The Language of Baklava

Book Description

Diana Abu-Jaber’s vibrant, humorous memoir weaves together stories of being raised by a food-obsessed Jordanian father with tales of Lake Ontario shish kabob cookouts and goat stew feasts under Bedouin tents in the desert. These sensuously evoked repasts, complete with recipes, in turn illuminate the two cultures of Diana's childhood–American and Jordanian–while helping to paint a loving and complex portrait of her impractical, displaced immigrant father who, like many an immigrant before him, cooked to remember the place he came from and to pass that connection on to his children. The Language of Baklava irresistably invites us to sit down at the table with Diana’s family, sharing unforgettable meals that turn out to be as much about “grace, difference, faith, love” as they are about food.

Customer Reviews:

Wonderful.......2007-01-15

This is a great story - Abu-Jaber shares beautiful stories of growing up with a Jordanian father and an American mother. As someone close to Middle-Eastern expats, I recognised a lot of the feelings, emotions and social situations she describes: the longing for a long lost country that is one embellished from childhood memories, the importance of food as a source of comfort and a way to bring continuation to a new lifestyle in a foreign country, the importance of family, the unity between a family that is scattered around the world but whose heritage keeps them together. I thought it was very enjoyable and entertaining. It should be especially interesting to people interested in Middle-Eastern culture and those who are or know any expats/immigrants like Abu-Jaber's father. For a deeper and less light-toned stories, I also recommend Crescent, or West of the Jordan.

Moving and memorable.......2006-08-05

Terrific memoir, funny and moving. Pretty good recipes too! Highly recommend.

Moving and Delicious.......2006-06-14

A lovely book, reminding me somewhat of my own childhood and my over-the-top overprotective father. The descriptions of her family's meals are incredible. I found myself rushing to make the recipes, looking forward to enjoying devouring them as I read, like I was sitting at the table with the author.

One of those books that you think, "Ok, it's late... I'll just read until the end of this chapter," then you don't put it down.

Well, if you're a foodie daughter of an immigrant like me, anyway.

So Moving.......2006-06-13

Reading The Language of Baklava, I felt like I'd stepped into a 'lost world'-- the rich memories and sensations and stories were outstanding. This is my favorite kind of book, the kind that I have trouble finding any more, where I feel like you enter the heart and mind of a life and a place. I will never forget this book.

Average customer rating:

family and cooking
Please don't let it end...
not for the squeamish
It made me HUNGRY
Best Memoir I've Read - and I read a few

The Language of Baklava: A Memoir
Diana Abu-Jaber
Manufacturer: Pantheon
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Authors | Arts & Literature | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Women | Specific Groups | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Family & Childhood | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Memoirs | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Middle Eastern | Regional & International | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0375423044
Release Date: 2005-03-15

Book Description

From the acclaimed author of Crescent, called “radiant, wise, and passionate” by the Chicago Tribune, here is a vibrant, humorous memoir of growing up with a gregarious Jordanian father who loved to cook. Diana Abu-Jaber weaves the story of her life in upstate New York and in Jordan around vividly remembered meals: everything from Lake Ontario shish kabob cookouts with her Arab-American cousins to goat stew feasts under a Bedouin tent in the desert. These sensuously evoked meals in turn illuminate the two cultures of Diana’s childhood–American and Jordanian–and the
richness and difficulty of straddling both. They also bring her wonderfully eccentric family to life, most memorably her imperious American grandmother and her impractical, hotheaded, displaced immigrant father, who, like many an immigrant before him, cooked to remember the place he came from and to pass that connection on to his children.

As she does in her fiction, Diana draws us in with her exquisite insight and compassion, and with her amazing talent for describing food and the myriad pleasures and adventures associated with cooking and eating. Each chapter contains mouthwatering recipes for many of the dishes described, from her Middle Eastern grandmother’s Mad Genius Knaffea to her American grandmother’s Easy Roast Beef, to her aunt Aya’s Poetic Baklava. The Language of Baklava gives us the chance not only to grow up alongside Diana, but also to share meals with her every step of the way–unforgettable feasts that teach her, and us, as much about iden-tity, love, and family as they do about food.

Customer Reviews:

family and cooking.......2007-08-04

A delightful book, filled with interesting stories about a larger-than-life bunch of characters and enhanced by recipes for the foods they eat. Meet a family pulled between Jordan and America, experience their tumuluous activities and sample (at least in imagination) the wonderful foods they are always eating.

Please don't let it end..........2006-06-10

Viscerally satisfying, moving, poetic...I can't get it out of my head...I wish it could have gone on and on and on....I want more....I want to cook with Ghasan...be fed rice from his hand...I want to hear more about how her Arab family loved Diana, and about her grown up love hinted at near the end of the book...how her sister's perceived the same world...I want to eat and sleep with Bedouin's in the desert by firelight...Please feed me more...

not for the squeamish.......2006-02-12

This is a miserable book. A few minutes in, it has a description of meat running with blood, then shortly later a detailed description of a botched, brutal slaughter of a baby lamb. That's when I tossed the book into the rubbish pile. I'd give it negative stars if that were possible, it certainly doesn't deserve even one star.

It made me HUNGRY.......2006-01-17

I loved Diana's humor and writing style. She made me very hungry but most importantly, she made me want to visit Jordan and be with Bedouins! She was very candid in criticizing what is wrong with the Arabic culture. I thought she did a great job and I recommend this book to all Americans but you'd better have an Arabic restaurant near you!

Best Memoir I've Read - and I read a few.......2005-08-05

I just finished "The Language of Baklava" and loved the style, the honesty, the capture of nuances and details, and sense of humor. Having read many excellent food, travel, immigrant or multiethnic memoirists, this surpasses them all.
As an Arab immigrant, I laughed out loud at the precise and non judgmental accounts contrasting Arab and American ways. I will strongly recommend this book to my American wife who is incessantly befuddled by my family's behavior when they visit or we visit them.
This book is beyond food memories, it should be a classic of growing up as an immigrant's offspring. Diana Abu Jaber has a wonderful gift of making us feel with her and for her; of making us laugh and cry with her.

Abu-Jaber, Diana. The language of baklava, a memoir.(Book review): An article from: Kliatt

Average customer rating:

Abu-Jaber, Diana. The language of baklava, a memoir.(Book review): An article from: Kliatt
Lorie Paldino
Manufacturer: Thomson Gale
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Online Books | Books & Reading | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

General | Science | Subjects | Books

Science & Technology | Subjects | e-Docs | Formats | Books

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Kliatt, published by Thomson Gale on September 1, 2006. The length of the article is 428 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Abu-Jaber, Diana. The language of baklava, a memoir.(Book review)
Author: Lorie Paldino
Publication: Kliatt (Magazine/Journal)
Date: September 1, 2006
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 40 Issue: 5 Page: 39(1)

Article Type: Book review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Average customer rating:

The Language of Baklava
Diana Abu-Jaber
Manufacturer: Pantheon
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000N599OK

Book Description

Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.

Customer Reviews:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03

Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.

Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19

Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09

There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.

For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.

Very Interesting.......2007-03-07

It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.

History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10

Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.

I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.

Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.

Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.

I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.

This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.

Average customer rating:

At War in the Gulf: A Chronology
Arthur H. Blair
Manufacturer: Texas A&M University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Asia | History | Subjects | Books

General | Middle East | History | Subjects | Books

Iraq | Middle East | History | Subjects | Books

Kuwait | Middle East | History | Subjects | Books

General | Military | History | Subjects | Books

Average customer rating:

Gulf War
Patrick Allen
Manufacturer: BDD Promotional Books Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Gulf War Air Power Survey, Volume V: A Statistical Compendium and Chronology

Average customer rating:

Gulf War Air Power Survey, Volume V: A Statistical Compendium and Chronology

Manufacturer: Dept. of the Air Force
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Middle East | History | Subjects | Books

Aviation | Military | History | Subjects | Books

Book Description

Eliot Cohen directed the 5 volume survey. Lewis D. Hill, et al. authored this V. 5. Consists of two reports. The first report, A Statistical Compendium, concentrates on airpower-related aspects of the conflict. Organized in roughly chronological order, it moves from prewar force postures and the deployment of Desert Shield through the air campaign of Desert Storm, tabulating aircraft victories and losses as well as the human cost of the war. The second report, Chronology, outlines many of the principal events of clear, direct, and tangible relevance to the planning of the Gulf War.

Gulf War Air Power Survey: A Statistical Compendium and Chronology

Average customer rating:

Gulf War Air Power Survey: A Statistical Compendium and Chronology

Manufacturer: Ross & Perry Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Middle East | History | Subjects | Books

General | World | History | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1931641099

Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm: Chronology and Fact Book

Average customer rating:

KEY BOOK FOR ANY DESERT STORM COLLECTION
research format
This is the best military-focused book.
A Great Resource

Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm: Chronology and Fact Book
Kevin Don Hutchison
Manufacturer: Greenwood Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Asia | History | Subjects | Books

General | Middle East | History | Subjects | Books

General | Military | History | Subjects | Books

Strategy | Military | History | Subjects | Books

General | World | History | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0313296065

Book Description

"[This] book is a testament to America's crusade to protect, preserve, and perpetuate the values of democracy." From the foreword by Major General John H. Admire, USMC This is the most all-encompassing chronology and fact book yet to be published about Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm. This detailed history consolidates official U.S. records and coalition sources from around the world and provides the most complete information available about day-to-day movements and events, units, missions, equipment, and personnel. Fifty pages of biographies provide information, most of which is published in the West for the first time. Appendices include a glossary, list coalition prisoners of war and service people killed in action, and provide data about coalition ground, naval, and air forces, Iraqi forces, and key personnel. Maps, charts, and photographs clarify the text and identify key targets and bases. A bibliography and a general index further enhance this comprehensive guide for researchers in military studies, international relations, and world history.

Customer Reviews:

KEY BOOK FOR ANY DESERT STORM COLLECTION.......1999-11-12

The amount of information included in this single volume is staggering! All of the official U.S. service histories are found here, along with all primary, and most secondary Coalition forces. The author also included as much Iraqi information as possible from Coalition intelligence services. If there is a weak area this understandably is it, with Saddam being uncooperative. Still, Iraqi Order of Battle information is surprisingly complete, along with many interesting facts including Iraqi officer biographies.

This book saved me a great deal of time and money in my research, and I cannot endorse it enough.

research format.......1999-10-06

No read book. "Just" a collection of facts. Maybe the ultimate fact finding tool for professionals, but I was very disappointed by the low "entertainment value" of this book. In this sense you'll find r-Gen. Schwarzkorpf's book on the other end of the scale.

This is the best military-focused book........1999-07-25

Eschewing political history and detail, this book concerns itself solely with military actions and fact. Aiming especially to clarify ground actions, much space is also spent on naval and air operations, in that order. A great deal of effort was obviously spent to be as comprehensive as possible. For example, the book lists the captain of every coalition ship, as well as many of their biographies in a special section at the back. Facts like these are hard to come by, and are one of the it's greatest strengths. This book is simply the best book on the subject.

A Great Resource.......1997-05-04

This book contains a wealth of information on the daily operations in the war in an easy to read/research format. It is an essential for any library and for the serious military historian. It also contains an excellant order of battle and all the names of those who did not return.

Timelines: Day by Day and Trend by Trend from the Dawn of the Atomic Age to the Gulf War

Average customer rating:

Timelines: Day by Day and Trend by Trend from the Dawn of the Atomic Age to the Gulf War
Paul Dickson
Manufacturer: Addison Wesley Publishing Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Reference | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0201567539

A chronology of Defense Intelligence in the Gulf War : a research aid for analysts (SuDoc D 5.202:97030235)

Average customer rating:

A chronology of Defense Intelligence in the Gulf War : a research aid for analysts (SuDoc D 5.202:97030235)
Brian Shellum
Manufacturer: The Office
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Intelligence & Espionage | Military | History | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B00010U798

Gulf Crisis Chronology (Longman Current Affairs)

Average customer rating:

Gulf Crisis Chronology (Longman Current Affairs)

Manufacturer: Gale Group
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Strategy | Military | History | Subjects | Books

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Iran and Iraq: U.S. national security problems since the Gulf War, a chronology (CRS Report for Congress)

Average customer rating:

Iran and Iraq: U.S. national security problems since the Gulf War, a chronology (CRS Report for Congress)
Kenneth Katzman
Manufacturer: Congressional Research Service
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B0006P3BXM

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books