All Under Heaven by Carolyn Phillips

This has got to be one of the best book about Chinese cooking that I have read.  I didn't know much about the author but then I read about her background and the fact that she lived in Taiwan and immersed herself in the culture.  This has really given her a deep understanding and appreciation of the complexity of Chinese cooking.
I like how she noted there is these layers to Chinese cooking that not many in America has close to experiencing.

I especially how she wrote, you eat what you speak, which is so true, each region has it's down dialect and people each from the dialect they are from.  The breakdown of the book by different region is really cool, gives perspective of what each region is known for and specialize in. Who knew the chinese salad is originally from Manchurian region.

I like how at the beginning of each chapter, she will briefly explain the sub region within each large region and its food.  Who knew within one region, there's so many different sub regions.  For example The Yangtze River & It's Environs includes Huai Yang , Jiangsu, Shanghai, Zhejiang, Northern Fujia, Anhui, Henan, Hubei, Jiangxi.

The recipes are written concisely yet with very clear instructions.  The illustrations that accompany some of the recipes are good, such a making your own smoker, pot sticker, etc.

This book is really good and highly recommend it.

Around the Fire by Greg Denton and Gabrielle Quinez Denton, with Stacy Adimando.

Who doesn't love BBQ?  Not me, I love a good BBQ and always on the lookout for good BBQ recipes.

I got the book Around the Fire by two acclaim chefs,  Greg Denton and Gabrielle Quiñónez Denton. Their restaurant Ox, is known of it's open fire style of cooking.




Click Here for More Information on this book

This book has great photography and lots of recipes. OX used a large wood fire grill that's what's used in Argentina. When I read this,  I'm like how do I make any of the recipes with just a gas grill.

But the authors made it known that the recipes are made for home cooks and in perusing the recipes, they are easy to cook, though some of ingredients, like squid are not that easy to get.

The pictures are beautiful and recipes are clear and easy to follow.

I would recommend this book for all would be BBQers.

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

Boys Among Men by Jonathan Abrams.

I love basketball and reading good basketball stories are a passion of mine.  So when I heard about this book Boys Among Men, I had to read it.

I'm familiar with Jonathan Abrams's work from Grandland.com and ESPN and I really like reading his work on basketball.



More info

This is a really book.  If you remember the prep to pro era that produces some of the greatest ballers of our generation (can you say Lebron, Kobe) and some of the biggest bust (can you same Kwame) and reading all the stories about their journey and how it changed the NBA at that time is fascinating.

This book has some great stories, especially background stories of drafting of Kobe Bryant.

I would highly recommend this book for any basketball or sports fan.

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

Jesus Speaks by Steven K. Scott.

This is a 365 days devotional book, each day has a statement spoken by Jesus, in red, and then the body is in the voice of Jesus addressing the reader about the verse and how it applies to our lives.

I like the fact that the devotional is based on Jesus's words, not sure how I feel about the devotional being in the voice of Jesus.  Still trying to get used to this. I think there are several devotionals out there that's like this.

This devotional is no long so for all of us who uses the excuse of being busy, this devotional is perfect for us.



I think this devotional does what it's suppose to do and I look forward to using this to supplement what Im currently doing.

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

Ignite Your Passion for God by Kay Arthur and Mark Sheldrake.

I've been looking for a study that would able to give me more insight and conviction toward my faith.  I decided to check out this book Ignite Your Passion for God by Kay Arthur.

I didn't know much about the author but from what I read, their books have been well received.

This book is about igniting a believer's passion in six weeks, on the following topics:

1. Idolatry
2. God’s Word
3. Prayer
4. Worship
5. Sharing the Gospel
6. Suffering

The above topics are very relevant in our culture today and the study helps gives us insight on what God wants desires from us from the above topics. These following in an inductive style bible study, which I love. 

I really like this study and look forward to trying the other book from the authors. 

Here's a link to more info about this book

More Info

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

Asian Dumplings by Andrea Nguyen.

Who can resist dumplings?  My kids love dumplings and can devour plates of dumplings.

So when I saw this book, Asian Dumplings, how could I resist not picking it up?  I have read Andrea's other books and I really appreciate her cookbooks.

Here's a link about Andrea

http://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/105105/andrea-nguyen



I usually make my dumplings with the same fillings so it was great to read a book that gives me options for other types of fillings. but this book isn't just about dumplings, it's about spring rolls, samosa and other asian wrapping type of food.  It covers a wide range of dumpling style food.

Although making dumpling can be time consuming, Andrea give tips and suggestions to fit making dumplings into our busy lifestyle, though I'm not sure about making my own wrappers.

This is a book I would highly recommend to everyone who loves dumplings and it's siblings.  After all, who can resist dumplings.

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

Donabe by by Naoko Takei Moore and Kyle Connaughton

"Don what?"
"It's Donabe."
"What's Donabe?"
"Donabe is Japanese clay pot (donabe) cooking that provides a one pot meal."




That my friend, is what a donabe.  I own a Chinese claypot and always wanted to expand my clay pot recipes.  This book is exactly what I was looking for.  For the cold winter nights, donabe is perfect.  It's a very healthy way to cook with minimal fat and you can't complain when some of the donabe dishes brings a warmth to your body.

This books is beautifully photographed and great explanation of the history of donabe, different types of clay pot vessels and recipes ranging from rice, soup and hot pots.  I love reading about Naoko's family history with the Donabe and the artisanal Donabe from Japan.

Even if you don't own a donabe, this book is for a cookbook collector and would be a great collection to anyone's cookbook.


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