Rating: 
Summary: A Bad Pick
Review: Apologies to my ex for giving her this book for her birthday. Very ill-advised. She let me read some of it, which I hadn't done before picking it up at a discount bookstore, and we had a laugh over how bad it is. Oh well. At least we're already broken up. I thought the book was going to encourage girls to cook for their ex-boyfriends. No such luck. Too bad I didn't know about the reviews beforehand. If there's ever a book about bad gifts given by ex-boyfriends, I'll probably be in it after this.
Rating:
Summary: A Bad Pick
Review: Apologies to my ex for giving her this book for her birthday. Very ill-advised. She let me read some of it, which I hadn't done before picking it up at a discount bookstore, and we had a laugh over how bad it is. Oh well. At least we're already broken up. I thought the book was going to encourage girls to cook for their ex-boyfriends. No such luck. Too bad I didn't know about the reviews beforehand. If there's ever a book about bad gifts given by ex-boyfriends, I'll probably be in it after this.
Rating: 
Summary: I knew they were good for something!
Review: Hint: If you want the book but feel guilty about another book purchase, pretend to be generous and buy it for your teen-aged daughter. Maybe she'll forget it when she leaves home eventually. But why didn't I think of this! There's no way that it can be classified as just a "cookbook"; after all - I paid good money for a hardback copy and didn't even have a gift certificate. And no, that was not because I was looking for a "how to cook your ex" book. Funny, insightful, poignant, it tells the story of each food featured by way of the tales of the men who introduced the authors to that particular bit of delicioso. We all gain and often lose something as a result of our relationships, however brief. The Ex-Boyfriend Cookbook: They Came, They Cooked, They Left (But We Ended Up with Some Great Recipes) explores, albeit briefly, the men, mothers, therapists, laundry meeting places, and losses while celebrating the gains in gastronomic goodies. Who knew? But while I'm on the subject, John Mark, on whatever golf course you play today, thanks for the cold tuna, rice, peas and carrots salad recipe. It outlasted my stint as country club girlfriend & even made it all the way through suburban mom-ism. I just wish there was a book category that read:
how to / relationship issues & insights / lessons learned / barbecue tips !
Rating: 
Summary: Not a Great Idea
Review: I checked this book out of the library and ended up buying it. it's great. the recipes are easy, but the stories are what make this book worth the buy. it's more like a collection of short stories than a cookbook. I swear I've dated some of those guys. a big screw you to the bad reviews...this book was great.
Rating: 
Summary: a great book
Review: I checked this book out of the library and ended up buying it. it's great. the recipes are easy, but the stories are what make this book worth the buy. it's more like a collection of short stories than a cookbook. I swear I've dated some of those guys. a big screw you to the bad reviews...this book was great.
Rating:
Summary: That Which Doesn't Kill Us, Leaves Us With Great Recipes!
Review: I heard the authors being interviewed on NPR and knew I had to get this book! They share stories from all stages of their lives, add great recipes and always make you wonder if a woman really had to endure these males. During the interview, they came clean that not all the stories came from them, but some happened to a 'freind-of-a-friend'. The fun part is trying to figure out which is which. Knowing that the two most powerful things in most of our lives are food and love, this is a clever twist on short stories. Each story has a complimentary recipe associated with it. All I have to say is you are bound to met interesting men while working at farms. (You'll have to read the stories) Who would have thought it could be such a pick-up place?!?!? I highly recommend this crafty culinary romp for the recipes and the stories. They will make you laugh, cringe, shake your head in belief (yes, not disbelief)and hungry!
Rating:
Summary: Not a Great Idea
Review: I never laughed so hard until I read the other reviewers' comments. They're right on the mark, albeit slightly exaggerated, so I'm giving a more generous two stars. I got this book as a gift from my ex-boyfriend (we're still friends). I guess he thought it would be funny or touching or something. I have to say, this was one of those What-was-he-thinking? gifts. Recipes aside, I didn't find any of the stories about these girls' past amours at all tasteful. This has the feel of a wannabe touchy-feely, upbeat chick-fic a la Bridget Jones, but doesn't come anywhere near. This would be one of the books Bridget herself would chuck in the bin. Given that the stories are (presumably) not fictitious, it comes across as a sort of sickening kiss-and-tell. If I felt like I had dated or was currently dating any of these men, I'd want to take a shower and go get tested for VD. And how is a woman reading this supposed to feel about the author's smug attitude about the guy whose mom baked her the brownies?--Now he's married or engaged to someone else (perhaps the reader!), but Mom really wanted him to marry the author because she's so wonderful. Give me a break and get over yourself. The authors' photos are on the back cover and I can't imagine they fancy themselves God's gift to mankind...have a look yourself, you'll see what I mean. Anyway, the bottom line is the book stinks.
Rating:
Summary: Ptooey!
Review: I'm utterly confused, too. What is this supposed to be?
1. This book doesn't belong in the cookbook section. Absolutely worthless on that score. A bunch of sugared-up sweets and a few other things I wouldn't feed my dog (maybe that's intentional? is that part of some inside joke?).
2. It doesn't belong in the general reading section either. If possible, even worse as a work of fictionalized who-knows-what. The "stories" that go along with the recipes are the worst kind of hack chick-fic: tedious and with an artificial flavour, much like the recipes.
If anything is worth a star about this book, it's the huge laugh I got from the review by the woman who said she put it on her women's lit reading list. Really? And they let you teach at an accredited college? Too funny.
Rating: 
Summary: Ummm.....it's a COOKBOOK, not a novel....
Review: OK, so I've read the other reviews and I'm a little confused, I was under the impression that this was a cookbook with a twist.
That's the premise under which I purchased and have used this book. I don't think the authors intended this to be a great read, just a collection of good recipes with ancedotes about the boys or men that provided the recipes.
Now, about the recipes... I have made several dishes and all have been fantastic. The recipes are divided into six categories:Sweet, Fluffy Things, Savory, Spicy, Slippery and Substantial Things. The recipes I've tried (and loved) are:
Liam's Refrigerator Cookies
Arthur's Easy Apple Dessert
Wesley's Cottage Cheese Pancakes(delicious!)
Josh's Spinach-Strawberry Salad (great for potlucks)
Will's Wonderful Wings
Sullivan's Cold Rice Salad(goes great with the wings)
Brady's Pepper cheese dip(awesome)- this recipe alone is worth the price of the book.
Ezra's Sticky Chicken -- My Favorite Recipe
If traditional cookbooks are your thing, this is not the book for you. But if you want some unique, easy and pretty darn good recipes, you won't be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: Sad, sad excuse for writing a book
Review: The NPR plug belied this trite piece of feminist fluff. The premise is cute, but the book writes itself. The authors' tales are commonplace, and the insipidity of their stories is passed off as poignancy. This book is destined for the 5 cent pile in many a garage sale.
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