Maida Heatter is the grand dame of baking, and her cookbook reminds of trying to read your grandmother's recipes. The instructions are all there, I just think there is more to baking than mixing ingredients. I like books that are more visual, and there are no illustrations or photos in this book. It's not for the social media age group, for sure. I did find it interesting that she had a cake recipe from the Neiman Marcus store. She does include recipes from different restaurants for cakes people have raved about, including one from a New York recipe that Robert Redford liked. She admits she was just attracted to the recipe because of his photo. I guess you call that a thirst trap for a baker. ( )