Excerpts From The Evaluation: It would be difficult to find a more timely or indeed necessary cookbook than Delights from the Garden of Eden. With the Iraqi people struggling today to rise not only from decades of tyranny but also from the turmoil of recent and lingering war, and with too many other people throughout the world misunderstanding that proud and ancient nation, its culture, and its faith, this book demonstrates how food-- its loving preparation, its history, its tradition--can provide a bridge to understanding.

The sound academic backgroud shows in the wealth of intelligent detail and insightful explanation on every page. Indeed, in its length and depth, and the oversized dimentions and extent of its pages, the book feels in the best possible way like an enthralling textbook. Interwoven with that well-researched aspect of the text is a wealth of personal anecdotes and remembramces of growing up, learning to cook, and sharing meals with family and freinds in Iraq, which makes the book all the more engaging and often deeply moving. this is the kind of intelligent and heartfelt writing capable of making meaningful human connections.

The decision to organize the contents among many different chapters by traditional types of dishes and preparations, rather than taking a more concise and traditionally Western course-by-course approach (starters, soups and salads, main courses, sides, desserts), is a smart move; so too, is the many sidebar texts of varying lengths are scattered throughout the pages. This approach makes all the more concrete the impression that Iraqi cuisine is delightfully kaleidoscopic in its variety.