I love this cookbook. While it provides many recipes from the author's Daufuskie Island childhood, it also provides insight into the culture. I found more than a dozen recipes I will probably use including a chicken stew with vegetables I want to make soon. It sounds like the perfect winter dish! One of the gumbo recipes explained the author likes to quickly fry her okra before putting it in so it is less slimy! Although I eat gumbo with the slimy variety, I think I would enjoy it more with the lightly fried variety in the pot. I loved all the stories of her childhood and her ancestors. Pat Conroy taught on the island one year, and she discusses the wonderful learning experiences they enjoyed under his tutelage. This cookbook is a keeper! ( )