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thebacklistbook's review
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
2.0
I first came across Fatima on her season of top chef. She was tenacious and more than a little pig-headed based on how they edited the show. I read this book because it was honestly a gut punch to learn that she had died of cancer. She was so young. I can't help thinking, if she had chosen to make her career in a country with universal health care could it have made a difference?
This book takes you through her short life from soup to nuts. Or from dahl to sushi. I listened to this on audio because I knew I wouldn't get through it as a physical book. As it is I spent months listening to the audio. It contains both her perspectives and her mother's on key events from her life.
This book takes you through her short life from soup to nuts. Or from dahl to sushi. I listened to this on audio because I knew I wouldn't get through it as a physical book. As it is I spent months listening to the audio. It contains both her perspectives and her mother's on key events from her life.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cancer, Pedophilia, Rape, Homophobia, Medical content, Child abuse, Death, Drug use, Grief, Medical trauma, and Terminal illness
jasbeingjas's review against another edition
emotional
slow-paced
2.5
I received a free copy of this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I really really wanted to like this book, but it took me months to get through because of how repetitive the writing was. This is in no way a judgment of Fatima Ali or her accomplishments, or the tragedy of her death from cancer. But this book is not well written. It easily could have been a hundred pages shorter and just as, if not more, meaningful. The majority of the book felt just like an info dump about her life without any significant reflection. The repetitive romanticizing of becoming a chef and food was so frequent and almost copy paste that it made the book feel even longer. There were so many parts of Ali’s identity or life that were important but any writing about it felt incredibly surface level. Often times it even felt like there were conflicting views within the book, but with out any kind of connection to piece together the change or growth. The two chapters out of almost fifty that actually stood out to me were actually written from her mother Farezah’s perspective. There were also heavy topics such as child abuse and sexual assault that should have been noted as content warnings.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault, Child abuse, Cancer, and Death
manisitdas's review
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault and Death
jazhandz's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
3.5
It took me some time to really settle in with this book; the opening chapters were far too slow, and I didn’t care for the Farezeh chapters. (And overall I didn’t care for Tarajia Morrell’s writing, which made things difficult.) I’m overall glad that I stuck with it. It’s a good story, and Fatima’s voice is strong and moving. Each section of the book was stronger than the previous.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Grief, and Death
Moderate: Death of parent, Pedophilia, and Medical content
Minor: Vomit
katiemack's review
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I've been putting this one off because I knew it would make me cry. And cry I did.
I expected this to be a poignant, moving memoir about Fatima Ali's upbringing in Pakistan and the US, her journey as a chef and connoisseur of food, and her time on Chopped and Top Chef. But I didn't anticipate how moving her mother's chapters would be; her additional perspective adds depth to the reader's perception of Fatima, of her strength, conviction, and zeal for life. I also didn't expect to become angrier than I already am at our healthcare system and the joke that is private insurance; the US and Pakistan both fail Fatima in myriad ways during her life, but I am far more incensed at her experience in what are supposed to be some of the best hospitals and medical centers in our country.
If you don't mind crying rivulets of tears (which will manifest the most during the last quarter of this book), pick this one up.
I've been putting this one off because I knew it would make me cry. And cry I did.
I expected this to be a poignant, moving memoir about Fatima Ali's upbringing in Pakistan and the US, her journey as a chef and connoisseur of food, and her time on Chopped and Top Chef. But I didn't anticipate how moving her mother's chapters would be; her additional perspective adds depth to the reader's perception of Fatima, of her strength, conviction, and zeal for life. I also didn't expect to become angrier than I already am at our healthcare system and the joke that is private insurance; the US and Pakistan both fail Fatima in myriad ways during her life, but I am far more incensed at her experience in what are supposed to be some of the best hospitals and medical centers in our country.
If you don't mind crying rivulets of tears (which will manifest the most during the last quarter of this book), pick this one up.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer
Moderate: Sexual assault and Death
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