People Who Love to Eat Are Always the Best People

October 19, 2020
Some of culinary legend Child’s notable quips and quotes are collected in this slim compendium culled from her writing, television appearances, interviews, and correspondence. Child’s words are predictably clever (“Don’t forget the butter—the French never do!”) and even inspiring (“Find something you’re passionate about and keep tremendously interested in it”), but this is a scanty selection, with fewer than 90 aphorisms, padded with illustrations of kitchen utensils. Remarks like “I’m a beet freak” and “Fat give things flavor” float in space, naked of any context. “No one is born a great cook, one learns by doing” and “You don’t have to cook fancy or complicated masterpieces—just good food from fresh ingredients” are encouraging bits of counsel, but they are concepts that have long permeated culinary culture, due in no small part to Child herself. The work concludes with a brief biography detailing Child’s trajectory, including her Pasadena, Calif., upbringing, her degree from Smith College, her stint in Paris, and her famous tenure at PBS. When Child commands “Don’t eat meekly!” one wishes this volume reflected that same adventurous spirit.

October 16, 2020

Not strictly memoir, People Who Love To Eat Are Always the Best People collects Child's standout observations on France, love, travel, life, and, of course, food: "The only time to eat diet food is while you're waiting for the steak to cook." In One Life, Olympic gold medalist and two-time Women's World Cup champion Rapinoe considers not only her athletic career but her highly publicized stance on social justice issues, showing how her beliefs are rooted in childhood experience. "Maisie Dobbs" all-star mystery writer Winspear changes tack with a memoir showing the impact of World Wars I and II on her family, her parents' life with the Romani, and her childhood in rural Kent, all the while promising This Time Next Year We'll Be Laughing.

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