Gift Shopping

Reviewer Jill Norgren writes that Justice Sotomayor has said that she wrote My Beloved World because being a role model “is the most valuable thing I can do.” It is to her credit that the memoir is, like the justice, unpretentious and welcoming to readers of all ages. Reviewer Julia Sneden declares the depth of the research for Consider the Fork mind-boggling, but Be Wilson's style is simple, direct, and leavened with wry humor; calling her just “a food writer” would be a bit like calling Yo Yo Ma “a guy who plays the cello.” more »

Tam Gray writes: A favorite museum of ours is the New York Historical Society. Their online shop is appealing and quite different. Products range from Tiffany-style lamps, to retro dresses and handbags based on their own spectacular Audubon collection, which is the largest single repository of Auduboniana in the world. more »

Reviewed by Jill Norgren: David Nasaw does not ask his readers to like Joe Kennedy. He does not hold back on the damning stories of deceit and unbridled ambition. He does, however, appear utterly convinced that Kennedy doted on his children — beyond needing them to fulfill his ambitions, and that they returned his love. Joe Kennedy “had pledged to faithfully love and support [Rose] and the children they might have together …. What he did not intend to do was give up being a ‘ladies man’.” And he did not. more »

Roberta McReynolds writes: There are circumstances when a degree in algebra would certainly be beneficial. Never once did any of my instructors say, "Pay attention young ladies! You’re going to need to know how to calculate your correct bra size someday and it won’t remain the same throughout your life. You don’t want people to look at your chest and realize you flunked algebra, do you?" more »