This is a combo of life stories and recipe collection. Oddly, the recipes don't always seem to go along with the stories. I found the stories to be a bit hit or miss in holding my attention, but there are some nice memories shared here.

Thank you to Herald Press and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

The Pie Lady is part short story collection and part cookbook. It's quite a way to get your reader hooked on content. The recipes look good, and I love the history behind them. While the recipes includes are fine, some don't relate at all to the story that was just told

I really like the idea behind the book, I think it just fell slightly short in the execution.

This book has an identity problem. Is it a memoir-type book that just happens to include recipes, or is it a cookbook that just happens to include stories? Unfortunately, it doesn't do a thorough job with either.

While the recipes includes are fine, some don't relate at all to the story that was just told. (A recipe for tostadas comes to mind.)

The really good stories that are included are the ones that the author knows first-hand. Those are the most personal and the most real. A lot of the other stories, though, read more like old family anecdotes passed on through generations, but they just don't have the same draw when it's not your family and you don't have the personal connection to be able to embellish it in your mind. The stories could have used more of that embellishment written down and expanded for the reader.

As sweet as the eponymous slice of pie, this book is a series of snapshots of Mennonite women's lives. Reminiscences and recipes are paired together in chapters, each featuring one woman's story. The pies all sound delicious, too!

Thank you to NetGalley and Herald Books for an advance read of this title. What a delightful surprise. I like cookbooks that give me some history, some "stories," like I'm looking into someone's family cookbook. This book does just that. You feel like you're in a simpler time, a time when you can appreciate good food, family and friends. The recipes look good, and I love the history behind them...the little anecdotes. I really believe that, even if you aren't a cook, this is a book to savor and enjoy. Highly recommended.

This is a wonderful book to give as a gift or own yourself. My own Mennonite grandmother could have been one of the pie ladies and these short stories are a great way to get a view of their world and lives. And as an added bonus....recipes...truly good ones!

I LOVED “the pie lady.” The sweet stories behind the recipes made me feel like I was a little girl in grandma’s kitchen helping her (watching) make her noodles or grandpa’s gross pimiento loaf sandwiches. It was baking cookies with my other grandma and having one with “coffee.” (milk with a teeny splash of coffee in a special mug) It was church potlucks and the wonderful ladies of the church and their carefully handwritten recipes they took the time to give me for my own kitchen when I moved away to get married.

Browsed this book during lunch hour. I thought it was a homey read. One to sit and enjoy over a cup of coffee or tea on a dreaery day (like today!). I'm not much of a pie person, I'll never make them and can go years without eating one, but I am near enough to the Amish community in my state to find them selling pies at road side stands! I love their berry pies! Yeah, they pies aren't oooo -aaahh, but they are tasty! I love looking at the recipes in this book that I am fairly sure I will never make, but enjoy reading about them, and their bakers, very much. I am also pretty sure that people who make pies will probably not be interested in the recipes as their tend to be much fancier. For the rest of us, however, this is a great book!

Disclaimer:

I was provided an electronic download of this book by NetGallery in return for a fair and honest review.

While the stories in this volume were heartwarming, I was more interested in some recipes. I found the recipes a ittle lackluster and am happy I didn't pay for this book.

Loved this sweet book about pies and their place in Mennonite culture. It is full of wonderful recipes and stories and antidotes
Thanks for allowing me to read and review this book

A warm lovely read.We are invited in to the kitchen of these 32 pie ladies.The warmth of their kitchen their lives and the delicious recipes. A world few of us get to visit Amish & Mennonite women their wisdom & lifestyle.A book to visit again& again, # netgalley #thepielady #heraldpress

What a delightful book! The Pie Lady: Classic Stories from a Mennonite Cook and Her Friends is full of what cookbook lovers really like. Not only does this book contain fabulous recipes, but it has delightful stories of Mennonite women. Since many of us are unfamiliar with the Mennonite culture, this book gives us some insight. Of course, Mennonites are famous for their incredible food and baked goods, and after each story, there are recipes relating to the stories.

The recipes are well-written and simple. They are for dishes most of us want to cook. Honestly, who can resist Caramel Dumplings or Marionberry Pie. There is a recipe for Christmas Date Salad that is both unique and delicious; it is easy to make, too. Hot Cross Biscuits are a cross between a bun and a biscuit, and are wonderful. There are recipes for cookies, cakes, pies, and main dishes like Smothered Steak and Pea Soup and Dumplings. The book includes a recipe for Russian Pancakes which is easy and good, as well as a recipe for Esther’s Recipe for Pierogies and Onion Gravy. There are coffee cakes, snacks, and salads in the book, and an excellent recipe for Perfect Cinnamon Bread (I cut it down to use in my automatic bread machine for a smaller batch with perfect results).

All told, this is an excellent cookbook. The only real downside is that there are no pictures. In our modern day, with digital cameras and electronics, there is really no excuse to skip pictures. Other than the lack of pictures, this is a book that will be fun to read, and even more fun to cook out of. Every time I pick up this book, I find another recipe to put in my queue. The recipes will keep cooks happy – both new, inexperienced cooks and those who are experienced.

Highly recommended.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.