The Chocolate Addict's Baking Book by Sabine Venier

 

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Title: The Chocolate Addict's Baking Book
Author: Sabine Venier
Release Date: 9.29.20
Publisher: Page Street Publishing

Publisher Summary
Calling all chocoholics―come satisfy your sweet tooth, indulge in your all-time favorites and discover new ways to get your fix with 75 diverse chocolate-based desserts from Sabine Venier, the founder of Also The Crumbs Please. Sabine shares standout takes on classic fudgy desserts as well as creative, interesting twists on treats that readers know and love, including:

• Cherry Cheesecake Swirl Chocolate Brownies

• Chocolate-Covered Tiramisu Truffles

• Mind-Blowing Chocolate Fudge Birthday Layer Cake

• Chile Chocolate Lava Cakes

• Glazed Bacon Chocolate Donuts

• The Ultimate Mississippi Chocolate Mud Pie

• No-Bake White Chocolate–Mango Cheesecake

• Earl Grey Chai–Poached Pears Dark Chocolate Cake

• Ultraflaky Chocolate Croissants (Pain au Chocolat)

Perfect for bakers looking for that next great chocolaty recipe or as a gift for the chocolate addict in your life, this book will satisfy every craving.




My (Quick) Review
The first recipe I made was Rocky Road Scotcharoos (pictured) and I’m thinking I’ll be making several more tasty treats from The Chocolate Addict’s Baking Book this holiday season.

World Food: Mexico City by James Oseland

 

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. 

Title: World Food: Mexico City
Author: James Oseland
Release Date: 11.24.20
Publisher: Ten Speed Press

Back Cover
Introducing World Food, an exceptional new cookbook series in the classic tradition, taking readers on a journey to the world's greatest cuisines and the remarkable cultures they come from.

Whether you're an absolute beginner at Mexican cooking or already a pro, World Food: Mexico City is for you. This definitive and beautiful user's guide unlocks the secrets to real Mexican cuisine with more than fifty authentic, reliable recipes, while the compelling stories and photography tell the tale of the vibrant culinary capital of Latin America. 

Inside Front Cover

You'll be taken to home kitchens, markets, and restaurants, where you'll get to know exemplary local cooks and learn how to master Mexican culinary traditions and techniques.

Every recipe--from the vivid salsa with pan-roasted tomatoes to the soul-satisfying pork stew with corn, potatoes, and green beans--provides a cook's-eye lens into real Mexico City culture. Explore easy party food such as authentic guacamole and homemade tortilla chips; satisfying first courses such as cantina-style garlic soup and beer-infused "drunken" rice; or slow-cooked masterpieces such as Mexican-style stewed zucchini. Learn how to make family-friendly meals including ancho chiles stuffed with cheese, as well as standouts such as fall-apart tender roasted lamb with pasilla chiles, or tuna tostada garnished with chipotle mayonnaise and avocado--a modern classic from the beloved restaurant Contramar.

With more than 150 photographs and a comprehensive illustrated reference chapter that tells you how to find, use, and store all the necessary ingredients, from cilantro to Mexican cheeses, World Food: Mexico City satisfies an appetite for new recipes, new ways to cook, and a new way of understanding one of the most exciting food destinations on the planet.

My Review

With travel plans on hold, World Food: Mexico City is exactly the book I needed this year. This may be labeled as a "cookbook" but the photos, history, and personal essays create a book that is so much more than a simple recipe collection. I devoured (pun intended?🤔) this book from the first page to the last, learning about cooking methods, traditions, techniques, and influences. Beyond 5 star, this is one of my favorite "cookbooks" of 2020. I am anxiously anticipating the next release in this new series. 

Code Name Hélène by Ariel Lawhon

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Title: Code Name Hélène
Author: Ariel Lawhon 
Release Date: 3.31.20
Publisher: Doubleday

This book is based on the life of Nancy Wake, an Australian expat who worked as a reporter for Hearst in Paris just before WWII and later as a spy for the British. Lawhon throws readers into the middle of the action, as Nancy, under the alias Hélène, prepares to parachute from an RAF plane into France to help the Resistance in 1944, carrying in her head memorized lists of vital data, including bridges targeted for destruction and safe house addresses. After she lands, the story flashes back eight years, as Nancy struggles for respect and recognition as a journalist; despite her firsthand observations of Nazi brutality in 1930s Vienna, her editor is reluctant to publish a story about what she's seen. Frequent jumps in time draw out the arc of Wake's remarkable life; despite her statement early on that women's weapons of warfare were limited to "silk stockings and red lipstick," by the end she's proven herself skillful at physical combat as well.


My Review:

I have absolutely loved all of Ariel Lawhon's previous novels and I am lucky enough to have chatted with her a few times at book signings and events. I kept "saving" Code Name Hélène to read and somehow it kept getting pushed back on my reading list. I have finally gotten to it and dare I say...it's her best work yet! I mean, reading about her research experience (included at the end of the book) was as exciting as the novel itself. Yes, Nancy Wake is a legendary and fascinating person but the sheer talent required to present her story so vividly is absolutely mind-boggling. 

Australian expat Nancy Wake lied her way into a freelance journalism position with Hearst in Paris and one of her first assignments was to interview the new German chancellor, Adolf Hitler. Shocking? Yes, but that is really just a tiny blip on the radar for Nancy Wake's eye-popping life story. After Germany invades France, Nancy goes on to become a female British operative who obtained weapons and supplies from England for the Maquis, an anti-Nazi outlaw group. She jumped out of planes into enemy occupied countryside, performed insane feats of human endurance, and lead dozens of nail-biting missions. In short...she was badass! 

Additional note: Lawhon gives Nancy one of my favorite quotes of all time: "Mine is level of fury that requires two coats of lipstick and a fully loaded revolver." Like, I said...badass. 

The Mutant Project: Inside the Global Race to Genetically Modify Humans by Eben Kirksey

 

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Title: The Mutant Project: Inside the Global Race to Genetically Modify Humans
Author: Eben Kirksey
Release Date: 11.10. 20
Publisher: St. Martin's

Goodreads Summary:

At a conference in Hong Kong in November 2018, Dr. He Jiankui announced that he had created the first genetically modified babies—twin girls named Lulu and Nana—sending shockwaves around the world. A year later, a Chinese court sentenced Dr. He to three years in prison for "illegal medical practice."

As scientists elsewhere start to catch up with China’s vast genetic research program, gene editing is fueling an innovation economy that threatens to widen racial and economic inequality. Fundamental questions about science, health, and social justice are at stake: Who gets access to gene editing technologies? As countries loosen regulations around the globe, from the U.S. to Indonesia, can we shape research agendas to promote an ethical and fair society?

Eben Kirksey takes us on a groundbreaking journey to meet the key scientists, lobbyists, and entrepreneurs who are bringing cutting-edge genetic engineering tools like CRISPR to your local clinic. He also ventures beyond the scientific echo chamber, talking to disabled scholars, doctors, hackers, chronically-ill patients, and activists who have alternative visions of a genetically modified future for humanity.

The Mutant Project empowers us to ask the right questions, uncover the truth, and navigate this brave new world.

My Review:

I love all types of books about genes, genetic testing, gene editing, etc. and I think the non-fiction books about the subject are even more interesting than the fiction ones. I love questioning my own ethics when I read and changing my mind about what I think is acceptable and what is not--the line is thin and ever-changing. 

In addition to learning all the new ways genetic modifications can be applied, I am also interested in who gets to make the rules surrounding the science and how to hold scientists accountable. How do you make scientists from a variety of countries adhere to the same rules, especially when different countries hold different social, religious, and ethical beliefs? For example, "secular Chinese medial ethics draws on Confucian thought, which assumes that a person becomes a person after it is born, not before. Intellectuals in China do not generally share the preoccupations of Western or Christian bioethicists who think that human life is sacred from the moment of conception." This core belief allows for Chinese scientists to move forward in areas where the United States pulls back, allowing them to take the lead in the field. Will lawmakers have to take all religions and moral beliefs into account to make laws which the entire scientific community must follow?

Author Eben Kirksey touches on so many ideas, obstacles, and possibilities within this science and includes a wide variety of viewpoints. I recommend this book to anyone who loved The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, who is interested in diseases and medical inequality, or to anyone simply looking to educate themselves on the science occurring right now that could affect human evolution.