This book is not for beginners. Each chapter begins with a "master recipe" and then follows with several recipes which use that dough. Some of the recipes - the ones I became most interested in - use more than one of them! The book itself is rather basic - no pictures, just recipes - but it's loaded with delicious recipes and variations on each of the pastries. The chapters cover such pastry staples as bundt, babka, strudel, puff pastries, and danishes (along with others I'd never heard of). Many of the pages have a "baker's secret" box, giving additional tips and tricks to make your pastries look more professional and taste even better. Plus, sometimes the short backstory on some of the recipes can be enough alone to make your mouth water.

Unfortunately for me, I'm not that good at baking yet. Not only are my skills lacking, but I lack the time right now to put into such recipes. But the book will still be on my shelf when my current responsibilities change I do have more time. (I received this book from bloggingforbooks.) ( )