A very readable cookbook -- in fact I find it more interesting to read than to use as a cookbook, though this is partly because it's not at all vegetarian :-)

It starts with a long introduction about ingredients, and it goes on as a journey through China (which Hom really did, and provides the framework for the recipes).

The text is interesting and has a lot about Chinese food and culture, and how they intersect. I could do without the emigré nostalgia for a past which, whatever you think about the present, was feudal and unpleasant: but I can put up with it given how interesting the book as a whole is.

The recipes themselves are not illustrated, but there are some very good photos in the book. ( )