Tag Archives: food
* The Table Comes First by Adam Gopnick
I was bored by The Table Comes First: Family, France, and the Meaning of Food, which indulgently covers all the greqt problems of our age: should we eat meat? Should we stick with local foods? Is minced truffle with reduction … Continue reading
Filed under Non fiction
** Mycophilia by Eugenia Bone
This is post #1000! I can hardly believe it. A happy romp with mushroom enthusiasts, Mycophilia: Revelations from the Weird World of Mushrooms starts, strangely, with poisoning stories, which seems bizarre since deaths are so rare but the book has … Continue reading
Filed under Non fiction
* Sweet Invention by Michael Krondl
I did not find Sweet Invention: A History of Dessert, to be very sweet, in fact I thought it was about as appetizing as a bowl of porridge, albeit with the occasional raisin to relieve the tedium, especially when the … Continue reading
Filed under Non fiction
*** Blood, Bones and Butter by Gabrielle Hamilton
Blood, Bones & Butter is another memoir, this time, of a chef who once thought she would be a writer (and writes beautifully!) The story is in three parts, the first two I greatly enjoyed. It starts with a reasonable, … Continue reading
Filed under True story
** Tomatoland by Barry Estabrook
If you think, as I do, that standard supermarket tomatoes do not deserve the hallowed name of tomatoes at all, this is the book for you. The author of Tomatoland sets out to demonstrate how these tasteless, thick-skin monsters come … Continue reading
Filed under Non fiction
Food Rules by Michael Pollan
Having read and enjoyed In Defense of Food I foolishly picked up its suspiciously thin successor, Food Rules, thereby experiencing the wonder of how publishers (and authors, presumably) can make a quick buck by exploiting sequels. Yes, apparently it’s possible … Continue reading
Filed under Non fiction
The End of Overeating by David Kessler
The End of Overeating makes exactly to points: one, that we human beings are preconditioned to love sugar, fat, and salt (and even more a combination of the three, preferably packaged as something that needs little to no chewing) and … Continue reading
Filed under Non fiction
Food Matters by Mark Bittman
How could it be that intelligent, well-educated people, would need 300 pages and recipes that include such gems as “cooked vegetables” to realize that junk food is bad for us; that we should probably dial down on huge steaks; and … Continue reading
Filed under Non fiction
A Revolution in Taste by Susan Pinkard
I love food and I can’t say I’m not interested in France but I found A Revolution in Taste, the subject of which is the evolution of food in France in the 17th to 19th century, less than exciting. It’s exquisitely … Continue reading
Filed under Non fiction
Heirloom by Tim Stark
Heirloom is the memoir of a somewhat accidental organic farmer who specializes in heirloom tomatoes. From an improbable beginning gardening on the roof of his New York appartment, the author transforms his life as a freelance writer into that of a … Continue reading
Filed under True story
