Book Review: The Last Chinese Chef by Nicole Mones

Here comes another 30 Day Book Challenge review! This is another great book written by one of my favourite authors, Nicole Mones. The Last Chinese Chef follows a widowed American food writer, Maggie, who travels to Beijing to find out more about her late husbands secrets. Her trip also doubles as work, as she is asked by her editor to profile Sam, a half Chinese American who is the last in a line of gifted chefs going back to the imperial palace. I read this in a weekend and really enjoyed it. I love reading about food and Mones has satisfied my literary cravings. As she describes the food, I feel I'm eating it alongside the character.

 

" According to the classical pattern he started with a few lacy-crisp deep-fried dishes: pepper-salt eel fillets like translucent little tiles...and an aromatic stir-fry of yellow chives studded with tiny. delicate fried oysters. Back in the kitchen, he stir-fried tender mustard greens with wide, flat tofu-skin noodles and plump, fresh, braised young soybeans. These glistened on the platter in a light crystal sauce. After that there were lamb skewers, delectably grilled and crusted with sesame".

 

The thing I liked most about this book, was how Mones described traditional methods of Chinese cooking. Publishers Weekly described the book as 'Sumptuous' and this is how I would describe it too.

 

A satisfying read but have some snacks ready to alleviate the cravings that are sure to happen!

 

I'd love to hear what you think of the blog or any of the books I've been reading for this challenge. Just leave me a comment here on the blog or send me a tweet @JuliadeRuiter

 

Julia

Book Review: Dreams of Joy by Lisa See

Right, book review number one of the 30 Day Book Challenge! I took the wrong book with me away this weekend so the Nichole Bernier book should be my next review :)
 
I really enjoyed this book. As I've mentioned previously, I'm really loving reading books about Chinese/Americans and their struggle to find their cultural identity.
Dreams of Joy follows mother and daughter Pearl and Joy.
At the beginning of the book, Joy finds out that her father committed suicide because of her and that her mother really is her aunt and her aunt is her birth mother. Shocked and betrayed by the secrets her family kept from her, she decides to leave Los Angeles and go back to China. The story is set in communist China and provides a fascinating yet shocking account of what the citizens of China at that time had to go through. Lisa See has written in haunting yet realistic prose, the memories and scenes she captured in the book will stay with me for a long time. I can't wait to read another of her books. 5 out of 5 stars!

I'd love to hear if anyone has read this and what you thought- just leave a comment here on the blog or tweet me @JuliadeRuiter

Julia

Book Review- Kitchen Chinese by Ann Mah

Kitchen Chinese is the first novel by food and travel writer Ann Mah.

You can tell she loves to write about food because the descriptions made my mouth water! The first chapter opened with a extremely enticing account of the main character eating Peking duck pancakes. The book is worth reading just for that!
This is now one of my favourite books of all time ( even though it is not young adult fiction!). I love the way it is written- with a sense of humour and little anecdotes here and there that we can all relate to.

“The vibrant depiction of Beijing, lush descriptions of sumptuous Chinese meals, and Isabelle’s struggle with how others perceive her distinguish Mah’s first novel.”
–Booklist
It really transported me to Beijing ( where the book is set). I could almost smell and taste the places and food Mah was describing. 
 I enjoyed reading it so much,  I only let myself read a chapter a night so it would last as long as possible :)

Books about Chinese/American seem to be relatively common in our library so I found another author who writes similar stories- Nicole Mones ( on recommendation from a patron, actually). I am now reading 'The Last Chinese Chef' and enjoying it.
If you want something a little different, light and refreshing, I thoroughly recommend giving it a go.

Julia
P.S.- If you have any book recommendations I'd be very excited! Leave a comment here or message me on Twitter @JuliadeRuiter
:)