This is a difficult book to classify. I don't think I can do it justice because while it is basically a simple idea, you really need to experience it to understand how amazing this idea turned out.

Although I loved the idea of taking photographs of recreations of meals from classic books, I was concerned the resulting book would be too insubstantial to be enjoyable. I was wrong. Each two page spread includes a picture by Dinah, a quote from the book, and some fun facts. The pictures are beautifully done, with incredible attention to detail. Since I’m not used to reading coffee table books, I initially had to make myself slow down to appreciate the pictures. I quickly became engaged enough by the pictures that I lingered over them naturally. The passages from the books complemented the pictures perfectly and the fun facts gave me a little something extra to think about. All in all, an enjoyable and beautiful book. The final product was just as cool as the premise, making this a great gift for the classic lover in your life (even if that means gifting this to yourself).

This review first published on Doing Dewey.

I LOVE this Buzzfeed quiz (which perfectly promotes the book, 'Fictitious Dishes' by Dinah Fried). The photographs are quite perfect. Have fun!

 

Quiz at the link:

http://www.buzzfeed.com/erinchack/can-you-guess-which-books-inspired-these-fictious-food

 

(my score was 7 out of 10!)