My Bread: The Revolutionary No-Work, No-Knead Method by Jim LaheyMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
I LOVE Jim Lahey's method. His was the recipe Mark Bittman made famous in the New York Times. I've made that bread at least a dozen times and it is my family's favorite. Now I got this book for Christmas and have many new variations to try! His bread is truly easy to make, costs very little, and is delicious and so satisfying. Thank you, Mr. Lahey!
Peter Reinhart's Artisan Breads Every Day by Peter ReinhartMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Another Christmas gift. I enjoyed reading it, I enjoy the way Reinhart is constantly trying new methods, constantly revising his recipes. He has really made an effort to make these recipes accessible to the home cook with a regular oven. I have had good success with his basic recipe -- now to try the baguettes!
Home: A Novel by Marilynne RobinsonMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
Home was a highly anticipated book for me. I loved Gilead so very much -- the prose in that novel was a rarified delight. Maybe nothing could have followed Gilead and done it justice in my mind. Maybe I just don't love the Boughtons as much as I loved Ames and his family. All I know is that I was somewhat disappointed.
**edited to add: Now that I have been finished with Home for awhile, I'm finding that it's sticking with me. I did grow to love the Boughtons quite a bit, and the whole discourse on what it means to be home at the end of the book really resonated with me. There is so much here about love and pain and grief within a family that rings true. I'm changing my rating to 4 stars.
**The best books I read in 2009: The Count of Monte Cristo and East of Eden. In addition, I tackled Dickens and enjoyed it, hoorah! I'm finally going to read War and Peace in 2010.**
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9 comments:
I've never read a book about bread.
I listened to Home and had such a hard time with it. I mostly blamed the narrator, but I think it was just too far away from what I loved about Gilead.
I've been looking forward to reading Home after loving Gilead so much -- I'm bummed to know it was disappointing.
You've got me intrigued with the bread books. I love that you really read them, too.
Oh skip War and Peace and go right to Anna Karenina. It is brilliant.
I love that you include cookbooks in your list. I have really debated about including them in my list.
I am trying that bread recipe from the new york times right away... I am so intrigued I went straight to amazon... I almost ordered it, but thought I better try the recipe & NOT go crazy here:)
I'm so excited about this bread though! I love the bread recipe from hannah you shared.
I think I know what I want for Valentine's day now!?
I've wanted to read Marilynne Robinson for a long time, and after that review I'll probably go with Gilead first.
And have fun with War and Peace! I enjoyed the epic nature of the book.
oh Michelle I love your love for reading. I think it is such a wholesome activity and one with such fountain of knowledge for words...which I do enjoy as much as you I think, so I congratulate you on your love for reading. I wish I would allocate more time to this endeavor, but I fear, I love to be outside too much to be captivated by the pages of a book. Maybe I should jump into the book more often!
Good luck with War and Peace. For me that book is just something they say on Seinfeld.
I have plans to read Count of Monte Cristo this year. Good to know you loved it.
War and Peace is my sister's favorite. I can't say that I've ever thought that possible for myself, but now I am determined to read this book as well. I'm not a stupid person, so why do I feel like I'm not good enough to even attempt it?
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