She lovingly kneads childhood and adolescent anecdotes and then ties them all back to a favorite dish, complete with a detailed recipe. I would forget that I was reading a memoir. Reichl is a great storyteller-that's the barebones truth. I had to force myself not to read anything at home, and I still finished it in less than a week! It was a delectible read, so much so that I greedily scarfed each chapter on my rail commutes to and from work.and then unabashedly licked my fingers afterwards. I refuse to be classified as a lemming! I've come to find out that most the time, if a lot of people agree that something is worth usually is! Tender at the Bone: Growing Up at the Table is one of these books. I wuv you, Ruthie! The wannabe Bohemian in me avoids national bestsellers. Reichl's narrative of a life lived and remembered through the palate will stay with the reader long after the last page is turned. Reichl's wry and gentle humor pervades the book, and makes readers feel as if they're right at the table, laughing at one great story after another (and delighting in a gourmet meal at the same time, of course). Peavey, who always remembered to make extra pastry for the beef Wellington Serafina, the college roommate with whom Reichl explored a time of protest and political and personal discovery and, finally, cookbook author Marion Cunningham, who, after tales of her midlife struggles and transformation, gave Reichl the strength to overcome her own anxieties.

Her stories shine with the voices and recipes of those she has encountered on the way, such as her Aunt Birdie's maid and companion, Alice, who first taught Reichl both the power of cooking and how to make perfect apple dumplings the family's mysterious patrician housekeeper, Mrs. New York Times restaurant critic Ruth Reichl shares lessons learned at the hands (and kitchen counters) of family members and friends throughout her life, from growing up with her taste-blind mother to the comfort of cream puffs while away at boarding school on 'Mars' (Montreal seemed just as far away) to her most memorable meal, taken on a mountainside in Greece.

Tender at the Bone by Ruth Reichl