This book is a wonderful tale of a family's summer vacation and a life time dream come true for the author. Europe has changed a lot since 1958 and this glimpse of what life was like for the casual traveler is a refeshing pause from today's hectic travel world. Each turn of the road and new town braught adventure to the Rasey family (including how to get all their purchases home...). Written as only someone who was there could, this book shares the warm feelings the family had during their summer in Europe.

Midge Rasey's usual energetic style and subtle humor emerge time and again on these enchanting pages. In fact, the fascination of the book lies in the fact that this trip reports a Europe still recovering from World War II, begging for tourists, eager to provide a full franc or mark or pound of value to anyone willing to come. There are too many delighful and humorous episodes to mention. Her coverage of the 1958 Brussels World Fair is a gem. Back then, visitors, especially to Italy and the great cathedrals and museums of France and Germany had much greater access to historic sites than they do today. Hence, there is detail here that you won't find in latterday travel books. Well worth taking along on the plane. Never will the long flight seem shorter. It makes a great little gift with which to say bon voyage.

In general, this is a good, well-organized book guiding readers to the many and diverse tea rooms in southern California. Alas, tea rooms, like other restaurants, go in and out of business at a dizzying rate. So one must be aware that the information in this book is several years old and one should call first any establishment listed to verify that it is still in existence. Having sampled many tea rooms in this region myself, I found some of her descriptions a bit too effusive for some tea rooms that I would consider mediocre at best. However, for general information it is still worth owning for the die-hard tea enthusiast looking for a tea experience in southern Ca.

Love the book! Great information of places to have tea. The right book to buy if you love to have afternoon tea and want to know the "in place to go".

This book was not exactly what I had expected. Although the photographs are beautiful and the book is filled with interesting alternatives to common furniture items, it is somewhat impractical for anyone with budget constraints. Alternatives to regular furniture are suggested by top home interior designers and artists, which make them lovely and innovative, but beyond the monetary reach of most people (they include expensive antiques, etc). I had expected something a little more applicable to everyday life.

This is a great book to go to for inspiration when you want to give an ordinary room a unique twist. The focus on some of the often overlooked pieces like coffeetables and sideboards sets this book apart from other design texts, and make it possible to make a few small changes that could really enliven an entire room. The photographs are wonderful, and because each setting is so detailed, you can look at them again and again without getting bored. Not all the ideas are ones that I would want to apply in my own home (that would be impossible, after all). But they are all interesting spaces that I would enjoy exploring; I definitely can't say that for all design books. While this is not a budget-oriented book (and it doesn't claim to be), many of the ideas could be translated into something affordable; more 'vintage' and less 'antique', fewer luxury fabrics, etc. etc. There are a lot of examples of adapting salvaged materials, which appealed to my budget.

If you want advice on how to pull off an entire room, or want something very traditional looking ..., you'll probably want to look elsewhere. Otherwise, enjoy this book!

The book contains only very basic information about tea itself, on the first few pages. Then the author presents a lot of recipes for flavoured teas, iced teas, and desserts.

I book isn't practical even for beginning tea connoiseurs, but is rather recommended to people who don't know anything about tea and only want or need to learn the very basics and a few recipes for sweets.

There are a few nice photos in the book (but then again most of them display the desserts or iced teas...)

Vegetarians beware: very few of the recipes are vegetarian.

I have many tea books and yet I keep going back to this one. It is easy to read, informative, and the recipes are great. I have tried many of them. The photography is wonderful. I love it

There are so many GOOD recipes (from Ritz) that you can have a tea party at home!

This is a great Christie story and the final Poirot tale (despite the fact that it obviously takes place before "Curtain" it was published afterward). Despite the fact that it was originally a play and is therefore limited in location (most of it takes place in one room), it still comes across as good. The major complaint I have is that the murderer is revealed in the first cassette by telling what they do. On the stage as this was originally intended to be presented, the action would have been subtle amongst the other things happening on stage at the time and most folks probably would have missed it, but presented as this audiobook the action is trumpeted loudly and the rest of the time you're just waiting for the ending to come. The cat and mouse game Poirot plays with the killer is good and I can just imagine the theatre-goers holding their breath at that final exchange, but the rest of the book just doesn't cut it. Still, if you keep in mind that it was originally intended for the stage (and I think Ms. Christie would have omitted that telling detail if SHE had written it as a book) you can see where it would have been a smash hit.

I loved the illustrations. It was a wonderful read. I got many good tips and pointers on throwing teas, and I would recommend this book to anyone with a sense for that finer things in life.

This is an amazing first hand account of the cafe racing scene from the 30's on. Great stories and bike information.

I have the ninth edition (1989) which does not credit Michele Sadler. This is the most enjoyable and informative overview of the topic I have yet found. It covers everything from the shapes of the tea kettles to the landscape design surrounding famous tea rooms.

The book is interesting in that it discusses many particulars of the tea ceremony and its equipment, but balances this information nicely with many anecdotes which convey the "feeling" of the tea ceremony. The book also provides the reader with valuable historical insight about the development of the tea ceremony.

An important feature of the book is that the index contains the Kanji characters for the items listed.

I did not give the book a five star rating because it has black and white plates which do not adequately convey the colors of the tea bowls, and because many particulars of the tea ceremony could have been given more comprehensive treatment.

I have, however, re-read my copy several times, and I think that it is well worth adding to your book collection.

A delightful history on the gracious tradition of tea from the dependable editors of Victoria magazine. This beautiful book also features ideas and recipes for creating a personal, lovely, and delicious tradition for your self. Tea accessories, various types of teas (afternoon, Victorian, children's, ect.), and how to choose your tea are included to round out this comprehensive guide to the relaxing ritual of tea. A must for all collectors of tea accessories, this book also makes a lovely gift.