Reviews

This is an interesting personal history of Soviet times, but was not exactly what I was expecting. The idea, I thought, was to create and serve a meal representative of Soviet/Russian times during each decade, from the Tsarist teens through the 1970s. The author discusses the political landscapes and social issues of each time, and she does talk about the food available to her and her family at the time. I kind of thought she and her mother, now living in the US, would talk about how they decided on each dish, and how they had to improvise or whatever to make it here. She didn't really talk about any of the parties they had after that first one. (If that's even what they actually did)

That said, there are some recipes in the back that look amazing. I have never had lamb, but the Georgian lamb stew sounds really good.

abby_h's review against another edition

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dark medium-paced

4.0

garyp's review against another edition

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5.0

A fascinating look at Russian history in the 20th century, told through the lens of the author's family's experience and the food they ate. Starts off a little slow but otherwise very well-written.

valeriebrett's review against another edition

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4.0

If someone is looking for a memoir, or a book about food, I actually wouldn't recommend this. If someone is interested in history, I absolutely would. This is a very smart book (almost more of a memoir of her whole family, not just her) and it took more brain power/engagement than most memoirs I've read, simply due to the amount of historical information provided and referenced. It reminded me almost of a Sarah Vowell book. I learned a lot about history and specifically the Soviet Union. There honestly wasn't that much about food in this book; of course, there was more than if the author wasn't a food writer, but this book being a memoir about food isn't exactly true. As in, there are large swaths of the book where food isn't mentioned at all. Which I suppose is necessary, but I'm giving it 4/5 stars because of this disparate organization. The beginning of the book sets it up as if the author and her mother are going to cook and host a dinner for each decade of the Soviet Union's history, but then that only actually happens once or twice. Overall, smart person, good writing, extremely interesting life story. I learned only a little about the food, which is why I picked this book up in the first place, but I learned so much more about lives and struggles and history.

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