Reviews
Blood, Bones and Butter: The inadvertent education of a reluctant chef by Gabrielle Hamilton
leannaaker's review against another edition
5.0
OK, you are going to love this book, or you are going to hate it.
Here are all of the reasons you might hate this book. The character is raw, rude, selfish, and often unlikeable. The second half of the book is less about the chef, restauranteur angle, and more about personal self-exploration. The ending is like a drop into oblivion (where is the ending)? The book is crass, full of vulgarity, and shows no editing of the terrible thoughts in a person's mind.
Here are all of the reasons you might love this book. In places we don't like to talk about, we all resonate with those raw, vulnerable, rude, selfish, and unlikeable moments. They are who we are under the veneer of social acceptability. They are the things we think, even if we don't say them out loud. I found Gabrielle Hamilton's take on herself to be interesting, real, and reflective. You will learn so much about the restaurant and catering business, and you will learn tips and tricks about cooking. You will visit the real Italy through her book as well. The book is crass, full of vulgarity, and shows no editing of the terrible thoughts in a person's mind (Yep, that last sentence is a copy from the reasons you might hate the book).
If you want a sanitized version of a chef memoir that focuses solely on the food, this isn't the book for you. If you want a memoir of a chef's personal life, dirt and all, with a really interesting overlay of food (and you love REAL people), this is the book for you.
Here are all of the reasons you might hate this book. The character is raw, rude, selfish, and often unlikeable. The second half of the book is less about the chef, restauranteur angle, and more about personal self-exploration. The ending is like a drop into oblivion (where is the ending)? The book is crass, full of vulgarity, and shows no editing of the terrible thoughts in a person's mind.
Here are all of the reasons you might love this book. In places we don't like to talk about, we all resonate with those raw, vulnerable, rude, selfish, and unlikeable moments. They are who we are under the veneer of social acceptability. They are the things we think, even if we don't say them out loud. I found Gabrielle Hamilton's take on herself to be interesting, real, and reflective. You will learn so much about the restaurant and catering business, and you will learn tips and tricks about cooking. You will visit the real Italy through her book as well. The book is crass, full of vulgarity, and shows no editing of the terrible thoughts in a person's mind (Yep, that last sentence is a copy from the reasons you might hate the book).
If you want a sanitized version of a chef memoir that focuses solely on the food, this isn't the book for you. If you want a memoir of a chef's personal life, dirt and all, with a really interesting overlay of food (and you love REAL people), this is the book for you.
champagneghost's review against another edition
2.0
The first third/half was entrancing, the latter bit hard to read partly because my eyes were rolled to the back of my head for most of it
theinkwyrm's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
slow-paced
3.5
I’ve seen some mixed reviews of this memoir, but I for one enjoyed it. Hamilton has written a well-executed themed memoir with just enough of her personal life to give context to her relationship with food and cooking without going into so much detail that it starts to become boring. I enjoyed the different sections that the book is broken down into and how they follow her development as a chef, although I think the bones section is my favorite. The only thing that I didn’t like about this memoir is the author’s relationship with her (ex?) husband, which is explored in the last section and which I just don’t understand at all.
feebeecamille's review against another edition
3.0
Filled with wonderful descriptions of food, cooking, parties, places. The domestic drama with her husband was a slog to read through in the last part of the book. Just ate at the author's restaurant in real life, though, and it was fantastic.
kaitlanmar's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
4.0
raloveridge's review against another edition
5.0
Aug. 2020:
Rereading this because I assigned it in a nonfiction writing course I'm teaching. Loving it upon a second read just as much.
Feb. 2016:
I loved this! I find myself truly shocked at some of these negative reviews. The voice in this book is bare and funny, grim and unsettled, positively lush at times and sharp as a knife at others. I noticed the same kinds of accusations--those of solipsism, self-absorption--against [b: Wild|12262741|Wild From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail|Cheryl Strayed|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1453189881l/12262741._SY75_.jpg|17237712] when I read it, and it seems to me that some readers just need to recognize that perhaps memoir is not their preferred genre and to stay away.
This book resonates with Hamilton's complicated feelings about family and obligation, and I found it moving, funny, and gorgeously written. As someone with an MFA myself, I enjoyed the love-hate relationship she outlines here about the U of Michigan program. I loved listening to the audio book, too, and would recommend this to anyone who loves food, good writing, or both.
Rereading this because I assigned it in a nonfiction writing course I'm teaching. Loving it upon a second read just as much.
Feb. 2016:
I loved this! I find myself truly shocked at some of these negative reviews. The voice in this book is bare and funny, grim and unsettled, positively lush at times and sharp as a knife at others. I noticed the same kinds of accusations--those of solipsism, self-absorption--against [b: Wild|12262741|Wild From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail|Cheryl Strayed|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1453189881l/12262741._SY75_.jpg|17237712] when I read it, and it seems to me that some readers just need to recognize that perhaps memoir is not their preferred genre and to stay away.
This book resonates with Hamilton's complicated feelings about family and obligation, and I found it moving, funny, and gorgeously written. As someone with an MFA myself, I enjoyed the love-hate relationship she outlines here about the U of Michigan program. I loved listening to the audio book, too, and would recommend this to anyone who loves food, good writing, or both.
leslielikesthings's review against another edition
3.0
Pretty good. I enjoyed her writing, and I loved the first section of the book. By the end of the book I found her decisions regarding her personal life to be pretty incomprehensible. That's problematic, because to a certain extent I think it's the job of a memoir to make your motivations seem understandable, even if not relatable.