Reviews (7)

It is what it is
Pretty coffee table book...don't buy for the recipes unless you are a professional.I am a chef and have been at several for and five star establishments.I had the pleasure a few years ago to do a banquet with Susur and he is the real deal.Will his techniques translate to the amateur cook looking to learn from his book?No.These are professional recipes designed to be executed by a top class brigade with years of technique and time to prepare the needed mis en place.But as a professional, the way he approaches food as well as the culinary foundation that he has built for himself is unique and will be appreciated by those in the know.What isn't pretentious about a $50 coffee table book?This book gives exposure to a unique and talented chef who is grounded in solid technique and is able to translate that into well presented and balanced dishes that are not silly fusion.Definetly worth a look.

Susur Lee
This book its all about creativity by a man who has been over looked for too many years as one of the worlds Top Chefs.This book is in one simple word "Awesome"

Susur: Some Thoughts on Perfection in Cuisine
Given the acidity of previous reviews, let me start with some background on myself: I am an American not resident in Canada; I am a non-professional chef -- I cook for myself, my family and my friends. I love food, both from the philosophy that one can learn the history of a country or region by learning about its cuisine and from the perspective that I truly believe we are what we eat ... and the miserable record of American health and longevity is directly due to the poor quality of what we consume.
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Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography / Autobiography    3. Chinese Cookery    4. Cookery, Canadian    5. Cookery, Chinese    6. Cooking    7. Cooks    8. International And Ethnic Cookery    9. Ontario    10. Personal Memoirs    11. Reference    12. Regional & Ethnic - Canadian    13. Regional & Ethnic - Chinese    14. Toronto   

Reviews (4)

Horseshit...
Not only is the author a bad writer.....jumping from timeline to time line...not able to tell a story in order.....he tries to pose the Hell's Angels as the bad guys. Anyone with a solid head on their shoulders will see thru his rhetoric and realize HA is a stand up orginization that takes care of business like any normal person would. The crimes they were accused of, weren't crimes at all......they were simply the exercising of human rights against agressors that would try to deny said so rights......in fact in the entire book, i found no fault with the Angel's actions, and applaud them for their efforts.

facts and names lacking storytelling
The author have gone though a great deal to find the facts in hundreds of events during many years. He covers hundreds of people. Hundreds of crimes and killings. He could have picked a few events, clubs or people and written their full story. Instead the book hops between people and clubs, between centuries and continents like a school book. Theres no story, but namedropping enough to confuse anyone. Stadnik is one of hundreds of figures skidding though events, none of them with depth. People are shot and stabbed, but you find it difficult to care, since none is in the book for more than a page, and you dont get to know them. It feels disorganised. If it was in cronical order, or at least with chapter names reveiling what every chapter will cover it would be easier. Perhaps its interesting and understandable for the surviving few who were there. If your looking for facts its fine, but its too packed with facts for me. I need a story.

Disturbing Errors for an
This book provides a lot of information on Walter Stadnick and the Canadian Hells Angels along with information on lesser clubs in Canada.The author, Jerry Langton, however, has made numerous disturbing errors in reporting on certain aspects of the Hells Angels and other clubs.Langton reports on page 26 that prospective members (prospects) are awarded the top rocker (Hells Angels) along with the center patch. Langton then states that the prospects recive the bottom rocker which identifies the chapter's geographical location upon earning full membership.THE OPPISITE IS TRUE for the Hells Angels and ALL OTHER CLUBS!It is hard to believe that Lanfton could make such an obvious error in his writing.
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Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Crime And Criminals    3. Criminology    4. Gang members    5. General    6. History    7. Motorcycle gangs    8. Ontario    9. Quâebec (Province)    10. Sociology    11. True Crime    12. Biography & Autobiography / Military    13. Canada    14. Organized crime   

Reviews (2)

A very good stand-alone from Ms. Delany.
Elaine Benson is picking up the pieces of her professional life by helping the rich, elderly, and very independent Moira Madison write her memoirs.Elaine is getting over a husband who left her for a bimbo, after convincing her to give up her own career as a historian in favor of his career as a possible screenwriter.
interesting Canadian amateur sleuth thriller
Elaine Benson wrote two highly regarded biographies of pioneer Canadian women when she fell in love and married.Her husband persuaded her that the money is in screenplays so they teamed up with Elaine doing the research.However, Elaine obtained a divorce and left Hollywood for Toronto and applied for the job of writing the true story of wealthy elderly Miss Moira Madison.She obtains the position, but learns that Donna Smithton had the job for one week before accidentally drowning in nearby Lake Muskoka.
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Subjects:  1. English Canadian Novel And Short Story    2. Fiction    3. Fiction - Mystery/ Detective    4. Mystery & Detective - General    5. Mystery & Detective - Women Sleuths    6. Mystery/Suspense    7. Suspense    8. Crime & mystery    9. Fiction / Mystery & Detective / General   

Reviews (1)

An Inspiration
I was thoroughly inspired by reading this book. It seemed to me to be a little slow developing at the beginning, due to a fairly complex family history. Even this should be interesting to people who like history from the perspective of people who lived it. It is well organized, and provides a good description of the environment that nurtured this God-inspired writer. Janette Oke's life experiences are so easy to identify with, and her dependence on God so well portrayed that it is an inspiration to me. It is also fascinating to learn how one of my favorite writers arrived at her mission in life. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 1935-    2. 20th century    3. Authorship    4. Biography    5. Biography & Autobiography    6. Biography / Autobiography    7. Biography/Autobiography    8. Christian fiction    9. Historical fiction    10. Literary    11. Novelists, Canadian    12. Oke, Janette,    13. Religious    14. Women    15. Oke, Janette   

Subjects:  1. Biography / Autobiography    2. Canada - History    3. Elgin (County)    4. Elgin (Ont. : County)    5. General    6. Ontario    7. Scots    8. Social life and customs   

Reviews (4)

Amazing, as always
No matter how many books he writes, Farley Mowat continues to amaze his fans. His non-fiction is never dry or uninspiring, though he's a talented fiction writer as well, and this faithful reader of his work is certainly not disappointed. Thank you again, Mr. Mowat for your great writing. It is truly appreciated!
A priceless look into a word that is probably gone forever.
A book I could not put down. It is a well written insight into a world that none of us will ever experience. Mr. Mowat is a great story teller and anational treasure. Anyone who is interested in the least about people and lands of the north must read this book.

Another outstanding book by Farley Mowat
Farley Mowat has been one of my favorite authors since I was in 6th grade in the early 1960s. I ordered a copy of "Two Against the North" from the Arrow Book Club and read it over and over. The story of two boys from different cultures trying to survive winter in the barrens was riveting to me, a gal firmly stuck in the suburbs. Mowat's descriptions of glacial landforms in that book remained with me and were recalled with every earth science and geology lesson I ever took. (The book can be found in some libraries under the title "Lost in the Barrens"--a great read for a middle schooler curious about the world outside familiar places.) Part of what I loved about No Man's River was that the journeys described were clearly the basis for many aspects of "Lost in the Barrens"--kind of like an echo of an old favorite. Mowat is the consummate story teller--reading his books makes you want to sit around a campfire with him for several hours hearing spin his yarns. One of my favorite quotes comes from him--"Never let the facts get in the way of a good story." No Man's River has jaw-dropping adventure as well as thought provoking commentary on the clash of vastly different cultures. Enjoy! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography & Autobiography    2. Biography/Autobiography    3. Canada - Post-Confederation (1867-)    4. Description and travel    5. History - General History    6. Inuit    7. Manitoba    8. Mowat, Farley    9. Native American    10. Personal Memoirs    11. Travel   

Reviews (3)

If you want the truth,details and about everthing else about the Black Donnellys,this is the book.

The Only Authentic Account
This is the only authentic account of this tragedy, and there is another sequel by this author that is just as informing.

Bestwriting on the Donnellys
This the best and most interesting of the Donnellys era. One of those books you hate to set down to finish later. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biddulph    2. Biddulph (Ont.)    3. Biography    4. Canada - General    5. Canada - History - 1760-1899    6. Criminals    7. Donnelly family    8. General    9. History    10. History: World    11. Ontario    12. True Crime / Espionage    13. American history: c 1500 to c 1800    14. Canada    15. Criminals - Ontario - Lucan    16. History / Canada    17. Murder - Ontario - Lucan   

Reviews (2)

Disappointing
The author claims that having left behind her urban comforts to live in rural Saskatchewan eventually put her closely in touch with nature. Unfortunately, I was deeply disappointed with her version of'in touch with nature'. I expected to read the words of someone who respects animals and wilderness. Instead I read about her views on mice as pests, how she and her husband made their living fattening cows before the slaughter, and her twisted comments about hunters having a greater capacity for pain and suffering than the animals they cruelly kill. Exploiting animals has clearly become an inherent part of her livelihood on the farm. She thinks nothing of attending rodeos where animals are wantonly abused, and she has no trouble inflicting pain on cows through branding without anesthetics. She describes environmentalists as mostly "urban" people who are only capable of fighting the corporate world and governments by attempting to put Nature in their own terms. (Huh?) She fails to realize that if us crazy "urban" environmentalist all moved out into the wilderness, there would be no wilderness left! (I for one am proud to live in the city, leaving wild areas free for the animals to roam.) The author also totally fails to acknowledge that an animal-based diet (which she and her husband directly rely on for their livelihood) is behind much of the mass-destruction of wilderness observed in the last century. I suppose I wouldn't have been so shocked reading this book had it not been advertised as "an apprenticeship in nature". I'd sooner see it called "a treatise in exploiting nature".

An Encounter With Nature and With Yourself
Sharon Butala has written a deeply personal book with universal application.She tells of her journey from a fulfilling but hectic urban life to one of isolation and introspection.She joins her new husband on a cattle ranch in southwest Saskatchewan and leaves behind her universityteaching, her graduate studies, her support network of feminist friends,and her teenaged son.In her long, lonely hours of interaction with"Nature," she encounters the mysteries and messages of thenatural world and experiences the gradual healing of her own wounds.As Iread Butala's book I found myself stopping to write about my own pains, myown healing, and my own mysterious encounters with Nature.It was ajourney we took together, and I am stronger for the experience. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 1940-    2. 20th century    3. Authors, Canadian    4. Biography    5. Biography / Autobiography    6. Butala, Sharon,    7. Homes and haunts    8. Intellectual life    9. Natural history    10. Naturalists & Gardeners    11. Naturalists, Gardeners, Environmentalists    12. Nature/Ecology    13. Saskatchewan    14. Women    15. Women naturalists    16. Butala, Sharon   

Subjects:  1. 20th century    2. Biography    3. Blacks    4. Children's Books/Ages 9-12 Nonfiction    5. Children: Grades 4-6    6. Civil rights    7. Civil rights workers    8. Dresden    9. History    10. History - Canada - General    11. Juvenile Nonfiction    12. Ontario    13. Race discrimination    14. Social Issues - Prejudice & Racism    15. Juvenile Nonfiction / Social Situations / Prejudice & Racism   

Reviews (1)

Interesting Reading
If you've seen the movie, or know of the case, this book provides some interesting information.It is relatively well-written, contains pictures, and is easy to read.I recommend it. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 1920-    2. Biography    3. Canada    4. Case studies    5. Dick, Evelyn MacLean,    6. Hamilton    7. Legal History    8. Murder    9. Murder - General    10. Murderers    11. Ontario    12. Rich & Famous    13. Trials (Murder)    14. Trials, litigation, etc    15. True Crime    16. True Crime / Espionage    17. True Crime / Murder   

Reviews (5)

Gripping adventure story
I read this book several years ago from the library.I rarely buy a book but this one I have.Great adventure story about the challenges two young men face living in a cabin for a year in Manitoba.The description of the first six days trying to find the cabin after getting dropped off is a page turner. An eye-opening experience for any Arctic traveler
The opening sequence of their expedition rivals that of any true life-and-death experience, including "Touching The Void." A must-read for any winter-camper who ventures off the beaten path more than a few days away from luxuries like mechanical heat from an automobile. This is one of the most profound stories of northern wilderness experience that I have ever read. Their story is similar to going to the moon on an Apollo mission, with no backup and no radio contact, and making it on their own. Truly the best story ever told of a modern Arctic expedition with a happy ending. This is a book that I read and immediately gave to a friend to read, and it has passed around to no less than 12 people as a "must read" already, and is still in motion.

Simple, refreshing and sincere
Although I found the book simple and intellectually unchallenging, its sincerity, freshness and admiration for the wilderness and being a part of it were emotionally stirring.It reminded me of the importance of beingable to step away from comitments to work, banks and acquaintances toexperience something larger than all of us.We need this to remind us ofthe essence of being alive and human. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 1971-    2. 20th Century Description And Travel    3. Adventure and adventurers    4. Biography    5. Canada    6. Frontier and pioneer life    7. General    8. Manitoba    9. Nature / Field Guide Books    10. Scott, David,    11. Sociology - Rural    12. Scott, David    13. True Stories   

Reviews (5)

A powerful tribute to one woman's will to survive!
Wow-this book was so fun and sad and interesting to read, all at the same time. Olive's story is piercing and makes one ponder the amazing will to live in the face of such overwhelming odds. A fantastic true adventure story!

Sad but wonderful
A story of a courageous strong woman.Descriptions of the environment (land & conditions) enticing.I found myself being scared right along side of Olive.A real adventure story.

Action packed,full of suspense story , good for all ages.
A fresh, uncomplicated tale of the people who adventured north in the past. Action packed, engaging and reveling, this book will remain for ever one of my favorite adventureand romance stories. It showsmuch about howpeople may face a foreign environment, difficulties, and above allthemselves. All comes out in very simple and clear language, with suits thestory and the characters divinely. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Alberta    2. Biography    3. Biography / Autobiography    4. British Columbia    5. Canada - General    6. Fredrickson, Olive A    7. History    8. History: World    9. Military - General    10. Pioneers    11. Women    12. Women pioneers    13. Travel / Polar Regions   

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Emigration and immigration    3. History: American    4. Maritime Provinces    5. Oral History    6. Social History    7. Canada    8. Shipping industries   

Subjects:  1. Alberta    2. Biography    3. Edmonton    4. Ethnic Issues    5. Ethnic Studies - Native American Studies    6. History: American    7. Indians of North America    8. Social conditions    9. Sociology    10. Urban residence    11. Canada    12. Indigenous peoples    13. Urban communities   

Reviews (4)

A memorable case of growing up among lovable misfits
Written and narrated by author Ian Ferguson, Village Of The Small Houses: A Memoir Of Sorts is an hilarious and highly recommended account of growing up poor in the far north when in 1959, just ahead of the law, Ferguson's con-artist father Hank headed up north in a delapidated Mercury Zephyr with his pregnant wife, Louise. Hank got as far as isolated Fort Vermilion where he passed himself off as a teacher at the "Indian school" and settled his ever-expanding family in a house devoid of plumbing and electricity. The lively recounting of a scrappy childhood, Ferguson interweaves truth, tall-tale exag-geration, and a memorable case of growing up among lovable misfits in this 2 CD, 2 1/2 hour autobiographical account.
Interesting story set in the far north
The story here is about growing up in the far north. It begins in the 1950's when a con-artist father, Hank, leaves Edmonton with his pregnant wife and eventually passes himself off at the Indian school as a teacher. Hank settles his family in remote Fort Vermilion. The cast of loveable misfits struggle with the day-to-day harsh reality of being in Canada's third-poorest community. Winner of the Stephen Leacock Medal for Fiction

Brilliant!
I loved every page of this book. The writing is excellent and the story flows really well.There are so many moving moments in this book that I shed a tear on a number of occassions. I also laughed my head off quite a bit. What more can one ask of a memoir?Well done Ian! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 1959-    2. 20th century    3. Alberta    4. American    5. Biography    6. Biography & Autobiography    7. Biography / Autobiography    8. Biography/Autobiography    9. Childhood Memoir    10. Childhood and youth    11. Dramatists, Canadian    12. English Canadian Drama    13. Family    14. Ferguson, Ian,    15. Form - Essays    16. Fort Vermilion    17. Homes and haunts    18. Humorists, Canadian    19. Literary    20. Personal Memoirs    21. Satire And Humor   

Subjects:  1. 1933-    2. 20th century    3. Alberta    4. Authors, Canadian    5. Biography    6. Childhood and youth    7. Children's 9-12 - Biography / Autobiography    8. Children's Books/Ages 9-12 Fiction    9. Children: Grades 4-6    10. Cree Indians    11. Juvenile Fiction    12. Juvenile literature    13. Loyie, Oskiniko Larry,    14. People & Places - Canada/Native Canadian    15. People & Places - General    16. Social Issues - New Experience    17. Social Issues - Values    18. Juvenile Fiction / People & Places / General   

Subjects:  1. Anecdotes    2. Biography    3. Canada - General    4. Canada - Ontario    5. History - General History    6. History / Canada    7. History, Local    8. Ontario    9. Social life and customs    10. Travel    11. Travel / Canada    12. Canada   

Subjects:  1. (William George)    2. Biography    3. Biography / Autobiography    4. Biography/Autobiography    5. Canada    6. Canada, Northern    7. Courts    8. General    9. Judges    10. Justice, Administration of    11. Legal History    12. Morrow, William G    13. Morrow, William G.    14. Courts & procedure   

Subjects:  1. 1945-    2. Biography    3. Biography & Autobiography    4. Biography / Autobiography    5. Biography/Autobiography    6. Canada    7. Diplomats    8. Drake, Earl    9. Foreign relations    10. Historical - General    11. International Relations - General    12. Political    13. Biography & Autobiography / Political    14. China    15. Diplomacy    16. Essays, journals, letters & other prose works   

Subjects:  1. Alberta    2. Biography    3. Blacks    4. Calgary    5. Canada - General    6. Foggo family    7. Foggo, Cheryl    8. History    9. History Of Blacks    10. History: World    11. Reference    12. Black studies    13. Canada    14. History of specific racial & ethnic groups