Outline While this book is very much in the style of Martha Stewart, the parties that it depicts were planned and executed by other folks. There's a Louisiana lunch at a stately home outside Baton Rouge, complete with maquechoux oysters and pecan-crusted catfish; a garden harvest party, with mountains of vegetarian delights served in an East Hampton garden; a Vietnamese-Thai feast in a garden by the Sacramento River, with the signature flavors of Southeast Asian cooking--lime, ginger, lemongrass, chile paste--gracing spring rolls, chicken, and fish; a soul-food brunch given by an interior designer in Harlem that includes collard greens, gumbo, and sweet potato tarts. Details such as how to make lovely, lotus-like napkin folds are illustrated in "Good Things" sidebars. From the down-home barbecue in a horse arena in Marfa, Texas, to the Polynesian fantasy picnic on the beach in Maui, the key to a great party, says Martha, is caring--"about people, originality, the most attractive settings, and lovely, finely honed, time-honored traditions." And let's not forget food.
Item Specifications...
ISBN 060980099X EAN 9780609800997 UPC 090129800995
Pages 144
Dimensions: Length: 10.87" Width: 8.98" Height: 0.39" Weight: 1.28 lbs.
Release Date Nov 11, 1997
Availability 6 units. Availability accurate as of Nov 21, 2009 05:35.
Usually ships within one to two business days from La Vergne, TN.
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el libro esta muy bueno para quien quiere realizar fiestas con diferentes motivos de cocinas regionales de diferentes paises
Wonderful Party Themes Mar 6, 2007
This book is filled with an array of creative parties, there are 11 party themes ranging from simple to more elaborate. The book is also filled with many recipes, crafts, and decoration ideas; most of which are accompanied by beautiful photographs :)
I Love Theme Parties! Jan 1, 2005
Theme parties are great! Getting your guests to "dress the part" isn't at all difficult! If you want people to dress up, just inform them that it is a "themed costume party". Your guests will try to out-do each other with their creative costumes. It really makes things a lot of fun and makes decorating in a theme really worth the effort! My friends and I have one about once a month.
I think Martha is great, but no one should follow any entertaining "to the letter". These books are for just for ideas and Martha's ideas are some of the best, hence her empire.
Regarding the woman with the "waterfront property" whose party was a "fiasco", no one with a third home in Switzerland knows how to throw a party. Hence, the story is a total fraud by someone who harbors some sort of grudge. Did the shiitake gravy turn out badly for you in front of the husband's boss? She didn't realize that anyone with that much wealth would hire a professional party planner who would do all the work for them. I should know, I have a good friend is actually is a professional party planner. Whomever the "reader" with a grudge is, she's made a common nouveau riche (or no riche at all) mistake of misundersanding the role played by those in the upper classes. Marha isn't upper class (contrary to popular opinion). She's upper-middle class, the highest class who still cook at home for themselves during the holidays and for parties. Upper and lower don't mean "better" and "worse" - as class measures they're just indicators of lifestyle. Upper Middles have the most fun :)
Dreadful. Our party was almost a fiasco Jun 14, 2004
We planned a wonderful dinner party for 100 guests at our waterfront home. I hired the best chef & event planner I could find and told them to follow this book. They said they many of the things just would not work or would take forever.
We were saved at the last minute by a very resourceful neighbor who attended finishing school, graduated from Wellsley and has a third home in Switzerland.
My husband was furious and threw the book away.
Get's the juices flowing! Aug 21, 2001
Now I know that we can't all go to Texas to have an authentic Tex-Mex fiesta, but the ideas are great none the less. Who care's if no one comes dressed the part? This book is all about themes. Themes that you can manipulate and call your own. Each party is beautifully photographed and the recipes are delicious. They even offer her infamous "Good Things" as a sidebar for many of the parties. Don't let the perfection overwhelm you. This book delievers.
