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kairosdreaming 's review for:
Gastro Obscura: A Food Adventurer's Guide
by Cecily Wong, Dylan Thuras
*This book was received as an advanced reader's copy from NetGalley.
This might just be one of my favorite 'food' books I've read in awhile. I'm always looking for innovative or 'new to me' foods or cuisines, and this book touched on so many that my poor Amazon wish-list is now chock full of goodies I'd like to try. But moreso than being just a grocery list helper, this book is a great way to view different customs, foods, and other edible innovations around the world, and helps introduce the reader to things they might never have known existed otherwise.
Broken into world regions like Europe, Canada, Africa, etc. (and then further broken into sub-regions within that), each section highlights food festivals, events, items, specialized produce, and much more. To tag along with each item, there is usually a picture or two and also a note on where to obtain the item if possible. Along the way, certain food history or further depth into customs surrounding a particular item or foodstuff around the world are inter-weaved. Most are done in summaries, with few items being more than a page long.
The writing is engaging, fun, and interesting; I can truthfully say there was no skimming and I read every word because I was so intrigued by it. And where some reference books can be dry and boring, this one did not have that tone at all. It was a delight to read through a section at a time, and while I can't say this is a 'sit down and read all at once' type of book, I did return to it night after night to continue the food journey. Among some of my favorite parts were the 'rolling in the grits' (not an Adele song as you might expect), Spicebush (I have two planted in my yard!), Spit-roasted cake, and well, there's too many and my bucket list has really increased as a result.
Really a wonderful book and I'd highly recommend it to anyone who likes travel, food, or learning about other cultures. I definitely plan on buying a physical copy of this one as a permanent addition to the home library.
Review by M. Reynard 2020
This might just be one of my favorite 'food' books I've read in awhile. I'm always looking for innovative or 'new to me' foods or cuisines, and this book touched on so many that my poor Amazon wish-list is now chock full of goodies I'd like to try. But moreso than being just a grocery list helper, this book is a great way to view different customs, foods, and other edible innovations around the world, and helps introduce the reader to things they might never have known existed otherwise.
Broken into world regions like Europe, Canada, Africa, etc. (and then further broken into sub-regions within that), each section highlights food festivals, events, items, specialized produce, and much more. To tag along with each item, there is usually a picture or two and also a note on where to obtain the item if possible. Along the way, certain food history or further depth into customs surrounding a particular item or foodstuff around the world are inter-weaved. Most are done in summaries, with few items being more than a page long.
The writing is engaging, fun, and interesting; I can truthfully say there was no skimming and I read every word because I was so intrigued by it. And where some reference books can be dry and boring, this one did not have that tone at all. It was a delight to read through a section at a time, and while I can't say this is a 'sit down and read all at once' type of book, I did return to it night after night to continue the food journey. Among some of my favorite parts were the 'rolling in the grits' (not an Adele song as you might expect), Spicebush (I have two planted in my yard!), Spit-roasted cake, and well, there's too many and my bucket list has really increased as a result.
Really a wonderful book and I'd highly recommend it to anyone who likes travel, food, or learning about other cultures. I definitely plan on buying a physical copy of this one as a permanent addition to the home library.
Review by M. Reynard 2020