Whether you're a tea connoisseur or just beginning to explore the wonderful world of tea, "A Tea For All Season's" is an excellent companion to have. Written by Bruce & Shelly Richardson, owners of the Elmwood Inn in Perryville, KY, they provide an informative, enjoyable guide to preparing and hosting a perfect tea, as they do at Kentucky's premeir tea room. Breaking the book down into seasonal & monthly themes, they provide recommendations of food, tea and music to accompany your celebration. The tea themes include angels, roses, sunflowers, Shakespeare, Monet, the Ballet, Kentucky Harvest, etc. The meal recipes are also included and some of them are largely synonymous with Kentucky's culture. They give an overview of each theme and share the historical significance of all involved. The Elmwood Inn, itself, has a rich history and is listed on the National Register for Historical Places and is designated as a Kentucky Landmark. It's probably better known for the role it played during the Civil War battle, that befell Perryville on October 8, 1862. The book is also filled with wonderful colored photograph's, including some lovely peices of artwork, which can be found hanging on the walls of the Inn throughout the year (featuring notably local artists). The art, too, is coordinated with the theme of each month's menu. The Richardson's create a warm rapport as they entice and educate the reader; Much like their genteel hospitality when greeting in person. At the end of the book you'll find a list of tea suppliers and featured artists, including Elmwood Inn. "A Tea For All Season's" would make a great gift for any tea lover, and is a must to add to your tea repertoire. At the least, this book will leave you with the desire for a delicious pot of steaming hot tea. Most likely, it will inspire you to plan a tea party of your own. The Richardson's have also written two other books, "A Year of Teas at the Elmwood Inn," and "The Great Tea Rooms of Britain." I am fortunate to call Perryville home and frequent Elmwood Inn often for my 'cup of serenity.' I also have the fortune of calling Bruce & Shelly Richardson, friends. The almost 160-year-old Inn is beautiful with elegance and charm, as are the grounds. May I reccommend, if you're ever in Central Kentucky, plan on visiting and having afternoon tea at the Elmwood Inn. You must make reservations, though. It will be one of the most pleasant experiences of your life!

The cover of this book is a pleasant green with a picture of the Elmwood Inn. I hope they will submit a picture as it is quite a beautiful cover.

The recipes are organized according to Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall. Within each season, you will find three teas for that season. In December an Angelic Tea, Fireside Tea or Tea for Lovers will warm your home. In the Spring, enjoy Irish Tea, Tea with Shakespeare or May Day Tea.

When Summer arrives, Tea in the Rose Garden, 1850's Summer Tea or Sunflower Tea sounds very appropriate. In the fall, Tea at the Ballet, Kentucky Harvest Tea and tea with Monet include recipes for Pavlova, Cream puff swans and Pear Tart. Music selections are also recommended, The Four Seasons being one of my favorites.

Drawing on an eclectic mix of culinary traditions, the tea menu for each season is based on a central idea and seasonal fruits and vegetables are used to their best advantage. Art is also exhibited in the tea room making each season an occasion for celebrating art. A picture of a painting sets the mood for the each season. The authors have a great love for the arts and tea and to them life is art. In each area of their lives, they try to be artists, even when preparing a pot of tea.

If you enjoy sipping tea in a serene setting surrounded by beautiful art, fresh flowers, delightful foods and great music, you will relate well to this cookbook. If you want to create this peaceful setting, your will find many ideas to inspire you.

An Angelic Tea features Cinnamon tea, Orange Tea Bread, Christmas Ribbon Sandwiches, Angel Biscuits with Country Ham Spread, Angels on Horseback, Cranberry Scones with Orange Date Spread, Angel Sugar Cookies and White Fruit Cake which can be served in the Winter. You could also select various favorite recipes like: Drop Scones (We called them crumpets in Africa for some reason and they looked like the same mini pancakes. They were served with butter, cream and jam just like scones.), Chocolate Tea Bread, Shrimp Boats, Blackberry Sorbet, Cherry tarts and Onion Tart.

Each recipes has a fun-to-read header and sets a mood for your own cooking adventure. When you drink a cup of tea, you may find yourself thinking about everything that is right with the world and find tea time a way to escape from the everyday world. If you are ever in Perryville, Kentucky, the Elmwood Inn serves tea with such flair and reservations are advised. It is one of the state's best-known landmarks.

This book, the second from Bruce & Shelly Richardson, owners of Kentucky's Elmwood Inn, offers much more than menus and recipes. It offers suggestions on how to plan a tea that mirrors the season and pleases all the senses. The book focuses primarily on menus and recipes, but also recommends specific teas and musical selections to accompany the dining experience. A feast for the eyes as well, the photographs profile not only the food, but the works of contemporary artists. The resource guide at the end of the book offers addresses at which the reader can buy tea, purchase music, or contact the artists whose works appear throughout the pages. If you're expecting difficult recipes using gourmet ingredients, you will be disappointed. The recipes are simple, well-written, and utilize ingredients anyone can find at their well-stocked local grocery. Having read this book and its predecessor (A Year of Teas at Elmwood Inn), I am now looking forward to visiting the Inn later this summer and sampling these delicacies for myself. I highly recommend this book for anyone who loves tea, loves to cook, or simply enjoys the pleasure of a well-written and informative cookbook!

Heard BEYOND SURVIVAL: THE NEXT CHAPTER, written
and narrated by Gerald Coffee, Captain, U.S. Navy (Ret.), who
endured seven long years in a communist prison in North
Vietnam . . . this was a live recording of a speech he has made
throughout the country, in which he tells how he survived and
what lessons he learned from his experience . . . he advises the
listeners to have faith, as well as to learn to rely upon themselves, others, country, and their God . . . doing so will enable us to get through our own "struggles for survival," which only speaking for myself, seem insignificant to what Coffee had to endure . . . my only regret was in not being able to hear Coffee deliver this powerful message in person . . . he seems like he is quote some guy, and I was so impressed by his message that I had to listen to this powerful tape twice . . . in fact, I'm now going to seek out his original book: BEYOND SURVIVAL.

Gerald Coffee was a POW in North Viet Nam for seven years, most of it spent in a small cell alone, out of visual contact with the other POWs. In this powerful tape, the first thing evident is the love of life and spirit of community heard in his voice. There doesn't appear to be a hint of bitterness or revenge. Instead he tells how he survived and what he learned from the traumatic experience to become a wiser and more generous person since his release in 1973. He advises the listeners to have faith, and learn to rely upon themselves,others, Country and their God. He gives examples of how he was able to survive by practicing what he preaches and encourages all of us to apply the same lessons to our own lives and our own "struggle for survival".

Gerald Coffee survived for a reason. The message he gives could be that reason. It is very inspirational and highly recommended.

Julia Alvarez creates a rousing literary work in both Spanish and English with A Cafecito Story, the engrossing story of a Nebraska farmer's boy who becomes a teacher and eventually finds his life changed by a sojourn to the Dominican Republic. A Cafecito Story is highly recommended as being an intriguing blend of sparse writing, specific images, and involving discussions.

This simple story of a man, a new life, and a family struggling to survive and to be literate was moving to me. The lovely illustrations are woodcuts by Belkis Ramirez, an artist from the Dominican Republic. Also, as a rabid coffee lover, it brought back memories of rich aromatic coffee in cafes in Guatemala and Mexico. I recommend this book for anyone who is trying to live her or his life deliberately, trying to help with sustainable agriculture, and trying to make a difference in small but vital ways to a more balanced global economy.

i just found my copy of this book today while packing to move. i had forgotten how charming and enjoyable it is. the recipes that i tried did work, and they were fairly unusual. this is the only cookbook i have ever sat around and read while not cooking.

This is my kind of book--amusing anecdotes from an offbeat mind splashed with a variety of tasty recipes. Al Sicherman is an admitted chocoholic ( and food columnist) so the dessert recipes are GOOOOOOD! This is a collection of his diversely-themed columns, so you can find "mom-style" food (my husband has adopted the chicken and dumpling recipe as his own) just pages away from the junk-food clones. If you prefer your cookbooks traditional, divided by course and teamed with impossibly perfect pictures (whose food ever looks like that! ) you will be disappointed and quickly frustrated. If, however, you believe food is fun, should taste good and hold no pretensions then beg, borrow or buy this book. Look for Al's column in your local paper and enjoy the read!

My copy of this cookbook has become dog-eared, torn, stained, and nearly stolen by past roommates, but it remains my foolproof guide to getting "oohs" and "ahs" from my guests. Who am I kidding?! I make stuff out of this book for myself just as much as for guests! Many cookbooks are flashy but not all that useful; this is an exception. It is my single most-used cookbook.

There are coffee cakes (of course!), scones, muffins, biscotti, pastries, cookies both elegant and down-home, tortes and tarts, and a couple oddities made with coffee like beef stew and red-eye gravy. The real show-stoppers are the sweets, of course. I've found things here for brunch, afternoon tea (coffee!) parties, or dinner desserts, both fancy and casual. Some of my favorites are orange pecan sticky-buns, Canadian scones, persimmon bread, Great Granny's Vanilla Crisps, hazelnut truffles, Cozy Coconut Cookie Cake, finger frets...I could go on. The authors drew on an impressive list of both professional and home cooks, and each contributor shares their memories and reflections on the pleasures of coffee. Even if you're not a java junkie (I can't live without it, myself!), you will nevertheless find tons of irresistable goodies in this book.

During the past five years of graduate school, I have had the good fortune to live in a house with a copy of this cookbook. The one request I have before leaving for Australia - a copy of my own. Every recipe I have made, from the Lemon Yogurt Pound Cake to the Blueberry Cream Pie, has been a success. I would recommend this book for every home cook as an invaluable resource for perfect coffee-friendly delicacies.

This is a good book about coffee -- and about the marketing of a commodity. It's well written and full of good anecdotes about what has been a pretty good ad campaign for a long time. I got it as a gift and ended up actually liking it.

I love this book. The pictures were great and I love Colombian Coffee.

I am a big fan of tea. I also love meals that are both simple and elegant. I'm not your traditional "homestyle" cook. That said, I also hate fussy, pretentious food that requires a lot of time and fuss in the kitchen. This book was very much what I was looking for.
The ideas presented here are flavorful and innovative. The presentations are simple, but lovely. The color photographs are plentiful, and beautiful. There is a photo of every recipe in the book. I don't know about you, but I love to see what the final product looks like.
Some of the recipes are easier than others. None of them require hours of work and preparation. Also, some have a short list of ingredients.
Finally, there are a variety of ideas here ranging from Asian and Thai inspired dishes to some more "fusion" cuisine. I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys cooking and is looking for something "different" but not too complicated.

While many tea cookery books focus on foods to serve with tea, this book shows you how to use tea as a basis for cooking a variety of foods. Beginning with a general introduction of tea, the book goes on to teach the reader about various types of teas, how to brew and store them, and then how to cook with them.

This book is great for the newcomer or the experienced tea lover, the professional and not-so-professional cook. With beautiful pictures and recipes like Smoked Chicken Salad with Tea Vinaigrette, Tea Cured Salmon, (my favorite) Spring Rolls with Thai Tea Sauce, Tea Smoked Chicken, Earl Grey Truffles and Chai Ice Cream to whet the appetite, how could you go wrong?

It's brief, rich, flavory, cheery, and mind alerting.

Stewart Lee Allen takes you along a wonderful trip around the world. In light and easy prose, you get all the information you want on the history of coffee and coffeecentric theories gathered from real serious research. But he takes away the seriousness and the graveness and actually makes you smile all the way.

Believe it or not while I was reading this book I was completely transfered into another world,into another time.Thanks to the writers talent I was enjoying being there and learn the story of coffee and so many others things.I have tried my best to read this book as slowly as I could but that was impossible as I have finished it just in one day.God,it was such a pleasant read and that was amazing because I found it hard to believe that there is a non-fiction book to be finished just in a few hours. Reading this book is magic - Having this book in your bookshelf is having an expensive souvenir and you must know that if this book weights 200 grams is worth 200 billion dollars! Because it is a story of something that is part of the life and that's of course COFFEE that we use three or more times a day. Isn't it a shame to drink Coffee and not knowing its history???

This book, quite simply, changed my life. After picking this little gem up off a bargain rack in an Albuquerque book store in 1987, I soon found myself enraptured with the imagery I had all but forgotten growing up in the late 50s and early 60s. Not a me-too bandwagon chaser of retro themes, I have since become quite a collector of my era's decor, automobiles and publications... even started my own small castings/sculptural studio that has produced and sold a number of designs that have been well-received by the collectors who know my work.

I moved to Los Angeles in 1989, largely motivated by what I read in this book, and my obsession in finding the remaining treasures Hess listed. I was ecstatic to find my then-new digs 2 blocks away from the hallowed glass walls of Chips Coffee Shop in Hawthorne, CA! And thankfully it is still intact as of this writing (June 2002). May Googie live forever! And now, the search is on for another copy of the book, as I lost mine years ago. Nothing could please me more than to have the new copy signed by the author himself.

Alan Hess has produced a significant analysis of 50s architecture and design. The title suggests that Hess' focus lies in coffee shop architecture; however, the book is in fact much more diverse. Social trends in post-war Los Angeles, such as automobile and housing design, do much to provide context for Hess' assertions and observations. This is the true value of Hess' work. He does not provide a simple nostalgic or anecdotal look at the overly-regurgitated 50s; rather, he seeks to provide a thoughtful analysis of an indigenous American architectural style. Ultimately, Hess seeks to defend a style that remains either maligned by proponents of "higher" architechtural forms, or reduced to simple nostalgia and trivialization. Hess succeeds admirably in this pursuit. This book is recommended for all who require a more thoughtful and contextual analysis of American popular culture, history, and design.

I enjoyed browsing through these recipes as much as I enjoy a good cup of tea. Make one of these recipes and sit down and r-e-l-a-x.

The title is Herb Tea Book, but author Susan Clotfelter includes green tea and black tea as well, so there is more than just peppermint and chamomile here. There is a lot of information about tea properties. What I like are the Chai recipes (sweetened, spiced Indian style milk tea.) Chai is popular, and a great beverage for cold weather, although Indians drink it to cool off in summer as well. (They put plenty of pepper and ginger in it to encourage perspiration, plus the caffeine and sugar are stimulating if you're tired by the heat.)

The book also has welcome information about using licorice and stevia to sweeten teas without sugar.

The Herb Tea Book is very cute and would make a great gift along with a batch of home-made tea blend in a decorative cellophane bag or attractive tin. Hang the recipe on a tag and you have a very inexpensive but classy gift that would work for many occasions.