Geraldine Duncann - Retro Fiesta: A Gringo's Guide To Mexican Party Planning

Pros: 1950's color-saturated illustration makes for fun, professional presentation. Over 100 recipes. Inexpensive.
Cons: Must like beans, rice and chiles - lots and lots of beans, rice and chiles.

Back in the day, I used to love to throw dinner parties. Every weekend, a crowd of my 20-something peers would descend upon my place like vultures circling road-kill. Their non-discriminating palates were an ego-boost to this cook, as they ate most ...

Pros: Fun read, great illustrations, useful and tasty recipes.
Cons: If you are looking for authentic Mexican cuisine, it's just not here.

This book is 127 pages of just plain fun! With no pretensions of cuisine or tradition, the book romps through a rose-tinted 1950s vision of a South of the Border fiesta. It reminds me of the Australian drinking tours that hiccup and sway from bar to ...

Pros: Delicious recipes, fun games, useful serving tips.
Cons: Historically incorrect, the recipes aren't really that authentic.

I really enjoy the recipes in this book, though they aren't really that authentic. I was also reading the different holidays at the beginning of the book and have noted several inaccuracies. First of all, Carnaval isn't really celebrated in Mexico, that's Brazil. Also, Cinco de Mayo did NOT lead up to Mexico's independence. Mexico had been independent from the Spanish for 52 years before that day. Also, in Mexico it's called La Batalla de Puebla, not Cinco de Mayo. But yeah, other than that, it's a pretty fun book. My friends loved the salsa I made using their recipe.