Amazon.in:Customer reviews: How To Eat: The Pleasures and Principles of Good Food (Vintage Classics Anniversary)

Reviewed in India on 4 July 2021

I ordered the product online. I got a message saying my payment failed. So i ordered again on COD terms. And now got two of the same item- one paid and one COD! Your computer systems are clearly not working

Helpful

Alabastron

A wonderful book, but impossible to read or use, thanks to mean, cost-cutting production

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 19 October 2018

Verified Purchase

I'm afraid that this anniversary paperback edition of Nigella's lovely book is a disgrace to the publishing profession. Having worked for many years in the business, I can almost hear the editorial/production/sales meeting as the edition was in the planning stage. "What's the optimum price at which this book will sell?" says the Editor. "14.99" says the Sales Manager. "Right", says the Editorial Director". "I'll cost it", says the Production Manager. Working from that price, they work out how to produce the book for it. If the optimum price agreed at the meeting is too low, but isn't corrected at a subsequent meeting, quality suffers. Cheap paper stock is chosen, and as has happened here, is shaved down to the minimum dimensions that will accommodate the text. Almost no margin is left at the heads of the pages, and no margins at all in the gutter. "Gutter" is the term that describes the margins at the inside edges of the pages. If these margins are inadequate, the words at the ends of lines disappear into the gutter and cannot be comfortably read without bending the book back and breaking the spine - not something that anyone who loves books would dream of doing.

I wanted to keep this anniversary paperback edition at Amazon's great price of £10.99 because I love the brilliant cover design. So I tried. But after half an hour of trying to read the book my hands hurt from holding it, and my eyes hurt from peering into the gutter. So I've returned it, and have ordered the hardback. It should be fine: its quoted dimensions - 19.6 x 4 x 25.4 cm as against the paperback's 15.3 x 4 x 21.6 cm - tell me that there will be plenty of space surrounding the words on each page, and an ample gutter. And there is a good chance that it will lie flat so that I can use it to cook something if I want to. It costs £8 more, but it will be worth it.

Vintage have been in the book-making business for a very long time, as have Clays, who printed and bound the book. Both ought to have known better than to offer such a mean, stingy production job, useless as a book to read or to use, and an insult to its author and its readers.

172 people found this helpful

Orangehazy

Mmmm.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 24 May 2020

Verified Purchase

I haven’t read it yet but a cookbook without pictures or illustration doesn’t inspire me. I should have checked more closely before I ordered it. This probably means I’m not a ‘foodie’. I can live with that. I do like reading good prose though so I’m sure I will take something away from it.

6 people found this helpful

BiggKitty

What a horrid edition

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 19 May 2021

Verified Purchase

of what is probably a wonderful book. The paper is cheap and nasty and the whole thing did not encourage me to even open the book, was sent back for refund.

Mary Wood Power

Dissapointed

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 2 October 2019

Verified Purchase

Not very happy. The book was damaged on the front but could live with that, but just sat down to read it and the back cover is coming away from the main book. Really dissapointed. I never leave reviews good or bad but l feel this is necessary so other people won't waste there money purchasing this hard back version

2 people found this helpful

Simon

Book was unreadable

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 1 October 2021

Verified Purchase

The media could not be loaded.

The book arrived with the binder the wrong way round, making the book unreadable. It has also been done upside down. Please send me a replacement

Amazon Customer

Returned: Badly Printed, wondering how anyone at Vintage thought this ok.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 4 June 2021

Verified Purchase

Might be a good book. But most of is buried somewhere deep in the spine of the book. Too much time spent thinking about eating and not enough time spent thinking about printing books.

A Jenkinson

Shoddy Front Cover Flap

Reviewed in Australia on 5 December 2020

Verified Purchase

Regretting purchasing the paperback version. Shoddy front cover flap - at first read, the front cover starting to peel from the top. 3rd of the way in and the split is halfway down the front cover.... Not happy with quality...

H.G.

What's the point for having a cook book with no pictures of food cooked?

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 2 August 2013

Verified Purchase

I was really excited for this book as have a couple of Nigella's cookbooks and they have always been foolproof at the very least. To my horror, this book is one heavy baroquesque Nigella-style ramble that is difficult to follow and stand alltogether (all those 'emerald entanglements' of leeks or 'rather gorgeous naughtinesses' of mushy peas... you get the picture). Almost 3 kg of it.

But the worst of all is that there are NO PICTURES of food anywhere in the book (apart from occassional potato or boiled egg for 'decorative' purposes), which, given that Nigella cookbooks paved the way of illustrated guideliness to cooking, is surprising at least. Whether the recipes are any good - I have no idea, Nigella's ramble effectively prevented me from getting through.

In a nutshell, a huge waste of money and a giant headache. I honestly wish I had a fireplace - I could use it as kindling.

7 people found this helpful

B J Dixon

Disappointing.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 1 May 2018

Verified Purchase

Not impressed. Bought this second hand as it was out of print and was the only Nigella cookbook I didn’t have. I wish I hadn’t bothered. Firstly, the condition of the book was stated as being ‘very good’ when in fact it was very poor indeed. Fair enough, it was second hand, but don’t try and claim it is of good quality when it blatantly isn’t. Unfortunately I don’t like the book either. It isn’t really a cookbook, it is more of a cookery manual/bedtime read with absolutely no photos of any finished dishes whatsoever. It is long winded and rambling and really difficult to follow. I can’t understand the rave reviews about it and I am a massive Nigella fan and love all her books and recipes. This sadly did not live up to expectations.

2 people found this helpful

5 star		71%
4 star		13%
3 star		8%
2 star		3%
1 star		4%

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