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Rating: 
Summary: Vivid flashbacks to the not-so-distant past
Review: I was prepared not to like this book, because it is very similar in theme, approach, appearance, and even some of the specific recipes featured, to James Lileks' "The Gallery of Regrettable Food" (Crown, 2001). Very similar.
Very.
Two things set this title apart, however. One is that there is generally less commentary on the recipes here, and I tended to find Lileks' ironic tone a little tiresome when taken in large doses. Here, though, it was much easier to sit down and digest, so to speak, much of this book all at once. A second difference is that author and chef Kathy Casey (go Seattle!) apparently actually gave some of these recipes a try, which I'm not sure, or can't remember whether, Lileks ever did. That bravery on her part gives her commentary a bit more personal insight.
As with Lileks' book, the overwhelming conclusion the reader comes to after flinching his way through these cringe-inducing recipes, is, "How in the world could they eat this stuff?" Also: What was the deal with all the gelatin? I do, however, have to call B.S. (as the saying goes) on a couple of the recipes here. Short of seeing primary documentation, I absolutely refuse to believe that Jellied Moose Nose (p. 67) is a real period recipe. And I have my doubts about Gingersnap Tongue (p. 80) and Heart With Apple-Raisin Stuffing (p. 88) too. But apart from them, I mostly marvel at the twisted and/or desperate minds that could come up with things like Veal-Oyster Loaf (p. 70), three words that should NEVER appear in sequence, or the magnificent Crown Roast of Frankfurters (p. 75), which I believe, again, is in Lileks' book too. Who knew the dry heaves were such a good abs workout?
I'm looking forward to tracking down other books in this Retro series, because they, presumably, will be charting some newer ground in the ironic-look-back-at-times-less-cool-than-today genre. As far as this title is concerned, be prepared to see things you may have seen before -- in this case, flashing back to 2001, not 1954.
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