St Otto of Lenghi , we love you.

Moro, Jamie, Diana (Henry) ... I've bought all those books this year, excitedly scanning through them and bookmarking the pages of lots of yummy looking recipes to try. But how many have I actually got round to trying? Probably one or two recipes per book. They inspire, excite and suggest other ideas, but as for slavishly following the recipe, nah - you can kind of work it out for yourself. <br /><br />But St Otto is different - every meal we've eaten this week has been a revealing and faithful recreation of his great works on the streets of London. Admittedly I was already a convert. Ever since his huge, puffy piles of meringues beckoned me into the tiny Notting Hill shop about 4 years ago, I have been hooked. St Otto takes simple, everyday ingredients you use all the time at home - broccoli, chilli, garlic and olive oil, for example - and somehow transforms them into something magical that tastes so much more than everyday. You come out of their shops thinking 'How did they do that? How did they make that aubergine taste so smoky? Why don't my mushrooms taste like that when I fry them in olive oil? Why is their lemon and pistachio cake so squidgy? <br /><br />Well, the cookbook generously reveals all. Garlic and lemon are likely to be involved (they start by saying that if you don't like lemon or garlic, you should skip to the end) - but there are no weird secrets underpinning the Ottolenghi magic. No intricate labours of love. This is easy to prepare food that is perfect for relaxed meals with big groups of friends. <br /><br />They just have an extraordinary understanding of which flavours and ingredients work well together and how to combine them in just the right amounts (usually more generous than you are used to) to create something that piques your interest as well as your tastebuds. You can spot that they lived an interesting life as journalists and philosophers before following their love of food, as the book is a joy to read, with a style that is as warm and relaxed as the food itself. These are people you want to come and sit down at the table and share the food with you. <br /><br />If you like modern, light and singingly fresh food that draws on the best of the Middle Eastern side of the Mediterranean, this is the book for you. If you think you already know how to knock up easy meals like roast turkey breast, couscous salad and french beans with hazelnuts without needing to invest in a cookery book, thank you very much, then it's even more imperative that you buy this book as it will lift both your everyday meals or cooking for friends to new heights. As for me, I'm off to check the price of Kenwood Chefs so I can recreate the joy of their meringues or brioche in my own home too. Praise be!

Fantastic Book!

I'm not a gardener, I'm someone who has a bash at growing a few tomatoes, and would like to keep her blueberry bush alive. That's about it.<br /><br />This book as absolutely wonderful! The information is practical,concise and very easy to follow. There's just the right about of information - not enough to overwhelm you, and not too little that just leaves you with unanswered questions (as with Carol Klein's book). There's also the obvious bonus that this book covers fruit as well as vegetables, whereas most 'grow your own' books are vegetables only.<br /><br />Alan's book has inspired me to add to my little vegetable patch this year. My tomatoes will be joined by some new ideas, and I now know how to perk up that blueberry bush!<br /><br />An absolute bargain of a book. A joy to read and a pleasure to work from.

Excellent

A really good, hard to put down book. A bit similar to 'We Need to Talk About Kevin' though by Lionel Schriver.

I really loved it!!

Thought this was great!! Original idea, funny and entertaining. What more could you ask for!!

A man of few apologies.

I was a big fan of Russell, particularly his show 'Ponderland', so my partner bought me this for Christmas. It starts well, and you certainly won't catch me criticising his honesty- after all, one could hardly expect anything else. <br /><br />I was prepared to persevere through all the tales of drugs and womanising and generally being ungrateful for his own existence in the hope that he would express an iota of remorse for how badly he has treated people. After all, people do mess up their lives and treat people with contempt, but they also come through at the other end with a sense that what they did was wrong. Not in Brand's case. He seems proud. Worse still he is so consumed with narcissism that he seems to think that he invented drug abuse and promiscuity. The truth is that he isn't through it yet, and that's why he thinks it's big and clever. Fair enough- but I hope he realises that some impressionable fans may read this as some kind of bible for life (yes, I believe that some people are impressionable enough). <br /><br />I'm no longer a fan really. I just think that this will prove to be yet another of those bad things that Russell has done which, if he ever comes out of his spiral of vanity, will haunt him. My three stars are for the sake of what is a fascinating insight into the mind of a deluded womaniser, but in all honesty I feel that I've done the wrong thing by reading it, like I've encouraged it in a way. <br /><br />I wish Russell all the best, and I hope that he can emerge from the self-image he has created for himself. But when he does, he'll have a lot of ill-deeds that he'll have to live with. A bit of remorse would have made this fascinating read a lot more palatable.

Not the best female detectives I have read

This is ok and not much more than that really. If you like female characters in crime read Soft Target by Conrad Jones. The women in that will keep you turning the pages until the end. A real rollercoaster novel.

Jack Reacher is running out of steam - fast

When I first discovered Jack Reacher I was enchanted by him and avidly awaited his next adventure - now it's quite clear that Lee Child is running out of ideas for Jack. This book should have been at least one third shorter - then it may not have had such a saggy middle. I found myself skipping paragraphs and not missing them at all. Bad Luck and Trouble (Child's penultime Reacher book) wasn't all that wonderful either.<br /><br />Quit while you're on a relative high Mr Child - don't go the way of Patricia Cornwell's Kay Scarpetta.

The bearded one does it again!

Another great book from Mr MacBride.<br />Fantastic characters (DI Steele really is a stroke of genius) and another gruesome plot full of energy, twists and suspense make for such an enjoyable, albeit grim read.<br />Mr MacBrides' black humour will have you laughing in places where you'd least expect to and his expert story telling will take you to places you really don't want to go. Like Aberdeen. Ha ha.<br />This is the fourth in a highly entertaining crime series. Read this book and be introduced to a whole new world of brilliant characters. Some you'll love, some you'll hate and some who get everything they deserve!<br />Thanks, Stuart!

So disappointing

Really poor book. I feel cheated of spending money on it. Poorly written with nothing to say. Sam was unappealing and i couldn't care less what happened..he didn't seem to care about anything or anyone and seemed incapable of speaking! Conversations were stilted and story was just poor. The stupid bits where he flashed forward in life were ridiculous too. I was really disappointed and had been a big fan previously. I only hope Hornby can move on and up.

I.E.E. bliss

when i unwrapped it this christmas i could'nt believe it!! that someone spent £60 on it!<br />If your a fan of all the other I.I.E.regulation books then you wont be dissapointed with this new one. Granted, it does follow the the lines of the old books but i wont spoil it for you but there are a few new twists and turns that you wont believe.... like a socket in the bathroom! i was'nt expexting that!<br />it really is an amazing read.

A bit of a damp squib

I really enjoyed these books, but the low star rating is because I found the whole ending unsatisfactory. Don't get me wrong, I love the fact that all does not end in roses for everyone - but it was a little predictable, and it should not have been. The author has left such a wide open goal for sequals and prequals that you just know they will be churned out. Overall a good set of books, but the ending left me feeling a bit cheated, just that little bit too open and the characters finished a little stereotyped for my liking - especially as they started off so well. Wait for these books to come to your library an spend your money on someting a little more fulfilling :(

If you loved Freakonomics or Fast Food Nation, read this book

If you've ever bought knocked off cigarettes or DVDs, taken recreational drugs or paid for sex then you're part of the problem. So says Misha Glenny as he takes us on a spellbinding tour from leafy suburban England where a housewife is mistakenly assassinated instead of her sister, through Bulgaria with its muscle men who would be funny if they weren't so scary, to the black market free for all created by sanctions in the Balkans, to Russia, Africa, India, Israel, Europe, Brazil, Bolivia, Columbia, the US, Canada, Japan and China.<br />This is an amazing book that tells you how the fall of communism and the deregulation of the financial markets have coincided to create a crime bonanza; 20% of the world's GDP comes from illicit activity.<br />It's eye-poppingly good. Everyone should read it.

now

This is an amazing book. It shows you in an unpatronising way without being simplistic about out personal power and how we are holding ourselves back with fears and feelings that are preventing us from living in the moment and enjoying life. <br />I've read a lot of books about this kind of thing... and this is one of the best... this is a great book especially after you've got the basic... but I bet it works in and of itself as an eye opener to the reality that we are the creators of our own reality.<br />Thoughts create reality! <br />

Brilliant

I read this in two days and really enjoyed the twists and turns. I look forward to seeing her next book and hope it will be as brilliant as her first.

Compelling Reading

Having been to Russia I found this book all the more interesting. I was shocked to read about the conditions in the prison system in Russia but also astounded by the ability of people such as the author to survive such an environment. <br /><br />The author gives us an insight into corruption and bribery which begs many questions. One in particular, how those without resources and assets survive such a regime.

Excellent!!!

I could drone on about this magnificent book but i'll spare you!<br />If your a fan already you'll love it. If not its agood one to get you started. It made me laugh and cry and look at things from a whole new perspective. The best book i've read in years and i've read tons. Very touching.

Back on form

As an avid Rushdie fan, I was deeply disappointed with"The Ground Beneath Her Feet" - a jarring mis-step - and was not totally enthralled by"Shalimar the Clown". However, Enchantress is a return to form for an author I genuinely regard as without peer amongst his generation.<br /><br />What makes Rushdie so great? His use of language is simply staggering. He can construct the most dizzying, dense and multi-dimensional sentences. His prose is certainly convoluted, but it is not at the expense of the story. Far from that, the narrator is often as beguiling a character as any of the main protagonists. If you love the English language, history, theology, philosophy, etymology, art... in fact, anything which might pique a curious mind, Rushdie offers a cocktail of wonderment for the senses.<br /><br />I see no reason to explain the premise or the storyline - you can read that in Amazon's description, and equally, it is only half the reason to read this novel and is, as always with Rushdie's work, an allegory for deeper philosophical and geo-political theses. <br /><br />Rushdie's books are something of a challenge to read - his prose is not light and economical - but the challenge is well-worth taking. Nothing good ever comes easy. This is such an enjoyable book - I hope it's a lasting return to form.

superb

I confess, I am not particularly a huge fan of historical novels but as I cant sit still long enough to watch a movie either, I thought I would give it a go. This was superb ok maybe its not, as some people are saying true to life, but if that was the case what a boring book it would be - it is a piece of fiction - if I wanted an accurate account I would buy a history book and go back to my schooldays, which when I recall now, when they skimmed over the tudor period, were very dull.<br /><br />Anyways I loved it - it had everything, tension, love story, thriller, murder great. Just a really really good read.

It worked for us!

Don't take it as a bible, but we followed the spirit of it & have a very happy chappy at 10 months old who slept through at 3 months, eats well & is a real pleasure! I would recommend it, but don't get tangled up in it!