Nicole Mones really illustrates, life and its connections to the comfort of food. More or less, food from somewhere so different. This book outlines a life of lonliness and a life of rebirth. Of course, starting with a simple task. And like love, it blooms. Love for food, love for family, love for one person. This book is about rebirth.
Nicole Mones has some vast knowledge of China. It's obvious really. She went to China for a textile buisiness after the Cultural Revolution, which she tends to mention alot in this book. Her work is printed in eleven languages and has won a number of awards. After eight years of the textile buisness she turned to writing about China. And here she presents us with the best chinese cookbook you'll ever find.
The story follows a widowed food writer named Maggie. When she is introduced to a paternity claim against her late husband, she is forced to go to Beijing and sort things out. When she asks her magazing known as Table for time off, they reply to her with an assignment, to profile the rising culinary chef Sam Liang. Her time there is spent mostly with him, and she soon finds her self drawing closer to the food, the family, and Sam himself. They learn to brighten her up, refresh her, and she is like a woman coming home, except many miles farther.
Mones discription of the food in this book is very explicit and very talented. By talented I mean, the way she describes it is so good that you want to eat it right then and there. The way she describes the characters seem very well. You are told that Maggie has curly hair and shes skinny. Simple. maybe freckled and maybe sharp. But that's all you imagine. And the writing itself, so beautiful the way it turns back, sees people's emotions looks at different views of people without actually saying who it is. It's amazing.
I think people would be affected quite well with this story. I mean c'mon edivently chinese food is not only about the chicken, the shrimp, white rice and noodles you get at take-out. Mentioned many times in the story, chinese chinese is nothing like chinese american. People would really think of China as something exotic, even more than they already do. It would really refresh them
What I find extremely interesting is the untold but "you want it to happen" love between Sam and Maggie. It seems so wrong, yes. But, it has to happen. What also got me hooked on was the descriptions of the delicious food (haha). I think its amazing. The Last Chinese Chef is really no failure. It seems so strange to have gourmet as an important element in the story. But when you see it now, it seems so perfect. I really enjoyed this, couldn't stop reading. (cool cover too haha). Yep this really is, the best chinese cook book you'll ever find.
Mark: 10/10
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