The Gallery of Regrettable Food
by James Lileks
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Book Reviews of The Gallery of Regrettable Food
Book Review: Gallery of Gastronomic Horrors
Summary: 5 Stars
The Gallery of Regrettable Food brought back fond memories, made me laugh out loud, and was truly disgusting.
Everything about this book, down to the boomerang patterns on the cover (under the dust jacket), says Boomer Childhood. About the only thing missing from Gallery is Velveeta and Sloppy Joes. I loved the chapter on Jell-O, and was amazed at what people thought to suspend in a Jell-O mold. Ecch.
And those hard-boiled egg and sliced olive penguins! Lileks makes up just enough in here so that you have to seriously consider whether a dish is real or if he made it up. Unfortunately, he only made up a few.
This is a great book to spend a few hours with, especially if you are on a diet. Nothing to tempt you here. It brings back the days when a meal wasn't a meal if there wasn't meat in it, when meat wasn't meat unless it had a layer of fat on it, and when nothing said "sophisticated" like a can of salmon.
Book Review: Submit to the power of the Gallery!
Summary: 5 Stars
I honestly didn't know what to think when I picked this book up. It looked...odd. However, all suspicions were shoved to the side. I have never laughed so hard in a very VERY long time. Possibly the only bad thing about this book is the side cramps you'll most likely be feeling after about an hour and a half of raucous reading.Such wonderful dishes as "Beet pie Casserole" and "Deviled Onions" can be found in this book. Thank God there are only pictures in here, and not recipes. Who knows what would happen if any school lunch ladies found this book and were "inspired" by the contents. Probably the funniest item in the book is something from "The 10 o' clock cookbook". It is a bunch of hotdogs "Standing erect in a sea of beans" as the author puts it. Convinced now? You'd better be. If you're looking for a good laugh after a dull or dissapointing day, pick up this book and laugh your head off.
Book Review: Beautiful photos spoiled by annoying text
Summary: 2 Stars
Lileks assembles an amazing photographic journey through surreal looking edibles, in their all of their imperfectly color-matched glory, and then undercuts any sense of fun with contempt-filled, ostensibly "hip" commentary. The text isn't even amusing for those who like that kind of humor. Authors like Jane and Michael Stern can take this kind of subject and roll with it, delighting in the joys of "cholesterol baroque" (case in point: Lileks just dismissingly makes fun of the "weird" idea of cooking with 7-up, while the Sterns in several publications give recipes, tips and history behind this unique culinary adventure). Lileks, on the other hand, seems content to say "doesn't this look gross!" over - and over - and over. I bought it for the incredible pictures though. Maybe I should have just gone to the used bookstore and picked up some original four-color brochures!Book Review: One of the funniest damned books out there!
Summary: 5 Stars
For those of you who have gone crawling through the dark, dank, and mysterious lair that is your mom's cookbook shelf, looked at the *OLDEST* books, and wondered "What in God's name were they *thinking* when they wrote this", you're in for a real treat! This book combines James Lileks' hilariously sarcastic commentary with pictures taken from some of the most revolting "cookbooks" ever published to create one of the funniest looks at Yesteryear pop culture that you'll ever come across. Check out James Lileks' website (www.lileks.com) for a preview of both this book, and his newest book "Interior Desecrations", as well as other gems of Retro hilarity. However, I would suggest that, prior to visiting his site, you: 1) Budget a few hours (at minimum) to peruse the site, and; 2) Do not drink anything that you do not mind snorting out your nose, spraying across your keyboard/monitor, etc...Book Review: Americans forgot how to cook!
Summary: 2 Stars
What with the Great Depression and then World War II, people had been getting by with cooking and eating what they could get, that by the late 40s and 50s, when once again there was a great variety of foods available and people had money to spend, they had forgotten what to DO with it. That and more 'convenience' items (bottled sauces and dressings, instant geletin and pudding, etc.) coming onto the market that people didn't know how to use, the marketing departments of food companies had to come up with a lot of cookbooks quickly.
The pictures, one can forgive. Artistic styles change, and photographs deteriorate over time. And some of the recipies aren't too bad, if not to our tastes today. But there were a lot of missteps.
I would have preferred if some, at least, of the recipies were shown, and sometimes the commentary is a little too snarky.