Whimsically illustrated, this bite-sized bestiary is the deciding vote on which fantastical creatures are kosher. Embarking on an undomesticated romp from A to Z, the ritual cleanliness of E.T., hobbits, Mongolian Death Worms, and the elusive chupacabra are discussed. This hilarious kashrut is the offspring of a debate that began on Jeff Vandermeer’s blog, between his alter-ego, Evil Monkey, and his editor/wife. Addressing questions such as Is a vegetable-lamb a vegetable or a lamb? Does licking the Pope make you trayf? What exactly is a Pollo Maligno? and Is Sasquatch roast stringy? this irreverent abecedary is a perfect gift for anyone seeking to broaden their imaginary culinary experiences guilt-free. The guide also features Duff Goldman of the popular series Ace of Cakes.
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Editorial Reviews
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"Funny and thoughtful and totally absurd . . . This book is the most fun I've had in a while." —San Francisco Book Review
"Delightful . . . tremendously helpful if you ever wake up and find yourself a character in a fantasy novel." —Jewcy.com
"Witty." —Jewish Humor Central
"Lively and quirky and funny—wildly amusing." —My Jewish Learning.com
"This slim and silly volume is the ideal gift for anyone who has tried to make a saving throw vs. petrification using a dreidel." —io9.com
"Amusement, amazement and culinary benefit . . . It's fun, it's funny, it has a monster on just about every other page." —The Agony Column
"Entertaining." —The San Antonio Current
"Brilliantly illustrated . . . refreshing." —New Mexican
About the Author
Ann VanderMeer is the fiction editor for Weird Tales and the founder of Buzzcity Press and Silver Web magazine. Jeff VanderMeer has been involved in the publishing industry for more than twenty-five years and in many capacities. His award-winning novels have been published in fifteen languages and his nonfiction has appeared in the Washington Post, the Barnes & Noble Review, and the Huffington Post. He is a regular contributor to Amazon’s book blog Omnivorous and his short fiction has appeared in Wired. He is an editor of anthologies for Bantam, Pan Macmillan, and Tachyon (The New Weird, Steampunk). He has conducted master-classes and given workshops all over the world including at the Brisbane Arts Center in Australia and the University of California at San Diego. VanderMeer is also a frequent guest at such multi-media venues as Utopiales in France, the Bumbershoot Festival in Seattle. He lives in Tallahassee, Florida.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Okay, this slender little book charmed my socks right off! That's a fact. And I write reviews of every book I read. Another fact. But for some reason I'm having a difficult time articulating exactly why I enjoyed this light-hearted gift so much. I think it's actually because there's quite a bit packed into this small package. What I can tell you is this: It brought a smile to my face when I was well and truly blue.
After a couple of very brief prefaces, the bulk of the book is made up of an alphabetical listing of fantastic creatures. There are 34 total, each with a two-page spread. Squeezed neatly into those two pages is a charming black and white illustration of a critter; a colorful description of its history, origin, habitat, etc.; and the "Evil Monkey Dialogues." Despite the bizarre name, this is simply a little light kibbitzing between husband and wife authors Jeff and Ann VanderMeer on the presumed kosherness of said creature. She's a member of the tribe, he's the Evil Monkey.
Of the 34 creatures covered, I was familiar with about a dozen of them. Some were as basic as a Dragon or Mermaid or Sea Monkey, but other creatures were exotic beasts from far away lands and cultures like the Jotai, the Encantado, and the Abumi-Guchi. I'm fairly positive at least one, the Borges, was made up entirely in the authors' imagination. As it happened, that was my favorite listing in the book.
After the creature listings, the final section of the book was discussion with chef/baker Duff Goldman about how one might prepare these creatures, kosher and treyf alike. Now I've never seen his TV show, Ace of Cakes, but he must be an entertaining guy because he's got a delightful sense of humor and a whimsical streak a mile wide. Not only does he discuss the creatures featured previously in the book, but he improvises with other imaginary animals. In fact, he may be a closet sci-fi fan, because he proposes recipes for a Chewbacca and a Tribble, which, let's face it, is pretty much a hairy Rocky Mountain oyster.
My copy of this book had a delightful bonus. Tucked inside were three postcards that the publisher had used for promotional purposes. They were recipe cards for the preparation of Mongolian Death Worm and other culinary delicacies.
I'll tell you what, this little tchotchke is the perfect gift for the person in your life who could use a little more whimsy, a little more magic, and a little more laughter--even if that person is you. I can only hope there's a second volume on the way!
After a couple of very brief prefaces, the bulk of the book is made up of an alphabetical listing of fantastic creatures. There are 34 total, each with a two-page spread. Squeezed neatly into those two pages is a charming black and white illustration of a critter; a colorful description of its history, origin, habitat, etc.; and the "Evil Monkey Dialogues." Despite the bizarre name, this is simply a little light kibbitzing between husband and wife authors Jeff and Ann VanderMeer on the presumed kosherness of said creature. She's a member of the tribe, he's the Evil Monkey.
Of the 34 creatures covered, I was familiar with about a dozen of them. Some were as basic as a Dragon or Mermaid or Sea Monkey, but other creatures were exotic beasts from far away lands and cultures like the Jotai, the Encantado, and the Abumi-Guchi. I'm fairly positive at least one, the Borges, was made up entirely in the authors' imagination. As it happened, that was my favorite listing in the book.
After the creature listings, the final section of the book was discussion with chef/baker Duff Goldman about how one might prepare these creatures, kosher and treyf alike. Now I've never seen his TV show, Ace of Cakes, but he must be an entertaining guy because he's got a delightful sense of humor and a whimsical streak a mile wide. Not only does he discuss the creatures featured previously in the book, but he improvises with other imaginary animals. In fact, he may be a closet sci-fi fan, because he proposes recipes for a Chewbacca and a Tribble, which, let's face it, is pretty much a hairy Rocky Mountain oyster.
My copy of this book had a delightful bonus. Tucked inside were three postcards that the publisher had used for promotional purposes. They were recipe cards for the preparation of Mongolian Death Worm and other culinary delicacies.
I'll tell you what, this little tchotchke is the perfect gift for the person in your life who could use a little more whimsy, a little more magic, and a little more laughter--even if that person is you. I can only hope there's a second volume on the way!
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This book is Very Highly Recommended (!!!), as it is quite simply guaranteed to bring the joy of laughter into your life.
Described as `whimsical', it could also be accurately called `wonderful' or `delightful', even `delicious' (pardon the pun) and despite my goy-dom, I thoroughly enjoyed getting in touch with my Inner Jew for the duration this book. All 34 Imaginary Animals contained in this bite-sized book (Darn! There I go again!), are wonderfully illustrated and each and every entry features an extremely funny short dialogue between Ann and Jeff's devilishly twisted alter ego, Evil Monkey. When I wasn't chuckling outright, I was smiling all the way through, and even, most unusually for me, the book provoked five or six out-loud belly laughs. Make sure you don't miss out on the hilarious exchange between Ann and Celebrity Chef Duff Goldman at the end on the proper way to cook imaginary animals - you'll never think of Cherubs, Cthulhu or Tribbles in exactly the same way again!
In addition to the content, when you consider the production values (this book is a properly bound (stitched), dust-jacketed hardcover that will last for years through many readings), the value-to-money-spent-ratio becomes even higher.
A great gift idea and an ideal way to while away a couple of idle hours.
Sequel! Sequel!
Described as `whimsical', it could also be accurately called `wonderful' or `delightful', even `delicious' (pardon the pun) and despite my goy-dom, I thoroughly enjoyed getting in touch with my Inner Jew for the duration this book. All 34 Imaginary Animals contained in this bite-sized book (Darn! There I go again!), are wonderfully illustrated and each and every entry features an extremely funny short dialogue between Ann and Jeff's devilishly twisted alter ego, Evil Monkey. When I wasn't chuckling outright, I was smiling all the way through, and even, most unusually for me, the book provoked five or six out-loud belly laughs. Make sure you don't miss out on the hilarious exchange between Ann and Celebrity Chef Duff Goldman at the end on the proper way to cook imaginary animals - you'll never think of Cherubs, Cthulhu or Tribbles in exactly the same way again!
In addition to the content, when you consider the production values (this book is a properly bound (stitched), dust-jacketed hardcover that will last for years through many readings), the value-to-money-spent-ratio becomes even higher.
A great gift idea and an ideal way to while away a couple of idle hours.
Sequel! Sequel!
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Jeff VanderMeer and his wife Ann have come up with a winner this time. Let's take some imaginary animals, and try to decide whether they would be kosher or not. Add to each animals descriptions a conversation between Evil Monkey (Jeff) and Ann in an IM format and you've got the table set for a belly full of laughs.
Imagine such creatures as Abumi-Guchi, Akaname, Jaud, or Shedim; bring in the legend and a tale of them, and follow up with a hysterical commentary and you'll have this adorable book. Reminiscent of VanderMeer's `The Thackery T. Lambshead Pocket Guide To Imaginary Diseases', this thin volume of imaginary animals is bound to entertain you. Perfect to keep in the purse for those waits at the doctor or DMV, you shouldn't allow yourelf to miss out on this extraordinary treat of literature. Enjoy!
Imagine such creatures as Abumi-Guchi, Akaname, Jaud, or Shedim; bring in the legend and a tale of them, and follow up with a hysterical commentary and you'll have this adorable book. Reminiscent of VanderMeer's `The Thackery T. Lambshead Pocket Guide To Imaginary Diseases', this thin volume of imaginary animals is bound to entertain you. Perfect to keep in the purse for those waits at the doctor or DMV, you shouldn't allow yourelf to miss out on this extraordinary treat of literature. Enjoy!
Most Recent Customer Reviews
1.0 out of 5 stars
Disappointing.
Just didn't find it funny. Most of the animals are so obscure it doesn't really make for an interesting book. Read more
Published 17 months ago by a mom
3.0 out of 5 stars
To eat or not to...
As a seriously kosher individual (4 sets of dishes, pots, draining boards, sponges, etc. I was quite disappointed in the rather cursory way in which the individual creatures were... Read more
Published on November 7, 2010 by saba6
3.0 out of 5 stars
Amusing but Slight
I received this book yesterday and read it in an hour or two. It's a really fun idea, in which the two authors ( a couple) contemplate various types of mythical beasts and whether... Read more
Published on March 23, 2010 by Colleen McMahon
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