From A for (dining) alone to Z for Zakuski, ‘a Russian hors d’oeuvre’, An Alphabet for Gourmets takes us through a selection of food essays by the incomparable M. F. K. Fisher, alighting on long-time obsessions and idiosyncratic digressions to wholly charming effect.Admired by W. H. Auden as one of the greatest American writers, M. F. K Fisher never focuses on just the food set before her. Instead, with unfailingly elegant prose, an eye for evocative detail and a knack for sharp-edged wit, she draws us in to the whole experience: from the company to the setting, from the preparation to the scraped-clean plate. She liberates her readers from caution, sweeps away adherence to culinary tradition, and celebrates cooking, eating and dining in all its guises.Evocative, thoughtful, with a light touch and a wry humour, these essays illustrate with captivating ease why M. F. K. Fisher has become one of the most beloved and admired food writers of the twentieth century.‘I do not know of anyone i
'Oiled with a brooding tension that never dissipates or resolves, Winter in Sokcho is a noirish cold sweat of a book.' -- Guardian'Narrated in an elegant, enigmatic voice that skilfully summons the te
繼《Winter in Sokcho》，作者又一探討認同與歸屬之作。韓裔人口聚集的日暮里，Claire的外祖父母守著一間傳統柏青哥。兩人拒絕和她以日語溝通，卻也對「回韓國看看」的提議反應冷淡。藉Claire視角，探詢離散者的故里他鄉、家族間的疏離，及語言與身分的連結。From the author of Winter in Sokcho, Winner of the 2021 National Book Award for Translated Literature.The days are beginning to draw in. The sky is dark by seven in the evening. I lie on the floor and gaze out of the window. Women’s calves, men’s shoes, heels trodden down by the weight of bodies borne for too long. It is summer in Tokyo. Claire finds herself dividing her time between tutoring ten-year-old Mieko, in an apartment in an abandoned hotel, and lying on the floor at her grandparents: daydreaming, playing Tetris and listening to the sounds from the street above. The heat rises; the days slip by.The plan is for Claire to visit Korea with her grandparents. They fled the civil war there over fifty years ago, along with thousands of others, and haven’t been back since. When they first arrived in Japan, they opened Shiny, a pachinko parlour. Shiny is
A lyrical and enchanting memoir set among the stalls of New York's legendary Chelsea flea market.Michael Rips is not a collector. The only things he holds onto are books and his diaries. But then he m
'They say (said Reginald) that there's nothing sadder than victory except defeat. If you've ever stayed with dull people during what is alleged to be the festive season, you can probably revise that s
