[.ca] Lobster Rolls and Blueberry Pie: Three Generations of ... (ISBN 006051583X)

Welcome summer!:
I love this book. It is full of great stories and recipes--from the Blueberry Pie recipe on page 108 to the Lobster Roll recipe on page 209 and all of the other 70 recipes that are scattered throughout the 240 pages of this book. Rebecca covers everything: the history behind the food,the restaurant, and her family; she gives helpful tips so you can recreate the dishes easily at home--THERE IS NO BOOK OUT THERE THAT CAN COMPARE. It's not just another boring cookbook, it is an adventure.

Stellar Shellfish Fare:
I'm not certain what book reviewer Laura Cella bought, but there are more than 75 recipes in this fabulous book, INCLUDING the Pearl Oyster Bar LOBSTER ROLL (page # 209) and their famous BLUEBERRY CRUMBLE PIE (page # 108.) My cover has a photo of the blueberry crumble pie right on the front. The oyster roll recipe also appears in the book, as well as a wonderful Blackberry Nectarine Crisp (which I just made using peaches instead of nectarinses and it came out great!) and all of the recipes for which Pearl Oyster Bar has been named one of the best restaurants in New York City. I travel to NYC once a month and never miss the chance to eat there. This book was a joy from beginning to end. Ms. Cella's review should be immediately removed for erroneous information. Buy the book, you'll love it!

SUMMER IN MAINE:
BEING FROM THE MIDWEST I HAVE DEVELOPED A LOVE OF THE OCEAN, ESPECIALLY THE SHORES OF MAINE. I HAVE BEEN TO MAINE ON SEVERAL SUMMER TRIPS. NOW IT ZERO OUTSIDE WITH A WIND CHILL OF 20 BELOW. (NATIVE CHICAGOIANS CALL IT THE HAWK) EVEN MY BULLDOG DOESNT WANT TO GO OUT. SO, I HAVE JUST PURCHASED THIS BOOK AND I AM IMMEDIATELY TRANSFORMED. IT FEELS LIKE IT IS JULY AND I AM AT THE SHORE. SO I GET OFF MY COUCH (MY BULLDOG DOESNT EVEN WANT TO GET INTO THE CAR) GO TO THE LOCAL FISH HOUSE, PICK UP A POUND OF LOBSTER MEAT AND MAKE A ROLL. I MAKE A PITCHER OF THE HOME MADE LEMONADE AND HAVE A FEAST. I CANT WAIT UNTIL THE BLUEBERRIES GO BELOW SEVEN DOLLARS A PINT SO I CAN MAKE THAT BLUEBERYY PIE. GREAT READ IN THE MIDDLE OF WINTER.

Not interesting to me personally:
Somehow I missed, when I ordered this book, that it's really about one woman's reflections on family summers in Maine and the restaurant she eventually founded, none of which meant or mean anything to me. The book is mostly reminiscenses and some recipes, and I guess I was looking for JUST recipes, and none of the rest. So it really isn't interesting to me personally and I will just resell my copy. However, if you know the woman, know the restaurant, or for some other reason care about those components to it, you would probably greatly enjoy it, as others here clearly have. For my part, I'll read the "New England Clam Shack Cookbook," which is much more in keeping with what I was looking for. Light on the reminiscences of family history, heavy on the recipes and light general trivia about New England.

Great cookbook:
The recipes in this book are excellent. Simple and down-to-earth, but surprisingly not available in other more encyclopedic books on seafood cooking. The book is beautifully laid out. As to the family history and personal biography, for my taste the book would have been better without them. I'm sure that page after page of minutiae about her relatives is fascinating to Ms. Charles, but believe me, the rest of the world is no better for them. Five stars as a cookbook, one star for effort as a memoir/family history.