This is what you might call a "fancy side table" book. Not a big book full of photographs that would be displayed boldly out in the open like a coffeeThis is what you might call a "fancy side table" book. Not a big book full of photographs that would be displayed boldly out in the open like a coffee table book, but one that you might discreetly tuck into a corner where it might be glimpsed and discovered by passers-by. It essentially serves the same purpose, however, to give casual acquaintances the idea that you have some modicum of style or curiosity about the world around you.
The book is smallish in size, has a beautiful cover, and is nicely bound in a square-ish format--so it's a shame that the contents don't really live up to its titular name. Most of the anecdotes are perhaps too long for a book you'd expect to pick up and randomly browse now and again, rather than reading straight through, and the book was surprisingly light on illustrations and not nearly as sumptuous in prose as you might wish. Most of all, many of the (approximately 100) subjects just weren't all that interesting. Are readers really pining for a 2.5 page definition of and musings on the term "al fresco?" Or wildly curious about string? I beg to differ on quite a few of these entries being defined as "exquisite." While I will concede the presence of more unusual entries such as the humble cricket or the simple thaumotrope, I really must draw the line at the inclusion of items such as omelets and jesters.
Wendy Darling
>
Books:
fancy-side-table-books
(3)
Loading...
