May I Quote you on That? A guide to Grammar&Usage by Stephen Spector

May I Quote you on That? A guide to Grammar&Usage by Stephen Spector published by Oxford University Press is a solid, funny, grammar book in grade to conquer everyone for sure.

Teachers can make the difference and mr.Spector is in grade through quotes of celebrities like Johnny Depp, Billy Crystal, Lady Gaga, Woody Allen, but also writers as Mark Twain and many others to explain us with great lightness and a joyous approach formal english and how to use it properly in every situation.

The approach with people can't be too informal if we don't know them well: if we speak or interact with someone important we must keep a decent distance and a different, more polite language.
Is it difficult?
No, if we follow the directions and advice of a passionate grammar teacher like Stephen Spector is. There is not another best book to me for learning a wonderful formal english than this one. I am a passionate of every book written by mr Spector, because thanks to him, it's simple and a pure pleasure to learn a language - I am italian and so my process of learning will continue forever -
Original approach, inclusive, passionate, intense and felt each lesson explains the rules of words, their best usage in modern formal english, history.
If you are a writer, a journalist, a student, a teacher, you should read this book, but...If you are single as well!
If you are looking for someone, remember that a good grammar is one of the most important qualities in a romantic partner.
People with a solid grammar knowledge are in grade to write beautiful romantic, passionate letters.

Highly recommended grammar book.

I thank Oxford University Press for the physical copy of this book.

Anna Maria Polidori

La ragazza che cuciva lettere d'amore, The Forgotten Seamstress, by Liz Trenow

La ragazza che cuciva lettere d'amore, The Forgotten Seamstress, by Liz Trenow , book published in Italy by TEA and Mondolibri is the touching story of Maria Romano. After that she lost her mother Maria was brought in an orphanage where she learned the art of sewing. Because particularly good Maria and Nora, her best friend were requested at Buckingham Palace.
One day they met also the young and future king, we are in the 1910s . He is still a teen-ager and a boy constricted at a rigid education considering his future role.
The Prince of Wales, expansive, finds fascinating Maria from the first time. Maria at the same time dreamed to meet one day the prince alone.
The prince was searching for the normality of some moments spent with a common girl; Maria for the exceptionality of these meetings.
A love was born; but, an impossible one treasured by Maria for the rest of her life thanks to her stunning and precious quilt prepared with all her love for all the protagonists of her tormented life.

This secret union will bring the arrival of a baby and Maria, for this reason, still pregnant, will be removed from Buckingham Palace and placed in a psychiatric structure where they will steal her newborn baby and where she will be kept sedated the first years; she will live there for more than 50 years, rescued just by Nora, her best friend at the times of Buckingham Palace.
I tell the truth: this part didn't make me sleep well per two-three days, thinking that, a "problem" like this one could be sorted out with such heartless perspective; the entrance in scene of masonry, a "phantom" that knew everything of it destabilized me a lot as well.

London, our times, present us Caroline, a girl plenty of problems. She lost her job, she left her boyfriend, her mother suffers of Alzheimer and she finds the quilt of Maria one day at her mother's house. The adventure starts from that moment and Caroline will discover a shocking truth hidden in that quilt, plenty of love and, after all, no regrets.

Highly recommended.

If you are interested to create Maria's quilt here the directions

https://liztrenow.com/the-forgotten-seamstress/marias-quilt/

I bought this book at Club per Voi a very good italian book club.

http://www.clubpervoi.com/


Anna Maria Polidori

Pulitzer's Gold A Century of Public Service Journalism by Roy J.Harris Jr.

Pulitzer's Gold A Century of Public Service Journalism by Roy J.Harris Jr. published by Columbia University Press is a beautiful book that, according to me every journalist should read about the most important and serious award assigned every year to the most important reporters/newsmagazines/magazines in the USA: the Pulitzer.
This book was revised and updated because the Pulitzer celebrated 100 years in 2016.

Wanted by Joseph Pulitzer, the purpose and inspiration that animates this award is still the old one: to remark with a prize the best public service journalism recognizing the key role of a good information, in grade to make the difference in the society.

The Pulitzer followed all the biggest events of these 100 years: from the arrival of the Great War, to  the courageous choices of the Commercial Appeal of Memphis; the newsmagazine, in fact, started a crusade in the 1920s against the Ku Klux Klan; in some cases reporters and their newsmagazines won the award because they defended  the right of free press or because they followed cases involving corruptions, gambling, environmentalist problems, a rape; great resonance has had the Watergate scandal treated by the Washington Post like also the incredible and horrible story of the pedophile priests followed by the Boston Globe.

The system of assignment of the Pulitzer changed thanks to Gene Patterson member from 1973 to 1984. Latinos, black, women for example the past decades were not taken in consideration; the board decided to publicly naming finalists for the award. Journalism categories expanded from 13 to 14.

I highly suggest this book to everyone because it is a fascinating discovery in the world of the best American Journalism.

The Pulitzer is a mirror: the mirror of a journalism free and healthy, courageous, in grade to vibrantly ask some changes thanks to the cases put at the attention of readers, sometimes causing "quakes" for the love of truth, integrity, passion, devotion.


I thank Columbia University Press for the physical copy of this book.

Anna Maria Polidori

The Vintage Baker More Than 50 Recipes From Butterscotch Pecan curls to Sour Cream Jumbles by Jessie Sheehan photographs by Alice Gao

If you know me, you also know my fascination for the past; of course this passion passes also through recipes. I lost the count of American baking and cooking eBooks that I downloaded in the past trying to research in particular old recipes. I feel attraction for American recipes of all sort thanks to my numerous connections in the USA and also because baking an American cake, or some cookies means anyway always a real success, also for someone not yet exactly a chef or the best baker of the world; after all, you know this sensation is more than comforting. There is a stability of ingredients and a simplicity in these recipes that it is difficult to find in other countries.

All of it thanks to the fusion of cultures in grade to make the difference and in grade to speak pretty well to the palate of people with joyous treats, great cookies, and stunning cakes and pies.

When I discovered that Chronicle Books released a cookbook about the topic I thought: I want to see it.

The Vintage Baker More Than 50 Recipes From Butterscotch Pecan curls to Sour Cream Jumbles by Jessie Sheehan photographs by Alice Gao is a cultural, historical old-fashioned reconstruction of baking recipes, passing through old recipe booklets. This trend of recipe booklets was common in the USA starting from the end of XIX century thanks to various brands that promoted their products.
Not just this, the author remarks like decade after decade ingredients of recipes changed like also ads, more captivating, inviting and dreaming.

In these recipes, what the author did in some cases was to fix the recipes for the tastes of people of our historical moment. Feel free to try of course, the original recipe.

I loved the molasses doughnuts with chocolate ginger glaze. Not just spectacular: you start your day with a chocolate-dream.

But, of course why not launch yourself in a world of aromas with the vanilla yogurt coffee cake?

You will have always close to you friends if you invite them for the afternoon tea with this Swedish tea rolls recipe.

Are you a fan of butterscotch? Try the butterscotch-potato chip balls, and if you are in love for a spice sophisticated like cardamom is, enjoy the deep-fried cookies; if  you want to cuddle your dear ones, the Blueberry Angel Food Dream recipe is there, waiting for you, like also the milk chocolate malted pudding, a dreaming dessert for everyone like also the yummy  baked Alaska Sandwich. Maybe you'll want to try your pop corns while you are watching a movie with cinnamon red hots, maybe adding also another treat: honey-roasted peanut brittle.

Beautiful cookbook, highly recommended to everyone in love for old tastes with some touch of modernity.

I thank Chronicle Books for the physical copy of this book.

Anna Maria Polidori

A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo Written by Marlon Bundo with Jill Twiss Illustrated by EG Keller

Chronicle Books fights for a lot of rights. Born in 1967, it does it with its books, words, colors, adding  beauty in this world. Original, clever, this publishing house makes the difference also regarding social thematic.

This time protest passes through A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo written by Marlon Bundo with Jill Twiss Illustrated by EG Keller.
This children's book was born in collaboration with Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, sponsored by The Trevor Project, an association born for preventing suicides in the young LGBTQ's community and for helping  people. Last Week Tonight's proceeds will be donated to the Trevor Project and AIDS united. This one is an association born for fighting against AIDS thanks to policies of prevention, access to care, harm reduction and advocacy.
The CEO of AIDS united Jesse Milan Jr "By celebrating Marlon Bundo's differences, the book's authors have created a powerful tool for teaching young people the value of diversity."

I start to tell you that this children's book is absolutely adorable, cute, sweet, tender. Illustrations are amazing and they penetrate the adorable soul of this sunny animal.
This one is the story of Marlon Bundo. He lives alone, he doesn't share his life with anyone. He lived in Indiana but then the family afforded to Washington D.C.
One day, going out he meets a beautiful, brown rabbit called Wesley and the two discover a lot of things in common ending up to love each other.

Their happiness with a proper marriage sounds improbable. Someone will try to ruin their happiness, although the rest of animals all united will sort out the problem.  The love-story between Marlon and Wesley will end very happily.

I suggest this book to all that parents who want to start to introduce to their children a thematic like the one of homosexuality and marriages between couples of the same sex. It's crucial and important that all children would be prepared to this reality, because it is becoming always more known and always more real in every country. Marriages included.

Questions will be many, children are curious, and you must be prepared.
First of all you should explain what sex is, why it exists.
Then, proceedingly gradually, why sometimes someone in the body of a male, feels that he is more close to the brain, body of a woman, and so feeling special sentiments more for another man similar to him than not to a woman, because substantially he couldn't love a woman as she would deserves, because he feels he is a woman himself, falling in love for a man that will be a woman to him; it will be an intriguing conversation because love is not just sex but feelings, sentiments in grade to make the difference.

I thank Chronicle Books for the physical copy of this children's book.

Anna Maria Polidori

Cottages Ornés The Charms of the Simple Life by Roger White

Nothing else in the english, Irish, Scottish countryside is more beauty and suggestive than a cottage.
This little or also big building, house, most time created with stones or brick is immersed in the peaceful British countryside and it speaks to the heart of people of tranquil moments, serenity, joy, happiness; of a life where the time is timeless; these buildings are in fact romantic, old-fashioned and researched thanks to the poeticity that they transmit.

This book Cottages Ornés The Charms of the Simple Life by Roger White published by Yale University Press is an enchanting trip in the essence of cottages ornés.

Cottages Ornés are typically British, "exported" later thanks to the expansionistic and colonial policy of UK  in the USA, in particular in the East Coast, with wonderful examples in Martha's Vineyard Massachusetts, but also in Oceania, Wales, Scotland and Ireland.
Some of them have been built by rich people and in this case it is possible to "track" the cottage's realization, what the owner desired. For working and middle-class people it was a different story, because generally they found the cottage built, most times not orné; it was up to them what they wanted to do with it and the interior was up to the taste of the family.

Some towns are spectacularly beauty with these little houses that you would say that they're part of another universe; like to enter in a fairy-tale. I proved that when I saw what created the town of Shanklin in the Isle of Wight. Sometimes a house or more houses can make a difference, because they present beauty and a harmonic fusion with the landscape in grade to speak to the heart.

Plenty informative and divided in ten chapters, Cottages Ornés covers all the aspects of these buildings. Born after twenty years of researches, Cottages Ornés is not just a tome rich of anecdotes, architecture, styles, historical periods, but ,last but not least also the story of the fascination created by these little, peaceful houses during the centuries.

Highly recommended to everyone.

I thank Yale University Press for the physical copy of this book.

Anna Maria Polidori

The New Localism How Cities can Thrive in the Age of Populism by Bruce Katz and Jeremy Nowak

The New Localism How Cities can Thrive in the Age of Populism by Bruce Katz and Jeremy Nowak a book published by Brookings Institution Press.
Extremely interesting and intriguing The New Localism was born after the last Second World War Conflict and its motto can be summoned in: Think Globally, Act Locally.

This book has been born after the election of President Donald Trump for being an answer to the advent of strong populism and rejection of political establishment.

Maybe it's better to focus on little realities. Maybe it's better to re-start from communities,  from little, or big urban realities where local governments, mayors, philanthropists could and should make the difference without to wait for the arrival of the central government for help. Minds in grade to fixing the problems of their own communities.

A dream?

No, in this book we will assist at a shockingly, beautiful, wonderful happy end!

The authors in fact, focus their attention on realities of wonderful cities that, thanks to beautiful minds, ethical, honest local administrators, philanthropists and mayors created stunning cities in grade to shining sometimes internationally, like in the case of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Copenhagen, Denmark. Other cities taken in consideration Kansas City, Missouri and so on.

The New Localism wants to be of course the answer to a central government sometimes too delusional.

The cities taken in consideration in this book adopted The New Localism  when in profound crisis, but thanks to new and bright, genial ideas, great proposals of beautiful minds of administrators, philanthropists in grade to looking forward for a best and more rich and fertile future for all their community, more work for their citizens, more chances and possibilities for youngsters, considering the constant rising of income inequality and the depression that the middle class is experiencing with less opportunities and more sacrifices in comparison with the decades before, they have been in grade, working hard and creating the best humus and strategic plans to resuscitate their realities from  the shadow where they fell in.

A wonderful book and a great reading for everyone.

Highly recommended.

I thank Eurospan for the physical copy of this book.

Anna Maria Polidori