Archive for August, 2010
Weekly Book Special: Goat Cheese: Delectable Recipes for All Occasions by Georgeanne Brennan
Weekly Book Special: August 31st-September 6th
August marks National Goat Cheese Month, a celebration of the versatile ingredient that’s made its onto menus and dinner tables around the world. To commemorate, this week’s book special is:
Goat Cheese:
Delectable Recipes for All Occasions
Written by Georgeanne Brennan and Ethel Brennan
Illustrated by Philippe Weisbecker
Hardcover, 1987, 72 pages, ISBN: 0811812391
List Price: $10.00, OUR PRICE: $1.95
Goat cheese is an amazingly versatile ingredient that enhances any course of a meal. Known to the French as “fromage de chevre,” goat cheese has slowly but surely made its way onto American menus and dinner tables.
This is a charming introduction to using goat cheese in your everyday cooking. With a short history of this versatile ingredient and a description of how it’s made, this book features profiles of all the varieties and tips for storing, serving and cooking.
From tempting appetizers such as Grilled Eggplant and Goat Cheese Rolls to satisfying entrees like Gnocchi with Spinach and Goat Cheese to luscious desserts, including Poached Winter Pears with Sweet Goat Cheese. Charmingly illustrated and complete with a guide to the many varieties of goat cheese.
Our favorite recipe is for Chile and Feta Popovers (click to enlarge):
Georgeanne Brennan is the author of numerous cooking and gardening books, and the recipient of the James Beard Foundation Award and the IACP/Julie Child Cookbook Award for her writing. She lives in northern California and Provence, where she has a seasonal cooking school.
This book is discounted only through September 6th. Purchase it for $1.95 (list price $10.00):
 |
In addition, let your loved one, relative or friend choose a unique gift from our extensive selection of nearly 40,000 hard-to-find books and prints. Give a gift certificate in any amount. |  |
Weekly Book Special: Ultimate Coffee Guide, Now 30 Percent Off
Weekly Book Special: August 24th-August 30th
This is the last week for our hardworking research intern Laura, who, as a globetrotting coffee connoisseur, chose this week’s book special:
Coffee:
Follow a Bean from Tree to Cup
and Learn the Art of Preparing Good Coffee
by Philippe Boe, Paperback, 125 pages
List Price: $14.00, OUR PRICE: $9.95
This concise book tells you everything about coffee: its journey from its native Ethiopia to the 17th-century coffee houses of Europe; facts, figures and quotes to whet your appetite; how coffee is manufactured, the perfect cup, storage and utensils; coffee’s effects on the body; and recipes for coffee and for dishes using coffee.
You will also learn about the 73 species of coffee tree, only two of which are cultivated — arabica and canephora; coffee and the economies of the developing world; how to appreciate coffee like wine; and useful web sites addresses.
Beautiful color images show coffee drinkers around the world, from Italy to Vienna and Colombia to Colorado. Translated from the French edition.
Laura’s favorite section is “Coffee Around the World” (click to enlarge):
“I like this book because it has a wide range of recipes, photos and fun facts — it’s more than just a cookbook,” Laura says. “I just spent the semester in Florence, and you have to know the proper coffee to drink during the day. This book has those kinds of details, and more.”
This book is discounted only through August 30th. Purchase it for $9.95 (list price $14.00):
|
In addition, let your loved one, relative or friend choose a unique gift from our extensive selection of nearly 40,000 hard-to-find books and prints. Give a gift certificate in any amount. | |
New Government Report: For-Profit Colleges: Undercover Testing Finds Colleges Encouraged Fraud and Engaged in Deceptive and Questionable Marketing Practices: Congressional Testimony
For-Profit Colleges: Undercover Testing Finds Colleges Encouraged Fraud and Engaged in Deceptive and Questionable Marketing Practices: Congressional Testimony
by Gregory D. Kutz
Paperback, 30 pages, 2010, $20.00
ISBN: 9781437937503
Enrollment in for-profit colleges has grown from about 365,000 students to almost 1.8 million in the last several years. These colleges offer degrees and certifications in programs ranging from business administration to cosmetology. In 2009, students at for-profit colleges received more than $4 billion in Pell Grants and more than $20 billion in federal loans provided by the U.S. Deptartment of Education.
The auditor was asked to: (1) conduct undercover testing to determine if for-profit colleges’ representatives engaged in fraudulent, deceptive, or otherwise questionable marketing practices; and 2) compare the tuition’s of the for-profit colleges tested with those of other colleges in the same geographic region. Charts and tables.
New Government Report: Federal Judge’s Decision to Strike Down California’s Voter-Approved Ban on Same-Sex Marriage (Proposition 8)
Federal Judge’s Decision to Strike Down California’s Voter-Approved Ban on Same-Sex Marriage [Proposition 8]
by Vaughn R. Walker
Paperback, 136 pages, 2010, $25.00
ISBN: 9781437937510
The plaintiffs in this case are two same-sex couples who challenge a November 2008 voter-enacted amendment to the California Constitution (Proposition 8 (P8)). P8 provides: “Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.”
Plaintiffs allege that P8 deprives them of due process and of equal protection of the laws contrary to the 14th Amend. Judge Walker concludes that: “Plaintiffs have demonstrated that P8 violates their due process and equal protection rights and that they will continue to suffer these violations until state officials cease enforcement of P8.”
Contents of this decision: Background to P8; Procedural History; Case against P8; Defense of P8; Trial Proceed. and Summary of Testimony; Witnesses; Equal Protection; Conclusion.
Award-Winning Indian Cookbook: Emperor’s Table, The Art of Mughal Cuisine by Salma Husain
Weekly Book Special: August 18th-August 24th
India celebrated its Independence Day on August 15th. Learn more about the country’s rich food history with this week’s book special:
Emperor’s Table: The Art of Mughal Cuisine
Written by Salma Husain, Illustrated by Pavan K. Varma
(Hardcover, 2008, 144 pages)
List Price: $27.00, OUR PRICE: $5.95
For The Mughals transformed India’s cooking by intermingling Middle Eastern cuisine with Indian spices and ingredients to produce some of the most exquisite Mughlai food.
This book not only traces the history of the Mughal emperors through their fondness for food and contribution to the growth of recipes, but is an engaging read on the role of each ruler’s personal likes and dislikes as well as how this has shaped the course of food habits in India.
Offers a mouth-watering selection of dishes ranging from soups and breads to exotic meat dishes. Showcases the splendor of the Mughal table through full-color miniature paintings. The recipes were selected from the original Persian manuscripts and books. They are easy to follow, but are modified for modern times.
Deepika, our Indian-American intern, says her favorite recipe is for Orange Flavoured Chicken Pulao (click to enlarge: illustration / recipe):
This book won Gourmand’s 2008 World Cookbook Award for "Best Culinary History."
Writes Time Out Mumbai: "Her study of food from the Mughal era puts recipes second and the people who loved them first." Author Salma Husain, who spent six years on the cookbook, told the magazine, "I didn’t want to do just a collection of recipes. This book shows the journey of Mughal food in India.”
This book is discounted only through August 24th. Purchase it for $5.95 (list price $27.00):
|
In addition, let your loved one, relative or friend choose a unique gift from our extensive selection of nearly 40,000 hard-to-find books and prints. Give a gift certificate in any amount. | |
New Government Report: Breaking the Mold: Tanks in the Cities
Breaking the Mold: Tanks in the Cities
by Kendall D. Gott
Paperback, 132 pages, 2006, $25.00
ISBN: 9781437937862
There is an adage that tanks don’t perform well in cities. Gott disproves that notion with a series of five case studies from World War II to the war in Iraq.
These cases demonstrate that tanks must do more than merely “arrive” on the battlefield to be successful in urban combat. From Aachen in 1944 to Fallujah in 2004, the absolute need for specialized training and the use of combined arms at the lowest tactical levels are two salient lessons.
Gott provides an up-to-date analysis of the utility of tanks and heavy armored forces in urban combat. The U.S. Army will increasingly conduct combat operations in urban terrain, and it will therefore be necessary to understand what it takes to employ tanks to achieve success in that battlefield. Illustrations.
New Government Report: Border Searches of Laptop Computer and Other Electronic Devices
Border Searches of Laptop Computer and Other Electronic Devices
by Yule Kim
Paperback, 13 pages, 2010, $10.00
ISBN: 9781437937541
The 4th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution requires government-conducted searches and seizures to be supported by probable cause and a warrant.
Federal courts have recognized that there are many exceptions to these requirements, one of which is the border search exception, which permits government officials to conduct “routine” searches based on no suspicion of wrongdoing.
On the other hand, when warrantless border searches are particularly invasive, and thus “non-routine,” they are permissible only when customs officials have, at a minimum, a “reasonable suspicion” of wrongdoing.
Contents of this report: Border Search Exception; Judicial Developments on Laptop Searches; Federal Policies on Border Laptop Searches; Conclusion; Legislative Proposals.
Complete Kwanzaa: Celebrating Our Cultural Harvest
Complete Kwanzaa:
Celebrating Our Cultural Harvest
by Dorothy Winbush Riley
(Hardcover, 387 pages, 1995, ISBN: 0785816976, $23.00)
Celebrated between Dec. 26 and Jan. 1, Kwanzaa is a joyous and meaningful holiday that gives African American an opportunity to reunite with family and friends and to pay tribute to their rich cultural heritage.
Here is a comprehensive guide that explains the traditional ceremonies, foods, and history of Kwanzaa. Offers an introduction to the cultural foundations of Kwanzaa, practical tips on how to tailor celebrations to individual circumstances, and directions on how to hold a Karamu feast, as well as recipes.
Also includes an explanation of the seven principles of Kwanzaas. Includes: the philosophy behind each principle; profiles of successful African American who represent the principles of Kwanzaa; inspirational quotations and proverbs; and folktales new and old. Illustrations.
“In this work, which is helpful in understanding the custom, Riley has illuminated each Kwanzaa principle with chapters replete with poetry, life stories of noted personalities who have benefited from using that particular system, quotations, folktales, and proverbs,” writes Ann Burns in a review for Library Journal. “A good source, especially for young adult collections.”
Zigazak!: A Magical Hanukkah Night, by Eric Kimmell and John Goodell
Zigazak!: A Magical Hanukkah Night
by Eric A. Kimmel and John Goodell
(Hardcover without dustjacket, 30 pages, 2001, ISBN: 038590004X, $18.00)
A wonderful tale for young readers about two devils that fly over the town of Brisk on a Hanukkah night.
At one house, the devils turn the children’s dreidels into creatures with arms and legs that begin to dance. At the next house they make the latkes rise from the pan and begin flying around the room. The devils continue to make trouble all over the town.
Everyone runs to seek help from the rabbi, a wise and holy man. He is able to turn the tables on the devils and get them to provide Hanukkah gelt (coins) for the children and the poor. The rabbi shows that “Nothing is completely wicked. Sparks of holiness exist in all things. Even in devils and their mischief.” He does this by recognizing what is beautiful and delightful in their tricks and thus making them good. Illustrations.
“In the most imaginative Hanukkah book this season, Kimmel peoples an old-world town with mischievous demons, easily alarmed villagers and a wise and crafty rabbi,” writes Publisher’s Weekly in a review.
“The brio of the storytelling doesn’t shy from a moral: ‘Sparks of goodness exist in all things, even in devils’ tricks.’ Goodell portrays the demons as ugly monsters, the goofy gleam in their eyes only partially dampening their scariness, and his humans are mildly grotesque. A dark palette adds to the shiver-inducing effect.”
History of the Portrait Collection, Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia (American Philosophical Society)
History of the Portrait Collection,
Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia
by Doris Devine Fanelli and Karie Diethorn (American Philosophical Society)
(Paperback, 360 pages, 2001, ISBN: 0871692422, $65.00)
The American Philosophical Society in conjunction with the Independence National Historical Park announces the publication of the first catalog of the portraits in the National Park collection.
Read the 
of this book before you purchase it.
These portraits, most of which are exhibited in the Second Bank of the United States, consist of 255 works, 109 of them by Charles Willson Peale. Many are likenesses of heroes of the American Revolution and Founding Fathers of American government, statesmen, jurists, men of science, arts and letters. The collection was enhanced by the addition of the works of notable 18th and 19th Anglo-American artists.
The book is divided into two sections: a history of the collection dividing it chapters covering works pre-1950, 1850-1900 and 1900-1951, and a catalog. Each catalog entry is enhanced with either a black and white or four-color reproduction and contains a physical description of the portrait, a brief biography of the subject, the circumstance of the portrait’s commission and its provenance.
Diane Publishing's Blog 