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GulfWeeklyBookClub – in association with The Bookcase

September 4 - 10, 2019
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Gulf Weekly GulfWeeklyBookClub – in association with The Bookcase

COOKERY BOOK OF THE WEEK by Linda Jennings – PASSIONATE VEGETARIAN, CRESCENT DRAGONWAGON, 9781563057113 (WORKMAN PUBLISHING), BD9.400 for Gulf Weekly Book Club members

I must admit that I was firstly drawn to this book by the author’s most unusual name and secondly by the size of it – more than one thousand pages long and 10 years in the making. It is not a newly published title but this year, at the London Book Fair, I finally succumbed to the enthusiastic presentation at the Workman stand. Here it is now in Bahrain for all our vegetarian GulfWeekly Book Club members to enjoy!

Passionate Vegetarian covers all the bases of meatless cooking from East USA (Stir Fry of Asparagus with Black Bean-Ginger Sauce) to West USA (Talk of the Town Barbecued Tofu), from the Mediterranean (Swiss Chard with Raisins, Onions & Olives) to the American South (Black-Eyed Pea Ragovt).

You’ll find lush lasagnas, plump pierogies, bountiful burgers, beans and breads, pleasing pasta, pies and all sorts of things I suspect you will never have heard of before. I certainly hadn’t.

You’ll spoon up soups and stews and delight in desserts and, in truth, I think it would take around a year to try out all the recipes.

Written by longtime vegetarian Crescent Dragonwagon, Passionate Vegetarian employs innovative methods such as Ri-sort-ofs, in which risotto technique is used to create splendid, richly flavored grain dishes built around not just rice but also barley, buckwheat, spelt, and even toasted oats with an array of seasonings.

Crescent also introduces lesser-known ingredients. Get to know and love not just tofu and tempeh but a whole new generation of soy foods, as well as quick fixes like instant bean flakes. Opinionated, passionate, and deeply personal, the tantalising headnotes will have readers rushing to the kitchen to start cooking. Can her over-the-top garlic spaghetti really be that good? It is.

Whether you’re a committed vegetarian, a dedicated vegan or a food-loving omnivore in search of something new and wonderful, this is not just vegetarian cooking--but cooking, period at its most creative, inspiring and exuberant.

 

NON FICTION BOOK OF THE WEEK

ASTROLOGY: USING THE WISDOM OF THE STARS IN YOUR EVERYDAY LIFE, CHARLOTE TAYLOR, 9780241255520 (DK)

BD8.300 for GulfWeekly Book Club members

Discover how to use astrology to understand yourself, make the best choices, and improve every area of your life with this fabulous hardbound gift book.

In her trademark accessible, down-to-earth style, acclaimed astrologer Carole Taylor explains how to use the age-old wisdom of astrology as a powerful tool for self-knowledge and self-enrichment. Using your birth chart as a starting point, you’ll learn how to interpret the zodiac signs, planets, and astrological houses to better understand yourself.

Carole shows how astrology can provide psychological insights, then pinpoints ways to use this knowledge to nurture personal and professional relationships, deal with stress, or release your imagination and creativity. You’ll discover, too, how star lore can help you when you need it most, with practical advice on negotiating key moments, whether you’re changing jobs, starting a family, coping with financial difficulty or facing retirement.

Authoritative and easy to understand, featuring fascinating case studies and with beautiful, inspiring illustrations throughout, Astrology is your essential guide to making the most of all life’s challenges and opportunities.

 

MY FAVOURITE READ OF THE WEEK

REBEL DOGS! HEROIC TALES OF TRUSTY HOUNDS, KIMBERLIE HAMILTON, 9781407194356 (SCHOLASTIC)

BD4.400 for GulfWeekly Book Club members

Since it has recently been Dog Appreciation Day (that’s every day here at The Bookcase), I have taken great pleasure in reading this engaging collection of more than 30 tail-wagging stories of real-life Rebel Dogs! Now you can get your paws on the stories and secrets of some of history’s most heroic hounds.

These include film stars with fur, hounds that love to help, superstars of science and even war heroes – these rebel dogs are the stars of their own stories. There’s even a page on Greyfriar’s Bobby – I rub his little bronze nose every year when visiting Edinburgh for the festival.

With incredible fur-raising facts on record-making dogs, marvellous mutts in literature, internet-sensation pups and much, much more - this beautiful book is perfect for pup fans of any age. I particularly like the doggy time line (do you know which year Plato declared that “a dog has the soul of a philosopher” or when the Kennel Club was founded in Britain to showcase purebreds)? Nor did I, but I do now and so will all my friends after Christmas!







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