I would like to start by saying that probably the book itself would be worth 5 stars for how it is has been edited, and printed, for the amazing pictures, and for the overall care taken in thinking and laying it out for the public.
The reason I am giving 3 stars is for the book in the long-run, meaning following the instructions and trying to replicate a recipe.
The first thing to say is that the book is presented as a guide for everyone, beginners to experts. Well, this is not true. If you are a beginner at baking with sourdough, I would not recommend this book as one of your first choices. There are many others in the publishing industry that can help you walk the first step into this world, but I would keep this for other times.
I have been baking with sourdough for a decade, making my own sourdough from scratch when it was not trendy :P I have made a huge amount of errors, from which I have learned a lot, and I have reached a satisfactory level with my baking. I am always trying ways to improve, and that's why I thought this book would be helpful.
The recipes are overcomplicated. The number of tables - even if their use is explained before going to the recipes - is confusing and not necessarily useful. On the first recipe I tried (the basic sourdough boule), I ended up with the incorrect amount of levain.
The length of the recipes, including the fermentation, is extremely long: when I read that bomboloni would take over 60 hours to make, I thought there had been a typo.
No typo. Even the most basic focaccia will take you 19 hours.
The levain used in the book is the liquid levain, (in Italian, this is called Li.Co.Li), and while the basics of sourdough baking are similar between solid sourdough and Li.Co.Li, the fermentation times are different. If you use solid sourdough, you will have to transform it into liquid as there is no way you can get a good result otherwise. Solid sourdough does not need 12 hours of fermentation, as it will be over fermented ad highly acidic.
Maurizio Leo is a professional, and it is also stated in the book that he bakes every day and refreshes his started more than once a day. This point is important as if you are a person whose interest in sourdough is a passion and not a job, your levain will not have the same strenght, and this will impact your recipe, especially if the length of the fermentation in the recipe is long.
So, surely if you are a moderate to expert sourdough baker and you want to experiment with liquid levain and long fermentations, the book is probably suitable to you.
On a funny note, reading that Italians drive "small cars" have made me think that we will never get out of stereotypes, will we? (yes, Italians drive small cars compared to US ones. Not only Italians, actually, but all of Europe. And you'll be surprised to know: we also have SUVs now even here in the old continent :P).
Happy baking everyone!