Laura Schenone

THE DOGS OF AVALON has been in my bookcase for years, and I don't know why it has taken me so long to get to it. It shouldn't have. This is an excellent book of nonfiction that anyone who cares about animals would appreciate.

Laura Schenone, the author, is not an animal advocate and, she says, is not even an animal lover. But when she adopted a family dog that was partly greyhound, she came to know Marion Fitzgibbon, a woman in Ireland who was devoting her life to the treatment of greyhound show more dogs there. THE DOGS OF AVALON is mostly about Fitzgibbon, where her concerns began and how and why they continued.

The book is also, in smaller part, about other people and their fights for humane treatment of animals. Some of these people worked with Fitzgibbon, others were people Schenone encountered. Many of them were caretakers of other animals as well.

THE DOGS OF AVALON might be difficult for some to read, especially when Schenone describes the way some animals are forced to live, their mistreatment. But please read it. It is what more people should be aware of. show less

I have an elderly friend who is absolutely crazy about helping animals. I'm told that even a few years ago she frequently had multiple animals (many of them wild) living in her home and would frequently wander into the hills to feed coyotes and feral cats. I like animals too, but never to the degree she does - it's simply something I never understood. But after reading this book, I think I understand it a little better.

I was surprised at how much this book sucked me in. While the main focus show more is on greyhounds in Ireland, it wanders pretty much all over the place. From circus tigers and bears living in a backyard to pet spider monkeys to horses and donkeys and other farm animals; from old ladies rescuing strays off the street to Irish gypsies to dog racers - it's got a wide range. Some of the stories are heartbreaking, and others highly uplifting. And it's important to note that the author isn't a crazy animal lover and activist; she's a journalist writing about the industry and animal welfare in general and she even gives a chance for the dog breeders to have their say.

I have to say I enjoyed the book more than I anticipated. It's a very thought-provoking book. (I rec'd an advance copy from the publisher.) show less

Food writer Schenone documents her quest to discover the Genoese roots of her great-grandmother’s ravioli recipe. After interviewing several aunts, uncles, and cousins, Schenone makes a couple of trips to Genoa to look for ravioli makers who still use traditional methods and ingredients.

The food history is great, but the memoir is awkward. Schenone seems reluctant to probe too deeply. It feels like she’s allowing readers into her living room, dining room, and kitchen after she’s tidied show more them up for guests, while keeping the doors to her living space firmly shut. show less

Don’t let the size and depth of the “A Thousand Years Over a Hot Stove: A History of American Women Told through Food, Recipes, and Remembrances” overwhelm you and keep you from reading this wonderfully written book. This book is an amazing history of how with women at the center of the home families and communities survived and flourished, carried from the early days of the wooly mammoth, through the days of westward movement past early Betty Crocker and dinner in a box, to todays show more return to green living, to fresh and real food in the preparation of meals. This book makes each era come alive. Not only does this book explain the hardships and challenges of food gathering and preparation as part of our history, but it also gives wonderful glimpses of women's lives during those times. It shows what amazing endurance and commitment that women had (and continue to have) as they prepared the food necessary to sustain and nurture their families and communities throughout the years.

There are recipes, stories of families and their struggles, and glimpses of history presented in a way that combines fact and storytelling and will expand your interest in those who have come before us. A wonderful book that can be read cover to cover or used as a resource and savored chapter by chapter. I loved this book and strongly recommend it. show less