Without You, there is No Us - Suki Kim

North Korea has always fascinated me.  A country that is sandwiched between one country that is a first world manufacturing and economic super power, South Korea and a true world superpower, in both military and economy, China.

It's a world that times seem have forgotten, or the Great Leader of North Korea have forgotten.

It is because of my fascination with North Korea that I picked up the book Without You, There is No Us by Suki Kim.

Suki is a journalist/writer based out of New York, who through timing and luck landed up being an English teacher at a Christian run university Pyongyang University of Science and Technology (PUST) in Pyongyang, N. Korea.  Though she is not a Christian, luck has it that her application to teach at PUST was accepted.  Thus begun her adventure of her relationships with her students (all male), who though held back by the censorship of N. Korea, begins to show them what life outside of North Korea is like.

It's a very gripping and fascinating tale of how she maintains her sanity in a country where everything you say, do, or don't do is being observed and scrutinized.  I remember one line where she said that everyone at school was exhausted, not from physical exhaustion, but from the fact they have to self censor themselves all the time, even in the privacy of their own room.

I like this book, however, my only "gripe" is how she portrays Christians in this book.  At times, she portrays her fellow teachers, who are all missionaries, as cultish like.  Maybe she could have been more fair/open in her presentation of the missionaries.  

Overall, I would recommend this book, it's a great read.

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

When Lions Roar - The Churchhills and the Kennedy's by Thomas Maier

If you are a history buff, this is a book you will love.  When I got this book, it came in a really large box.  I was wondering what was in this box and when I opened the box, I had to make sure I lifted with my legs, not my back due to the size of this book.

This book chronicles two of the most powerful families of the twentieth century, the Churchill's (of Winston Churchill fame) and the Kennedy's (of the John F. Kennedy's fame).  I concluded the reason for such heft for this book is because Thomas Maier did a great job researching and writing this book.  I could not believe the amount of detail information in this book and the fact that there was three pages dedicated to cast of characters and a small book for notes and biography at the end.  I give kudos to the author for a well researched book.

This books details both family history, how they intersected and their rise and fall.  There are details about sexual infidelity, politics and family events. At first it was captivating but the amount of information and detail eventually was too much for me.  I wasn't able to finish the book all the way through and skipped around until the end.

This is definitely a book for people who love history, especially during the 20th century when these two families were so powerful.

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review."

In This House We Will Giggle - Courtney DeFeo

As a parent of three and a follower of Christ, instilling the virtues of Christ is one of our top priorities as parents.  However, how we do it, is easier said then done.  There are many ways to try to teach our kids these virtues but many times we fail because we try to do it the "adult" way.

If we come to the kids eye level, how do they learn?  By doing, by having fun, by engaging them instead of lecturing them.

Ms. Courtney DeFeo book is exactly that.  As a mother of two, through her own experiences and observations, her book is about teaching our kids the Godly virtues by having fun with our kids.
She shared her own personal journey in getting to this point and understanding what's the best way for her kids to learn.

She takes the twelve virtues of Joy, Love, Forgiveness, Faith, Patience, Perseverance, Respect, Responsibility, Service, Humility, Gratitude and Generosity and breaks them up into twelve chapters full of actitives and short lesson. 

She suggested that each month, the family can focus on one of the virtues and do the activities in it.  She explains each virtues in a very clear and concise manner, that's easy to understand and explain to the kids.  At the end of each chapter, there is an activity relating to that virtue.  For example, for the virtue of respect, the activity is planning a party, but not the parents planning it but the kids.  It's about kids learning to plan the party and then interact in a respectful way with the guests.  

I love the one about service, where we service, in conjunction with other families to learn to serve others.

I can't wait to begin to try some of these.  I love that sprinkled throughout the book, she has 60 ways to bring out the giggles. Some of them are silly but isn't that the point. to do silly things with our kids and to bring joy to our family.

I highly recommend this book for parents who want to instill the above virtues to their kids in a fun and engaging manner.

Below is a short excerpt from the Introduction

Introduction: Why Giggle in This House?
Before my two girls came along, I had a vision for my home. I wanted it to look very similar to the home in which I grew up—full of life and joy. A house of love. A place where my children would feel welcome even when every single toy was not put away. Where they would feel free to be themselves and even to make a mistake or mess up. 

In my ideal vision of home, each member of the family feels accepted no matter what. There’s a lot of running and playing. You may hear an occasional word of correction or see a rule enforced, but all is covered with love and grace. If you peek inside those children’s hearts, you see them yearning to be just like their mom and dad. They are excited to grow up but anxious to return home to make more memories. And the sound that rings throughout that crazy house? Giggles!

That’s what I had planned for our family home: love and grace, memory making and giggles.

And then I had kids.

Some harsh reality came my way. Instead of giggles, critical words often echoed in our home. On some days, it felt more sterile than warm. Everything might be scheduled and organized, but smiles were fading.

Despite my early hopes, my home felt little like the one I’d envisioned—and a lot like the houses of fear I’d witnessed while growing up. In those homes, emotional tension and a lot of rules led to a sense of nervousness and fear. You could almost hear the Von Trapp family whistle calling everyone to scurry and line up for instructions. If you could peek inside these kids’ minds and hearts, you might observe them counting the days until their release from that home.

What a heartbreaking situation, and certainly not what I wanted for my family. Over time, my husband and I realized we wanted to make some changes. We began to loosen up on the schedule and noticed that everyone’s heart became lighter. We became less concerned about behavior enforcement and more interested in heart development—and we saw love and delight blossom in our home. And while we absolutely believe in the value of discipline and guidance, we started looking for fun, enjoyable ways to teach our children what matters most. As we daily make choices to lean toward love and giggles, our home is becoming much more like the one I dreamed of before I became a mom.

How about you? Which sort of home did you grow up in?

When you think about God and how you view Him, is He like the parents in the first home or the second?

Which home and view of Christ do you want for your kids?

Do you believe the joyful home is even possible?

I have to tell you, I’m convinced it is. And this book is all about taking steps to make that joyful home a reality for all of us.

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

The Slanted Door...Modern Vietnamese Food by Charles Phan

If you are a foodie, you are familiar with The Slanted Door in San Francisco.  The Slanted Door is a San Francisco institution.  Not your typical hole in the wall Vietnamese establishment but a restaurant that seeks to elevate Vietnamese food with locally sourced ingredients, unique twists to Vietnamese food in a beautiful and hip setting.

This book is a must read if you are a fan of the Slanted Door or Vietnamese food.

Here's a synopsis of the book:

The long-awaited cookbook from The Slanted Door, James Beard award-winning chef Charles Phan’s beloved San Francisco Vietnamese restaurant.

Award-winning chef and restaurateur Charles Phan opened The Slanted Door in San Francisco in 1995, inspired by the food of his native Vietnam. Since then, The Slanted Door has grown into a world-class dining destination, and its accessible, modern take on classic Vietnamese dishes is beloved by diners, chefs, and critics alike. The Slanted Door is a love letter to the restaurant, its people, and its food. Featuring stories in addition to its most iconic recipes, The Slanted Door both celebrates a culinary institution and allows home cooks to recreate its excellence. 

Upon receipt of the book, I knew I would like it.  I love the feel and the look of the book.  It look so well put together and the pictures in it are beautiful.  

The forward and introduction are great history of Charles Phan and how his family came to the States from Vietnam with nothing, he worked and studied hard to get himself into Cal and as a self taught chef, decided to take the risk and open up a Vietnamese restaurant that's not your typical Vietnamese restaurant.

The book is broken out into the three locations of the restaurant, from his first location in the Mission district to his current location in the historic Ferry Building.  Throughout the book, Charles throws in various stories.

Now the important part, the recipes in the book are very doable.  Of course, living in California helps to be able to sources some of the "hard to find" ingredients because of the plethora of Asian markets in California. 

And these recipes are not hard.  For example, the Spring Rolls, all easy to source and easy to make. Stir-Fried green beans, six ingredients, hainan chicken, so easy.

I was expecting more difficult but I was wrong, many of the recipes have easy to find ingredients and though it looks like a lot of steps, they are simple.

I would highly recommend this book for anyone who loves Vietnamese food, whether eating or cooking it.

Here is a recipe to wet your appetite.
Cabbage Rolls with Tomato Garlic Sauce
At the Slanted Door we use cabbage mostly in raw salads, but it’s also excellent steamed. Here, we blanch cabbage leaves for a steamed roll that’s almost like a wrapped meatball. I love the contrasting textures of the pork filling, which is studded with corn and jicama, and the tomato sauce adds a nice tang. 

Dipping Sauce
½ cup canola oil
¼ cup minced garlic
1 cup diced peeled tomatoes
¹⁄³ cup minced shallots
¼ cup ketchup
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
1 tablespoon fish sauce
2 teaspoons minced Thai chiles
2 teaspoons sugar
¼ cup chopped cilantro
¼ cup chopped green onions, 
green parts only

Filling
½ cup canola oil
½ cup finely diced yellow onion
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 pound ground pork
½ cup finely diced jicama
½ cup finely diced carrots
½ cup finely diced stemmed
fresh shiitake mushrooms
½ cup corn kernels
3 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 large heads green cabbage
1 bunch green onions
Makes about 22 rolls; 
serves 10 to 12 

1. To make the dipping sauce, in a skillet over medium-high heat, warm the oil until shimmering. Add the garlic and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes and continue stirring for another minute. Add the shallots, ketchup, oyster sauce, fish sauce, Thai chiles, and sugar and cook until the sugar is dissolved. Transfer the mixture to a blender and carefully blend at medium speed until the tomatoes are broken down. The sauce can be made ahead. Reheat in a skillet and stir in the cilantro and green onions just before serving. 
  2. To make the filling, heat a wok over high heat until a drop of water evaporates on contact. Add the oil and heat until shimmering. Add the onion and garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the pork, jicama, carrots, mushrooms, and corn and continue stirring for a minute. Add the fish sauce, sugar, pepper, and salt. Cook, stirring, until well combined and the pork is cooked through, about 
2 minutes more. Remove from the heat and set aside.
3. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Separate the cabbage leaves by snapping them off, one by one, from the core. Place a few leaves at a time in the boiling water and blanch until they are soft, about 2 to 3 minutes. Using a spider, remove the leaves from the water, cut off the thicker parts of the stem, and set aside to drain. Blanch the green onions in the boiling water until soft, about 15 to 20 seconds. Cut the bottoms off so only the green parts remain, and set aside to drain.
4. To assemble the rolls, lay a piece of cabbage on your work surface. Place about ¼ cup of the filling toward the bottom of the leaf, fold the sides in, and roll from the bottom toward the top to create a fully enclosed cigar-shaped roll. Tie the roll with a green onion stalk. Repeat with the remaining cabbage and filling, adjusting the amount of filling to the size of the leaf.
5. Set up a steamer and steam the rolls until heated through, about 5 minutes. Serve warm alongside the dipping sauce. 

Excerpted from The Slanted Door by Charles Phan. Copyright © 2014 by Charles Phan. Excerpted by permission of Ten Speed Press, a division of Random House LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing 

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

Bend Your Brain by Marbles the Brain Store

So as I age, I have become more aware of how quickly I'm forgetting things, names and that it takes me longer to process things.  That's a function of age but is there anything I can do about it?  Well, scientific study have shown that if we exercise our brains, all different areas, we can keep our brains fresh and strong, like a muscle.

Bend your Brain by Marbles the Brain Store



This is exactly the book that I was looking for.  This is a book with 151 puzzles that will challenge you.  It breaks it down into five sections: visual perception, word skills, critical thinking, coordination and memory and there's puzzles and tips for each of these sections.

Don't fear, they start with easy (mind warming) and progress up to difficult (mind blowing).  The puzzles are challenging and I love to do them with my kids and wife.  It's a great family experience because the puzzles are fun.

If you love exercising, don't forget, your brain can use the exercise too.  I would highly recommend this book.

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review

Brick by Brick by David Robertson and David Breen

Do you love Legos, are you in business, do you want to a real world case study of how a corporation is able to reinvent itself to become the best Toy company in the world?

If yes, this is the book for you.  It's such a great read, from reading tidbits about Lego history, it's products and how management was and is able to adjust with the time and to risks to grow the company.

Legos...plastic blocks that can form millions of combination based on your creativity...in today's world of internet, everything has to be fast, it's great that a company that cater to real physical play is not only thriving but kicking butt.  My kids love Legos and they play it day and night and most of all, I love they are able to use their creativity to create things from these square/rectangle blocks.

This book is a must read not only for Lego fans but business people.  Case study of how an organization took risks, failed, took them again.  How Lego is able to envision what it's products can do and capitalize on it and how you can never discount luck in your business.

Great book, good read.




Brick by Brick


I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review

The Buy Side by Turney Duff

When I think of Wall Street, I think of Gordon Gecko in the move Wall Street, I see where millions are made and lost each day, lives are changes, for the better or worse and a world that I can't even imagine.

I recently read the book The Buy Side by Turney Duff.

Here are some information about the author
Author's Information

I thought crazy things went on in Wall Street but boy, this book revealed even more than I imagine.

VB6...must read, actually it's a must cook book.

I have always been a fan of Mark Bittman.  His writing about cooking is very straight and clear, and there's no pretentious in his writing, whereas other cookbook authors there's this air of pretentious.  I first read about his VB6 concept in Outside magazine and I thought that was a very neat "diet".  I'm always trying to find how to better my nutrition and eat healthier, especially raising three kids and teaching them on how to eat healthy.  I was intrigued with Vegan Before 6 and wonder if that is doable and will my kids enjoy. When I saw this cookbook, I knew I have to read it and check it out.