Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Sock Yarn One-Skein Wonders

Sock Yarn One-Skein Wonders
101 Patterns That Go Way Beyond Socks!
by Judith Durant
Storey Publishing, 2010

What can you do with a single skein of yarn besides make a pair of socks? Quite a lot, according to knitting specialist Judith Durant, who proves her case with 101 patterns for hats, gloves, fingerless mitts, scarves,small shawls, kids, doll clothes, bags, and numerous small accessories.

The patterns in this book come from 75 separate designers who have found creative uses for sock yarn. Each pattern is accompanied by at least one color photograph, yarn and needle suggestions, and supply lists.

Charts are included for the more detailed patterns, but most require little more than basic knitting skills.

Each pattern contains a legend for the symbols used. A back-of-the-book glossary explains how to do some of the increases, decreases, and crossed stitches.

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Cultivating an Ecological Conscience

Rethinking Food

The current era of industrial food systems based on cheap energy is rapidly drawing to a close, according to Kirschenmann's observations, and will need to be replaced with ones based on more human labor and less on excessive consumption of water and fuel.

"Farmers' markets, community-supported agriculture operations, school gardens, urban agriculture, biointensive agriculture, perennial polyculture, and other initiatives already are growing at a rapid rate and enabling many people to engage in the pleasure of consuming and producing food with superior attributes. While all of these nonindustrial approaches still amount to only a tiny part of our food system, they are creating a new food culture that may become more significant as energy and ecological costs continue to rise."

Cultivating an Ecological Conscience: Essays from a Farmer Philosopher by Frederick L. Kirschenmann
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Monday, November 15, 2010

Cultivating an Ecological Conscience

"While greening may bring about desirable short-term results, it will never lead to sustainability. Our world is a complex adaptive system that is interconnected, interdependent and constantly changing... We can never hold a system in an optimal sustainable state. We can only design systems to enhance their capacity for self-renewal."

Cultivating an Ecological Conscience: Essays from a Farmer Philosopher
by Frederick L. Kirschenmann
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Sunday, November 14, 2010

Cat Cora's Classics with a Twist

Cat Cora's Classics with a Twist
Fresh Takes on Favorite Dishes
by Cat Cora and Ann Kruegar Spivack
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2010

Each recipe in this cookbook follows Cat Cora's motto: just because a dish is a classic doesn't mean it can't be improved upon. These dishes are relatively low fat, quick to prepare, and require ingredients common to most kitchens.

Cat Cora's Classics with a Twist
Review: Cat Cora's Classics with a Twist
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Friday, November 12, 2010

Good Old Books: Make Your Own Fuel

Make Your Own Fuel
by Jerry Wilkerson
Young Publishers, 1979

The fuel we're talking about making is alcohol.

It will burn in your car. It will burn in your oil furnace (with a slight modification). It will run a generator. It will work in all the place where you are now using petroleum products as fuel.

Make Your Own Fuel
Farm and Garden Books
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Monday, November 8, 2010

Culinary Careers

Culinary Careers
How to Get Your Dream Job in Food with Advice from Top Culinary Professionals
by Rick Smilow and Anne E. McBride
Clarkson N Potter Publishers, 2010

Based on interviews with culinary professionals, this book offers insight and advice to anyone considering a food industry career. It details a surprisingly large menu of food-related jobs with inside information on workday realities and recipes for success.

Culinary Careers
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Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Now in Review: Cultivating an Ecological Conscience

Cultivating an Ecological Conscience
Essays from a Farmer Philosopher
by Frederick L. Kirschenmann

Theologian, academic, and third-generation organic farmer Frederick L. Kirschenmann is a celebrated agricultural thinker. In the last thirty years he has tirelessly promoted the principles of sustainability and has become a legend in his own right.

This book documents Kirschenmann's evolution and his lifelong contributions to the new agrarianism in a collection of his greatest writings on farming, philosophy, and sustainability.

Cultivating an Ecological Conscience
Farm and Garden Books
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