Good reads

Here are a list of my favorite books about food culture and life and some that I am looking forward to reading very soon. These are not in order of which one I read first.

My Life in France, Julia Child

Julia Child introduced America to the wonders of french cuisine in her book Mastering the Art of French Cooking.

This Book tells the story of how that book was created and how Julia went from knowing nothing of France and french cuisine to immersing herself deeply into the french culture and learning how to love and appreciate food as one of the biggest pleasures life has to offer. It's an inspiring story and it makes you want to run into the kitchen and start cooking!

 The Apprentice: My life in the Kitchen, Jacques Pepin

This is another inspiring tale of how a young, poor boy living in the middle of World War II helps his mother in her small restaurant by peeling potatoes and doing anything he could. Then he becomes an apprentice at age 13 and his culinary adventure grows from there. His charismatic personality shines through every page and as he narrates his life he also shares delicious recipes. It makes you appreciate the unique culinary characteristics of not only every region of France but also various areas of the United States. If you enjoyed the previous book you will love this one as well!

The Sweet Life in Paris, David Lebowitz

Just looking at the cover makes me warm inside. I relived my trip to Paris reading David's story. Such great memories of walking down the streets of Ile St. Louis with all it's quaint cafes and perfect Fioe Gras shops, or walking by the Seine with a bag of sweet macaroons from LaDuree. 

His narrative is extremely funny as he not only describes his adventures and "mis" adventures in the culinary capital of the world, but also pokes fun at the sometimes -I dare to say- "annoying" french idiosyncrasy. He also adds mouth watering dessert recipes that are sure to keep you warm in the upcoming winter.

The Bucolic Plague: How Two Manhattanites Became Gentlemen Farmers: An Unconventional Memoir, Josh Kilmer-Purcell  

This is the book I finished most recently. You might recognize these gentlemen farmers as the new stars of the reality TV Show "The Fabulous Beekman Boys" This is the story of how they decided to leave their big city life to move into a mansion they could hardly afford, in a small almost forgotten town, and start a farm with only the help of one man, his 80 goats and the internet as their main research tool. The reason I loved this book so much is because I've always considered myself a "City Girl" with aspirations to become a "Country Girl". This book inspired me so much because with every turn of the page you can see how hard these two guys worked to reach their dream of being full time farmers. But instead of being poor young boys raised in the country, they are hip New Yorkers who suddenly decide to raise their own turkeys and clean goat poop for a living. And they do it all with so much love! They get through all the hardships and they make the best of every little thing. To me it's like a modern day fairy tale.

Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly, Anthony Bourdain 

You either love him or hate him. He is raw, in your face and he tells it like it is. He is not trying to be a nice guy, in fact he loves being the "bad guy" and this book tells the story of how he became one of America's best known Chefs and TV personalities. It's a story that probably a lot of cooks and chefs can identify with, because it's not a fairytale-like description of the culinary world but the story of  extremely hard work, sweat and tears that accompany  everyone who has ever worked in a restaurant kitchen.  It's different than all the other books on this list, because it probably will not inspire you or make you feel warm and fuzzy. But it sure will make you laugh and respect everyone who works in the food industry.