(edit: Re: Frank Bruni, Born Round)

^ I enjoyed this book as well, most of all his vivid and loving remembrance of his family and their meals together.

He is brave to portray just how foolish and vain he was during his search for a healthy eating lifestyle. I can relate to that, lol!

At the IC (Highland Park) rummage sale, I picked up several cool hardbacks ($1) and paperbacks (50 cents), including a pristine paperback copy of Harold McGee's On Food and Cooking, a hardback of The Frugal Gourmet with signed card inside (I gave away my paperback copy years ago and have regretted it since), and a 1974 edition of Beard on Bread. Very much enjoying browsing all three. They're helping me get over my sadness at having to return A. J. Liebling's Between Meals to my brother.

Hidden Kitchens: Stories and More from NPR’s the Kitchen Sisters

I listened to this Audie winner with my husband and three grown kids on our Christmas road trip (north of Hayward WI). No one wanted me to play it, but I was driving and they all had their electronic gadgets. Suffice it to say, they all got hooked and we listened to the whole book and had great conversations as a result.

Often, the audio-version of a book is not much different or better than reading it yourself, but this one is an exception.
Frances McDormand narrates the stories which are filled with music, sound effects and voices that capture the food, the culture and the people. My favorites were the Chili Queens of San Antonio, Wild Rice gathering in Northern Minnesota and George Foreman’s story of his childhood.

Davia Nelson, Nikki Silva and Jay Allison explore street-corner cooking, traditions and how communities come together through food. In between the vivid stories, you listen to intriguing messages from NPR’s Hidden Kitchen Hotline. Callers share anecdotes of family recipes and underground kitchens. I promise, this will enhance your next commute or road trip.

I'm currently making me delighted way through a volume that includes, as it notes, "two culinary classics." One might think that hyperbole until one reads the comment from M.F. K. Fisher that these are "two of the best books about cooking in the English language."

The author is Nicolas Freeling and the books are The Kitchen Book and The Cook Book.

Freeling, who spent his childhood in France, was a professional cook for many years before becoming a hugely successful writer of crime fiction. Turning back to his love of food, he produced these wonderfully warm, insightful, often humorous food memoirs.

I did a search, and Freeling didn't come up anywhere on the forum, so I thought it might be good to share this discovery.

Cynthia wrote:I'm currently making me delighted way through a volume that includes, as it notes, "two culinary classics." One might think that hyperbole until one reads the comment from M.F. K. Fisher that these are "two of the best books about cooking in the English language."

The author is Nicolas Freeling and the books are The Kitchen Book and The Cook Book.

Freeling, who spent his childhood in France, was a professional cook for many years before becoming a hugely successful writer of crime fiction. Turning back to his love of food, he produced these wonderfully warm, insightful, often humorous food memoirs.

I did a search, and Freeling didn't come up anywhere on the forum, so I thought it might be good to share this discovery.

I love Freeling's crime fiction (especially his first series about van der Valk). He includes quite a bit about food and cooking in those. Your post makes me want to read his books about cooking as well (and maybe reread Love in Amsterdam).

Voila!
http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=18633
At this writing, exactly 30 threads below yours in this very column.

Note: I'm subscribed to Lucky Peach... but it's far from what I'd call "Literary" even though it's from the esteemed McSweeny's. It's fun, loose and vulgar, with a vibe somewhere between Wired (colored text on photographic backgrounds, scientific notes by Harold McGee) and an underground comic (each issue has doodles and stream-of-conciousness rants by a group of chefs).

Did anyone out there read Gabrielle Hamilton's "Blood, Bones and Butter"? (I thought it started out wonderfully, bogged down a bit towards the end, but ultimately left me thoughtful and appreciative of her prose.) Or Richard Wrangham's "Catching Fire: How Cooking Made Us Human"? (OK, I know, that's not exactly literature, but much of this book was done with a storyteller's voice.)

I read Hamilton's book about a year ago and would highly recommend it to anyone interested in what it's like to be a chef. I agree it's very well written. She comes across not entirely favorably, I guess her honestly is commendable and a bit unusual to find in a memoir.

I agree; it's a really nicely written book that makes an engrossing read. One of my wife's and my favorite books from last year.

Mods, feel free to move. I searched and couldn't find a link to the right thread.

For Leah and others so inclined:

Sci Fi author Norman Spinrad offers his take on how to cook:

http://cooklikeahumannormanspinrad.blog ... jules.html

“EVERY CULTURE IS PASSIONATE ABOUT FOOD; SOME ARE JUST PASSIONATE ABOUT FOOD AND THE FOOD IS SHITTY.”

http://www.believermag.com/issues/201209/?read=interview_gold

Heh, that interview in the Believer brought to mind Anton Ego from Ratatouille.

I'm currently waiting in line for the library's copy of Marcus Samuelsson's "Yes, Chef." Anyone out there have anything (not too spoilerish) to say about it?

I am enjoying Yes Chef. I am only half-way through and it is due back at the library. I plan to finish reading it quickly and pay the fine. It is a great chef story. I don't think I will ruin anything by mentioning that at age three, Marcus Samuelsson walked with his Mom and sister 75 miles while suffering from tuberculosis. His Mom dies and he and his sister are adopted by a Swedish couple. This situation sets the stage for the rest of the story. Samuelsson's style is quiet. But he does a great job writing about family, race and of course -food. His story is incredible and I am having fun reading about how he makes his dreams reality.
I read Blood Bones & Butter recently and Gabrielle Hamilton's story is more raucous. The two chef's have different story-telling styles, but I would recommend both.

Too bad this book isn't scratch and sniff. After reading Michael Pollan's Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation, I wanted to be able to smell the fragrances he describes, especially in the baking and braising sections.

The book is divided into four elements, fire water air and earth. As he deals with each element, he tries to master one recipe. For example, he works with a pit master and learns to grill with fire. Though I don't plan on slow-roasting a whole hog or making cheese any time soon, I am encouraged to be more courageous in the kitchen. Pollan makes self-sufficiency so appealing, I found myself yearning for all the “old-fashioned” skills that are second nature to many of you such as gardening and canning.

As a kid in our family of 7, I thought Jiffy Pop, Tang, TV dinners and other shelf-stable foods were novel and fun. As an adult, I've made more of an effort to move away from processed foods and it is the homemade items that are now treats. Pollan considers the effect of not cooking and our increased reliance on processed foods. He also examines the effect of cooking on culture now and in ancient times. I suppose many wouldn't care about all the detail he shares, but I appreciated his writing, his curiosity and his efforts to improve his family's well-being. He suggests that cooking is "the most important thing an ordinary person can do to help reform the American food system, to make it healthier and more sustainable."

Thanks, janeyb! I haven't read it yet but will keep an eye out.

Any excuse to remind people of Laurie Colwin's existence and writings is a good one. So if you have a chance, check out this article in today's New York Times.

Gypsy Boy, thanks for sharing this, it provided a relaxing lunchtime read. Nice piece.

I know that Gabrielle Hamilton's new book, Prune, is primarily a cookbook, but I've heard it's also very writerly and am looking forward to reading it soon.

I came across this interview with her (and also Dorie Greenspan promoting her new book) from WBEZ's own Chewing the Fat podcast, and while I haven't heard it all yet, I'm enjoying it enough to share with you all here.

Has anyone else gotten their hands on Prune yet? What do you think?

ETA: I'd also love to hear about any other food-related literature you've discovered over the last year... 'tis the season and I could always use a few more gift ideas!

A friend just hooked me up with Jeanne Nolan's From the Ground Up, and I'm looking forward to diving in. It's a local author, and it's getting great reviews, so I thought some of you folks might enjoy it as well.

Any other great books on your wish list this year?

I've been re-reading Steven Brust's Vlad Taltos series, a starting with Jhereg, through Hawk (book 14), and the book Dzur is framed with a meal, each chapter recounting a course.

It made me wish for Next: Valabar's (the fictional restaurant)