A spur-of-the-moment selection of good reads for those who enjoy literature with a side of dinner-time intrigue or tasteful food-inspired story-telling. Each chapter represents a new selection of two books. Enjoy. Make recommendations!
CHAPTER 6
The Dinner – by Herman Koch
We have all seen one of those mesmerizing movies that take place in one location entirely, yet captivate the viewer from beginning to end. This novel seems to inspire the same sort of gripping plot, all in the course of a long dinner conversation over dinner. The drama unfolds through the eyes of two couples dining at a fashionable Amsterdam restaurant. The conversation is polite at first, but everyone knows that the untold story will and must surface.
“Each couple has a fifteen-year-old son. The two boys are united by their accountability for a single horrific act; an act that has triggered a police investigation… As civility and friendship disintegrate, each couple shows just how far they are prepared to go to protect those they love.”
One reader’s review points out that both characters and storyline are completely believable. Another aspect of this food-inspired novel is how it explores various aspects of parenting.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Cinnamon and Gunpowder by Eli Brown
“A gripping adventure… and a twist on the tale of Scheherazade—with the best food ever served aboard a pirate’s ship… The year is 1819, and the renowned chef Owen Wedgwood has been kidnapped by the ruthless pirate Mad Hannah Mabbot. He will be spared, she tells him, as long as he puts exquisite food in front of her every Sunday without fail… Wedgwood gets cracking with the meager supplies on board… Soon he’s making tea-smoked eel and brewing pineapple-banana cider…”
The early 1900’s history, politics and society serve as a backdrop for this character-driven story. Despite long-held common belief, we now know that pirate ships were a well-organized and highly democratic environment, among the crew that is. But isn’t food a vehicle to democracy also or at the very least for common grounds? Imagine being forced to do what you do best, in the name of your own life. How often do we avoid doing what we do best even when our life depends on it? There seems to be some food for thought here.
Happy Reading!
You may also enjoy – Famous Dinner Scenes
Find more Page Turners HERE
NOTICE: Excerpts in quotation marks are from Amazon.com. We strongly encourage you to stop by your local library (Varnum Memorial Library, in Jeffersonville), or a local bookstore (Ebenezer Books, Johnson) to explore these and other titles. Amazon.com links are provided merely for your convenience and to offer a visual reference. 158 Main & JPD are not affiliated with Amazon.
158 MAIN 