It’s time to vote for our April book selection. As Edible Books is a club for its members it is up to you to lobby hard (and get friends and family involved also) for the book you would most like to read from the nominations below.
You can vote at the bottom of this post. Polls are open until Monday March 25th, then we’ll announce the winner! Reading/discussion will start on April 1st.
Look over the list, and then take a moment to vote so we can continue our conversation about books on Twitter at the #ediblebooks hashtag.
Our short list is based on price and availability.
The Nominations for April Are:
A Year in Provence by Peter Mayle:Peter Mayle and his wife did what most of us only imagine doing when they made their long-cherished dream of a life abroad a reality: throwing caution to the wind, they bought a glorious two hundred year-old farmhouse in the Lubéron Valley and began a new life. In a year that begins with a marathon lunch and continues with a host of gastronomic delights, they also survive the unexpected and often hilarious curiosities of rural life. From mastering the local accent and enduring invasion by bumbling builders, to discovering the finer points of boules and goat-racing, all the earthy pleasures of Provençal life are conjured up in this enchanting portrait. (available in all formats in the US and UK)
97 Orchard: Is a richly detailed investigation of the lives and culinary habits—shopping, cooking, and eating—of five families of various ethnicities living at the turn of the twentieth century in one tenement on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Anyone interested in the history of how immigrant food became American food; and “foodies” of every stripe. (available in paperback and hard cover in the US, hard cover with limited availability in the UK)
Extra Virgin by Annie Hawes: A small stone house deep among the olive groves of Liguria, going for the price of a dodgy second-hand car. Annie Hawes and her sister, on the spot by chance, have no plans whatsoever to move to the Italian Riviera but find naturally that it’s an offer they can’t refuse. The laugh is on the Foreign Females who discover that here amongst the hardcore olive farming folk their incompetence is positively alarming. Not to worry: the thrifty villagers of Diano San Pietro are on the case, and soon plying the Pallid Sisters with advice, ridicule, tall tales and copious hillside refreshments. (available in paperback and hardcover in the US, all formats in the UK)
It’s time to vote for our March book selection. We had fewer nominations this time around, but what they lacked in quantity, they certainly made up in quality. It will be tough to choose which one to vote for!
Now it’s your turn: you can vote at the bottom of this post. Polls are open until Monday February 25th, then we’ll announce the winner! Reading/discussion will start on March 1st.
Look over the list, and then take a moment to vote so we can continue our conversation about books on Twitter at the #ediblebooks hashtag.
Here are the book choices for March:
Blood, Bones & Butter: The Inadvertent Education of a Reluctant Chef by Gabrielle Hamilton: Before Gabrielle Hamilton opened her acclaimed New York restaurant Prune, she spent twenty hard-living years trying to find purpose and meaning in her life. Blood, Bones & Butter follows an unconventional journey through the many kitchens Hamilton has inhabited through the years: the rural kitchen of her childhood, where her adored mother stood over the six-burner with an oily wooden spoon in hand; the kitchens of France, Greece, and Turkey, where she was often fed by complete strangers and learned the essence of hospitality; Hamilton’s own kitchen at Prune, with its many unexpected challenges; and the kitchen of her Italian mother-in-law, who serves as the link between Hamilton’s idyllic past and her own future family—the result of a prickly marriage that nonetheless yields lasting dividends. By turns epic and intimate, Gabrielle Hamilton’s story is told with uncommon honesty, grit, humor, and passion. (available in paperback, hardback, Kindle edition and audio in the US and the UK)
Chocolat by Joanne Harris: In tiny Lansquenet, where nothing much has changed in a hundred years, beautiful newcomer Vianne Rocher and her exquisite chocolate shop arrive and instantly begin to play havoc with Lenten vows. Each box of luscious bonbons comes with a free gift: Vianne’s uncanny perception of its buyer’s private discontents and a clever, caring cure for them. Is she a witch? Soon the parish no longer cares, as it abandons itself to temptation, happiness, and a dramatic face-off between Easter solemnity and the pagan gaiety of a chocolate festival. Chocolat‘s every page offers a description of chocolate to melt in the mouths of chocoholics, francophiles, armchair gourmets, cookbook readers, and lovers of passion everywhere. It’s a must for anyone who craves an escapist read, and is a bewitching gift for any holiday. (available in hardback, paperback, Kindle edition and audio in the US, Kindle and paperback in the UK)
How To Pick A Peach: The Search for Flavor from Farm to Table by Russ Parsons: In How to Pick a Peach, Parsons takes on one of the hottest food topics today. Good cooking starts with the right ingredients, and nowhere is that more true than with produce. Should we refrigerate that peach? How do we cook that artichoke? And what are those different varieties of pears? Most of us aren’t sure. Parsons helps the cook sort through the produce in the market by illuminating the issues surrounding it, revealing intriguing facts about vegetables and fruits in individual profiles about them, and providing instructions on how to choose, store, and prepare these items. Whether explaining why basil, citrus, tomatoes, and potatoes should never be refrigerated, describing how Dutch farmers revolutionized the tomato business in America, exploring organic farming and its effect on flavor, or giving tips on how to recognize a ripe melon, How to Pick a Peach is Parsons at his peak. (available in paperback, hardback, and Kindle edition in the US, hardback and paperback only in the UK)
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New to Edible Books? Welcome to the club! If you need more information about how Edible Books works, please read the participation guidelines here.
It’s time to vote for our February book selection. We had so many great nominations that it was challenging to narrow the list down. We’re really hoping that some of the books that didn’t make this month’s short list will be nominated again so we’ll have another chance at reading them (particularly Backstage with Julia, by Nancy Verde Barr!). As always, we focused on variety, availability, and discuss-ability when making our choices.
Now it’s your turn: you can vote at the bottom of this post. Polls are open until Saturday January 26th, then we’ll announce the winner! Reading/discussion will start on February 1st.
Look over the list, and then take a moment to vote so we can continue our conversation about books on Twitter at the #ediblebooks hashtag.
Here are the book choices for February:
The School of Essential Ingredients by Erica Bauermeister: Once a month, eight students gather in Lillian’s restaurant for a cooking class. Among them is Claire, a young woman coming to terms with her new identity as a mother; Tom, a lawyer whose life has been overturned by loss; Antonia, an Italian kitchen designer adapting to life in America; and Carl and Helen, a long-married couple whose union contains surprises the rest of the class would never suspect…The students have come to learn the art behind Lillian’s soulful dishes, but it soon becomes clear that each seeks a recipe for something beyond the kitchen. And soon they are transformed by the aromas, flavors, and textures of what they create. (available in the UK in paperback and audio, in the US in paperback, Kindle edition, and audio)
Fat of the Land-Adventures of a 21st Century Forager by Langdon Cook: Foraging is not just a throwback to our hunter-gatherer past; it’s a way to reconnect with the landscape. And Langdon Cook is not just your typical grocery cart-toting dad. For him, gourmet delicacies abound, free for the taking if we just open our eyes. As a result, he finds himself free-diving in icy Puget Sound in hopes of spearing a snaggletooth lingcod, armed with nothing more than a “Hawaiian sling.” He bushwhacks through rugged mountain forests in search of edible mushrooms. He strings up a fly rod to chase after sea-run trout. He even pulls on the gardening gloves to collect stinging nettles. In wry, detailed prose, he traces his journey from wrangler of pre-packaged calories to connoisseur of coveted wild edibles. Structured around the seasons of the year, each chapter focuses on a specific food type and concludes with a recipe featuring the author’s hard-won bounty, a savory stop to each adventure-filled morsel. (available in paperback and Kindle editions in both the UK and the US)
Salt: A World History by Mark Kurlansky: In his fifth work of nonfiction, Mark Kurlansky turns his attention to a common household item with a long and intriguing history: salt. The only rock we eat, salt has shaped civilization from the very beginning, and its story is a glittering, often surprising part of the history of humankind. A substance so valuable it served as currency, salt has influenced the establishment of trade routes and cities, provoked and financed wars, secured empires, and inspired revolutions. Populated by colorful characters and filled with an unending series of fascinating details, Salt is a supremely entertaining, multi-layered masterpiece. (available in the UK and US in hardcover, paperback and Kindle edition, also available in audio in the US)
New to Edible Books? Welcome to the club! If you need more information about how Edible Books works, please read the participation guidelines here.
It’s time to vote for our January book selection! We have an interesting range of choices this time around: Books set in Paris, the French countryside, Rwanda–and in the case of Calvin Trillen, all over the map. No matter which one we choose, we will enjoy some armchair travel in January.
Now it’s your turn: you can vote at the bottom of this post. Polls are open until Wednesday December 26th, then we’ll announce the winner! Reading/discussion will start on January 1st.
Maybe your New Year’s resolutions will include more quiet time for reading! In the midst of the holidays, don’t forget to take a moment to vote so we can continue our conversation about books on Twitter at the #ediblebooks hashtag.
Here are the book choices for January:
Alice, Let’s Eat: Further Adventures of a Happy Eater by Calvin Trillin: “Calvin Trillin, guided by an insatiable appetite, embarks on a hilarious odyssey in search of “something decent to eat.” Across time zones and cultures, and often with his wife, Alice, at his side, Trillin shares his triumphs in the art of culinary discovery, including Dungeness crabs in California, barbecued mutton in Kentucky, potato latkes in London, blaff d’oursins in Martinique, and a $33 picnic on a no-frills flight to Miami.” (Available in paperback and hardcover in the US and UK, Kindle edition in the US)
Peaches for Monsiur Le Cure (US title Peaches for Father Francis) by Joanne Harris: When Vianne Rocher receives a letter from beyond the grave, she has no choice but to follow the wind that blows her back to Lansquenet, the beautiful French village in which eight years ago she opened a chocolate shop and first learned the meaning of home. But returning to one’s past can be a dangerous pursuit. Vianne, with her daughters, Anouk and Rosette, finds Lansquenet changed in unexpected ways…” (Available in hardcover and Kindle in the US and UK, paperback edition in the UK)
Baking Cakes in Kigali by Gaile Parker: “In Kigali, Angel runs a bustling business: baking cakes for all occasions—cakes filled with vibrant color, buttery richness, and, most of all, a sense of hope only Angel can deliver.…A CIA agent’s wife seeks the perfect holiday cake but walks away with something far sweeter…a former boy-soldier orders an engagement cake, then, between sips of tea, shares an enthralling story…weary human rights workers…lovesick limo drivers. Amid this cacophony of native tongues, love affairs, and confessions, Angel’s kitchen is an oasis where people tell their secrets, where hope abounds and help awaits.” (Available in hardcover in the US, paperback and Kindle edition in the US and UK)
My Life in France by Julia Child: “Julia Child single handedly awakened America to the pleasures of good cooking with her cookbook Mastering the Art of French Cooking and her television show The French Chef, but as she reveals in this bestselling memoir, she didn’t know the first thing about cooking when she landed in France. Indeed, when she first arrived in 1948 with her husband, Paul, she spoke no French and knew nothing about the country itself. But as she dove into French culture, buying food at local markets and taking classes at the Cordon Bleu, her life changed forever.” (Available in hardcover, paperback, and Kindle edition in the US and UK)
New to Edible Books? Welcome to the club! If you need more information about how Edible Books works, please read the participation guidelines here.
It’s time to vote for our December book selection. The Edible Books community has really come through with some great nominations this time around and it was challenging to decide on the short list. Availability was a big factor in our decision-making this month, but ultimately we were able to narrow the nominations down to a handful of books that are readily available (including outside the US!) and still have a real variety.
Now it’s up to you: you can vote at the bottom of this post. Polls are open until Sunday, November 25th, then we’ll announce the winner! Reading/discussion will start on December 1st.
The holidays are busy, but don’t forget to make a little time to relax, read, and continue our conversation about books on Twitter at the #ediblebooks hashtag. Being part of a community will keep you young!
Here are the book choices for December:
Toast: The Story of a Boy’s Hunger by Nigel Slater: “Toast is the truly extraordinary story of a childhood remembered through food. In each chapter, as Nigel Slater takes us on a tour of the contents of his family’s pantry—rice pudding, tinned ham, cream soda, mince pies, lemon drops, bourbon biscuits—we are transported…
His mother is a chops-and-peas sort of cook, exasperated by the highs and lows of a temperamental stove, a finicky little son, and the asthma that would prove fatal. His father is a honey-and-crumpets man with an unpredictable temper. When he is widowed, Nigel’s father takes on a housekeeper with social aspirations and a talent in the kitchen and the following years become a heartbreaking cooking contest for his affections. As he slowly loses, Nigel finds a new outlet for his culinary gifts and we witness the birth of a lifelong passion for food. Nigel’s likes and dislikes, aversions and sweet-toothed weaknesses, form a fascinating backdrop to this exceptionally moving memoir of childhood, adolescence, and sexual awakening.” (Available in hardcover, paperback, Kindle, and audio editions)
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life Barbara Kingsolver: “Author Barbara Kingsolver and her family abandoned the industrial-food pipeline to live a rural life—vowing that, for one year, they’d only buy food raised in their own neighborhood, grow it themselves, or learn to live without it. Part memoir, part journalistic investigation, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle is an enthralling narrative that will open your eyes in a hundred new ways to an old truth: You are what you eat.” (Available in hardcover, paperback, Kindle, and audio editions)
The Language of Baklava by Diana Abu-Jaber: “Diana Abu-Jaber’s vibrant, humorous memoir weaves together stories of being raised by a food-obsessed Jordanian father with tales of Lake Ontario shish kabob cookouts and goat stew feasts under Bedouin tents in the desert. These sensuously evoked repasts, complete with recipes, in turn illuminate the two cultures of Diana’s childhood–American and Jordanian–while helping to paint a loving and complex portrait of her impractical, displaced immigrant father who, like many an immigrant before him, cooked to remember the place he came from and to pass that connection on to his children. The Language of Baklava irresistably invites us to sit down at the table with Diana’s family, sharing unforgettable meals that turn out to be as much about “grace, difference, faith, love” as they are about food.”(Available in hardcover, paperback, and Kindle editions)
The Reach of a Chef: Professional Cooks in the Age of Celebrity by Michael Ruhlman: “For his previous explorations into the restaurant kitchen and the men and women who call it home, Michael Ruhlman has been described by Anthony Bourdain as the greatest living writer on the subject of chefs and on the business of preparing food. In The Reach of a Chef, Ruhlman examines the profound shift in American culture that has raised restaurant cooking to the level of performance art and the status of the chef to celebrity CEO. Bibliophiles and foodies alike will savor this intimate meeting with some of the most famous chefs in the kitchens of the hottest restaurants in the world.”(Available in hardcover, paperback, and on US Kindles)
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New to Edible Books? Welcome to the club! If you need more information about how Edible Books works, please read the participation guidelines here.
It’s time to vote for our November book selection. We had some great nominations from the Edible Books community, and you can vote at the bottom of this post. Polls are open until Thursday October 25th, then we’ll announce the winner!
We’re looking forward to more delicious conversation about books on Twitter at the #ediblebooks hashtag in November.
Here are the book choices for November:
White Truffles in Winter by N.M. Kelby: “Auguste Escoffier (1846–1935) was the unparalleled French chef whose impact on restaurants and high cuisine is still with us. He was also a complicated man—kind yet imperious, food obsessed yet rarely hungry, capable of great passion and inscrutable reserve. In this lushly imagined new novel, N. M. Kelby transports us into Escoffier’s private world, weaving a sensual story of food and longing, war and romance.” (Available in hardcover, paperback, and on Kindle)
Second Helpings of Roast Chicken by Simon Hopkinson: “In this follow-up to the smash sensation Roast Chicken and Other Stories, Simon Hopkinson re-creates his winning formula by taking forty-seven completely new favorite ingredients–from apples to cocoa, lobster to truffles, and fennel to mint–and presenting an exotic array of tastes and ingredients from all over the world.” (Available in hardcover and on Kindle)
Hunt, Gather, Cook: Finding the Forgotten Feast by Hank Shaw: “From field, forest, and stream to table, award-winning journalist Hank Shaw explores the forgotten art of foraging. If there is a frontier beyond organic, local and seasonal, beyond farmers’ markets and grass-def meat, it’s hunting, fishing and foraging your own food. A lifelong angler and forager who became a hunter late in life, Hank Shaw is dedicated to finding a place on the table for the myriad overlooked and underutilized wild foods that are there for the taking — if you know how to find them.” (Available in hardcover, paperback, and on Kindle)
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New to Edible Books? Welcome to the club! If you need more information about how Edible Books works, please read the participation guidelines here.
