Kitty Williams and Stevie Mack open their book Day of the Day (Gibbs Smith, September 2011) with this quote from 'The Labyrinth of Solitude' by Octavio Paz. "To the inhabitant of New York, Paris, or London, death is a word that is never uttered because it burns the lips, the Mexican on the other hand, frequents it, mocks it, caresses it, sleeps with it, entertains it; it is one of his favorite playthings and his...

I learned during New York stop of Vinitaly Tour 2011 that Sicily produces more grapes for wine than the whole of Australia. I don't know where they stand for watermelon crops on the world map. I was instantly taken by Dolci, Italy's Sweets (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, October 2011) by Francine Segan when it landed on my desk. The book takes us on a tour of Italy with 100 recipes for all types of treats...