Paula Deen & Friends: Living It Up, Southern Style
Review by K. Corn "reviewer" : How to Know FOR SURE whether to buy this book

First off, I love this book and I could go into the details of favorite recipes but I basically bought this book because:

1. I love Paula's show on tv, have made some of those recipes and like her casual, chatty style. Good food, nice presentation.

2. The book has menus and great recipes and the humorous writing of Paula herself. I really like cookbooks that contain slices of the cook's life, books which are as fun to read as to use. This one is. I love the Oatmeal cookies and her fried chicken is pure Southern cooking at its best. Nothing too fancy, just good, basic home cooking.

NOW, HERE IS WHAT YOU NEED TO DO IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN THIS BOOK:

This is one time when Amazon's "Search Inside the Book" function really helps you figure out if this book is for you. It is about as close to going into a bookstore and looking through an actual book as you are going to get - at least, while still online.

Take a look at the sample menus. Then take a look at the index, most (if not all) of which is featured in the "Search Inside the Book" function. That will give you a detailed list of recipes and menu ideas contained in this book. You'll also be able to look at the introduction and get a feel for Paula's writing and style. Reading this book is fun and when you are in the mood for cooking, these are some fine recipes!

Personal tastes differ, of course, and what one person finds delicious, others may not. But I think you'll find this book will up your chances of pleasing friends and family with delicious food. Not only does the author have a popular tv show but she has run a food business for years, one that has been successful and at least one of her sons worked in restaurants and BOTH of them grew up cooking with her. This means you'll be cooking food that has a proven track record for appeal and popularity.

Paula Deen & Friends: Living It Up, Southern Style
Review by Xina143 : My First Paula Deen Book

This is my first Paula Deen book, and I must say I was pleasantly surprised. I have watched a number of her shows on Food Network, and the shows I have seen all have recipes that seem a tad fussy and over done. But the book had a number of recipes that were simple to make and had the clean, simple taste my husband and children enjoy.I love to cook, and I love cookbooks. I am always trying new things, or trying old things in new ways. Sometimes my family enjoys it, sometimes they just give me a look and eat a few bites to be nice. This cookbook takes me back to the down home southern cooking my husband knows and loves.The beer in the rear chicken was easy to prepare, and I really liked the flavor the beer infused into the chicken. There is a warm chicken salad casserole that my kids just gobbled up.The food isn't 'low fat' by any means. But on the weekend, when my husband, our four little boys and I are just hanging out, I really want something rich and satisfying-and this book delivers.

Paula Deen & Friends: Living It Up, Southern Style
Review by sarmom : I love this cookbook!!

I really like all of Paula Deen's cookbooks, but I especially love this one. I've made several of the recipes (as I have out of all her cookbooks) and they're all *GREAT*!! Her recipes call for normal, everyday ingredients that most people either already have in their cabinet or know exactly where to find them at the grocery store. I also just love to sit down with this book and just *read* it...it's very entertaining...just like her show on the Food Network. I highly recommend this book!!!

Paula Deen & Friends: Living It Up, Southern Style
Review by tiffani "tiffani" : wonderfull. Amazing Book

I have lots of cooking book and this one is really one of my favorites. The recipes are easy to follow and delicious. All the recipes that I have tried so far turn out wonderful. In the same category I also bought Simple and Simply Delicious by Sylvie Rocher.Those 2 books are Amazing!

Paula Deen & Friends: Living It Up, Southern Style
Review by Lawyer Mike "Lawyer Mike" : Duplicative and not true Paula

Let me say up front that I love Paula Deen and I have read and re-read her first two cookbooks many times. Many of the recipes I've tried from those books are outstanding. This book, however, takes a detour. As a starter, you will note that this is the first book Paula has written with somebody else. Although Paula's name is prominent on the cover to attract customers, there is actually a co-author. Second, the title is even more telling: Paula and Friends. When you get to the heart of the matter, this is not a Paula Deen cookbook; it's a collection of recipes from other people with Paula's name on the cover to sell books. Paula herself hints at this in the Introduction. She says her next book was coming due (multi-book contract I presume) so she was looking around for ideas and called a friend, who turned out to be the co-author. I get the impression Paula had to come up with a new book and didn't really have any new ideas after having already written three books.As for the recipes themselves, some are just reprints of previous Paula recipes in a new format. What Paula does in this book is organize recipes by the type of function you're having. She provides complete menus for different types of gatherings. So many of her recipes aren't really new. And like I said, most of the recipes in the book come from other people. Just from reading them, they look like decent recipes, but I'm not sure why this counts as a Paula Deen book. Unfortunately, this book seems more like merchandising than her earlier books. Maybe that is part and parcel of becoming a famous chef and cookbook author.