Archive for the ‘Reviews’ Category
I have a Twitter account, but don’t tweet. Reading Hatching Twitter: A True Story of Money, Power, Friendship, and Betrayal by Nick Bilton did nothing to encourage me to embrace this social media leviathan. I was curious about Bilton’s book because I teach an Internet Media class. Undeniably, Twitter has a huge role in how society communicates. Journalists around the world demonstrate its use as a significant tool to report news. I appreciate that. However, it’s disconcerting that stories, whether personal or professional, can be condensed to 140 characters or less.
Nonetheless, Bilton’s book, while not as objective as expected from a New York Times reporter, provides insight into Twitter’s short history. All of the major players and how they became part of the little blue bird’s universe are introduced. Although many others are featured, the focus is on the four identified as Twitter’s co-founders: Evan “Ev” Williams, Jack Dorsey, Christopher “Biz” Stone, and Noah Glass. Bilton is sympathetic in his account of Glass’s involvement, which was short lived. Williams and Stone are profiled in a positive light compared to Dorsey who’s mocked for his Steve Jobs-wanna-be approach and his alone-at-the-end-of-the-day consequences.
The manner in which the story’s told is appealing. Starting in 2010 with Williams about to announce his departure as Twitter’s CEO, Bilton then offers the true beginning in 1997. The account is similar to a mystery without the murder, but plenty of intrigue and backstabbing. The reader knows what’s going to happen, but not necessarily how.
Hatching Twitter: A True Story of Money, Power, Friendship, and Betrayal
Almost Four Bookmarks
Portfolio/Penguin, 2013
302 Pages
Jabo’s Bar-Be-Q is located in a suburban Denver strip mall. It’s also the namesake of the owner who loves to talk as much as he enjoys serving his pit-smoked barbecue. What he seems to relish most is talking up his cooking.
The first thing Jabo asks is if you’ve been in before; without waiting for a response, he answers suggesting he’d remember if you had. He then gave an extensive explanation on how meats should be cooked, how different parts of the country have diverse definitions of barbecue and how he would match his sauces to our palates. My husband and I sat dumbfounded listening to what could have been perceived as a rant, but evolved into an interesting presentation. Before ordering, Jabo served a small tasting plate of that evening’s six different sauces. They ranged from super tangy to very spicy. He was more than happy to blend sauces or even kick up the heat level, if desired.
I opted for a combination of a maple and mango – yes mango. It was sweet, but not so much so that it was sugary. It complimented the fork-tender brisket served with baked beans and potato salad – the sides I selected from half a dozen.
The meal featured two “Utah Sconuts,” a cross between a sopapilla and beignet, with a dollop of honey butter. These, Jabo explained, were his wife’s contributions. We never saw her, but my guess is Jabo is the one who does most of the talking no matter who’s around.
Jabo’s Bar-Be-Q
Four Plates
9682 E. Arapahoe Rd.
Greenwood Village, Colo.
I’ve probably read half of Diane Mott Davidson’s opus of culinary mystery-lites. It’s been some time since I read the last one; I should have stopped when I was more amused by the style and content, and more tantalized by the recipes interwoven with the plot. The Whole Enchilada, the most recent adventure of Goldy Schultz the Colorado caterer, left me hungry for something of more substance.
Once again, Goldy finds herself in the midst of a murder investigation in the small, mountain community where she lives just west of Denver. The number of murders, through the years, in the small, fictional town of Aspen Meadow is impressive – but not in a good way. If I lived there, I’d consider moving. Thank goodness Goldy is there to assist the local sheriff’s department solve the crime(s).
What I’ve found entertaining in the past is Mott Davidson’s humor and the suspense she has been able to create. The who-dunit was always fun to try to name before it was ever revealed in the book, but this time the element of intrigue is absent. Perhaps this is because there are two murders, one attempted murder and several attacks on Goldy herself. It’s too much strain on the suspension of disbelief.
The recipes featured are not ones I am interested in trying myself – again, this is unlike my experience with Mott Davidson’s earlier works. If the food had been more enticing, I might have had a better appetite for what she served here.
The Whole Enchilada
Three Bookmarks
William Morrow, 2013
369 pages, including recipes
Everyone’s been talking turkey for the past week, so MacKenzie’s Chop House is a welcome change. Although there are a few tempting seafood dishes, the real focus is on red meat. The menu features an array of steaks, from New York to Porterhouse, from Filet Mignon to Ribeye. Prime Rib, Buffalo Steak, Rack of Lamb and Pork Chops round out the menu along with several side salads.
Although MacKenzie’s clearly emphasizes beef, and ours was cooked to perfection, there’s also an impressive attention to detail when it comes to service. Without hovering, the staff executed perfect timing knowing just the right moment to answer a question, to refill glasses, to remove plates, to provide a new utensil. Anticipation was personified.
Of course, this might have been for naught had the food been substandard; it wasn’t. The Spinach Salad with roasted red peppers and bacon was dressed with maple-balsamic vinaigrette. Even the House Salad was above average: mixed greens sharing the plate with balsamic-marinated apples and croutons.
Our entrees, the Prime Rib and Filet Mignon, were juicy, pink in the middle and tender. Yes, it’s true that bacon with anything is almost nirvana, but when wrapped around a piece of beef tenderloin the flavors are intensified. A baked potato and a large quantity of broccoli filled out the rest of the plate.
There were two regrettable aspects of the meal: not being informed until we were done that Crème Brulee is a house specialty and being too sated to try it.
MacKenzie’s Chop House
Four+ Plates
128 S. Tejon St.
Colorado Springs, CO
I’m very close to my mother, so I’m usually drawn to novels with strong, happy mother/daughter relationships. Carolyn Wall’s Sweeping Up Glass doesn’t fit this description, at least not the happy part. Nonetheless, this is an engaging, albeit flawed, story about family, community and racism in rural Kentucky.
Narrator Olivia Harker Cross has lived in Pope County all her life. She recounts her seemingly-idyllic childhood where her best friends are Pap, her beloved father, and Love Alice, a child-bride of color. Olivia’s mother is in a mental hospital for much of Olivia’s early life. But, tranquil accounts can get boring, which is why Wall provides conflict just when things seem to be just a little too blissful.
Ida, Olivia’s mother, returns home from the mental institute and life for the young girl loses much of its carefree charm. This single event slowly instigates an avalanche of challenges. Mother and daughter have a hellish relationship that continues into Olivia’s adulthood.
The narrative moves from Olivia’s youth to her life as a grown woman, left to care for the mother she despises and for Will’m, the grandson she cherishes. The poverty Wall describes is tangible, as is the harsh winter weather. Less, this sound completely joyless, be assured there are moments of hope and happiness. There are also vivid images of hatred and bigotry. These play against a long-held secret that once revealed shatters everything Olivia thought she knew about herself and those she loves. The problem is that all the pieces don’t quite fit.
The few missteps raise questions that trip up an otherwise compelling tale.
Sweeping Up Glass
Almost Four Bookmarks
Delta Trade Paperbacks, 2009
319 pages
A physics background isn’t necessary to appreciate Einstein’s Dreams by Alan Lightman. This terse, yet philosophical, novel offers poetic vignettes, the dreams, based on what Albert Einstein might have wrestled with in his subconscious while developing his theory of relativity.
Each dream examines an altered way of experiencing time. Some are nightmarish, some sweet, others poignant, but all are interesting possibilities that, perhaps, other people have also considered, but never articulated. For example, time standing still, literally; or the opportunity to replay time for different outcomes. A variety of perspectives toward time also fill the dreams: parents who have lost children, lovers who grow apart, a baker who grows weary of extending credit. These are fleeting moments that haunt Einstein in his waking hours.
The dreams are offset by several “interludes” in which Einstein is awake. He meets with a colleague, seemingly his only friend, from the Swiss patent office. Although there’s a sense that Einstein wants to share his dreams, he always holds back. What is most obvious in the conscious interims is Einstein’s unhappiness. He feels a sense of drowning in his job and marriage. His desire to understand time buoys him.
Lightman’s writing is imaginative yet concise. It’s easy to imagine the vivid dreams with specific street names and recurring characters. From the very first dream, which begins “Suppose time is a circle, bending back on itself. The world repeats itself, precisely, endlessly,” it’s clear the author will explore the rhythms, pain and joy that comprise life.
Einstein’s Dreams
Four Bookmarks
Vintage Contemporaries, 1993
140 pages
It’s always a good idea to wait (at least) a few weeks after a new restaurant opens to give it some time to iron out any wrinkles. I knew that Gertrude’s in Old Colorado City had closed and was going to be reincarnated as something else, but had no idea of the time frame. It turns out we wandered into Alchemy, formerly known as Gertrude’s, on its first night of business.
All that remains of the former occupant are a few wooden booths and memories. Alchemy represents a new direction: an upscale pub. The interior has been completely redone, literally right down to the brick beneath some lathe. The rumples included a slow kitchen and tentative, although friendly, servers. It was easy enough to respond gracefully; after all, it was opening night.
My husband is a Fish and Chips fan; me not so much. I decided on the Osso Bucco. I just didn’t expect it to take so long to arrive at our table – especially since once it did carrots and celery were al dente while the pork (yes pork not veal) was fork tender. Even with the missteps of crunchy vegies, the depth of flavor was augmented by a basil gremolata. Typically, parsley is the only herb, but the licorice-like hints in the basil were a nice variation. It was all served atop quinoa. The variations demonstrate confident and creative, albeit lengthy, execution by the staff.
The introduction occurred sooner than desired, but overall left a favorable first impression.
Alchemy
Four Plates
2625 W. Colorado Ave.
Colorado Springs, Colo.
Zink Kitchen+Bar is a well-kept secret. After all, who’d think to look in a Doubletree Hotel for an eclectic restaurant with a bold menu, good service and quality food? Half a dozen small plates are offered, any combination of which would make a complete meal. Our group opted for All Things Bacon as a starter. It was more than bacon, but somehow All Things Pork or even All Things Porcine doesn’t have the same ring. This indulgent plate successfully combined pork belly, maple bacon, pancetta and polenta in a mustard and dried fruit sauce.
Our server recommended the entrée items from the Wood Stone Oven: BBQ Pork Mac ‘n Cheese, Smoked Chicken Enchiladas, Vietnamese Chicken Clay Pot and Artisan Flatbread Pizza topped with sausage and red pepper. It was a culinary version of the U.N.
The Mac ‘n Cheese was thick, rich and creamy. The tangy barbecue-sauced ribs provided much needed balance. The enchiladas featured a white sauce augmented with Hatch green chile. It had a trace of a kick which allowed the chicken filling to take center stage. The sweet corn relish was a nice addition, but the side salad was superfluous. My Vietnamese Chicken wasn’t really in a clay pot. Still, it was quite good: an Asian version of chicken soup thick with Shitake mushrooms, bok choy, crispy pieces of chicken and Jasmine rice.
Zink taught me a lesson about good restaurants hiding near hotel lobbies. I won’t be so dismissive of them in the future.
Zink Kitchen+Bar Four Plates
Doubletree Denver Tech
7801 E. Orchard Rd.
Greenwood Village, Colo.
The more I read Jacqueline Winspear’s Maisie Dobbs, the more I wondered if it’s been a BBC or Masterpiece Theatre series. It’s familiar in the same way as Downton Abbey and Miss Marple: easy-to-like characters, strong spirit of place and impeccable English sensibilities.
A friend recommended Maisie Dobbs several months ago. I am thrilled that, unlike past initial encounters with mystery (in this case mystery-lite) writers, I was steered to the first in the series. Winspear’s Maisie is an exceptionally intelligent, caring young woman. Although I am sure subsequent books will provide the necessary backstory, I enjoyed meeting Maisie in the inaugural. Maisie is a private investigator in post-war London. Thanks to a benefactor, a mentor and her own gifts of curiosity and intellect, Maisie is given the opportunity to leave a life of service and pursue her education. She is out of her league on the social ladder, but is several rungs higher than most others she encounters in areas that truly matter.
Winspear begins with a small case for Maisie to investigate, which leads to a much larger issue that has the potential to impact her benefactor. Yes, it’s a fluke, but, as the author writes, “Coincidence was a messenger sent by truth.”
The distinction between classes, as indicated through the use of cockney dialect, is distracting. Winspear could easily rely on her descriptive talents to show the differences. Nonetheless, I look forward to the next adventure of Maisie Dobbs – and looking for it as a masterpiece classic.
Maisie Dobbs
Four Bookmarks
Soho Press, 2003
292 pages
Jorge’s Old Colorado City restaurant is like a younger sibling tentatively venturing out on his own while relying on the family name. The results are mixed. For years, Jorge’s Sombrero and Jorge’s Mercado have been mainstays in Pueblo for Mexican food. My dining companion, a longtime fan of the Pueblo restaurants, was pleased with upstart in Colorado Springs. I was less impressed.
When Jorge’s opened a few years ago in the old Henri’s location, it was hard to find anyone who had anything positive to say. After undergoing several months of renovation, it seemed as if the new restaurant was on track; I was ready to check it out. Perhaps if I’d had a margarita or two, I’d have enjoyed my meal more.
The menu is pretty standard: enchiladas, tacos, burritos. One especially nice feature is the ability to specify quantity. I ordered two cheese enchiladas with green sauce. The sauce was thick with chunks of pork and green chile. Unfortunately, the cheese was a solidified glob inside corn tortillas. Melted cheese should pull away like threads not bubble gum. The Avocado and Pork Burritos in green sauce were very good, just missing my benchmark: those made at El Taco Rey.
Service was slow, even on a quiet weekday. The dining rooms are dark, but the most dismal aspect was the fact that chips and salsa are not complimentary. If this is part of Jorge’s family lore, it may be time to establish some new traditions in Old Colorado City.
(Barely) Three Plates
2427 W. Colorado Ave.
Colorado Springs, Colo
The Blue Page Special 