I have loved several of M. F. K. Fisher's other books, (Consider the Oyster and How to Cook a Wolf for instance), and treated myself to the Folio Society edition of this classic. As usual, the food was wonderful, from Fisher's childhood realization that there was more to food than boring, unappetizing sustenance; to her first experience with The Oyster; to the delights of French food eaten in France and the excellence of simplicity. The autobiographical bits I found would have been slightly mystifying if I had not educated myself about Fisher's life and loves already. Most puzzling, I feel, is the fact that she wrote about living happily in a Swiss villa with her first husband, Al Fisher, and without any explanation at all, was suddenly writing about living in the same place with someone referred to only as "Chexbres" (her second husband, Dillwyn Parrish, as it turns out). Similarly, she brings in Parrish's illness, disability and death in such an offhanded fashion that rather than merely taking a back seat to the main point of her writing, these sketchy references distract the reader with unanswered questions. I realize this was not written as an entity, but composed of individual essays, so the lack of continuity and coherence shouldn't be considered a failing on the author's part. And overall, I really enjoyed this paean to glorious, simple, elegant, sensuous appreciation of food. ( )

NA

Autobiographical anecdotes cover the years 1912-1941. Some are fanciful and some are extremely sad. The food detail is always amazing and interesting and I was tickled to note that airline food was bad in 1941 also...
(November 01, 2006) ( )

This is a series of essays written about Fisher's life between 1912 and 1941. She covers a wide range of topics; from the first time food became significant to her as a teenager in boarding school to her adventures as a newly married wife living in France. When she said goodbye to her Californian-American palate and encountered French cuisine it was like having an epiphany for Fisher. Her ears (and taste buds) were open to a whole new way of experiencing food and drink. Sprinkled throughout the stories are glimpses of Fisher's personal history. Her relationship with sister Norah and brother David, the demise of her first marriage with Al, the slow death of her second love, Chexbres, and her awakening to a different culture in Mexico. ( )

good memoir, not telling us everything but that's what the internet is for.
"fisher builds a life from meals" ( )