How to Feed a Dictator by Saddam Hussein, Idi Amin, Enver Hoxha, Fidel Castro, and Pol Pot Through the Eyes of Their Cooks by Witold Szablowski

The subject matter about the personal chefs of some of the world's most evil rulers might seem taboo to many. Until about a month ago, I didn't even know that this book existed. I think it was a story on CNN that talks about the documentary movie of the same name where I learned about the book. The film was on Netflix, which of course, I don't subscribe to. But I learned in the piece that the doc was based on a book. 

Immediately I went to Amazon and placed an order. I would have finished this book a week earlier but for some reason, my first order was cancelled. I'm wondering if some other culinary teacher out there saw the news story at the same time I did and snatched the copy I ordered up before me. I hear that if a simultaneous order is made on the same item, timestamp proof gives the sale to the person who completed their order first.

It really wasn't such a big deal. I did have to pay an extra 2 bucks for my copy. But I like the faux menu cover better than the one for the used copy I first tried to obtain.

Polish writer Witold Szablowski focuses on 5 dictators: Cambodia's Pol Pot, Cuba's Fidel Castro, Iraq's Saddam Hussein, Albania's Enver Hoxha and Idi Amin, the President of Uganda and the Last King of Scotland apparently. Despite being a history major in college, I had never heard of Hoxha and though I knew a tiny bit about the Killing Fields of Cambodia, Pol Pot could have very easily been a foreign made cooking vessel for all I knew. 

None of these 5 men are going to win congeniality awards. Though if you had to force me to pick a dictator who had the best intentions based on the chefs who describe them, I would probably say that Castro is portrayed as the most sympathetic figure. Pol Pot was the most difficult to understand. Why would you want your people to be free and yet you kill millions of them? I think Idi Amin's former chef knows a lot more than he let on. Amin is rumored to have dined on the liver and flesh of his political adversaries. Hussein had a temper and could easily turn on you if you pissed him off. But he loved loyalty and would lavish his riches on those he trusted most. Plus, I do agree that his sons were both 10 times more vicious and bloodthirsty than he was. And when it comes to Enver Hoxha, a hero of his native land when it comes to his fight against the Nazis, I have 2 very distinct opinions. 1) he became corrupted by being thrust into his post-World War II leadership role and 2) based on talk about a head injury sometime in the 50s or 60s, I think Hoxha suffered from the later CTE effects of post-concussion syndrome. Perhaps had he not been injured, he might not have been so ruthless. 

You might think that the 6 total chefs interviewed by the author deserves zero sympathy or care for the mere fact that they feed some of the 20th century's most diabolical leaders. But you got to realize that these chefs were literally cooking not just for their lives but for the lives of their spouses, children and family members. Did some of them financially benefit? No doubt. But there were times where they were a hair breath away from being executed because they over-salted the soup or burnt the bread. As to paraphrase one of the chef's: your role in an authoritarian government goes out of play when your very survival is on the line. And from what I gathered, only Castro's 2 surviving cooks and Pol Pot's chef choose their professions. The other 3 literally had no say in the matter or it was too late to back out once their clients were revealed to them 

This is a compelling book. I'm not sure why the story Pol Pot's chef is broken into 4 chunks in between chapters before she's given a chapter of her own. It really disrupts the flow of the narratives. Also, there's not really any standardized recipes in the book. A lot of them cooked based on the personal preference or whims of their employers. Though I would be interested in trying the ceviche techniques discussed that were a favorite of Castro's. The steak dish made of grapefruit, during a time of severe Cuban beef shortages also look interesting. But the goat pilaf recipe that Saddam Hussein loved so well, forget it! Once you've kissed a goat and her babies, you can never eat of their relatives ever again. I might have a morbid curiosity about the dining habits of dictators. But I'm not a monster.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Archie Comics Celebrates America's 250th

My favorite comic book store came through once again. No- they went above and beyond! In the chaos that is finals week (which is actually almost 3 weeks in length) at the high school I teach, I somehow overlooked this new release. But the guys at Books Do Furnish a Room looked out for me and ordered a copy of this America250 special, knowing that I collect holiday themed books. 

Now if you're someone who feels that America is going in the wrong direction, based on the leadership, you might be thinking that yet another company has sold out to the semiquincentennial fervor. However I don't think that's the case with Archie Comics. For one thing, I own a copy of a 1976 bicentennial special edition of Life With Archie. (That issue's cover by Stan Goldberg, was used as the foundation for the variant cover the guys at BDFR ordered for me.) Archie Comics has never been one to avoid supporting a cause or festivity. And there have been decades full of patriotic stories published starring the citizens of Riverdale all the way since Archie Andrews' first appearance in 1941! So, no, this will not be an issue that could cause you to feel conflicted about your moral stance on the state of affairs of the United States of America. In fact, it might actually make you feel just a little bit more patriotic inside.

My biggest complaint about this special is that there is not an all-new story to start things out like with the Archie Halloween or Christmas spectaculars of the past decade. It's 100% reprints. However they're all reprints that I don't seem to own. So that's a plus.

The first story shows what happens when Betty plans a school wide social studies project in which all of the Riverdale High School students and staff dress up as their favorite figures from American history. Then Veronica travels to Vermont and Connecticut to research the lives of patriots Ethan Allen and Nathan Hale and ends up running into a literal blast from the past. Readers then see what it might be like if Jughead was the POTUS before then exploring the Reggie Mantle administration.

I take that back! There is one thing in this issue that is a part of my holidays collection of comics and graphic novels. From that 1976 Life With Archie is a one-pager quiz about Presidents and the states. Despite having taken this quiz 4 years ago previously, I scored a 6 out of 10. Though in my defense, I accidentally skipped question #6 getting confused because it was too similar to question 5, which asked which state was the birthplace of the most US presidents. I think I somehow thought that they were the same question. Though to be honest, I probably wouldn't have guessed that Ohio was the state of origin of the 2nd most number of Presidents.

Worth Consuming!

Rating;9 out of 10 stars.

Classics Illustrated #108 (2026 Comic Book & Graphic Novel Reading Challenge)

Cover to 1953 First Edition.

Classics Illustrated examined the many Arthurian legends in this issue. While some of the collected works of Howard Pyle were used in an uncredited basis, the original authors of these 13th century, or earlier, tales have been lost over time. Many historians believe that there was a king, named Arthur. If that's true, he obviously was very successful on the battlefield and in jousting tournaments, hence the lasting appeal of Arthur's name over the past 800 or so years. The more victorious King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table were, the more fantastic their legends grew.

The story of the sword in the stone (and apparently also in an anvil) and how Arthur removed the sword unawares that such action made him the true monarch of England begins this issue. Arthur's reception of a better sword, Excalibur, from the Lady in the Lake, along with a magical scabbard that made him invincible when worn. His marriage to Guinevere and the reception of a massive round table that could seat 250 men. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, ...and the Red Knight, ...and the Yellow Knight, ...and finally the Black Knight. Those stories are all detailed in the first half of the issue. It's the establishment of Camelot, but I don't recall anybody calling it that in this book. 

The second half sees the eventual downfall of Arthur's Kingdom. But it's pretty PG.  Nowhere does Guinevere and Sir Lancelot hook up behind Arthur's back. Arthur's own incestuous liaison with Morgan La Fey producing an heir destined to destroy Camelot is absent too. Mordred does play his part in the death of King Arthur. But he's viewed more of an opportunist seeking the throne during a lengthy absence by Arthur. Nowhere is he revealed to be the bastard son of King Arthur.

Sir Lancelot does play his part in the downfall of Arthur's Kingdom. One of the lesser known legends tells of Lancelot coming to the defense of some men being attacked by robbers. Two of the men Lancelot kills are Knights of the Round Table! Their brother wants revenge. Lancelot refuses to apologize. Arthur is unable to take a side. Yet nobody points out that the supposedly noble knights were participating in activities that were less than chivalrous!

This issue was originally published in 1953; right in the middle of the Comic Book Scare. No way was Gilberton going to put all the adultery surrounding the legend of King Arthur. I'm surprised that they included Merlin the Magician. Though by the halfway point, he's a distant memory. 

My copy has a publication date of 1969; right as new owner Twin Circle was seeing the writing on the wall that the popular educational comic series' could no longer compete against DC and Marvel. Usually, older copies have an article in the back about the author. Perhaps because the story of King Arthur was more the product of centuries of folklore and epic poets there wasn't even a prose column about who wrote what and when. If ever an issue of Classics Illustrated needed such a piece, this was the one! Instead, you get a one-pager about the Lost Colony, another on the history of the Liberty Bell and an feature on  how baseball bounced back from the 1919 Black Sox Scandal.

You might think that those 3 articles were rather random. However, I learned that the original Roanoke colony was established on July 4th, 1585! The Liberty Bell has been an symbol of American independence from England, which we Americans celebrate every 4th of July. Lastly, baseball is America's past time. So, that all seems like a plausible game of 6 degrees of Kevin Bacon. Add to the fact that England was behind the settling of the Roanoke Colony and King Arthur is a figure of British myth and legend, you actually have an issue of Classics Illustrated that seems to at least make some connections throughout the book for once. You just have to really squint hard to see them!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars. 

Completing this review completes Task #27 (An issue of Classics Illustrated) of the 2026 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge.

Supergirl (2026)

Being such a fan of Supergirl, you might have been wondering when I will be watching the new live action movie? Well, the answer was today! I got up early, drove through Durham traffic to make a 9:45am showing so I could avoid crowds and be able to watch the movie without my mask. Unfortunately, I think the reports from Hollywood are accurate. Supergirl, at least financially, is a box office bomb. I think maybe 2 other people were in the theater with me. Even worse, there were dozens of Supergirl popcorn buckets and Lobo variants still sitting on store shelves. Only the Masters of the Universe franchise still had more collectible buckets still for sale!

On film, I thought the film was fantastic! It was loads better than the 1984 stinker, although I still think Helen Slater was a great Supergirl. I tried to stay away from the reviews of others. But with social media, occasional opinions slipped through. One of the biggest complaints was that the film, which takes place in outer space, was too much like Guardians of the Galaxy. But I for one liked the lived in feel on James Gunn's DC Universe. Anytime you see Apokolips or Mongol's Warworld, it is the opposite of sterile Krypton. In Agro City, I think you could eat off the floor of any city street whereas in the places Kara Zor-El visits, you risk getting hepatitis A-Z just by looking at the locations.

The 2026 film is based on Tom King's Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow maxi-series from 2021-22. I have that entire run but have held off from reading it because King has this annoying habit of killing our beloved characters from my childhood. But happy with the results that complete the film, I think that I might be ready to read the comic book. The story sees Kara and her dog Krypto on a planet orbiting a red sun. It's the only way she can get plastered as she attempts to escape the trauma of her parents dying from radiation poisoning and being sent to Earth to live with her cousin Kal-El.

It is on this planet that Kara runs into a young girl named Ruthye. The child witnessed her whole family murdered by a group of savage marauders led by the insane Krem of the Yellow Hills. Offering a sword made by her father, a fine craftsman whose weaponry was in high demand, Ruthye seeks someone to enact revenge on Krem. Supergirl is at first uninterested in getting involved. But when Krem shoots vulnerable Krypto with a dart containing a slow acting poison, Kara reluctantly agrees to help Ruthye in order to find the antidote which the gang leader wears around his neck.

There are some elements of True Grit with Supergirl playing the John Wayne role being hired by young Ruthye to avenge the death of her parents. Lots of great aliens and space vehicles, too. I feel that if Kenner was still in existence, the toys produced by this movie could have rivaled Star Wars!

Speaking of Ruthye; the actress who plays her, 14-year old Eve Ridley was fantastic. She brought forth so many powerful emotions. I know it's a long shot, but I really do think her portrayal deserves an Oscar nom!

As for the trolls comparing Milly Alcock to the cave person in 1970's Land of the Lost, do better Dean Cain! I might think you're a great Superman. Your Clark Kent inspired me for a brief time to explore being a newspaper reporter. But in real life, you're a total creep who confuses this country as being God.

My least favorite part of the movie was that of bounty hunter Lobo, played by Jason Momoa. The former Aquaman hams up the role. But I had to remember that in the 90s, co-creator Keith Giffen rebooted Lobo into a parody of the violent comic book characters such as the Punisher and Judge Dredd. But it seems like 2 different makeup artists worked on Momoa throughout the production because in the Czarian's first 2 scenes, you could tell that it was the former Game of Thrones actor in really bad white face. The black patches on his face looked less natural for his species and more like Surfer Dude Sting at the end of a match versus Ric Flair. His look appeared more natural towards the end of the film. But by then, the damage was done. 

At least I finally know how to pronounce the word 'bastiche.'

I really enjoyed the movie. Am I glad I went to see it in the theaters? Absolutely. But with my mystery illness, it's getting hard for me to sit still for 2 hours, even if the chair is a recliner! I think my days of going to the movies might be coming to an end. I wind up in just too much pain after going to the flicks. I just hope that regardless of how poorly the movie is doing in theaters, I hope this isn't what kills off Supergirl again for another 25 years!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

The Lisa Book (The Simpsons Library of Wisdom)

I've read several books in the Simpsons Library of Wisdom series and they're a lot of fun. This one stars Lisa; essentially the morale compass of not just her Simpson clan but the town of Springfield. In other words, Lisa Simpson isn't that funny. 

That's not to say that Lisa is a total stick in the mud. She's rather complex. She can be completely serious. But she's also known to have teamed with her brother Bart and gone completely bonkers  begging father Homer to go to a water park, visit Itchy & Scratchy Land and install a backyard swimming pool.

Every Simpsons Library of Wisdom book has a recurring theme. For Bart, its mischief. For bartender Moe, it's self-loathing and a surprising devotion for little Maggie Simpson. With Lisa, her theme seems to be high brow culture mixed with a crush on any teen superstar named Corey and a desperate desire to own a pony.

There was one part of this book that I absolutely objected to. It was a look at artifacts from the Lisa Simpson presidency. But Lisa's administration takes place in the future. How could they be here now when you this book very much reads like the scrapbook of Lisa when she's 8-years old. I know that this was a work of fiction. But having such an anachronism really makes that OCD area of my brain itch like a bad case of poison ivy!

Not my favorite volume of the series. Not terrible. But it's got a lot of droll, high brow references. If I was going for such, I'd watch a marathon of Frasier and those bourgeois references are why I couldn't watch it. Maybe I'll keep it. Maybe I'll sell it for some valuable trade credit. I'm really going have to think on this a while...

Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.

Superman: The War Years 1938-1945

I've been watching the new World War II docuseries on History Channel hosted by Tom Hanks. Having a history degree, along with my culinary degree, modern pop culture history from 1938-on has been my focus of study for going on 30 years. Thus, being inspired by the show's very holistic approach to the war, I decided it was time to return to Roy Thomas's 3-volume look at DC's trinity and their impact on the war at home and abroad.

I had already read the volume on Batman. So it was up to either reading about Superman or Wonder Woman. With the new Supergirl movie coming out, I used that to break the tie as Superman has a cameo in the film. Don't worry, Princess Diana, your time is coming!

The origins of Superman were basically forged in the furnace of war. His very first story sees the Man of Steel running afoul of war profiteering. Ending with a cliffhanger, the story concludes in Action Comics #2, with Superman forcing the American arms dealer to enlist in the European army that he's been selling weapons to in hopes of achieving an ah-ha moment regarding the error of his ways much like the ghosts do to Ebenezer Scrooge.

Being the world's most powerful man at the time, Superman could easily end the war in a blink of an eye. In fact, there's an imaginary story that poses such a question. But in reality, Superman's might caused a problem for his creative team. Thus, Superman stayed stateside. Having accidentally failed his physical, Clark Kent was tasked to cover the war effort for the Daily Planet, touring military bases and observing maneuvers. Only when mistakes happened did Superman secretly appear to keep up the morale of our fighting forces. If Superman did make a public appearance to the troops it was mostly in an USO-type capacity that showed off his astounding feats of wonder.

There's even a newspaper story included in which a summit between Hitler and Superman is arranged by the State Department. Adolf, along with Himmler, Göring and Goebbels don Superman suits in hopes of swaying the Man of Tomorrow to the Nazi cause. It would be hilarious if not for the fact that those 4 Ratzis were responsible for the death of millions of innocent Jews and gentiles throughout Europe. 

Throughout the book, Roy Thomas offers commentary on how Superman evolved from his inception in 1938, right as Germany is sweeping into Poland through America's entry into the war after the bombing of Pearl Harbor to the arrival of actual G-men when a Superman newspaper script came too close to revealing the secrets of the Manhattan Project. (Deemed classified, we never see the script.) Finally by August of 1945, the conflict came to an end and with it, the last of Superman's contribution to the war effort. 

This is a fantastic book, full of stories and covers that I've never seen before and I have read a ton of Superman stories. I'm not at Mark Waid level, but I have read quite a few Golden and Silver Age Supes tales. I'm eager to see how Wonder Woman helped the allies win the war...

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out 10 stars.

Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt

Tova Sullivan is a 70-year old widow whose son mysteriously died at sea 3 decades ago. They never found his body. Tova has never found closure. She works nights at the Sowell Bay Aquarium not because she's financially desperate. She actually enjoys cleaning! 

During her rounds, Tova interacts with the exhibits at the aquarium. She greets the wolf eels with a hearty hello. While dusting the sea lion statue, she gives it's nose a playful boop for good luck. But when it comes to the site's most popular attraction, she gives what's inside the tank more than her fair share of attention. The exhibit in question is a 60-lb coral orange Giant Pacific Octopus named Marcellus. 

Unknown to Tova, Marcellus is resting in the bottom of his tank with a secret. Before his time in captivity, as a small octopus, Marcellus came across a solemn sight. Decades earlier a young man had drowned inside the crevice of some jagged rocks. All that remained was some pieces of rubber from a pair of shoes that had long since disintegrated in the Pacific. Also surviving the elements was a key chain that contained an odd looking house key. One of which is exactly like the one Tova wears on the belt clip on her hip! 

Another secret Marcellus keeps is that he likes to escape his tank and raid the other tanks in the aquarium for snacks. Turns out a Giant Pacific Octopus can live outside of water for about 15 minutes. The sea cucumbers are particularly tasty. One night, Marcellus decides to raid the break room and ends up getting tangled in some power cords. With time running out, Tova comes to the rescue, forever earning Marcellus' respect. In return for saving his life, Marcellus makes it his mission to inform Tova of his childhood discovery. While an octopus is a remarkably bright creature, there is such a thing as a language barrier between him and Tova.

I discovered this 2022 book after seeing a trailer for the Netflix live action adaptation. A mystery starring an octopus as the sleuth! I was already in love with The Sheep Detectives franchise. So it felt like a no-brainer to give Remarkably Bright Creatures a try. Unfortunately I don't have Netflix. (I'm a Ludite, I know) Thankfully, there was the book! Plus, I was headed for the beach and despite vacationing off the Atlantic coast, it was a very fitting read. 

I did read this book as slow as I probably could. That's because I didn't want to reach the end when one of the characters will die. I don't think that's too much of a spoiler. The death is foretold on the second page. If you are one of those bookstore shoppers who needs to read a couple of pages before deciding on whether or not to buy the book, you'll know who dies. This is a book about aging and death, and trying to cope with loss. It's just such a great character. Perhaps one of most endearing in modern American lit.

Thankfully, I wasn't 100% heartbroken by the end of the book. I have to thank author Shelby Van Pelt for giving me ample warning. It would have been a terrible shock to get to page 350 and then BAM- tragic death of a beloved character!!! Still, knowing that the end was drawing near with the turn of every page, my reading pace was significantly slower than normal. 

I've been in Tova's shoes, experiencing a lost that never achieved closure. Just maybe not on such an emotional level. A couple years ago, my goat, Pomegranate, was stolen. Despite spending a lot of time and money, she was never found. I've been wanting to write up a recount of how I dealt with that theft and how God blessed me eventually with a herd of now 10 goats, but I just couldn't find the voice. The unhealed wound just remains raw. But seeing how Van Pelt had Marcellus as the occasional narrator, I think I know how to write it now. I've got almost 2 months of summer break from my teaching job. So maybe I can get it started. 

If anything, this book helped me find an outlet for my unanswered loss and I appreciate that very much.

As for seeing the movie on Netflix, this book definitely makes me more interested in subscribing. But I am still a ways away from that actually happening.

Worth Consuming!

Rating 9 out of 10 stars.