The FiFi Report 287

Gourmet Rhapsody ….by Muriel Barbery

‘French novelist Barbery’s sensuous first novel has been released after the phenomenal success of her second novel, The Elegance of the Hedgehog. ( The FiFi Report 225 ). The book encompasses a series of witty reflections on the life and career of famous, unlovable French food critic Pierre Arthen, as he lies on his death bed desperate to recapture a forgotten flavor. Lapsing through chapters into nostalgic memories of early, formative tastes, women and pets, Arthens reveals himself as a man driven by gastronomic ecstasies, from his childhood impressions of eating grilled meat in Tangiers to summers gorging on fresh fish in Brittany.
Barbery’s debut, occasionally rough-edged and uneven in structure, showcases her lush and satisfying prose and sets the stage for what has come.’
$21.95 Borders.com.au Publisher: Europa Editions (August 25, 2009)
P.S Read a fascinating interview here at Amazon.com