Cocktails for Book Lovers – Tessa Smith McGovern

A simple enough idea. Take 50 authors. Write a little note on each of those authors. Assign a cocktail to those 50 authors. Voila! you have a book.

Not that simple really.

Tessa Smith McGovern executes this simple idea with attention to detail. The authors she has selected are a mix of contemporary and classic, local and international, short story stalwarts and authors of novels.

Tessa presents well researched nuggets on the life of each of those authors. And pairs them with a cocktail each. The cocktail dedication is inspired by their books, plot lines, characters, or even by the popular drinks of that era. Some are classic cocktails, and others have been created through a reference in the author’s books.

Tessa is author of the Amazon best-seller ‘London Road:Linked stories‘ , an award winning collection and dozens of short stories and flash fiction. In ‘Cocktails for Book Lovers’ as well, she showcases her talent of telling a well crafted story.

‘Bellini Champagne’ belongs to Dorothy Parker, who is reputed to have stated,‘Three things I shall never attain:Envy, content and Champagne’, while the ‘Corpse Reviver’ is inspired by Linda Fairstein’s ‘Terminal City’, a mystery novel set in the underground tunnels at the Grand Central Station. The New Zealand navy was the last nation to abolish rum rationing in 1990 , so for the New Zealander Christina Thompson, author of ‘Come on Shore and We Will Kill and Eat You All’, Tessa creates a Grand Rum Toddy.

I learnt a lot of small details about my favorite authors. I also learnt to mix my own cocktails from the recipes in the book. I liked the ‘Pear Smash’, and ‘Beer Margherita’ , though with some chillies added in the second one!

This is a great book to find ideas for your next book club meeting. Learn a little something different about your favorite author. Select a cocktail from Cocktails for Book Lovers, and/or create your own version by trying and testing Tessa’s recipes. Or create one based on the book you are reviewing at the book club this month.

I loved this book – for the freshness of the idea, and its impeccable execution.

Rating 4/5

Cocktails for Book Lovers

 Tessa Smith McGovern

144 pages ; Publisher – Sourcebooks

Available on Amazon as an ebook and hardcover

About Preeti Singh

I am a bookaholic. I love stories, storytelling. I enjoy helping people structure their storytelling, and I love to share the stories I discover.

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