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I Loved I Lost I Made Spaghetti by Giulia Melucci

I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti by Giulia Melucci, 288 pages.

I think, but cannot know for sure, that this compendium of love gone wrong/food gone right is supposed to make you think Ms. Melucci is carefree, witty, and leading a somewhat charmed life in the big city. Upon finishing it, all I felt was sad for her - not pity, just sad.  Obviously if you write a memoir about how awful your quest for love is and try to make it light-hearted, it would be nice if the reader believes you are okay with it. However she mentions her desire for marriage often, perhaps children, but mostly marriage, and as she moves into her 40s remains wistful on that front. I was expecting to get a sense that she was happy in her single-dom, and that some good pasta has satiated her desire for family. And that she is cooking up a storm, throws herself into dinner parties, and becomes a real foodie. That is what the book jacket promises, but does not deliver. It truly seemed like an exercise in frivolity, style with no substance as she falls into relationships that are train wrecks from the first meeting (with the exception of one). And the recipes and family anecdotes seem like an afterthought - more of a gimmick to be in the foodie memoir genre.  I wanted to like it, I just didn't believe it. Although I would be interested to study the reviews of single vs. married women. My suspicion is a single gal may find it a bit more palatable.

It probably doesn't help that immediately after closing this book, I read another foodie lit/memoir called Cooking and Screaming: Finding My Own Recipe for Recovery by Adrienne Kane (author of food blog www.nosheteria.com).  She had a stroke at 22, and food is very much a part of her comeback as she relearns everything, including how to cook. It is inspiring, honest, light without being flip, and the recipes fit nicely into the story (and sound appealing too). I would highly recommend this one as an alternative to I Loved I Lost if you are looking for a good memoir with food. (I'm obviously stuck in this genre as I savor Orangette's A Homemade Life....more on that later.)

I Loved I Lost - 2 stars

Cooking and Screaming - 4 stars

The End.

Pomegranate Soup: A Novel by Marsha Mehran

Pomegranate Soup: A Novel by Marsha Mehran, 240 pages

This book lingered on my to-read shelf far too long. And I didn't grab it until both JoAnn and Tara recommended it - Tara put it on her best of 2008 list. Sometimes a sure thing is just what I need, and it was a perfect choice to jumpstart my 2009 year of reading.

The story of the three Aminpour sisters who come to a small Irish town and open a restaurant. Not just any restaurant - the Babylon Cafe enchants most of the town with it's fragrant offerings and the mysterious women behind the mouthwatering Persian cuisine. They are not welcomed by everyone, and this opposition combined with each sister's memories of their escape from Iran offer dramatic tension in an otherwise light story. Reminiscent of Chocolat and Like Water for Chocolate the descriptions of food are magical and passionate. For me, a simple story of a struggling restaurant would be enough, but the Iranian backstory gives it depth without being too heavy.

I highly recommend this, an extremely likeable book. And I guarantee you'll be hungry while reading it.

4 stars.

The End.

PS - I heard a peep say the sequel isn't so good, so read at your own risk.

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Books and Cooks