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A review by herbiehickmott
Your Table Is Ready: Tales of a New York City Maître D by Michael Cecchi-Azzolina
2.0
There's an author's note at the end that acknowledges that 1) these are the author's memories to the best of his ability, and 2) that the restaurant industry has changed a lot over the years -- and that it is/was often an extremely toxic, abusive, complicated space.
I wish that note had been at the beginning -- it could have helped change my perception of the stories to follow. Nearly every paragraph felt like it was glorifying the "good old days" of booze, sex, drugs, and a toxic environment (and many paragraphs hit all of these things in one go!) Normally this stuff wouldn't bother me or make me think twice, but something about how it was presented left me a little uncomfortable.
As the book progresses (and presumably, as Cecchi-Azzolina matured), the stories feel less gratuitous and over-the-top.
I wish that note had been at the beginning -- it could have helped change my perception of the stories to follow. Nearly every paragraph felt like it was glorifying the "good old days" of booze, sex, drugs, and a toxic environment (and many paragraphs hit all of these things in one go!) Normally this stuff wouldn't bother me or make me think twice, but something about how it was presented left me a little uncomfortable.
As the book progresses (and presumably, as Cecchi-Azzolina matured), the stories feel less gratuitous and over-the-top.