Category Archives: 2021

Party Ideas to Welcome 2022

2021, Cookbook, Cooking, Dinner Inspo, Eating, Food, Holiday, Recipe Books, Summer

Start 2022 in an upbeat mood with delicious food and drink. Whether you are staying home or travelling, keeping things low-key or expecting a crowd, now is the time to take a break, mark the end of this eventful year, and make wishes for the next. And to help you relax, Team Booko has done the work for you, and gathered some great food and drink ideas for this holiday season:

Gin Made Me Do It: 60 Beautifully Botanical Cocktails by Jassy Davis

If you’re excited about the profusion of flavoured gins available, but don’t know where to start, Jassy Davis is here to help you. In Gin Made Me Do It, gin aficionado and cocktail maven Jassy Davis explains everything you need to know: how to choose the perfect blend, mix the ultimate martini, and deliver delicious cocktails for every occasion. Her recipes range from classics such as the Aviator and the Vesper, to more adventurous styles incorporating yuzu, to recipes for DIY gin infusions . Gin Made Me Do It showcases the versatile potential of gin – its refreshing herbaceousness isn’t just for summer refreshment, but can add depth and flavour to cocktails for any season and occasion.

Celebrate: Plant-Based Recipes for Every Occasion by Bettina Campolucci Bordi

Celebrate does what its title says – it offers a collection of delicious plant-based recipes for special occasions and entertaining. Each section offers a complete menu for an occasion such as Christmas, Halloween, birthdays, or picnics. Bettina Campolucci Bordi has focussed on making her recipes accessible and affordable, focussing on common, seasonal produce and not relying on exotic ingredients; she also shows us clever ways to maximise yield and minimise kitchen waste. Sugar-free, gluten-free, free-from and seasonal alternatives are provided for each recipe, so nobody is excluded. Whether you or your loved ones are vegan, vegetarian, flexitarian, or just want some inspiration for plant-based dishes, this will become your go-to guide!

Zero Proof: 90 Non-alcoholic Drinks for Mindful Drinking by Elva Ramirez

No-alcohol and low-alcohol drinks are a major trend right now, driven by a desire for healthier, more mindful drinking. In Zero Proof, Elva Ramirez, walks us through a range of non-alcoholic craft cocktails as imagined by top bars in London, New York, Paris, Mexico City and more. From refreshing botanicals to spicy herbals and velvety chocolate flavours, these lush and sophisticated recipes showcase the creativity of top bartenders, who strive to recreate the full sensations and elegant cocktail experience without the alcohol. Zero Proof offers plenty of inspiration, as well as a wealth of techniques, on how to take your zero-proof drinks to the next level.

Poppy Cooks: The Food You Need by Poppy O’Toole

Tiktok sensation Poppy O’Toole is the real deal – behind her entertaining cooking videos (100 million views and counting), cheerful personality and her infectious enthusiasm for potatoes (she calls herself the Potato Queen), lie some serious (Michelin-trained) chef skills. And now, in Poppy Cooks, she offers the full details on how to recreate her unfussy-but-totally-delicious dishes. Poppy Cooks is divided into twelve sections, each starting with a core skill/recipe – such as pasta sauce, roast chicken or salad dressing; she then shows how each core recipe can be used to create other types of dishes – the Staple, the Brunch, the Potato Hero and the Fancy AF recipes for entertaining. Perfect for novice cooks (especially teens and young adults) wanting to learn some great standby dishes, as well as the skills and confidence to adapt them to suit any and every occasion.

The Martini: Perfection in a Glass by Matt Hranek

Martinis are one of the best-known cocktails in the world – but there’s much more to them than that “shaken-not-stirred” mythology.  Man-about-town Matt Hranek (who has already written about another iconic drink, The Negroni), is here to share his enthusiasm and knowledge about everything martini-related, from its nineteenth-century-origins, to the low-down on ingredients (Matt Hranek favours the classic gin martini over vodka), methods, garnish, equipment, and glassware; and to where to get the best martinis around the world. There are also recipes for 35 different variations, from famous bars, famous drinkers, and the author’s own repertoire. The stylish photography matches the sophistication of this deliciously simple drink. The Martini makes a handy reference for your drinks collection, as well as an elegant gift for fans of the drink.

The Kitchen Studio: Culinary Creations by Artists by Phaidon Editors

Is The Kitchen Studio an art book or a cookbook? Maybe it’s both – with a bit of autobiography thrown in. The Kitchen Studio is the result of asking 70 acclaimed contemporary artists to contribute their most exquisite and meaningful culinary creations. Some have responded literally, with family recipes such as chickpea pancakes; others have done so professionally, showing the art they have been creating with food; while others have tackled the brief playfully and with political awareness, such as the “patriotic jelly” in red, white and blue, studded with toy soldiers. The Kitchen Studio is an unexpected, creative and fascinating fusion of food and art; incorporating a range of sketches, photographs, collages, paintings, and personal snaps, each contribution is intensely personal, offering glimpses of the artist’s history, influence as well as their artistic practice.

Last Minute Christmas Ideas

2021, Christmas, Download of the Day, eBooks, Gifts, Top Tips, , , , , , , , , , ,

Need to organise a last minute gift?  Perhaps you have missed the postal deadline, or your original gift is delayed in the post; or maybe you have an unexpected guest, or are out of ideas for someone hard-to-buy-for.  Luckily, the internet has given us more options to make like we’ve had it planned all along.  You can send specific eBooks, eAudiobooks, safely and almost instantaneously, with just a few clicks; to find the availability and best prices of eBooks and eAudiobooks, simply click on the “Audiobook” or “eBook” edition buttons below the book title when you are searching on Booko.  (See the screenshot below)

If you have found the perfect book, but know that it won’t get to your recipient in time, you can try the eGIFT option at Boomerang Books .  Their eGIFT certificate is a PDF which includes the details of the book(s) you have bought, plus you can add a personalised message. The eGift PDF will be emailed to you with your order confirmation – you can then print or forward this PDF to your recipient.  This is also a great way to give a pre-order book – your loved one will become one of the first to receive it when it is released!  To use this eGIFT service, search Booko as usual, click through to the Boomerang Books listing (taking note of Booko’s voucher code!):

add to cart at the Boomerang website, then select eGift during checkout:

Booko’s Guide to Gift Certificates
Booko has compiled a list of gift certificates offered by book retailers from around the world.  These are a great way to buy for someone overseas, or someone who is hard to buy for.  (And also great for young children, who might love the idea of choosing a book by themselves!)  If you are interested in supporting local / small businesses this Christmas, many of your favourite local / indie bookstores also offer electronic gift certificates – contact them for details.   Besides physical books / eBooks and eAudio, many bookstores will allow you to redeem other stock using their gift certificates.  To give you some inspiration (and to shout-out to some of Team Booko’s favourite local and independent bookstores), here are some unusual and lovely gift ideas that can be redeemed using gift vouchers:

Book Bundle subscriptions
The Little Bookroom is a Melbourne icon and probably one of the best specialist children’s bookstores in Australia.  They have a huge range catering to ages and stages from babies to YA; and they have super-knowledgeable staff who can offer suggestions, or even track down particular books or editions.  Besides a classic gift voucher, you can also purchase subscriptions to Book Bundles, which will send your recipient three hand-picked books every three months.  Six different age categories, from toddlers to teens, are available.

Limited Edition Art Prints
Alison Lester offers limited edition prints of her picture book art through her online store.  The prints come from a range of her popular books, including Magic Beach and Kissed by the Moon, and depicts childhood with great humour and insight.  Her store also offers signed copies of her books, t-shirts, and mugs as well children’s crockery sets.  All items from Alison’s store can be redeemed using her email gift card.

eBook Readers
eReaders offer us Booklovers new and convenient ways to read – even if we still love the feel of a physical book in our hands. They are compact and lightweight, have a huge amount of storage (most models can store thousands of titles), and can offer customisation including large font, dark mode and even Read Aloud, to help improve your reading experience.  And you can get download books instantly upon purchase. The Kobo family of eReaders are particularly popular amongst those who buy eReaders for young readers – the e-Ink screen is comfortable to read; they can display eBooks from a range of stores including Google, Booktopia, and Dymocks as well as Kobo’s own store; and you can also use Kobos to access free eBooks from participating public libraries. 

Have a Clever Christmas with Booko: Teacher Gift Guide

2021, Christmas, Gifts, Learning, School, Top Books, Top Tips

It is that time of the year when teachers all over the world are gifted scented candles, thoughtful handmade cards and lovingly baked cookies from the children they have been spending their days with. We love our teachers and firmly believe they do an amazing job. 

However, the past two years have been quite possibly the hardest of all. There have been many disruptions in the classroom with numerous lockdowns due to COVID which resulted in homeschooling, zoom sessions, virtual PE and music lessons, on top of online assemblies while wrestling with over-loaded wifi. 

We thought it may be nice to share something a little extra special with the teachers in your children’s lives this year and have rounded up a few books that aim to help them relax, and even learn a little something themselves, this Summer. 

House Planted: Choosing, Growing and Styling the Perfect Plants for Your Space by Lisa Muñoz

Green up your living space with this bright, fresh, stylish introduction to choosing, caring for, and designing with houseplants. Get ready to transform your humble abode! Whether you have a funky bohemian den, a chic minimalist loft, or a closet-sized rental, indoor plants will bring a whole new level of warmth, comfort, and style into your home. In House Planted, interior plant designer Lisa Munoz guides you step by step and room by room through picking the perfect plant for the perfect spot and incorporating plants into your indoor decor. You’ll find info on plants that are hard to kill, hanging plants, succulents, air plants, and more. There are creative ideas for displaying plants, tips on caring for your new leafy friends, and primers on potting and troubleshooting. Casual and easy-going, with attainable styles and simple instructions, this short and sweet book of inspiration has everything you need, and nothing you don’t, to start you off on an adventure in better, and greener, living.

For more beautiful coffee table books, take a look at our list here!

Natural Harry: Delicious Plant-Based Summer Recipes by Harriet Birrell

Natural Harry is a recipe book full of creative, simple and life-affirming plant-based recipes coupled with tips on shopping, planting and self-care. With a focus on nutrition and quality ingredients, Natural Harry offers up more than 70 organic recipes and a new way to think about food. What started as a beach-side van serving smoothies and raw desserts has grown into this book, which also includes breakfasts, mains, desserts and even recipes for the body and home – all free from meat, gluten, dairy and refined sugar.

If your teachers loves to cook, take a look at some of the latest cookbooks here.

Lazy Baking: Really Easy Sweet and Savoury Bakes by Jessica Elliott Dennison

From the bestselling author of Tin Can Magic, Lazy Baking is a fuss-free time-saving baking cookbook for any time of the day. Think 1-cup pancakes for breakfast, quick yoghurt flatbread with big-hit toppings for lunch (throw it all in the food processor), cookies to fix that afternoon craving, impressive 3-ingredient puddings and ice creams for weekend get-togethers. There are also plenty of ideas of what can be substituted so you can use up what might currently sit in your fridge or pantry, and what might be in season. This recipe book is perfect for anyone looking to whip up modern and fresh treats, which are both fool-proof and rewarding, and guaranteed to impress thanks to all the clever, useful hacks.

Gelupo Gelato: A delectable palette of ice cream recipes by Jacob Kenedy

Gelupo Gelato presents a rainbow spectrum of simple, sophisticated gelato recipes from tangy Lime Sherbet to fruity Peach Blood Orange, creamy Marron Glace, and decadent Chocolate Whisky. And that’s not all! There are definitive recipes for a classic granita (like grown-up slushie), barely-melting semifreddo, ice cream cake, profiteroles, ice cream cones and brioche buns as well as the only chocolate sauce you’ll ever need and a tip sheet for pairing flavours. This is the moment when gelato becomes your cold, sweet new Italian obsession.

Daily Mantras V.2 by Lisa Messenger

After the hugely successful Daily Mantras to Ignite Your Purpose release in October 2018, it is still consistently our best seller to date. Hence the decision to release a version 2. New quotes, new affirmations, new musings, new refreshed design. Same daily format and same easy to throw in your bag size. Thoughtfully curated by entrepreneur, author and speaker Lisa Messenger, these artfully presented quotes can be used as meditations, as musings, or as your daily dose of inspiration; one for each day of the year. Every daily message includes a quote, followed by Lisa?s personal take, and an affirmation that will help you to step into and ground your courage, spirit, wisdom and wit that make every day count.

The Modern Larder: From Anchovies to Yuzu, a Guide to Artful and Attainable Home Cooking by Michelle McKenzie

One ingredient can change the nature of a dish, elevating it from flat to transcendent. Do you have a kitchen full of jars and pastes and flours you want to use more? From capers, creme frache, and fish sauce to date syrup, labneh, preserved lemon, and more, Michelle McKenzie offers a fresh perspective on magical pantry items that are often overlooked by home cooks. With 58 ingredient profiles and more than 260 recipes and variations featuring those ingredients, learn to harness the power of your pantry to make dishes extraordinary. Undeniably inspiring yet also happily pragmatic, The Modern Larder will change your approach to cooking and elevate your everyday meals.

Enjoy!

Booko’s Gift Guide for Yourself this Christmas

2021, Christmas, Design, Food, Gifts, Lifestyle, Music, New Release, Personal development, Recipe Books, Recommended, ,

There are a number of different ways that people shop for Christmas; some wait until the last minute, others buy well ahead of time, some take their time shopping for the perfect gift for each special person in their lives. Then there’s that group of special individuals (just like a few Booko team members) that are brilliant, in fact masters, at shopping for themselves and love to reward their Christmas shopping capabilities with a ‘one for you and one for me’ gifting approach.

Today’s post is for all of you that love to wrap a little something to yourself and pop it under the tree. Top tip – you can keep this up for years if you say it’s from the family pet.  

Taste – My Life Through Food by Stanley Tucci

From award-winning actor and food obsessive Stanley Tucci comes an intimate and irresistible memoir of life in and out of the kitchen. Before Stanley Tucci became a household name with The Devil Wears Prada, The Hunger Games, and the perfect Negroni, he grew up in an Italian American family that spent every night around the table. Taste is an intimate reflection on the intersection of food and life, filled with anecdotes about growing up in Westchester, New York, preparing for and filming the foodie films Big Night and Julie Julia, falling in love over dinner, and teaming up with his wife to create conversation-starting meals for their children. Each morsel of this gastronomic journey through good times and bad, five-star meals and burnt dishes, is as heartfelt and delicious as the last. Written with Stanley’s signature wry humour and nostalgia, Taste is a heartwarming read for anyone who knows the power of a home-cooked meal.

Why Did I Buy That? Fashion mistakes, life lessons by Kirstie Clements

Musings, style tips and thoughts on being a woman from Australia’s leading fashion insider, internationally-bestselling author and former editor of Vogue, Kirstie Clements – all delivered with a good dose of wit, common sense and chutzpah. Kirstie Clements has seen trends come and go, from the sublime to the ridiculous, but she knows real style when she sees it. This is about how to spot those wardrobe gems, from a classic loafer that makes you feel comfortable in your own skin, to a beautiful winter coat to take you through more than one season. Why Did I Buy That? is for those with an interest in style and fashion who want to know what to wear, what to buy and how to age stylishly in these changing times. Sharing personal stories, musings on fashion trends and thoughts on everything from gender to selfies, Why Did I Buy That? is about how to successfully edit your wardrobe and lifestyle, how to live decadently on a budget and how to spend your money more wisely. Oh, and how to kick ass in your career with a well-chosen blazer. It’s also for those of us who want to look good in our thirties and beyond without becoming a slave to fashion (or the surgeon’s knife). Including loads of clever style hints and tips and a foreword by Brooke Boney, Why Did I Buy That? will take you by the hand and help you confidently navigate the often-challenging world of fashion trends and impulse buys. Seasonal updates allowed.

Ottolenghi Test Kitchen: Shelf Love by Yotam Ottolenghi

This is Ottolenghi, unplugged. The Ottolenghi Test Kitchen team takes you on a journey through your kitchen cupboards, creating inspired recipes using humble ingredients. Relaxed, flexible home cooking from Yotam Ottolenghi and his superteam. Whether they’re conjuring up new recipes or cooking for themselves at home, the Ottolenghi Test Kitchen team do what we all do – they raid their kitchens. But then, they turn whatever they find into approachable creations with an ‘Ottolenghi’ twist. This instinct is in perfect sync with recent times, when we’ve all been standing in front of our kitchen shelves, our cupboards and our fridges, wondering what to cook with what we’ve got; how to put a can of chickpeas or a bag of frozen peas to good use, instead of taking an extra trip to the shops. For the first time, the team welcome us into their creative space. These dishes pack all the punch and edge we expect from Ottolenghi, but offer more flexibility to make them our own, using what we’ve got to hand. There’s the ultimate guide to creamy dreamy hummus, a one-pan route to confit tandoori chickpeas and a tomato salad that rules them all. This book is all about feeding ourselves and our families with less stress and less fuss, but with all the ‘wow’ of an Ottolenghi meal. It’s a notebook to scribble on and add to, to take its ethos and absolutely make it your own.

The Flower Hunter: Seasonal flowers inspired by nature and gathered from the garden by Lucy Hunter

Lucy’s evocative, gently humorous words accompany her glorious photographs and exquisite floral arrangements, as she encourages the reader to marvel at the intricate cycles of the natural world, develop their own innate creativity and to look for beauty in the everyday. Her garden provides the raw materials for Lucy’s floral artistry; breathtaking naturalistic arrangements with the painterly beauty and flourish of a Dutch still life. Simple projects accompany Lucy’s text, from drying garden flowers for an autumnal wreath to making your own journals and natural dyes to assembling lavish arrangements that showcase the voluptuous beauty of garden roses. Lucy believes that we all have a creative voice buried deep within. The Flower Hunter will encourage you to find your own creativity and help it to blossom.

The New Hustle: Don’t work harder, just work better by Emma Isaacs 

What if we’ve been served a big, fat lie about what it takes to be successful at work? Pro-hustlers will tell you living in a work-more, sleep-less world is how we get ahead. But on the back of the pandemic, entrepreneur and Business Chicks founder Emma Isaacs believes the hustle is now dead. Moreover, traditional ways of working – long commutes, unproductive meetings and outdated systems of bureaucracy – actually don’t work at all. Emma believes we don’t have to work harder; we just need to work better. In fact, we can slash our hours, take shortcuts and still get more done – without feeling depleted. In The New Hustle, Emma condenses her wisdom into 77 anti-rules for maximum efficiency. Drawing inspiration from her team, Business Chicks members and the many entrepreneurs and leaders who have graced the Business Chicks stage, she will teach us to embrace radical flexibility, make quick decisions, work smarter and say no to the things that don’t matter, so we can say yes to the things that do. Written with humour, insight and a serving of tough love, The New Hustle is your go-to for more productive, creative and meaningful work by one of Australia’s most unconventional and effective entrepreneurs: a best-selling author, mum of six – and a woman determined to start an anti-hustle revolution.

The Storyteller: Tales of Life and Music by Dave Grohl

So, Dave Grohl wrote a book! Having entertained the idea for years, and even offered a few questionable opportunities (‘It’s a piece of cake! Just do four hours of interviews, find someone else to write it, put your face on the cover, and voila!’), He decided to write stories just as he has always done, in his own hand.

“The joy that I have felt from chronicling these tales is not unlike listening back to a song that I’ve recorded and can’t wait to share with the world, or reading a primitive journal entry from a stained notebook, or even hearing my voice bounce between the Kiss posters on my wall as a child. This certainly doesn’t mean that I’m quitting my day job, but it does give me a place to shed a little light on what it’s like to be a kid from Springfield, Virginia, walking through life while living out the crazy dreams I had as young musician. From hitting the road with Scream at 18 years old, to my time in Nirvana and the Foo Fighters, jamming with Iggy Pop or playing at the Academy Awards or dancing with AC/DC and the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, drumming for Tom Petty or meeting Sir Paul McCartney at Royal Albert Hall, bedtime stories with Joan Jett or a chance meeting with Little Richard, to flying halfway around the world for one epic night with my daughters…the list goes on. I look forward to focusing the lens through which I see these memories a little sharper for you with much excitement”.

Enjoy!