Nasty Bits: Collected Varietal Cuts, Usable Trim, Scraps, and Bones
Author: Anthony Bourdain
In the multiweek New York Times bestseller The Nasty Bits, bestselling chef and No Reservations host Anthony Bourdain serves up a well-seasoned hellbroth of candid, often outrageous stories from his worldwide misadventures. Whether surviving a lethal hot pot in Chengdu, splurging on New York’s priciest sushi, or singing the praises of Ecuadorian line cooks and Hell’s Kitchen dives, Bourdain is as provocative, engaging, and opinionated as ever. The Nasty Bits is an irresistible tasting menu of food writing at its outrageous best—served up Bourdain style.
The New York Times - Bruce Handy
Bourdain is a vivid and witty writer, but his greatest gift is his ability to convey his passion for professional cooking — "this thing of ours," he calls it, a touch melodramatically, in tribute to La Cosa Nostra. With one eye on the kitchen and the other on the dining room, he never loses sight of how the terrestrial inevitably informs the divine.
Publishers Weekly
In this typically bold effort, Bourdain (Kitchen Confidential), like the fine chef he is, pulls together an entertaining feast from the detritus of his years of cooking and traveling. Arranged around the basic tastes: salty, sweet, sour, bitter and umami (a Japanese term for a taste the defies description), this scattershot collection of anecdotes puts Bourdain's brave palate, notorious sense of adventure and fine writing on display. From the horrifying opening passages, where he joins an Arctic family in devouring a freshly slaughtered seal, to a final work of fiction, the text may disappoint those who've come to expect more honed kitchen insights from the chef. Surprisingly, though, the less substantive kitchen material Bourdain has to work from only showcases his talent for observation. This book isn't for the effete foodies Bourdain clearly despises (though they'd do well to read it). He criticizes celebrity chefs, using Rocco DiSpirito as a "cautionary tale," and commends restaurants that still serve stomach-turning if palate-pleasing dishes, such as New York's Pierre au Tunnel (now closed), which offered t te de veau, essentially "calf's face, rolled up and tied with its tongue and thymus gland." Fans of Bourdain's hunger for the edge will gleefully consume this never-boring book. Author tour. (May)
Library Journal
Bourdain does not suffer fools, airplane food, or pretension wisely. His latest non-cookbook-an essay collection divided into the flavors of salty, sweet, bitter, sour, and umami-makes for highly entertaining and sometimes shocking reading. Readers, in turn, will encounter a range of thoughts, from a challenging description of a seal being butchered for food to musings on Brazilian street food and the unsung French bistro classics like Rongons de Veau Dijonnaise and Tripes a la Mode de Caen and other old-fashioned dishes that some might feel are the "nasty bits" indeed. Lovers of adventurous culinary experiences will find much to whet their appetites here, and those who loathe the celebrity chef phenomena will find a friend in Bourdain. At the book's close are commentaries on the essays (many were previously published), which give the author the opportunity to revisit some strongly expressed opinions. His passion for food, pungent writing, and knowledge of the culinary world make this an excellent purchase for most public libraries.-Shelley Brown, Richmond P.L., Vancouver, B.C.
Kirkus Reviews
The globetrotting, guerrilla TV chef of ill repute serves up some journalistic odds and ends. A garrulous, sublimely talented chap with an eminently respectable couple of New York brasseries and a load of opinions to spare, Bourdain (A Cook's Tour, 2001, etc.) remains an anomaly in the Food Network era. Instead of running a chain of big-ticket, big-ego eateries, he roams the world consuming massive quantities of strange food and prodigious drink, adding snarky commentary and turning it all into a TV show of sorts. Along the way, he writes for several publications, from Gourmet to the Los Angeles Times; a good selection of those writings are collected here. Subjects include other celebrity chefs (Rocco DiSpirito "messed with the bitch goddess celebrity and got burned"), the best bars for adrenaline-jacked kitchen crews to get hammered in the wee hours (in Chicago, it's Matchbox) and the proper definition of cooking ("a cult of pain"); somehow it all flows together with nary a seam in view. But there is some repetition and, unlike most writers with an edge, he's better at being nice. Scourging attacks sometimes fall flat for lack of variety, while puff pieces offer the finest examples of foodie enthusiasm. Indulging in Masa Takayama's insanely expensive sushi is "like having sex with two five-thousand-dollar-a-night escorts at the same time-while driving an Aston Martin." The unfathomable wizardry of Spain's mad-chef genius Ferran Adria is "hugely enjoyable, challenging to the world order, innovative, revolutionary."A vibrant discourse on satisfying hungers of every kind.
The Machu Picchu Guidebook: A Self-Guided Tour: Revised Edition
Author: Ruth M Wright
Machu Picchu is one of the world's great travel destinations. Built in the mid-fifteenth century by Incan royalty and "re-discovered" by Hiram Bingham in 1911, this awe-inspiring site in the Andes of Peru is the stuff of legends. The Machu Picchu Guidebook has proven to be one of the most successful and acclaimed guidebooks to the popular archaeological treasure. In this comprehensive traveler's guide, the authors offer an almost step-by-step tour of the world-renowned Inca city, keyed to a detailed, full-color foldout map. This fully-updated and revised edition features a new artist's rendition of Machu Picchu, presented as a three-page foldout in glorious color. The painting, which first appeared as a supplement to National Geographic magazine, brings Machu Picchu to life by depicting the royal retreat as it appeared on the June 21st solstice ceremony in the year 1530, at the height of the Inca empire. Further additions include a much-expanded chapter on the holy mountain of Huayna Picchu and an all-new chapter on the birds of Machu Picchu, which includes such species as the Inca wren, found only at this site. Whether you have three hours or three days to spend at Machu Picchu, this book is the one indispensable guide. No traveler should be without it.
Library Journal
Machu Picchu is one of the most stunning archaeological sites on Earth. Located in the heart of the Andes in Peru, this five-centuries-old Incan relic attracts some 300,000 tourists yearly. Yet the significance of the site itself is difficult to unravel without a lot of personal knowledge or a comprehensive guidebook. Wright, who has studied the site for 25 years and has worked at Machu Picchu since 1994, and Zegarra (anthropology and archaeology, Univ. of Cuzco) have teamed up to produce a handy book for visitors who wish to guide themselves at their own pace through the site. A bound-in, fold-out color archaeological map of Machu Picchu keyed to the book's chapters and an array of black-and-white as well as color photographs will help users find and navigate the site easily and not depend on fractured live tour guide information. After reading this book, you will want to hop on the next flight to Peru. If you are unlucky enough never to visit Machu Picchu, the guide will serve as an excellent virtual tour. Recommended for general travel collections. Olga B. Wise, Compaq Computer Corp., Austin, TX
Booknews
This guide presents sensible advice, clear directions, and an in- depth, knowledgeable tour through this incredible site. Wright has spent many years studying Machu Picchu with her husband (their affiliations are not given); Zegarra teaches archaeology and anthropology at the U. of Cusco in Peru. The guide is copiously illustrated with b&w photos and includes a fold out archaeological map. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
Internet Book Watch
Built in the mid-fifteenth century by Inca royalty and found by Hiram Bingham in 1911, Machu Picchu has become one of South America's premier travel destinations, experienced by more than 300,000 tourists every year. Ruth Wright and her husband Ken Wright of Wright Water Engineers were granted a permit in 1994 from the Instituto Nacional de Cultura de Peru to study this famous site and teamed up with resident Machu Picchu archaeologist Alfredo Valencia Zegarra to create the most authoritative, detailed, and up-to-date guide currently available to the general public. The Machu Picchu Guidebook is specifically designed to be used as a do-it-yourself tour book enhanced with a full-color fold-out map and 150 illustrations. Whether as an armchair traveler with an interest in Incan culture and artifacts, or an on-site visitor seeking to explore the marvelous wonder of this ancient Incan city, The Machu Picchu Guidebook is a rewarding, "reader friendly" guide to this grandly designed archaeological treasure.
Table of Contents:
| Travel Tips | vii | |
| Preface to the Revised Edition | xiii | |
| Preface to the First Edition | xv | |
| Introduction | 1 | |
| The Guardhouse and the Terrace of the Ceremonial Rock | 6 | |
| The Western Urban Sector | 15 | |
| The Main Gate and Conjunto 1 | 15 | |
| The Temple of the Sun, the Royal Mausoleum, and Conjunto 2 | 20 | |
| The Royal Residence (Conjunto 3) | 35 | |
| The Rock Quarry | 40 | |
| The Sacred Plaza (Conjunto 4) | 44 | |
| The Intiwatana (Conjunto 5) | 51 | |
| The Eastern Urban Sector | 59 | |
| The Sacred Rock (Conjunto 6), the Unfinished Temple, and the Petroglyph (Peripheral Area C) | 60 | |
| Conjuntos 7 and 8 and the Unfinished Wall | 66 | |
| The Three Doorways (Conjunto 9) and the Artisans' Wall | 68 | |
| Group of the Mortars (Conjuntos 14, 15, and 16) | 72 | |
| Conjuntos 10 and 11 | 80 | |
| Conjunto 12 | 82 | |
| Conjunto 13 and Intimachay | 84 | |
| The Temple of the Condor (Conjunto 17) and Conjunto 18 | 87 | |
| Various Sights on the Way Out | 94 | |
| The Mummies | 103 | |
| Inca Water Management | 106 | |
| Recently Discovered Inca Trail Down to the Urubamba River | 112 | |
| Side Trips | 117 | |
| Inca Drawbridge | 117 | |
| Intipunku (Gate of the Sun) | 119 | |
| Huayna Picchu, including Una Picchu and Alternate Trail to the Temple of the Moon | 130 | |
| Temple of the Moon | 148 | |
| Machu Picchu Mountain | 152 | |
| Winay Wayna | 155 | |
| The Birds of Machu Picchu | 159 | |
| Acknowledgments | 163 | |
| Figure Credits | 165 | |
| Glossary | 167 | |
| References | 168 | |
| Suggested Reading | 171 | |
| Index | 173 |
