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182 reviews for:
Dirt: Adventures in Lyon as a Chef in Training, Father, and Sleuth Looking for the Secret of French Cooking
Bill Buford
3.67 AVERAGE
182 reviews for:
Dirt: Adventures in Lyon as a Chef in Training, Father, and Sleuth Looking for the Secret of French Cooking
Bill Buford
3.67 AVERAGE
Fascinating glimpse into the mythic food culture and history of France!
Some elements (well, raising twin boys abroad) brought to mind Anthony Doerr's "Four Seasons in Rome." I've enjoyed both books, narrated by their authors.
Some elements (well, raising twin boys abroad) brought to mind Anthony Doerr's "Four Seasons in Rome." I've enjoyed both books, narrated by their authors.
Many years ago, Mr. Buford, a magazine columnist, went to Italy to learn how to cook in a restaurant (a very different endeavor than cooking for the family). He wrote a book about this experience, and the pleasure he took in living in Italy, getting to know the culture, learning the language and the food and wine of the area shone through on every page.
He came back to the U.S., married, and shortly after his wife bore twins decided to repeat this experience en famille in France. Most of the details of actually moving a family of young children to France falls to his wife, while he pursues the dream of working in an upscale French restaurant. Although he is in every way unqualified for this duty, he relies upon a few connections and the modest celebrity he achieved with his first book to land in a famous cooking school, which he leaves after a few weeks, then in a famous restaurant.
He doesn't enjoy his work. He really, really dislikes his coworkers, and they look down on him as an unqualified, privileged wanker. He wishes he were still in Italy, where working in the kitchen is a duty of pleasure rather than a hypercompetitive effort to determine who is the top dog. 40% of the way through this, I can only conclude that he really hated being in France, and didn't have any fun at all writing this book, either. For the reader, it's like being stuck as a guest in somebody's home while they have a marital tiff. You just want it to end.
Early in the book, he works at a (relatively) humble bakery, making bread, and this is the only part of the book I enjoyed. I did not feel compelled to finish it.
He came back to the U.S., married, and shortly after his wife bore twins decided to repeat this experience en famille in France. Most of the details of actually moving a family of young children to France falls to his wife, while he pursues the dream of working in an upscale French restaurant. Although he is in every way unqualified for this duty, he relies upon a few connections and the modest celebrity he achieved with his first book to land in a famous cooking school, which he leaves after a few weeks, then in a famous restaurant.
He doesn't enjoy his work. He really, really dislikes his coworkers, and they look down on him as an unqualified, privileged wanker. He wishes he were still in Italy, where working in the kitchen is a duty of pleasure rather than a hypercompetitive effort to determine who is the top dog. 40% of the way through this, I can only conclude that he really hated being in France, and didn't have any fun at all writing this book, either. For the reader, it's like being stuck as a guest in somebody's home while they have a marital tiff. You just want it to end.
Early in the book, he works at a (relatively) humble bakery, making bread, and this is the only part of the book I enjoyed. I did not feel compelled to finish it.
informative
slow-paced
Good, but WAY too long and wordy.
informative
slow-paced
Content Warnings
Moderate: Physical abuse
Minor: Sexual harassment
workplace misconduct!
I’m so not sure how many stars...
I had quite the journey with this memoir. I picked it up as an escape from, you know, 2020, into the exotic world of French life and delicious food. First few pages - zipped right through. A little later - slogged along some obscure culinary research. Later - totally engaged in French kitchen life. Later - zombie eyes during another deep dive into vinaigrette or something similarly fascinating.
I had quite the journey with this memoir. I picked it up as an escape from, you know, 2020, into the exotic world of French life and delicious food. First few pages - zipped right through. A little later - slogged along some obscure culinary research. Later - totally engaged in French kitchen life. Later - zombie eyes during another deep dive into vinaigrette or something similarly fascinating.
informative
reflective
medium-paced
lighthearted
medium-paced
adventurous
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Grief
Minor: Death, Racism
Maybe not the gut punch that Buford's previous book "Heat" is, but still extraordinarily entertaining. Buford's almost unbelievable, late in life, nosedive into the culinary world of Lyon is riveting.
Immersive settings are one of the things I look for good fiction writing. Almost all of my favorites have a setting to get lost in. Recently I’ve seen the power that non fiction, specifically memoir, can have to bring about this same effect.
If jetting off to France with your family to explore history, train as a chef, and eat some of the most delicious food in the world sounds like a great escape, Dirt by Bill Buford might be a great book for you!
What I Loved:
▪️Behind the scenes look at restaurant life, the good and the bad (think several Hell’s Kitchen moments)
▪️The author’s honesty about his struggles and failures on this journey to becoming a Chef
▪️DELICIOUS food writing that had me dying to visit France
▪️A realistic look at the challenges when moving abroad and returning home
▪️Humor and levity in high stress moments
You Should Know:
▪️Parts of this memoir are rather dense and moments of historical interludes could be somewhat dry to some readers.
▪️The author himself reads the audio version. While I read a physical copy, I’ve heard many readers enjoy listening to his narration.
If jetting off to France with your family to explore history, train as a chef, and eat some of the most delicious food in the world sounds like a great escape, Dirt by Bill Buford might be a great book for you!
What I Loved:
▪️Behind the scenes look at restaurant life, the good and the bad (think several Hell’s Kitchen moments)
▪️The author’s honesty about his struggles and failures on this journey to becoming a Chef
▪️DELICIOUS food writing that had me dying to visit France
▪️A realistic look at the challenges when moving abroad and returning home
▪️Humor and levity in high stress moments
You Should Know:
▪️Parts of this memoir are rather dense and moments of historical interludes could be somewhat dry to some readers.
▪️The author himself reads the audio version. While I read a physical copy, I’ve heard many readers enjoy listening to his narration.