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suannelaqueur's review against another edition
4.0
My parents recently went to a party where the hosts recreated the great feast from the book Babette's Feast, by Isak Dinesen. This famous meal features a dish, "Cailles en Sarcophage." Translation: Quail in Coffins. It's quail in a puff pastry shell with truffles and fois gras. I found a picture of it on Wikipedia and in my opinion, it's about the most un-romantic thing I've ever seen on a plate. If I could get beyond it looking like poultry suicide, and were inclined to make it, I do currently have the package of puff pastry in my freezer. But I still don't know how or where to get quail. What I did have however, were two cornish hens in the fridge, and Anna Shapiro's terrific book A Feast of Words. She has taken the quail dish from Babette's Feast and altered it to a more appealing Quail with Potatoes and Grapes. It sounded delicious and just the kind of special thing I was wanting to make for Valentine's Day. I didn't follow the exactly: first, Cornish hens need longer cooking time than quail. Second, I used about half the amount of butter. More here: http://suannelaqueurwrites.com/literary-eats/think-romantical-thoughts
bookpossum's review against another edition
4.0
TheMobileRead Literary bookclub's choice of "Babette's Feast" for December led me to read the book of short stories. I enjoyed the layers in the "Feast" story very much and felt for Babette, who was indeed a great artist, for having to restrict her cooking to the plainest of food for so many years.
I also enjoyed "The Immortal Story" very much; the other stories in the book did not appeal to me so much, but they were all worth reading.
I also enjoyed "The Immortal Story" very much; the other stories in the book did not appeal to me so much, but they were all worth reading.
bobbo49's review against another edition
4.0
I knew the lead story from the movie, of course, but it still sparkles and intrigues. The remaining stories are more quirky and slightly darker, somewhat magical, but beautifully written nonetheless.
letitiaharmon's review against another edition
3.0
Most famous story in this collection is Babette's feast, and it probably is the most delightful. Most of the others range from the touching to the uninteresting.
flaming_turtle's review against another edition
3.0
This is an interesting collection of stories, especially when taken in context of Blixen's life. Can't say it was necessarily my cup of tea, but it definitely kept class interesting.
kikiandarrowsfishshelf's review against another edition
5.0
All of the stories in this collection center around the idea of art and creative power. The most famous story in the collection is "Babette's Feast" and not only shows how art comes in more than one form, but also how the artist can be an unknown quality. The story "Tempests" has echos of Tennyson's "Lady of Shallot". The most touching story is "The Immortal Story" where reality and myth mix.
andrius's review against another edition
5.0
Favourites: Babette's Feast, The Immortal Story, The Ring
ecca's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0