Cookbook not for beginners

I have all the Chez Panisse books, some more useful than others, but all of them exhibit the passion and, yes, obsession of Alice Waters. So when I read your review of “The Art of Simple Food” [“Greatness? It’s Not So Simple,” Oct. 10], I thought, omigosh, she just might have slipped over the edge on this one.

So, it arrives, and I open it, and . . . I love it! Everywhere I look in the book there is something I want to cook. She gives us options, variations. Her fanciest ingredients are salt-packed anchovies and capers. Ms. Waters does not write for beginners. So let her say “cook until done.” She is giving us credit for knowing what that means.

Janet Thompson

Santa Ana