Highballs High Heels: A Girls Guide to the Art of Cocktails [Hardcover]

Gideon Bosker (Author), Karen Brooks (Author), Reed Darmon (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2001

The authors of Atomic Cocktails strike again, this time with a feminine twist. Highballs High Heels combines '50s cocktail party nostalgia with career girl independence. Order up a Bikinitini when you're feeling sassy, get naughty with a cool Gin and Sin, or a Shirley Temple's Evil Twin, for those times when you just want to be left alone. And for girls with "inner" spirit, there's an entire chapter devoted to nonalcoholic drinks. In addition to the 50 fabulous swizzle-stick sensations and an essential essay on women and the art of drinking with style, this guide is also bursting with hip party-planning ideas for cocktail soires, dinners, and summer bashes, including a how-to section for setting up a swanky bar at home. Highballs High Heels is perfect for any woman longing to release her hidden grrrlll.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The '50s-style cocktail party is back in style, and it's not your father's grumpy, whiskey-sodden affair. In Highballs and High Heels: A Girl's Guide to the Art of Cocktails, the authors of Atomic Cocktails show us just how feminine this nostalgic art form can be. Karen Brooks, Gideon Bosker and Reed Darmon demystify the requisite "gadgets and gizmos" (from the cocktail shaker to the lemon zester), cocktail adornment (including the jeweled Turbinado Sugar Rim and the campy swizzle stick) and the hostess-to-die-for look (it's all about "killer heels"). Drink recipes range from now-trendy layered beverages with names like Blonde Bombshell and Stiletto Cocktail, margaritas (Venus Envy and Fallen Angelita) and others that resist easy categorization, like the grenadine-tinged Shirley Temple's Evil Twin or, for suburbanites who need soothing, the Minivan Mom Meltdown Mixer, with vodka, lemonade, Pimm's No. 1 and cucumber slices.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Gideon Bosker is an Oregon based author, photographer, and connoisseur of popular culture whose many books include Freak Show, and Fabulous Fabrics of the 50s.

Karen Brooks is an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in many national publications. She is currently the arts editor and restaurant critic for the Oregonian in Portland, Oregon.

Reed Darmon is a newspaper designer and artist.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 96 pages
• Publisher: Chronicle Books (April 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811830179
• ISBN-13: 978-0811830171
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 7.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #156,305 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #78 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Drinks & Beverages > Bartending

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ...as well as a boys guide., November 28, 2001

By 

Jose Luque (Portland, OR) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Highballs High Heels: A Girls Guide to the Art of Cocktails (Hardcover)

OK so maybe I like to wear high heels every once in a while, but that's not the only reason why I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The simple and articulate writing, the flow of the layout from page to page and the tasteful vintage-like illustrations makes this book a really great gift or just to own for yourself.

Here are a few reasons why I love this book.

#1 It looks a lot cooler than having the Sports Illustrated (Swim Suit edition) laying around.
#2 It shows that I am sensitive to certain women's issues.
#3 I finally learned how to make a decent drink.
#4 It impressed all my gay friends as well as my female friends and left all my buddies wondering (gotta love that!)
#5 It shows how I can be in touch my feminine side.

Highballs High Heels is for everyone to anyone.
A beautiful book with a very practical nature.
Do not let the title fool you.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars hip and sophisticated, November 30, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Highballs High Heels: A Girls Guide to the Art of Cocktails (Hardcover)

"Highballs High Heels" is what it says: a smart, witty cocktail guide for girls (and the authors mean anyone female, not just the young 'uns). I own this book and "Atomic Cocktails" by the same writers, and both are terrific, but "Highballs" is funkier and less basic, though still very easy to use. "Highballs" is not exclusively for women, but then, neither is "When Harry Met Sally"- it's just unlikely that men will have the same appreciation for these that we do. With recipes like Minivan Mom Meltdown Mixer and Shirley Temple's Evil Twin, these recipes are as much fun to read as they are to make. The graphics are so cool that it practically qualifies as a coffee-table book. "Highballs in High Heels" is now the first book I grab when I have the yen for a cocktail- you really can't go wrong.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Drink retro style....cheers!!, August 11, 2005

By 

Charon Guillory (California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Highballs High Heels: A Girls Guide to the Art of Cocktails (Hardcover)

My favorite parts of the book are the very retro names for the majority of the drinks. I am a fresh and new martini drinker and my boyfriend bought this book for me. Some of the drinks are familiar but tagged with different names many others are different and unheard of. This book outlines the necessities you'll need to get started. But Even for the novice martini drinker (like myself), you'll me mixing and shaking like a pro in no time.