celebrates Mediterranean-inspired cui-
sine. “So many of us love long lunch
tables that start with breads and spreads,
going into smaller bites or tapas,” she
explains as she delivers dozens of recipes
perfect for entertaining, from the tradi-
tional (olive tapenade with anchovy and
capers; hummus; and flatbread with
za’atar) to fresh takes on classics—aran-
cini with smoked mozzarella and aioli;
brioche mini-rolls made with grape
juice; and lemon-herb, pan-fried cala-
mari with chorizo. She includes plenty
of hearty dishes, such as an Italian-style
white bean soup with karoo lamb and
white wine; coq au vin, made with riesling
wine; and pan-fried potato gnocchi with
charred cream of corn and bacon. At the
conclusion of the book is a brief dessert
section featuring white tiramisu with
brandy; honey and rosewater panna
cotta; and baklava cigars with citrus and
spices. This is an excellent, one-stop
resource for hosts who need inspiration
in creating a party menu. (Dec.)
New York Christmas Baking
Lisa Nieschlag and Lars Wentrup. Murdoch,
$26.99 (128p) ISBN 978-1-76063-468-1
German design team Nieschlag and
Wentrup begin their winning debut by
noting that the project is “our surrender
to all of the sweet temptations that the
city... has to offer.” In addition to such
Christmas staples as sugar cookies, gin-
gerbread people, and snickerdoodle
cookies, there are a handful of recipes
that the authors acknowledge are not
Christmas specific (some are borrowed
from non-Christian cultures) but are
nevertheless ubiquitous in New York
City, such as rugelach, black and white
cookies (“a true New York classic and
sold in just about every bakery”), and
challah buns. Theirs is a tourist’s view
of Christmas in the city, with accompa-
nying photos
of a wreath-
adorned Grand
Central
Terminal and
the Rocke-
feller Center
Christmas
Tree—but
the recipes
themselves are
creative and accessible, among them
gingerbread cookie cups filled with
chocolate and whipped cream; stained-
glass cookies; and upside down cake
with cranberries. Other tempting treats
include candy cane–shaped bread stuffed
with cranberry and cream cheese; pumpkin
spice whoopee pies; and chocolate-pep-
permint pinwheel cookies. This festive
and inviting cookbook will certainly
put home bakers in the Christmas spirit.
(Nov.)Hobbies & Crafts
Kraft-Tex Creations: Sew 18
Projects with Vegan Leather;
Print, Stitch, Paint & Design
Lindsay Conner. C&T, $ 22.95 trade paper
(112p) ISBN 978-1-61745-856-9
In this attractively designed craft
book, quilter Conner (On the Go Bags)
shows readers a variety of ways to use
kraft-tex, a paper-fabric hybrid. Conner
explains how to make projects out of the
material, which combines the character-
istics of vegan leather, fabric, and paper.
It also “looks, feels and wears like
leather,” but can also be sewn and cut
like fabric, making for an appealing
medium for sewers, mixed-media artists,
bookbinders, and other creative types.
Conner has compiled projects from 12
makers, providing six quick and easy
projects—including “pretty vase sleeves,”
“meditation flags,” and her own “Kyoto
clutch”—and a dozen that are more
demanding, including an “accordion
card file wallet,” a mini suitcase, and a
pair of baby shoes. Because of the
straightforward instructions, complete
with illustrations and photographs, the
higher-difficulty projects should still be
accessible to beginner-level crafters.
Well-designed layouts balance instructions
with colorful photos, making for a visually
appealing presentation. The result will be
a welcome addition to the library of any
avid maker. (Dec.)Creating Wooden Jewelry: 24 Skill-
Building Projects and Techniques
Sarah King. Fox Chapel, $19.99 trade paper
(176p) ISBN 978-1-4971-0001-5
King, a jeweler, debuts with an
attractive guide to making stylish
wooden jewelry. She traces wooden
jewelry’s popularity back to the 1970s,when people questioned “the nature of...
jewelry as a symbol of status and wealth.”
To bring the field up-to-date with
modern concerns about sustainability,
she includes information on obtaining
wood locally, suggesting cork as a
resource to use, and wooden spoons as
items that can be recycled. The projects,
each explained via step-by-step photo-
graphs laid out in numbered grids,
progress from
basic to more
difficult. Going
in order, one
can begin by
learning to use
a piercing saw
and a handheld
drill to make
the “Walnut
Squiggle Pendant,” and end by using an
acid bath, ebonizing solution, and easy
solder paste to make the “Oak Strata
Necklace.” King occasionally suggests
alternative materials, as in the “Twisted
Willow and Cane Sets,” so those without
the “patience to carefully coax willow
into smaller circles” may instead opt
“for a cane version of this design that is
much easier to make.” Her well-appointed
primer should find an audience both
with woodworkers drawn to jewelry, and
with jewelers seeking a new medium.
(Dec.)Parenting
Ready or Not: Preparing Our Kids
to Thrive in an Uncertain World
Madeline Levine. Harper, $27.99 (288p)
ISBN 978-0-06-265775-6
Psychologist Levine (Teach Your
Children Well) offers a practical, wise
manual aimed at helping anxious parents
with their often equally anxious kids.
According to her, overprotective par-
enting commonly leads to two problems:
“accumulated disability,” or “the
impairment of life skills,” in kids, and
“learned helplessness,” the “belief that
you are powerless to change your cir-
cumstances.” With empathy, Levine
explores the valid anxiety parents and
children feel about facing a “world of
disconcerting unpredictability and
upheaval” and lays out the “foundational”
skills children need to develop: critical
thinking, curiosity, creativity, flexibility,WWW.PUBLISHERSWEEKLY.COM 55Review_NONFICTION