lulubella's review
3.0
3 stars exclusively for the Chang Rae-Lee essay and the Allen Shaw essay, which were spectacular. The rest were forgettable.
thisgrrlreads's review
3.0
I've forgotten how many books and essays about food I've read, so some of these were repetitive. But they are nice, short essays about food and the meaning of food. Certainly not my favorite food-writing but it does the trick when someone steals your Sunday New York Times and you're in the mood for some short, non-fiction pieces.
emscji's review
3.0
2/15/12: This is a collection--"Best of", I'd guess--of short essays written for the "Eat, Memory" column in the New York Times Magazine. Edited by Amanda Hesser (who also edited the column while it ran), it covers a wide range of authors and topics, though all focus on the theme of memories and food.
A quick read, but there are some lovely surprises in here; it is amazing how evocative smell and taste can be, bringing to mind memories of place and time and family. Just as Proust tells us! Also, it's interesting how often a sense of loss pervades these essays: loss of innocence, of loved ones, of appetites, of a taste for ice cream…. So it's particularly helpful to read these essays all together; it's easier to note their similarities, their common tendency to make food into something intensely meaningful. I suppose Duh, that was the whole idea of the assignment--but often an assignment is easier said than done, and these essays about the authors' experiences succeed in their mission. The best ones manage to be both personal and universal--the best kind of personal essay.
A quick read, but there are some lovely surprises in here; it is amazing how evocative smell and taste can be, bringing to mind memories of place and time and family. Just as Proust tells us! Also, it's interesting how often a sense of loss pervades these essays: loss of innocence, of loved ones, of appetites, of a taste for ice cream…. So it's particularly helpful to read these essays all together; it's easier to note their similarities, their common tendency to make food into something intensely meaningful. I suppose Duh, that was the whole idea of the assignment--but often an assignment is easier said than done, and these essays about the authors' experiences succeed in their mission. The best ones manage to be both personal and universal--the best kind of personal essay.
sandyd's review
4.0
This is a short little book, with a bunch of snack-sized (but delicious) essays. The first one in there (by author Ann Patchett) was kind of a dud, so I set it down and didn't pick it up again until right before it was due at the library - but most of the rest of the pieces in it were amazing. Several very funny bits, more than a couple that made me tear up - all in all, wonderful if you like reading about food.
My favorites: a chef who tries to grow almond flavored carrots, the guy who hates dessert because of his experiences as a teenager working at an ice cream parlor, a Chinese woman who writes about Tang in Beijing, Julia Child failing a cooking test, Tucker Carlson working at a B&M bean factory...ah, too many to list. Read it yourself and tell me which you like.
My favorites: a chef who tries to grow almond flavored carrots, the guy who hates dessert because of his experiences as a teenager working at an ice cream parlor, a Chinese woman who writes about Tang in Beijing, Julia Child failing a cooking test, Tucker Carlson working at a B&M bean factory...ah, too many to list. Read it yourself and tell me which you like.
sarahshapiro's review
3.0
I liked this book. The stories are short and some are very delightful, and there are recipes! It's fun to hear from well-known authors in a different context, too. This is an old book. You know how I know? When a recipe has an ingredient that the author assumes you can't get at your local supermarket (which, in 2019, you probably can), they will put an address of a store in NYC that sells such a thing. That was a fun relic. Anyway, I'm off to make a pear frangipane tart.
purlewe's review
5.0
I love essays. And if you want to read fantastic essays, get a bunch from the times and put them in a book!
I am in awe of Amanda Hesser and her ideas. Food writing that is not odes to grandmother's cooking, but instead essays about why grandmother cooked. I loved reading this on the subway as they were just the right length between work and home. She chose talented writers, playwrights, and poets to render memories into delectable bites.
My favorites were: The Great Carrot Caper, The Absolutely No-Anything Diet, Home Turf, Line of Sight, Turning Japanese, and Crossing to Safety. Altho really.. none of these stories were bad.. I love stories about tastes in other countries, how someone found a recipe, working thru your grief thru cooking. All of these appeal to me. I also was highly entertained by the fact that I have read many of these authors other works, making a glimpse into their life.. their food life.. more interesting.
I am in awe of Amanda Hesser and her ideas. Food writing that is not odes to grandmother's cooking, but instead essays about why grandmother cooked. I loved reading this on the subway as they were just the right length between work and home. She chose talented writers, playwrights, and poets to render memories into delectable bites.
My favorites were: The Great Carrot Caper, The Absolutely No-Anything Diet, Home Turf, Line of Sight, Turning Japanese, and Crossing to Safety. Altho really.. none of these stories were bad.. I love stories about tastes in other countries, how someone found a recipe, working thru your grief thru cooking. All of these appeal to me. I also was highly entertained by the fact that I have read many of these authors other works, making a glimpse into their life.. their food life.. more interesting.
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