Celebrate: A Year of Festivities for Families and Friends

by Pippa Middleton

In her first book, Middleton reveals the secrets to hosting a successful party with recipes, tips and detailed instructions on how to throw a memorable event.

Genres: Cookbooks, Nonfiction, Cooking, Food, Crafts, Christmas, Holiday

400 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2012

About the author

Philippa Charlotte Middleton is an English socialite, and the younger sister of Catherine, Princess of Wales. A graduate of the University of Edinburgh, she works in the catering and party-planning business.

Reviews

[Dana Al-Basha | دانة الباشا · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who hasn't heard of the Middletons by now? I have been a fan of Kate years before the royal wedding, I grow to like her a lot during the breakup, she seemed strong and her family seemed warm, her sister Pippa always by her side.



So When Pippa got world recognition and some people even said they prefer her I was surprised but it's expected, these girls are special. Prince William had to put a ring on it!



Pippa writes in the first sentence of this book: "It's a bit startling to achieve global recognition (if that's the right word) before the age of thirty, on account of your sister, your brother-in-law and you bottom."



I adored her on the spot for addressing the elephant in the room instead of acting like it's every day for Kate's sister to write a book. She is witty!



I don't know any person who reads Hello! Magazine that won't be even a bit curious to read this book and maybe glimpse something personal about the Middletons or even the two handsome princes. Especially that their family business is a success, hence comes Celebrate: a comprehensive seasonal guide to simple and creative entertaining.



I knew there won't be any traces of the Duke and Duchess but I hoped. All in all, it's a great book, full of fun ideas and recipes for family and friends, parties and gatherings or even picnics. The book is well researched, tells us a lot about the customs and holidays of Britain and British history, it's fun to read and so heavy your wrists will ache!

[Samantha · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, I've seen worse cookbooks. I bought this more out of morbid curiosity than anything. It reads a bit like a recent college grad's blog, with better pictures. All this is to say I'm deeply jealous that I have yet to wrangle my own publishing deal for this sort of thing. That said, it's much, much better than anything Lauren Conrad's written, so let's just call this a win for Pippa.

[Tatyana Fisher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having heard some really negative reviews, I wanted to see for myself what this book is all about. I expected to see a lot of royal family pictures eating at the Middleton house or something of the sort, yet Pippa focused primarily on her friends. Her recipes are simple which is perfect for me, who is a so-so cook. I also learned about some new traditions such as the Burns night. I have already made several of her recipes from scratch and they came out great. She's not pretentious in her book and is overall a delight. I recommend this book to everyone who wants to make simple yet very tasty dishes both on an everyday and special occasion basis.

[Kandice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh Pippa! How I long to entertain just like you!
Finally, I have found a beautiful entertaining book complete with THEMES, decor, activities, and games to accompany recipes. I am in love! I highly recommend this masterpiece. I also recommend my husband buying it for me (from the kids) for Mother's Day. Hint hint...

[Pat Cher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Browsed this book out of curiosity and surprised myself by buying it. Celebrate is a combination of well-thought out recipes, crafts and ideas for family fun. It is set with some of the best illustrations and photos I've seen in a book of this genre. Not being British, I was charmed by customs and recipes which were unfamiliar. Some will be added to our own family traditions. One I will try this holiday season is Stir-up Sunday. The book set- up is easy to follow,and centres around the seasons and their special days.; Robbie Burns, picnics, camping, Hallowe'en....I am an indie author/publisher and pay close attention to ratings on Amazon.After I bought Celebrate, I checked the rating and couldn't believe some of the nasty remarks and low scores. They were clearly undeserved and made me wonder about the motivation behind some of the malicious comments. Celebrate is a book about home and family and traditions, a book I will be using for years to come. I could see Celebrate turned into a weekly tv show or a tv special for each season!
Pat Cher Author Mi'kmaq Song

[Meg - A Bookish Affair · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5. Admittedly, I had two reasons for buying this book. First, I love books about entertaining and cooking. I especially like them when they're really pretty books filled with pictures for some visual inspiration. Second, being that I am fascinated by all things British and especially royal things, I was interested to see what the Duchess of Cambridge's sister, Pippa Middleton, would write about. Before this book, I did not know much about Middleton besides the fact that she dresses really well and seems to like to have a good time.

I also really like learning about different customs and traditions around the world. Being that this book was from a British point of view, there were several things that were new to me. One of them was Burns Night, a Scottish holiday celebrating the life and work of Scottish poet Robert Burns (Middleton went to university in Scotland, which is where she learned to celebrate this one).

The photographs in the book are gorgeous, like I expected that they would be. This is just a very, very pretty book. I definitely found a lot of inspiration between these pages.

I will definitely be trying some of the recipes out of this book (but perhaps not the Burns Night haggis). The Indian New Years curry recipes look amazing to me.

Some of the tips in the book are pretty simplistic and at times, I wish that they had been a little more creative or a little more off the beaten path. The pretty pictures cannot make up for that. Nonetheless, overall, I was pleased with what I got out of the book and will be using it in the future.

Bottom line: A fairly good debut for Middleton!

[Miko · Rating 4 out of 5]

I must admit I purchased this book due to sheer curiosity based on all the negative reviews it has received, and also due to a small fascination with the Royal family. After reading it, I am extremely glad I did! I am very surprised with all the negativity surrounding this book. Yes, some details and tips are rather simple, but also perfect for a first time host or hostess. The book itself is beautiful. Full of stunning photographs and images. Pippa's writing style is very enjoyable and carefree, and she has done a fantastic job organizing the book into seasons. There are lovely ideas for decorating, creative drinks and multiple recipes that I cannot wait to try out! Pippa is an event organizer and not yet an established writer, so I would not expect a literary classic from her first book. Therefore the whole point of this book is to provide the reader with ideas and ways to celebrate different occasions, and it does just that, in both a traditional and modern way.

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

From what I remember, the critics ripped this book to shreds. Sour grapes, I think. Fair enough, Pippa Middleton no doubt only got a book deal because of who she is - but what was she supposed to do? Turn down the opportunity? I really enjoyed 'Celebrate'. It's split into 4 sections, namely the seasons of the year and gives entertaining ideas for the special events/festivals in each - recipes, games, craft activities, table decorations etc. An inspirational, 'feel-good' book full of great ideas and beautifully illustrated with gorgeous photos.

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have to admit, I picked this book up more out of curiosity after seeing comments on how bad it was. I mean, there was even a spoof twitter account that was kind of hilarious. I was not expecting to actually like the book! See what happens when you judge a book by its fake twitter account?! Anyway, a beautiful book on British traditions. Quite a few recipes I bookmarked, a few ideas I'd love to do for my own parties, and overall a lovely, colorful book.

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

A decade ago, this was criticised in the press, but a decade on and post Meghan's awful show, I thought how bad could it be?

It's actually really good. As a British person, I already have failsafe recipes for most of the foods featured but this book is truly a celebration of everything traditionally British. The games and such are fun and I'm glad they are documented here.

Hard to find nowadays, but a good Christmas gift.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t understand the criticism this book got as I love it! I have tried lots of the recipes which have turned out very well, and the photography is beautiful. There are lots of interesting nuggets of information about seasonal traditions and British folklore.

[Sophie Crane · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is just perfect, well written, full of beautiful photos, well presented, elegant and very informative with not only recipes but traditional English culture and fun activities for any party of the year. Pippa did a great job and I would recommend this book to everyone.

[Regine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one amazing book. I love the recipes and it was fascinating learning about other cultures and how other countries celebrate different holidays. A must read.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting recipes, fun games and easy decorating ideas. A lot of the recipes are definitely very British.

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about the basics of entertaining and it's a beautiful book. Even more experienced entertainers can find new ideas. More importantly, this book is fun and that's it's strongest quality.

[Beth Harbaugh · Rating 2 out of 5]

Trite.

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is absolutely gorgeous. Full of beautiful pictures (seriously, I can't even fathom how much work went into staging all the different parties and scenes) and encompassing nearly every celebratory event one could think of. I enjoyed reading it so much, but Pippa's style of entertaining is a little more traditional than mine, so I'm not sure how much of the book I necessarily found useful. It could be the whole American/British thing, but the food definitely felt more on the stuffy side in my opinion (it's very traditional, and not common American fare). My favorite aspect of the book were the tablescapes. I marked nearly every party page to go back and reference for colors, plating, and flower ideas.

[Vivian · Rating 2 out of 5]

The best use for this book is to press flowers or leaves sandwiched in waxed paper between its pages. It is pretty hefty.

If you happen to be an up-scale urbanite or typically vacation at Martha's Vineyard you might find this book useful for its recipes and suggestions.

Even then, it seems there is a choice to make. Either prepare these meals and parties OR be a wife mom. The other choice is Be a wife mom OR hire someone to prepare these meals and parties.

As for my small-town Idaho library having spent $50 on it, too bad. Let's hope it was a donation.

[Tiffany Day · Rating 4 out of 5]

We're not reinventing the wheel here: Middleton ( yes, the sister of THAT Middleton) covers a lot of basic ground. It's a thick tome, but don't let that fool you - there's a lot of "filler" in there (ex. we're told to take a blanket to a picnic). Nevertheless, it's a great gift for graduations and bridal showers, a sit makes a great starter for hostessing, cooking, and having an all-around good time. Plus, there are some decent recipes - and fun British festivities (Burns Night!). Overall, I quite enjoyed it - and wouldn't mind having a personal copy in my kitchen. 4 stars

[Juliet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good for someone just starting out. Lots of fun ideas and useful tips to go with her themes. The book didn't strike me as very original though. Maybe she was going for a more classic approach to party planning than a fab one that will fade with time? Before this book was due back to the library I tried out the Millionaire's Shortbread. It was easy, very tasty and gone within days. I plan to add this to my Amazon gift list as it was enjoyable to look at and read through.

[Jen Bracken-Hull · Rating 3 out of 5]

I know everyone's making fun of this book. And don't get me wrong, it's rather unoriginal. I gave it 3 stars because I'm not the type who has mastered these basics and is ready to up the ante on making festive occasions even more high maintenance. The photography and layout were lovely to see in a book for people trying to practice the basics.

[Chantal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unlike most entertaining/cookbooks I actually read this cover to cover. It's a wonderful resource with excellent ideas for crafts, events, decorating, food, drinks and traditions. The recipes seem to be straight forward and easy and I plan to try the majority of them. The writing is engaging and seems welcoming and open. I really loved this book and am glad I finally bought it.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I know this book was completely panned by critics, but it's not that bad for a book on entertaining. Good recipes, fun games, cute decor ideas. I enjoyed it, and I'm sure I picked up a few ideas to try out, and definitely a few recipes. Entertaining and being a good host is sort of a lost art these days.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just paged through this one to see what Pippa Middleton wrote about. Beautiful pictures and nice ideas for English craft/food traditions. I do find it hard to believe that she put all this together on her own, without any help from other people.

[Tweller83 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting browsing. Of course, picked it up due to her name, not bad as I'm an American and the target market is clearly British people. Didn't try any of the recipes, not that I'm a great cook anyway, but there you have it, a take-it or leave-it title for me.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nicely done British holiday ideas books. Really appealing but common recipes. The gem for me: learning about Burns Night, the Scottish holiday to celebrate the poet. Didn't know about it but what fun! To try: recipe for millionaire's shortbread.

[Jennie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was curious and wanted to see what all the hype was about. Her family event business has served her well with many creative ideas and recipes listed. The pictures are candid and detailed. Fun, playful and full of colour.

[Anne-marie Ward · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was really surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. It goes into detail about how to plan parties and events for almost any occasion. I especially liked the Burns night planning. It includes plenty if recipes too.

[Amber · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Pretty photos, pleasing layout & fonts. It was fun & made me nostalgic looking at all the holidays & festivities. But it was more recipes than I was looking for -- I was hoping it would be more decorations, ideas, games, crafts, etc. Would be lovely as a coffee table book.

[Jennifer Spencer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Because I am a Martha Stewart fan, I found this a little like family fun magazine meets style at home . Some cute ideas which could go either way. I do like her style And can't wait to see how she grows from here.