Sunday, June 17, 2018

Weekend Book Reviews


Beauty in the Broken Places by Allison Pataki is the true store of Allison and her husband Dave.  While on a flight to their babymoon, Dave suffers a life-threatening stroke.  This memoir is a mix of what follows and their life before the stroke.  It was both scary and inspiring.  I appreciated the author's honesty in becoming a caregiver while being a first time mother.  The focus on her faith added to the moving narrative of struggle and healing.


Nicole Weston's Perfectly Creamy Frozen Yogurt uses Greek yogurt, meringue, and a simple ice cream maker to make delicious frozen treats.  I tried out the basic vanilla frozen yogurt on my family.  While my husband was not a fan of the yogurt tang, my parents and I agreed that it was delicious.  I especially liked that it was easy to make.  The base came together quickly and was able to go straight into the ice cream churn.  I will be making several other varieties over the summer months.  This is a wonderful book for those who want a lighter homemade summer treat.


Fix, Freeze, Feast 2nd Edition by Katie Neville and Lindsay Ahrens is a slightly updated version.  I own the previous book and was anxious to see the changes.  The second edition includes 25 additional recipes.  I also noticed a better layout overall.  People new to freezer cooking will find a step-by-step introduction.  Most of the recipes make three freezer meals of four to six servings each.  The recipes are easy to scale down for smaller families.  The freezer meals use basic ingredients but go beyond the creamed soup casseroles you might expect.  It is a wonderful book for first time and seasoned freezer cooks.


Damnation Island by Stacy Horn is the true story of Blackwell Island (now called Roosevelt Island) in New York's East River.  It was home to a lunatic asylum, prison, almshouse, and hospitals.  What was meant to be an improvement on all others ended up being just as bad or worse.  It was hard to read at times simply due to the horror and sadness at what people endured.  Mr. Horn does an excellent job of bringing this forgotten part of history to life. 




disclosure:  I received these e-books through NetGalley but was not otherwise compensated for these reviews.  All opinions are my own!



2 comments:

terricheney said...

Curious on the frozen yogurt...Did you use our homemade yogurt or a store bought Greek yogurt? I have an ice cream maker I really do want to learn to use this year...if time ever permits.

Dawn said...

Terri, the recipe uses either. I opted to make it store bought Greek yogurt since I just do not use enough yogurt right now to make it myself. I am sure homemade would make it taste less tangy.