Which new books are on the horizon?

[jgm]

I'm currently reading Julia Child's memoirs, and plan to start on the new Gael Greene book after that. And then, there's nothing on the agenda, and I'm getting worried about that.

What is new out there that I may be missing?

What's Michael Ruhlman working on?

How about Ruth Reichl? (Yes, I've read Garlic & Sapphires. Loved it.)

Amanda Hesser?

others?

[bigwino]

Michael Ruhlman's next book, The Reach of a Chef, is due out on 5/18 according to Amazon. I think eCookbooks.com is already selling it.

[moosnsqrl]

Is that new knife book finished yet? I never knew I needed a comprehensive book about knives, yet since I've read that it's in the works I've found myself relentlessly curious about knives and now I don't know what to do about it

[markk]

I'm currently reading Julia Child's memoirs, and plan to start on the new Gael Greene book after that.  And then, there's nothing on the agenda, and I'm getting worried about that. 

That's so funny that you wrote that! I just received my copies of those, plus "Don't Try This at Home", and "Between Bites" (James Villas) all of which I'm saving for an upcoming vacation.

What others of the genre have you read (or might you have overlooked)? I've recently read:

Garlic and Sapphires

The Fourth Star

The Perfectionist

Burgundy Stars

The Seasoning of a Chef

The Apprentice

From Here, You Can't See Paris

and believe it or not, "Is Salami and Eggs Better Than Sex?" (Alan King/Mimi Sheraton).

Is there any chance you missed any of those? Would you want to share the names of any others?

There's an obscure online bookseller with thousands of culinary titles, (not Powells) and for the life of me I can't remember the name or find it at the moment!

Edited April 24, 2006 by markk (log)

[chezcherie]

There's an obscure online bookseller with thousands of culinary titles, (not Powells) and for the life of me I can't remember the name or find it at the moment!

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would it be jessica's biscuit? love them! fast delivery, great selection and sometimes, free coffee beans!

[markk]

There's an obscure online bookseller with thousands of culinary titles, (not Powells) and for the life of me I can't remember the name or find it at the moment!

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would it be jessica's biscuit? love them! fast delivery, great selection and sometimes, free coffee beans!

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No, and it's driving me crazy! They refer to the various sections of their site as "aisles", and as I say, the've got billions of food books.

[jgm]

In doing some poking around, I've learned that Anthony Bourdain has "The Nasty Bits" coming out about the same time Michael Ruhlman's book will be released. Amazon's offering a two-fer that I just might take advantage of.

The knife book is still a year or more away. (For those who may have missed it, our own Chad Ward is writing a book on kitchen knives.)

I'm somewhat limited in that I try to find books that are available on audio. My eyes have some problems, which are exacerbated by working at a computer all day. If I can't find audiobooks (usually on Audible.com), I will buy the print version, but I have to keep myself from reading too much at once, lest I end up with Fried Eyes Syndrome. But I'm getting some good ideas here. I really want to read The Perfectionist, but it's not out on audio. Guess I'll just have to break down and get the print version.

Has anybody heard whether Amanda Hesser is working on anything? I've read two of her books and really, really enjoyed them.

[Pitter]

I recently finished "Eating my Words" by Mimi Sheraton, and loved it. Highly recommended.

Right now I am reading "The Language of Baklava" by Diana Abu-Jaber, and it is delightful. She is a very engaging writer who has some great stories to tell. I strongly recommend this as well.

I also read "Insatiable" and hated it. Gael Greene is such a narcissist in dire need of a different editor. I don't know why I finished it -- I guess because I paid full freight for this hard-cover, but throughout I was asking myself, "who cares?"

[Honkman]

There is also an new book by Bill Buford: "Heat : An Amateur's Adventures as Kitchen Slave, Line Cook, Pasta-Maker, and Apprentice to a Dante-Quoting Butcher in Tuscany"

[Pontormo]

How about Eat this Book. A Year of Gorging and Glory on the Competitive Eating Circuit?

Already done A Meal Observed, devoted to a single night at Taillevent in Paris?

How about The Duchess Who Wouldn't Sit Down?

Read all the Mark Kurlansky books on cod, salt & now, the new one on oysters?

If you liked learning about salt, why not switch to fiction and read The Book of Salt about a cook?

Or if you want to know about oyster sellers and the fate of one in Victorian England, see the novel by Sarah Waters, Tipping the Velvet which admittedly leaves culinary matters behind very quickly for life on the wicked stage and scandal, but begins on an evocative note:

Have you ever tasted a Whitstable oyster?  If you have, you will remember it. Some quirk of the Kentish coastline makes Whitstable natives-as they are properly called-the largest and the juiciest, the savouriest yet the subtlest, oysters in the whole of England.

Does the book have to be new? Long before Kurlansky's explorations of a single food item there was John McPhee on oranges.

Then, there's the classic Latin American novel, Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands by Jorge Amado, recipes at the end of chapters, better than the movie, though the Brazlian original (NOT the stupid Hollywood remake) is pretty sexy.

Interested in food history? Consult Charlemagne's Tablecloth by Nichola Fletcher which surveys feasting.

Become an expert on pigs. There's Pig Perfect by Peter Kaminsky. There's another recent one by an American food writer, she says vaguely. Then there's The Singular Beast: Jews, Christians, and the Pig by Claudine Fabre-Vassas whose title omits Muslims, alas.

[Pontormo]

Speaking of pigs and books from Knopf and generating buzz on eGullet:

Heat.

Note that there is at least one thread in this forum on the New Yorker author, Bill Buford, and his related article in the May 1 edition of the magazine.

Edited May 3, 2006 by Pontormo (log)

[ronnie_suburban]

I've had a look at an advance copy of Michael Ruhlman's The Reach of a Chef: Beyond the Kitchen and it's absolutely terrific. I'm in "can't put it down" mode now and hope to post a more comprehensive review shortly.

=R=

[srhcb]

I just got an email notice from Jessicas Biscuit that MFK Fisher A Life in Letters was on clearance, so I ordered it, and just to take advantage of free shipping I figured I might as well get My Life in France too!

SB

[artisanbaker]

looking forward to "citronelle"

[Shannon_Elise]

Right now I'm finishing up Mostly True: A Memoir of Family, Food and Baseball by Molly O'Neil. Then I get to interview her! I'm so excited. I've talked to Senators and recently had an exclusive with the mayor of Ohio's largest city, but I'm more intimidated by O'Neil than any politician! (I'm editor at a community paper in Columbus, Ohio).

The book, while not all about food, is excellent. The description of a young, teenage Molly experimenting with cakes and filling so many fallen holes with icing (which subsequently make the cakes heavy as over ten pounds or so) are so vivid and wonderful. You can see her assembling "crab melts" with bologna. It is a truly wonderful and can definitely satisfy a foodie's want for great description and eloquence in discussing things we eat.

I also recently finished "Salt: A World History" and am looking forward to picking up the new one on Cod.

Shannon

[kangarool]

I haven't seen anything from Jeffrey Steingarten for some time... is he still writing the column in Vogue? Does anyone know if there's another collection of his essays planned? I've enjoyed his two other books very much -- although not everyone has. Great holiday reading.

If anyone knows of any news about any future books of his I'd love to hear.

[Vanessa L.]

From the Canadian circuit, I finished Gina Mallett's book Last Chance to Eat a while ago. Very informative read on some of the "endagered" foods of our time like unpasteurized cheeses, slowly disappearing fish, produce and traditionally prepared dishes.

There is far less of a strong narrative, than, say Garlic and Sapphires, but the sheer density of the information alone keeps you reading. I absolutely recommend it.

[Mikeb19]

A recent release, but currently I'm reading the newest book co-authored by Hervé This and Pierre Gagnaire entitled "la Cuisine - c'est de l'amour, de l'art, de la technique". It's a very cool book, more philosophical than most cooking related books. Available in french only as far as I know, I had to order my copy from a french source. Very good book though, it combines This and Gagnaire's musings with a story throughout the chapters, I've never read anything like it... Good stuff so far.

[BonVivant]

not a fan of Chinese food but am looking forward to checking out Ms. Dunlop's new book releasing next month. i literally [read 'engrossed in'] wolfed down her Sichuan book just days before going to Chengdu to eat. i'm sure there are plenty of drool stains on some pages!

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[first 10kg box of Sichuan spices and tea leaves has arrived. woohooooo]

[bilrus]

I recently read about a book that analyzed five beverages - Coffee, Tea, Wine, Beer and Coca-Cola - and their impact on history (or something like that). But for the life of me I can't remember the title.

Does anyone have an idea what I'm thinking of here?

[Kevin72]

It's something to the effect of, "History of the World in Five Cups". But I can't find the exact title on Amazon.

Edit: Got the count and drinkware wrong: A History of the World in 6 Glasses .

Edited May 18, 2006 by Kevin72 (log)

[debbiemoose]

I, too, enjoyed "The Language of Baklava," a really warm and delightful book. I just got "Matzoh Ball Gumbo," a nonfiction book about Jewish food and cooking in the South and how, when Jews moved South, they had to reinvent many Jewish food traditions (ever heard of kosher BBQ in Memphis?). The book is nominated for a Beard.

Darn. Forgot to get Kurlansky's oyster book for the beach trip tomorrow. Off to the bookstore...

[Chad]

Is that new knife book finished yet?  I never knew I needed a comprehensive book about knives, yet since I've read that it's in the works I've found myself relentlessly curious about knives and now I don't know what to do about it

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Doh! Late to the thread. Of course you need to know everything about the worlds oldest tool . Who doesn't? How-to, history, anthropology, wacky anecdotes and touching stories -- you'll laugh, you'll cry, it will become a part of you. "Why, yes, Oprah, I'd love to show the audience how to slice that." Bwahahahaha!

Oy, back to the keyboard and cutting board.

Take care,

Chad

[daisy17]

How about Ruth Reichl?  (Yes, I've read Garlic & Sapphires.  Loved it.)

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You must read the first two of Ruth Reichl's books, Tender at the Bone and Comfort Me With Apples. They are just as enjoyable as Garlic & Sapphires.

[docbrite]

It has a copyright date of 2005, but I just got Stir the Pot: The History of Cajun Cuisine by Marcelle Bienvenu, Carl A. Brasseaux, and Ryan A. Brasseaux. It's excellent so far, especially the chapter on subregional differences in Cajun cooking. I've had the chance to visit most of these regions and am interested to see some of the differences I've observed borne out in this scholarly work as well as learning about some I hadn't yet noticed.