"A Sin Against Trees"

H/T to "Raffish" for the quote about books.  I'm looking at a trio that is just about back to the library; they're that bad. 

"Fresh Off the Boat, A Memoir" by Eddie Huang   Spiegel and Grau   276 pages   $26

The boat he's talking about set sail from Taiwan.  He describes his family (parents who fought endlessly) and siblings (two younger brothers) and his school life while growing up in Orlando, FL.  He tells us of the many humiliations growing up as the only Asians around for miles and in a kind of knee jerk response to "being somebody" he models his looks and ways after his hip hop heroes. 

I must say I got a grounding in thug-speak -- sample sentence:  "Dog, outta tree; gotta ration out more!"  "Pal, I'm outta marijuana; got to get more."  

Huang is now 32, running his restaurant Bao Haus in Manhattan and still talking like a gangbanger.  Pitiful.  

Sex, Love and Fashion - A Memoir of a Male Model" by Bruce hulse   Harmony Books   325 pages   $23.95

This vapid tale of a male model who spends much of his daylight hours searching for an identity is at least lavishly illustrated.  As a vehicle for a brunet male to write like a dumb blonde, Hulse reaches that goal.  The only surprise in the entire book (for me) was that he's straight.

"Mastering the Art of French Eating; Lessons in Food and Love from a Year in Paris"  by Anne Mah   Penguin Group   273 pages   $25.99 

Another attempt to rip off the French life style.  The book might have gone over better with me if the first two chapters han'td concerned themselves with blood.  How bloody should a steak be when you cut in to it?  Tripe - and an exploration of Troyes, the region from whence it comes.  The descriptions of sights -- and most notably, smells - from the tripe processing plant were ghastly. 

The title is somewhat misleading as the French use silverware just like people all over the world.