Customer Reviews

The Graceful Art of Tea

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Even though this book was recommended in Tea Time magazine I was very disappointed with it. Way too much talk of God and religion - what does that have to do with afternoon tea? I got the feeling author was making a moral judgment about people who didn't agree with her point of view. And a tea recipe made with Tang instant drink, oh come on!

"The Graceful Art of Tea" is a small and thin trade-sized paperback; it has many useful tips and ideas within its ten chapters, forward, and conclusion. (My tip about tiny tea sandwiches: slice the crust before spreading the filling and cutting into smaller triangles; you'll lose less filling that way). The illustrations by Scott Heming are straight-forward, and you'll like his little bird who can convey quite a range of expressions in few pencil strokes.

I was a little surprised by the biblical quotes, and the fact that one whole chapter was devoted to starting a prayer tea; it could have been rewritten as starting a tea for any group (book club, cooking club, etiquette class, weight loss group, except the desserts would be counterproductive)--so why wasn't it? Nothing in the book's description on Amazon prepared me for the feeling of being preached at (I prefer to make my own decisions about my spirituality). I think it's the most off-putting thing about the book. I have nearly two dozen books on the culture of afternoon tea and entertaining with tea, and this is the first one I've actually seen with (what I'd consider) an overt non-tea related attitude, but that is only my opinion.

I don't like how I phrased the last sentence in the above paragraph (even after editing); I don't want to offend anyone, but, after reading through the book quickly, I was left with a bitter taste in my memory--and it wasn't from the tea.