting his rather bizarre and hysterical (in both senses) brand of humor to be present in this collection of what he calls "true stories." What they may not be expecting is how tender and ultimately loving, these pieces are. "Up the Escalator" is one of the most enjoyable accounts of visiting K-Mart that you will ever read.

Titles Seldom Seen -- Books from the Backlist

Some particularly wonderful books have been re-issued lately. It is a pleasure to bring those to your attention whether its a first introduction, or simply encouraging you to renew an acquaintance.

An Alphabet for Gourmets by M. F. K. Fisher (North Point Press, $13). In An Alphabet for Gourmets, renowned essayist arranged a a collection of her essays in an abecedary that not only considers a wide range of food topics, but also explores the chambers of the human heart. If the opening anecdote of "I is for Innocence" does not move you to tears, then get yourself checked out. Also recently re-issued are Fisher's The Gastronomical Me and A Cordial Water. Also of note is the recently issued Poet of the Appetites: The Lives and Loves of M. F. K. Fisher by Joan Reardon.

Daddy-Long-Legs and Dear Enemy by Jean Webster (Penguin, $13). First published in 1912, Jean Webster's Daddy-Long-Legs should stand on the shelf with Louisa May Alcott's Little Women and Betty Smith's A Tree Grows in Brooklyn as one of the greatest novels of American girlhood. It is the enchanting tale of Judy (nee Jerusha) Abbott beginning a new life as a college student, as a writer, and finally, as a person. Written as a series of letters to her anonymous benefactor, the letters reveal Judy to be an intelligent and spirited and very lively young woman indeed. It is a pleasure to make her acquaintance.

How to Do Things Right: The Revelations of a Fussy Man by L. Rust Hills (David R. Godine, $17.95). How To Do Things Right fits three imperishable classics of American humor into one great book, addressing everything from the mundane (“How to Eat an Ice Cream Cone”) to the cosmically insoluble ("How to Solve America").

The Best New French Cookbooks
This season is one of the most marvelous cookbooks. It should come as no surprise, therefore, that Rakestraw has a good many. What has come as something of a surprise is that the French cookbooks are outselling all the others. Here is a selection of the best of those.

Thomas Keller’s take on French bistro cooking is everything you would expect it to be: labor intensive, demanding, and delicious beyond belief. From the same team that created the award-winning French Laundry Cookbook comes Bouchon (Artisan, $60). All the emblematic bistro dishes are here, interpreted and executed as they’ve never been before. In Keller’s hands the confit of duck, country-style pâtés, soupe à l’oignon gratinée, steamed mussels, steak frites, gigot d’agneau, all achieve the impossible: they get even better. And for those of you who bought the earlier book, only to moon over it and never ever cook from it, rest assured these recipes are both far less daunting and far more likely to lure you into the kitchen.

In dramatic contrast to Thomas Keller’s maniacal pursuit of perfection, is Jacques Pépin’s Fast Food My Way. Rest assured that Pépin’s way involves no sacrifices in taste but saves you hours in the kitchen. His Instant Beef Tenderloin Stew, for instance, not only is far faster to make than traditional versions, but also tastes brighter and fresher. These are recipes that are special enough for company, but easy enough for weekday evenings when you have no time (Hougton Mifflin, $30). Pépin is the good uncle -- ever encouraging and unfailingly kind and generous.

If Pépin is the good uncle, then Anthony Bourdain is that snarky cousin who shows off a good deal and reminds just how good he really is. Having said that, Anthony Bourdain's Les Halles Cookbook (Bloomsbury, $34.95) is a wonderful achievement. These are labor-intensive, though well-explained, versions of the great bistro classics. If you were looking for a book to a buy a bright, young thing who likes to cook a good deal, then this is the one to choose. And, if I manage to make a go of the three day-long of process of making cassoullet Bourdain's way, I will let you know. He really does make it seem so ridiculously do-able.

Finally, there is Ina Garten's Barefoot in Paris (Clarkson Potter, $35). As brightly cheerful and colorfully welcoming as her earlier books, this delightful compilation of utterly familiar (and very tasty) dishes reminds us how good old favorites can be. Garten does not hold back on either cream or butter, but neither does she encourage us to eat this way every day. Some of her recipes are bound to become standards, so easy and so tempting are they. Here is my adaptation of her recipe for Spiced Cashews:

1 lb cashews, roasted but unsalted
2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, minced
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons light brown sugar
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

------

In a large sauté pan over medium heat melt the butter. Add the cashews and stir to coat well with the butter. Toast them gently, stirring constantly, until they start to release their fragrance. Add the spice mixture and stir well to coat. Keep stirring until the sugar caramelizes (maybe two minutes). Serve warm.

Enjoy!
click here

Gift Certificates Available

Click here for a list of Booksense bookstores across the country.

Book Club News