Andrea's Reviews

The only world that 10-year-old Melanie has ever known is her solitary cell and the armed guards who transport her from it for a few hours each day. When that world is shattered, Melanie begins to delve into her past, all the while hurtling into an uncertain future. It’s a zombie tale with lots of heart, plenty of gore, and an unforgettable heroine; a story about the undead that really examines what it means to be human. 

It’s been 36 years since Stephen King published The Shining, and now we finally get to see what happened to little psychic Danny Torrance. Danny has since grown up and moved to New England to escape what happened between his father and the Overlook Hotel... and we all know that when King writes in New England, things get otherworldly. Suffice to say that a prescient cat, immortal predators, and the ongoing battle of good vs. evil are involved.

When The Big New Yorker Book of Dogs hit the shelves last winter, I turned my nose up at it, but now that we cat lovers have our book, I’m practically purring. If you’re feline generous, this would be the paw-fect gift, full of the New Yorker’s sharp-as-a-claw humor. You should check it out right meow.

Andy Ricker is to Thailand what Julia Child was to France, and he has spent two decades traveling Thailand to taste and learn all that he can about Thai cuisine and its place in the country’s culture. This is not Pad Thai and Curry for the Weak-Willed and Half-Hearted; be prepared to buy a granite mortar and sticky rice steamer and put effort into making something beautiful and amazing.

When Michael Pollan calls your bread “the best bread I ever tasted,” and you sell 240 loaves in an hour, you know you’re doing it right. Tartine Bakery’s Chad Robertson now turns his singular attention to the world of whole grain baking in his latest cookbook. There are loaves like Emmer with Maple, and Swedish-Style Knackbrod; and desserts like Chocolate Whole-Grain Croissants, Fruit Tarts with Spelt, and Kamut Dough. More than 100 photographs and 85 recipes are compiled in this love letter to buckwheat, spelt, barley, and more.

I used to be super judgmental about learning a foreign language or cuisine from someone who wasn’t a native of that country, but Mr. Barnes turned out to be the best Japanese teacher I ever had, and Long Islander Ivan Orkin will be the best ramen instructor you’ve ever had. Get the image of that 99-cent powdered packet out of your head: Ivan teaches us to make a bowl of shio ramen from the bottom up, starting with the salty, fatty broth, all the way to toasted rye noodles and (wait for it) pork belly. And maybe you’ll add a half-cooked egg...? My copy of this cookbook/memoir is already covered in flour, fat spatters, and drool.

"In time so long ago begins our play,
In star-crossed galaxy far, far away..."

Do I even need to say anything except "Shakespeare's Star Wars? The space drama of our age is retold in flawless iambic pentameter with beautiful illustrations.