A Slice of Life: A Collection of the Best and the Tastiest Modern Food Writing - Tapa dura

A collection of contemporary food writing by a star cast of authors, including Nigella Lawson, Anthony Bourdain, Jane Grigson, Umberto Eco, Alice Walker, and Isabel Allende. A Slice of Life is a collection of contemporary food writing that readers can really sink their teeth into: one that examines the ineluctable link between nourishment, literature, and society. Represented here are some of the world's best known writers, many of whom - like Julia Child, Marcella Hazan, and Anthony Bourdain - are well known for their alimentary musings, while others, like Roland Barthes, Umberto Eco, and Susan Sontag are better known for their writings in other genres; all speak eloquently on the nature of food, language, and the adaptability of social customs. Organized into chapters that address descriptions of actual meals, autobiographical memories, the cultural spectacle of eating, the concept of want, the celebration of good food, and the philosophical, spiritual, ethical aspect of food, author Bonnie Marranca has cooked up a tempting meal of writings that reflect on how the consumption of food - or the lack of it - takes on larger social significance. Charles Simic eulogizes tomatoes and q

Bonnie Marranca is the editor of American Garden Writing and The Hudson Valley Lives, as well as the author of many books and articles about the theatre. Betty Fussell writes frequently about food for The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, Cosmopolitan, Wine and Food, Bon Appetit, Ladies Home Journal, and Vogue. Her books include Home Bistro, I Hear America Cooking, The Story of Corn, and My Kitchen Wars.