The Seasoning of a Chef

The Seasoning of a Chef: My Journey from Diner to Ducasse and Beyond
By Doug Psaltis
Broadway 1st Edition
Sept 2005 304 pages. Out of print, price varies.

Reading Psaltis's description of the fast but efficient kitchens he's worked in, and his loving descriptions of food, I have to admire the man. His drive to learn to be a chef, and to keep learning in every kitchen he worked in, took him to push for challenges. He never went to culinary school, opting instead to learn on his feet. His love of food and cooking began at his grandfather, Poppy's, side. Working in bagel shops, seafood restaurants and fusion cuisine pushed him to try to make his way in the competitive culinary scene of New York city. When he felt that he couldn't learn anything more in a kitchen, or that it wasn't pushing to be the best it could be--- he moved on.  Although that sounds almost arrogant, Psaltis's narrative stays conversational, forthright. It's more about his dreams and his desire to learn, than his arrogance about what he knows already. He's humble around other cooks he wants to learn from.

From flipping pancakes and making bacon with Poppy in the diner, to Alain Ducasse's fancy restaurants, each meal is lovingly described. Don't read this hungry. If at all possible, make sure you can get yourself some cassoulet, a rich stew with duck leg confit, which is one of the particularly sumptuous tastes Psaltis describes.  Or, failing that, fresh-baked bread or a tasty salmon dish will do.

This book confirms something that comes as no surprise to me. I would never, ever be a good professional chef. While Kitchen Confidential made me laugh, at Anthony Bourdain's dissipated rock star persona and his profane, earthy descriptions of his kitchen, the earnest honesty of Psaltis's passion makes me admire him. And also shudder. Working from 6am to midnight is routine. Six days, without a break. And when he does get vacations, he does "stages" at other restaurants- working and observing in other kitchens. For free. That's dedication. It's admirably insane. His love of food makes me smile- his passion for preparing good food, and staying loyal to chef cameraderie and traditions. Or the meals he seeks out and describes on his rare days off or nights out. The meals he writes about alone, are worth reading this warm and wonderful book.

In the Bleak Midwinter (Book Review)

In the Bleak Midwinter (A Rev. Clare Fergusson and Russ Van Alstyne Mystery)
Julia Spencer-Fleming
Paperback $6.99

I picked this up at Partners and Crime because I liked the idea of a female priest at the center of a mystery. I watched the Father Dowling mystery series as a kid, I have a soft spot for the confluence of clergy and detective work.

Episcopal priest Clare Fergusson finds an abandoned baby on the church steps. A wealthy childless couple in her parish thinks this is the answer to their prayers. But until the baby's parents can be found and contacted, everyone's in limbo. Clare is eager to team up with police chief Russ Van Alstyne to get answers and get the baby placed in a good home. Having a priest be part of a police investigation makes some things easier- talking to victims' families, for example.

Reading James Bond- Guest Post by Walter Lawn

The following is a guest post by my dear friend Walter Lawn. Thanks so much for writing this, Walter. Definitely putting the Bond novels on my reading list!


2008 was Ian Fleming’s 100th birthday, and to celebrate, Penguin came out with an all-new set of James Bond, with wonderfully tawdry cover art by Richie Fahey. If you only know Bond from the movies, these books are an opportunity for a special treat.

The Gun Seller (book review)

The Gun Seller
By Hugh Laurie, yes That Hugh Laurie
Washington Square Press, 1998, 368 pages

"Darkly comic" sounds like a cliche that book reviewers toss around until it's ceased to mean anything. But- in this case, it's true. Hugh Laurie's novel is dark and violent. It begins with the main character's arm breaking, and continues towards murders and arms deals.

But, it's also hilarious. Mostly, in the form of the narrator's asides, and whimsically wry turns of phrase. "There was a bomb scare on the flight out to Prague. No bomb, but lots of scare." Laurie's clearly having fun with the language. Very droll British fun. "I picked up a glass and a bottle of the Famous Grouse, poured myself a couple of fingers, and... added enough water to turn it into just a Vaguely Familiar Grouse." Or "swallows flitted here and there, darting in and out of the bushes, like furtive homosexuals, while the furtive homosexuals flitted here and there, pretty much like swallows." Heh.

Thomas Lang is either an arms dealer involved in a vast conspiracy, who plays dumb--- or an innocent man in love, victim only of being in the exactly wrong place to be caught in a cascade of violence and intrigue, getting between him and the safety of his loved ones. Neither the reader, nor the novel itself, seems entirely sure which. Thomas blunders from attempting murder to escaping certain death, in a cascade of supporting characters that leave everyone confused who's on whose side.

It's an action thriller, punctuated by British  humor and sly linguistic jabs.  Reading this in search of either works. Think Jeeves and Wooster go bloodthirsty. Plenty of car-chases, gunplay, near-death, blackmail, and even romance. Punctuated, and made unique by an excellent set of linguistic gymnastics and wit in the asides. Unfortunately, the craft of the plot seems to fall apart in the last third, when suddenly, Thomas has joined a militant organization called the Sword of Justice, precariously undercover as a dumb American. Cynically, I wonder whether Laurie had gone back to filming House by that point, or had just decided that he'd had enough of the experiment of writing a thriller. Part One is such a fun blend of action and puns, though, that it, at least, is worth a read, if you don't mind that it might fizzle by the end.

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (via WVFC)

Another one to add to my to-read pile.

Chris Lombardi wrote about The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks for WVFC.

The book, written by Rebecca Skloot

began to trace the story of a young mother of five who came to a clinic at Johns Hopkins, in 1951 “the only hospital in Baltimore that would see black patients,” after discovering a lump on her cervix.

Back then, “informed consent” laws didn’t exist, she added. The only consent needed was the patient’s signature on a form granting Johns Hopkins permission “to perform any operative procedures that they may deem necessary in the surgical treatment of Henrietta Lacks.”

It was immediately clear that Lacks had a full-blown tumor. She was given the prescribed treatment of the time, a course of radiation. But her diagnostic lab sample soon took on a life of its own.

That specimen, Skloot explained, was sent somewhere having nothing to do with treatment: to cell biologist George Gey, inventor of the “roller drum” used in labs worldwide, who was in the process of gathering all the cervical-cancer cells he could find.

“Gey thought he could isolate cells that had characteristics that were only cancer,” said Skloot. “So he collected them, but until he got Henrietta’s, the cells just always died. Hers didn’t.”

In fact, they doubled every four hours. The manically reproducing cells behaved the same way in Lacks’s body: she died eight months after entering the clinic. But her cells now had their own rooms at Johns Hopkins, and Gey was beginning to publish the fact that he’d found and perfected the line he called HeLa. Soon every scientist wanted his own supply, and eventually facilities were built to mass-produce HeLa cells and ship them around the world.

Read the full story at Women's Voices For Change.

Nothing But a Smile (book review)

Nothing But a Smile

Steve Amick

Pantheon Books, March 2009

336 pages

After rereading Lauren Willig, I was looking for immersive historical fiction, with a strong sense of place, character and, above all, fun. Nothing But a Smile suited me perfectly. It's warm, innocently sexy, and really immersive into the World War II home front.

Wink Dutton is discharged from the military, not wounded in battle, but in a dumb accident, that hurts his pride as much as it hurts his body. He comes to Chicago to check in on Sal, the wife of his war buddy, who offers him a room above the struggling photography shop she runs.

And then they get the idea to start taking girlie pinup photos, to sell to troop magazines. Nothing porny- Amick's descriptions of the "cheesecake" photo shoots of whimsical scenes were delightful. Both funny (whoops, a lifted skirt here! and oops! bazooms!) and also endearingly awkward. And fun, beautifully described cultural history. The scenes of the photo shoots- staging what was sexy but also everyday, making a story out of it-- captures a historical moment. The difference between leg paint and precious nylons, for example. Also- a good view into what was sexy: the hint, or the possibility in a story, rather than a big reveal of everything all hanging out. The way I picture it- you saw less in those pinup photos than in the background of a crime scene on CSI. There's a dignity to that vision of women's sexuality that I appreciate.  Can you be nostalgic for something that ended before you were born?

Sal and Wink both wrestle with the ethics of what they're doing. Is it art? Fidelity or a love letter to her husband? Is it immoral or taboo or patriotic or innocent or what? Their doubts and awkwardness ultimately carry a respect for each other, and, I think, a healthy view of sex. And, of course, they're not insulated from the town's censure-- Sal models in a wig-- but what happens when she's recognized is telling.

It's both kinds of a romance- between characters, and romanticizing history, even romance, in the best possible way.

Great fun! I want more in this vein. Maybe I'll go back and reread Playing By Heart.

Dawn of the Dreadfuls Review and Giveaway!

Can I just say that I love Quirk Books? Pride and Prejudice and Zombies made me very happy, both in concept and in execution. (While Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters proved not to be my favorite book ever, I'm perfectly willing to attribute that to not having read Austen's original. ) And now, here comes a prequel- an all-original story, based on the characters of Pride and Prejudice, but explaining how Elizabeth and Jane turned into ass-kicking zombie-fighting martial artists. I'm game! (Thanks to Melissa Monachello at Quirk Books for sending me a copy.)

Also- Melissa tells me they're giving away prize packs of Quirk Books Goodies- all you have to do to enter is let 'em know you read about it here. Contest Link!

The first time I heard about Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, I laughed out loud, thrilled that it existed. That Quirk Books keeps coming out with these titles heralds a genre in the making. Not sure what you'd call it. Camp Regency? Literary mash-up? Monsters n' Manners?