#7 - The Apprentice: My Life in the Kitchen

Wow, where to begin? I learned of this book from a quick comment made by Anthony Bourdain in one of his books, and having great respect for Jacques Pepin, ran out and picked it up. From his time with the late, great, Julia Child to the miserable shows with his dopey daughter I have always loved Jacques' classical French technique and work... although his dishes aren't ones the average home cook would attempt, heck I rarely even tackle his projects, but they are amazing. I always thought he was a bit snooty and high-class but that is all brought crashing down by looking at the photo of the tough 12-13 year-old dressed in his kitchen whites and holding a battered ladle as big as himself on the cover. It is also quickly dispelled in the account of his life within which ranges from growing up in wartime France to his own stint in the armed forces to some wickedly grueling appointments and terrible mishaps. He has paid his dues and in ways I had never known or would have expected. His writing style is exceptional and he even tossed in topical recipes which I'm dying to try out. This is unlike - and better - than most foodie/cooking/chef books out there, and just an amazing read. This is now firmly in my personal favorites short-list, and it goes without saying: Highly Recommended.

#6 - Miracles on Maple Hill

This is a special one to me. My mother has a love and a connection with nature unlike anyone I know, it is magical. After excitedly watching this past years PA Farm show and learning about making maple syrup from a demonstration by Janet Woods she decided to finally act and tap the sugar maple standing in their front yard. It ended up producing over 12 gallons of sap! During the demo Janet Woods had suggested two books, one called "Backyard Sugaring" and "Miracles on Maple Hill," a 1957 Newbery award winning children's book. It turns out that, while fiction, it is written about a real place and it just so happens to be around Lake Erie which is where Janet Woods' Hurry Hill farm is located. We got to take a trip to the farm recently to see the process firsthand and I decided to read the book. Miracles on Maple Hill is a tale of childhood, adventure, country life, struggles, and joy... and quite an accurate account of the maple sugar process it turns out. Everything is captured in such a real and honest way that you will completely forget this is a work of fiction shortly after beginning. Truly a timeless read for young and old alike, Highly Recommended. Thanks Mom!

#5 - Designing a Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Active Directory and Network Infrastructure

Whew, that's a long title. I'm not normally a fan of books aimed at a particular certification because they tend to just teach to the test and offer no real insight. I'm similarly not normally a fan of any Microsoft written book on their own products because they tend to do a lot of self-promotion and hide inadequacies while ignoring possible better third-party solutions. Despite all of this I still plunged ahead and took this large tome of geekness on since it is an area of interest to me. I actually liked this book. Sure, some of the network info gets a broad brush and little depth but the overall Active Directory coverage is very good and does a good job of taking a pretty nebulous concept and making it concrete. If you would like to learn about Active Directory or support it in your daily life this is a solid low to mid-level book on the topic. Recommended.

#4 - Linux Bible, 2008 Edition

The "Bible" series by Wiley have always provided a large amount of content for the money covering a wide range of products and operating systems. Sometimes they can just be big, for big's sake only and a bit unfocused, however, when I picked up the latest edition on Linux I was pleasantly surprised. There was the usual chapters every Linux book seems to include but there were a ton of new and helpful sections as well as a broad spectrum covering almost all of the top distributions briefly and including them on the DVD that comes packed in. If you are a newbie or a grizzled veteran of the Linux game this is a great pick up. Recommended.

#3 - Asterisk: The Future of Telephony

Asterisk is one of the cooler products to come out of the open source front over the years. Most people don't think much of their telephone in this connected world, you pick it up and there is a dial tone. In America we have also never really had a choice in our phone carrier due to monopolies or large corporations locking down price and features. Asterisk punches through this artificial barrier and allows companies and individuals to regain some control of their phone systems, for free. It is a game breaker and a well written and tested piece of software. It could be a bit more user-friendly though so a book like this is a great companion. Highly Recommended.

#2 - Waiter Rant

As much as I hate the term, I could be considered a "foodie." I love to cook, I love to eat well, I love to eat adventurously, and I love to read and watch almost everything about it all (except for The Food Network). I've worked through a number of chef/authors such as Pepin, Bourdain, Ramsay, Zola, etc. and through the huge expensive food porn books filled with chemistry experiments and tiny morsels like Alinea. One piece mostly left out is the experience of the front lines. I had hoped Waiter Rant would be that tale, especially due to the high praise... even from Anthony Bourdain himself. It wasn't. The book is all filler and no meat. A handful of actual tales and page upon page of uninteresting drivel. To make matters worse the "author" really thinks he is good at his craft, and while busy churning out cringe worthy garbage he is tooting his own horn and spending quite a bit of time explaining the actual writing of the book you are reading to again fluff up the page count. Ugh. Amateurish and pretentious at best.

As always this book sits with high marks on sites like Amazon while it honestly doesn't even deserve to be published. I think people's expectations are so low and the acceptance of terrible writing so high that no one knows what good is anymore. If it can be read in a few days and not eat up much brainpower while being the literary equivalent of Top 40 radio it is destined for lavish praise and critical acclaim these days. This stuff might make for a middle-of-the-road blog (which it was) but certainly not a book. NOT Recommended.

#1 - Zen Shorts

OK, so a new year is upon us and that means 52 more books (hopefully). I imagine I probably read around 40-45 books naturally in a year so it can be a bit of a push to hit the magical 52 but we shall see if I can repeat the effort. Here goes:

Zen Shorts popped out at me in the bookstore both because of the title and the art style of the cover. I have a great love for Zen Koans, which are generally short tales that have some sort of morale or thinking point. I have often thought that many would make great children's stories and it seems someone has beat me to it. Stillwater the panda is the sage and his three child friends are his pupils as he relates a famous ancient tale to a modern situation. This book has won a number of awards, including The Caldecott Honor Award, I would give it none. The retelling of the tales is far too wordy and muddled which obscures the essence and the half-hearted application of the story to the children is even worse. Pitiful. I honestly think the author has no real grasp of the subject matter and instead has a basic curiosity/understanding and sought to cash in on the idea (which seems to be working despite the effort). I really could not recommend a book less, terrible.