Nanny Ogg's Cookbook

Registered by wingGoryDetailswing of Nashua, New Hampshire USA on 2/26/2003
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16 journalers for this copy...
Journal Entry 1 by wingGoryDetailswing from Nashua, New Hampshire USA on Wednesday, February 26, 2003
Having become a Terry Pratchett fan (thanks to BC), I've been gathering Pratchett publications other than the basic Discworld canon (which I'm trying to read very slowly so as to make it last). There are calendars and datebooks and illustrated maps and portfolios, all very interesting - and then there's Nanny Ogg's cookbook... To my surprise, it actually contains usable recipes, several of which sound quite nice (and a few of which, especially the "Strawberry Wobbler," sound positively hilarious - despite the efforts of the editors to keep it clean!). There are a lot of legendary Discworld dishes, modified for non-Disc palates - dwarf bread, CMOT Dibbler's sausage-on-a-bun, even the Bursar's dried frog pills (though the recipe suggests omitting the frog). There are some novelty items that I'm making a note of for next Halloween, such as "Sheep's Eyes" [fabricated from pickled onions, stuffed green olives, and cream cheese], and "Sticky Toffee Rat on a Stick" [again, the recipe suggests omitting actual rats, but suggests ways to simulate same using marzipan and assorted candy decorations].

The comments in and around each recipe are entertaining in themselves, whether it's Nanny explaining how to make it or the editors chiming in to fuss about whether this particular item is really questionable or not. There's also a fifty-page section about etiquette (!), again according to Nanny Ogg - although I found a number of practical pointers in there, among all the giggles. (The section entitled "Balls (and how to behave at them)" begins: "It is a truth self evident that a man in possession of his own teeth, a decent pair of boots, a couple of acres of land and some pigs that need feeding must be in want of a wife.")

On eating caviar: "The nobby way to eat caviar is from the little pad on the outside of your left hand, between your forefinger and thumb. However, since people also take snuff in a very similar way it is important not to get confused. It is not the noseful of fish eggs that is the problem, it is trying to pretend that you meant it."

And on "Modes of Address": "When you are dealin' with armed men, or people who *employ* armed men, there is no time to wonder if you are dealing with the second son of a viscount or whatever. No. What you are dealing with is *edged weapons*, and edged weapons are always addressed as 'sir'. Or even 'my lord'. All edged weapons care about is that you know what you are in the scheme of things, i.e. something easily cut."

Oh, and the book's also full of illustrations by Paul Kidby, many of which haven't been published elsewhere (that I know of). So it's a dandy item all round.

The recipes are in metric, but if I want to try to make one badly enough I think I can do the math {grin}. FYI...

Journal Entry 2 by wingGoryDetailswing from Nashua, New Hampshire USA on Monday, May 5, 2003
Found a second copy of this, and I'm sending it out on a bookray. The mailing order is:

JPandJo - MA
daidy - MI
Leilaht - MI
JennyO - TX
shellyann - CA
Rendiru - CA
AmberLee17 - CA
cestmoi - Toronto, Ontario
lady-sybil - Fredericton, New Brunswick
Deborah909 - MA
AngelKitty - CO
TigerCub - Nova Scotia

I'll ask everyone to please journal the book when they receive it, PM the next person in line for their address, read the book reasonably promptly, then journal it and send it along. The last in line may offer it up for a new controlled release or just release it into the wild. Hope you all enjoy it - and may the mails be kind...

Journal Entry 3 by GirlieGoalie from Nashua, New Hampshire USA on Tuesday, May 13, 2003
I just got this today. I'm looking forward to diving in.

Journal Entry 4 by GirlieGoalie from Nashua, New Hampshire USA on Friday, May 23, 2003
This book was too funny. I am looking forward to having a kitchen again to make rat pizza. :)

Mailing to daidy today.

Journal Entry 5 by daidy on Thursday, May 29, 2003
Just recieved this today

Journal Entry 6 by daidy on Friday, June 6, 2003
Quite entertaining. Mailing to Leilaht Monday.

Journal Entry 7 by Leilaht from Highland, Michigan USA on Wednesday, June 11, 2003
Got this today and devoured it already. I will be making Strawberry Wobbler and Nanny Ogg's Maids of Honour. I will have to find a chart that has metric equivalants though. Never did get it through my head. They tried to teach us in public school. Will send it on tomorrow.

Journal Entry 8 by O-Jenny from Temple, Texas USA on Saturday, June 21, 2003
Yippee! Got this one in the mail today. I'm setting aside my current book and reading this one so I can get it to the next person in the ring as quickly as possible. Thanks GoryDetails!

Journal Entry 9 by O-Jenny from Temple, Texas USA on Saturday, June 21, 2003
I thoroughly enjoyed this quick trip through the culinary delights of DiscWorld. The Paul Kidby illustrations were a real treat too. Did anyone else notice that the wizard holding the dried frog pills on pg. 111 looks remarkably like Sean Connery? Maybe I'm delirious.

Anyway, will mail this one to shellyann early next week. Thanks for sharing, GoryDetails.

Journal Entry 10 by shellyann from Rifle, Colorado USA on Tuesday, July 1, 2003
I received this yesterday. It looks good, I look forward to reading it.

Journal Entry 11 by shellyann from Rifle, Colorado USA on Monday, July 7, 2003
cute book-I liked the recipes

Journal Entry 12 by Rendiru from Carmichael, California USA on Wednesday, July 30, 2003
I just received this in the mail. I am really excited about reading this book - I love Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels and Nanny Ogg is a fascinating character. ;-)

Journal Entry 13 by Rendiru from Carmichael, California USA on Saturday, August 9, 2003
What a delightfully odd cookbook - just what I would expect from Pratchett. I particularly liked the notes from the editors, although they did inconveniently cover what looked like some especially interesting pages. ;-)

My favorite "recipes" (apart from Strawberry Wobbler, which I might have to try) were Lord Vetinari's recipe for 'Bread and Water' and Leonard of Quirm's 'Recipe for a Cheese Sandwich'. Thanks for sharing this very unique book!

This will be mailed to AmberLee17 on Monday or Tuesday.

Journal Entry 14 by AmberLee17 from Stockton, California USA on Saturday, August 16, 2003
OMG! I'd forgotten this ring. It's one of the treasures I received when I returned today from a business trip. To Mount TBR, but I'll be as fast as I can...

Journal Entry 15 by AmberLee17 from Stockton, California USA on Saturday, September 20, 2003
It's official. I need a keeper. Had totally forgotten that this book came in... Thank you for your kind reminder. I did love it, and copied a couple new favorites...

Banana Soup Surprise, Sheep's Eyes, Carrots and Oyster Pie, Strawberry Wobblers (a BC favorite, I see), Sticky Toffee Rat Onna Stick ...

Thank you for the opportunity to share this book. Sorry to have been so distracted lately.

Journal Entry 16 by wingcestmoiwing from Hamilton, Ontario Canada on Tuesday, October 7, 2003
Just received. One book in front of it..so it should move fairly quickly. Will journal again when I've read it. Thanks!

Journal Entry 17 by wingcestmoiwing from Hamilton, Ontario Canada on Monday, October 13, 2003
Very amusing. I enjoyed this very much. I am thinking of making strawberry wobbler for our next "mini meetup"....I think it would go over well with my bookcrossing friends...LOL.

The cover photo of Nanny Ogg looks eerily like my own Nana....

This is off to lady-sybil as soon as she responds to my request for her mailing info. Thanks GD for sharing this and hope you have some good grub while you're visiting Ottawa!

Journal Entry 18 by lady-sybil from Canberra, Australian Capital Territory Australia on Friday, October 31, 2003
I received this book a couple of days ago and has sampled it extensively already :-) I will write a more extensive review this weekend.

Journal Entry 19 by lady-sybil from Canberra, Australian Capital Territory Australia on Monday, November 3, 2003
What else can you give any Discworld book other than ten or higher? I thoroughly enjoyed Gytha Ogg's cookbook and am very upset with the publishers for censoring the more interesting entries!

A few of my favorite quotes ... fee free to skip this part if you are easily bored, I tend to go overboard:

p21. ... it is always forsighted for a young woman to become proficient at those arts which will keep a weak-willed man from straying. Learning to cook is also useful.

p23. (on proper nutrition): Don't talk to me about gold plates - if you can see what the plate is made of the portions are too small.

p93. (on translation): ... many people will put into their mouth something in a foreighn language that they wouldn't even feed to a dog in their own native tounge.

p105. (on etiquette): ... it is what people have to use if they don't have good manners.

And the wonderful full-page drawing of a bunch of the rowdy Nac Mac Feegle on page 119 totally cracked me up!

p123. has a very educational discussion of modes of addres especially if the person you are addressing has an edged weapon in his posession :-)

p133. (on beauty): .. for my money, the best way to be beautiful is to have a dad with a lot of money and a bunch of armed men. It's just amazin' how people will spontaneously see what a beautiful princess you are in those circumstances.

This was a great book from the front cover (have you seen the rat, frog pills, wow wow sauce and the pictsies?) to the picture of Greebo on the last page licking his chops after eating the blender imp ... ooh and the one with Nanny and Cassanunda in the kitchen with the floury handprints ... Nanny would probably interject something here about the size of a man's hands and something that the prissy publishers will refuse to print ;-) (I love Paul Kidby's illustrations!).

Thanks for sharing, GD, this title is definitely going on the Christmas hint-list :-)

Mailed to Deborah909: 11/13/03

Journal Entry 20 by Deborah909 from Brookline, Massachusetts USA on Sunday, November 30, 2003
Many thanks to lady-sybil, for passing it along "Nanny Ogg's Cookbook" to me! It arrived yesterday, and I managed to read it from cover to cover in less than 24 hours. Great fun.

Special thanks also to Gory Details, who disclosed the news about this bookring to me at a BookCrossing MeetUp at Caffe Bella Vita on Beacon Hill.

Journal Entry 21 by Deborah909 at Kendall Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts USA on Wednesday, February 11, 2004
Released on Wednesday, February 11, 2004 at Kendall Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts USA.

I am so embarassed about keeping this wonderful book for so long, while other members of the bookring waited for it. The truth is that for the last month it was hiding under the bed. Somehow I'm not surprised that an item associated with the notorious Nanny Ogg would have a mind of its own and decide to play a trick like that. I'm mailing it off to the next person in line, Angel Kitty, this afternoon.

Journal Entry 22 by AngelKitty from Denver, Colorado USA on Saturday, February 21, 2004
Like everyone else on this bookray, the Strawberry Wobblers have gone onto my list of recipes to be tried. And, of course, you have to love the sections on etiquette. I probably should have saved more quotes, but I had to settle on my two favorites:

Quote 1: Be very wary around creepy signs that say ‘Thank You For Not Smoking’, because there’s magic afoot. Otherwise, how did they know you wouldn’t?

Quote 2 (has a special place because I read this while planning my wedding):
Arranged marriages are still pretty common in these parts (and now I come to think of it, what other kinds are there? It’s not as if the boy and the girl and all their relatives and a new dress and the priest of choice and a slap-up knife-and-fork tea for forty all turn up in one place by accident, is it?)

And for those of us in the States who want to try these recipes out and don't have their measuring cups labeled in metric, I have found you a conversion site. Happy cooking to all, and may the first person to try out Strawberry Wobblers let us all know how it works out!

Off to TigerCub

Journal Entry 23 by TigerCub from Tigard, Oregon USA on Saturday, March 13, 2004
I got it! It came in the mail yesterday, and I was halfway through by last night *laugh*


Promised to Symphonicca and JustABookHound

Journal Entry 24 by symphonicca from Ottawa, Ontario Canada on Sunday, April 4, 2004
Hey hey hey!! I am very excited to take a look at this book as I make my way into the Discworld saga. Thanks so much, tigercub, for lending this out to me and feeding my new Pratchett obsession! :)

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This is a fun book! I think it would have made more sense to me if i had read more of Pratchett's books, but if nothing else, it made me want to read more of them. Some favoriet recipes include: Bread and Water, Dried Frog Pills, and Sticky Toffee Rat Onna Stick. Hee hee! Thanks tigercub, for passing it on to me! Much appreciated!

Released on Sunday, May 02, 2004 at Uncommon Grounds, 1030 South Park Street in Halifax, Nova Scotia Canada.

Bringing this to the meetup for the next Pratchetteer--- justabookhound!

Journal Entry 26 by justabookhound from Halifax, Nova Scotia Canada on Monday, May 3, 2004
i'm next!

Journal Entry 27 by justabookhound from Halifax, Nova Scotia Canada on Saturday, June 5, 2004
LIke everyone else, I found this very, very funny. Imagine how much more I would have enjoyed it had I actually read any of the discworld series! I'll get to them soon!

Journal Entry 28 by chantelly from Sambro, Nova Scotia Canada on Monday, June 7, 2004
Picked this up at the meet up - looks like a lot of fun and I'm sure I'll find a friend who will want it when I'm done with it.

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