Jens Book Talk

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Review: Jack Daniels Spirit of Tennessee Cookbook

Jack Daniel's Spirit of Tennessee Cookbook by Lynne Tolley &

Pat Mitchamore
Publisher Thomas Nelson Inc
Genre: Cookbook
Pages: 192
My Rating : 5/5

Summary: The rich tradition of country cooking, the distinctive taste of Jack Daniel's Tennessee Whiskey, and the heritage of rural America are all elegantly captured in Jack Daniel's The Spirit of Tennessee Cookbook. Included are more than 350 recipes, stunning full-color photographs, and stories of the people, places, and traditions of Middle Tennessee. Illustrated and indexed.

My Review: The Spirit of Tennessee Cookbook has become one of my favorite cookbooks! Not only is it packed with down home super recipes, passed down from generation to generation, but it’s also full of beautiful Southern photo’s and history.

It will make a wonderful keepsake and provide you with a fantastic journey down memory lane. You’ll enjoy reading about Miss BoBo’s Boarding House, learning what whittling is, and don’t forget about those Tennessee Walking horses!

I was a little skeptical about getting The Spirit of Tennessee Cookbook because I was thinking all the recipes would contain alcohol. I was so thrilled and quickly proven wrong! Some of my favorite recipes included Poor Man’s Caviar, Spinach Tarts, and Uncle Jack’s Applesauce Cake. Another great thing about The Spirit of Tennessee Cookbook is the recipes are so simple to follow and many just use normal everyday items that you already have in your cupboards.

Received Review Copy From Publisher

Wednesday's Words

Learning new things keeps our brain active and hey maybe even a bit wise as well! Ever been reading along and come upon a word that makes ya stop and say......just what the heck is that? Todays word is one that hit me like that so let's begin our Wednesday with

skulduggery [skuhl-duhg-uh-ree] –noun, plural -geries.

1. dishonorable proceedings; mean dishonesty or trickery: bribery, graft, and other such skulduggery.

2. an instance of dishonest or deceitful behavior; trick.

***Quote;

It is discouraging how many people are shocked by honesty and how few by deceit.
Noel Coward

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Nov 3 - Tuesday Tidbit - On This Day In Literary History

November 3, 1844 -- Thackeray completes Barry Lyndon

On this day in 1844, William Makepeace Thackeray completes The Luck of Barry Lyndon: A Romance of the Last Century, which is published in Fraser's Magazine.

Thackeray was born in Calcutta in 1811. As a young man, he attended Cambridge but left without a degree, then drifted through a variety of professions. He tried studying law, then decided to become a painter. While studying art in Paris, he met his future wife, a penniless Irish girl named Isabella, with whom he had two children. After his marriage, Thackeray returned to England and applied himself to a career in journalism. His satiric sketches were very popular. Like his contemporary and acquaintance Charles Dickens, he observed everyday life and characters closely in his journalistic writings and turned them into absurd characters in his fiction.

Barry Lyndon, like several of Thackeray's other satirical novels, follows the career of an unscrupulous character as he makes his way in the world by hoodwinking others. Barry Lyndon--born Redmond Barry--is an Irish rogue who flees his home after killing a man in a duel. He changes his name, marries a rich widow, cheats and defrauds those around him, but gets his just desserts. The novel was published in two volumes in 1852 and revised in 1856.

Thackeray wrote many other stories, novels, and sketches for humor magazines, but his best-known work remains Vanity Fair, the story of the manipulations of the wily Becky Sharp in London during the Napoleonic Wars. Thackeray died in London in 1863.

Monday, November 2, 2009

Table Manners - Mia King

Table Manners by Mia King

Publisher Berkley Trade
Genre: Fiction
Pages: 336
My Rating: 5/5

Summary: Deidre McIntosh finally has all the ingredients for a perfect life. She has her own line of cakes and cookies, and the perfect boyfriend, Kevin Johnson, one of Seattle's top bachelors. Creative, energetic, and loving, Deidre is the person friends go to when they need a helping hand.

But when Kevin's ex-fiancée, the sultry and successful magazine publisher Sabine Durant, suddenly appears in Seattle, it's Deidre who needs help. Already intimidated by Kevin's glamorous, moneyed world--and his sister, who wants Deidre out of Kevin's life--she knows she's no match for Sabine.

Deidre turns to her friends for advice, but finds they're having crises of their own. When her business begins to slip from her fingers, Deidre knows she must to do something to keep her career and her love life from imploding. Can everyone's favorite go-to person save herself?

My Review: I ate Table Manners up in one sitting almost! Mia King weaves her story and characters so well it felt like I had been picked up and plopped right dab in the middle of the action with them! The most impressive thing I loved about Table Manners was the characters were so down to Earth and so very believable. They didn’t seem fictional at all.

My heart went out to Deidre for the struggles she endured in Table Manners with her new business, trying to fit in with her wealthy boyfriends lifestyle, putting up with his nosy sister and ex-girlfriend and yet still having time to put her friends problems first. She is an inspiration to all women who struggle to balance a family and career in these hard and trying times.

Table Manners revolves around food and Mia has added some yummy recipes that are sure to tickle the taste buds! I have big plans on trying a few of them for an upcoming family celebration.

Review Copy from Author