Advanced
Error loading page.
Try refreshing the page. If that doesn't work, there may be a network issue, and you can use our self test page to see what's preventing the page from loading.
Learn more about possible network issues or contact support for more help.
Title details for Gourmet Rhapsody by Alison Anderson - Available

Gourmet Rhapsody

by Alison Anderson
Muriel Barbery
ebook
1 of 1 copy available
Borrow Read a sample Read a sample
1 of 1 copy available

From the author of the New York Times bestseller, The Elegance of the Hedgehog.
In the heart of Paris, in the posh building made famous in The Elegance of the Hedgehog, Pierre Athens, the greatest food critic in the world, is dying. Revered by some and reviled by many, Monsieur Arthens has been lording it over the world?s most esteemed chefs for years, passing judgment on their creations, deciding their fates with a stroke of his pen, destroying and building reputations on a whim. But now, during these his final hours, his mind has turned to simpler things. He is desperately searching for that singular flavor, that sublime something once sampled, never forgotten, the Flavor par excellence. Indeed, this flamboyant and self-absorbed man desires only one thing before he dies: one last taste.
Thus begins a charming voyage that traces the career of Monsieur Arthens from childhood to maturity across a celebration of all manner of culinary delights. Alternating with the voice of the supercilious Arthens is a chorus belonging to his acquaintances and familiars?relatives, lovers, a would-be protégé, even a cat. Each will have his or her say about M. Arthens, a man who has inspired only extreme emotions in people. Here, as in The Elegance of Hedgehog, Muriel Barbery?s story celebrates life?s simple pleasures and sublime moments while condemning the arrogance and vulgarity of power.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    August 25, 2009

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Read

      • ISBN: 9781609452216

    • EPUB ebook

      • ISBN: 9781609452216
      • File size: 1022 KB

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      June 8, 2009
      French novelist Barbery's sensuous first novel, being released here after the phenomenal success of her second novel, The Elegance of the Hedgehog
      , encompasses a series of witty reflections on the life and career of famous, unlovable French food critic Pierre Arthen, as he lies on his death bed desperate to recapture “a forgotten flavor.” Lapsing through chapters into nostalgic memories of early, formative tastes, women and pets, Arthens reveals himself as a man driven by “gastronomic ecstasies,” from his childhood impressions of eating grilled meat in Tangiers to summers gorging on fresh fish in Brittany. Alternating with these splendid remembrances are decidedly more salty commentary by his resentful children (“Die in your silk sheets, in your pasha's bed, in your bourgeois cage, die, die, die”); long-suffering wife, Anna; the exultant tramp outside his Paris apartment building whom he ignored for 10 years; even his faithful cat, Rick (named for the character in the film Casablanca). Barbery's debut, occasionally rough-edged and uneven in structure, showcases her lush and satisfying prose and sets the stage for what has come.

    • Library Journal

      September 15, 2009
      This follow-up to the best-selling "The Elegance of the Hedgehog", also expertly translated by Anderson, alternates chapters about a famous food critic, on his deathbed in a Paris hotel as he searches his past for a very particular taste, with chapters about his life and work from the various viewpoints of his acquaintances, family, employeeseven the cat. While his own children certainly despise him the most, they are not alone, and yet some find the self-absorbed epicure delightful, warm, and brilliant. This multifaceted study of one man's life is at times charming and astute and at others merely painful or contradictory, depending on the chapter's narrator. Barbery's latest book works more as a culinary tour de force than a substantive novel with well-developed characters or interesting plot. VERDICT This work will delight foodies with a love of language but may disappoint readers looking for a novel they can really sink their teeth into.Gwen Vredevoogd, Marymount Univ. Lib., Arlington

      Copyright 2009 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Formats

  • OverDrive Read
  • EPUB ebook

subjects

Languages

  • English

Loading
Check out what's being checked out right now