Autumn: From the Heart of the Home    by Susan Branch Order:  USA  Can Little, Brown & Co., 2004 (2004) Hardcover     Reviewed by Mary Ann Smyth Autumn, another Heart of the Home book by Susan Branch, is unique. It offers not only wonderful recipes to celebrate the season, but also great tips on decorating and entertaining. Filled with homey quotes from famous people – like '"What is the use of a book," thought Alice, "without pictures or conversations?"' (Lewis Carroll) – the recipes would grace any table at any time of the year, though many of them take advantage of the foodstuffs that the harvest provides. A sourdough bread bowl filled with assorted olives starts the section on Appetizers, moving on to Garlic Shrimp and Red Chili Onion Rings. Side Dishes follow with Roasted Fall Vegetables and Warm Salad of White Beans, Sage & Garlic. Bourbon Mashed Sweet Potatoes – now there's a comfort food in every sense of the word. Main Dishes include One Dish Stuffed Pork Chops, Sweet Potatoes and Apples, Orange Spiced Harvest Stew, and Lime Salmon with Leek Frisee. Sweets – hard to resist any of the luscious recipes. There's Pear Tatin, Cranberry Apple Crisp, a childhood favorite of mine and my brothers – Indian Pudding, Molasses Cookies, and Pumpkin Cheesecake. There are even suggestions for Afternoon Tea. The whole of this lovely cookbook is in script. At first this bothered me. But as I got into the book, I felt as though I was reading a cookbook file box that my grandmother had compiled. A warm, cozy feeling. So much enclosed in one book. Autumn: From the Heart of the Home makes a wonderful gift for Christmas for a loved one – or an early gift to yourself. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more NonFiction books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews