As They Were

The prose here is clear and complex and supple all at once. With a voice I'd follow anywhere on earth. I felt embraced in these essays by a warm, plucky, companionable, and hyper-observant personality, by a person who herself embraced whatever life brought her way. And what a life it was: rich and s......more

Food writer M. F. K. Fisher shares stories with us from her past: the first time she ever ate at a restaurant: Fisher's meeting with a servant who adored the chef she served; three restaurants in Switzerland; two kitchens in Provence. She tells everything freshly, cleanly, with the beautiful prose t......more

Well written and charming essays, but they aren't really in my area of interest, thus just three stars, and they got a little repetitive and I definitely skimmed more than a few. Still, a great example of travel and food writing. Will use an essay in teaching my Craft of Literary Nonfiction class.......more

M.F.K. Fisher is one of my favorite authors and probably my favorite food author. I read this some years ago, in fact probably more than once. One of the pieces is my all-time favorite piece related to food. "I Was Really Very Hungry" is about the waitress in a small country inn where Fisher went on......more

This book is a group of essays, written over a long time span, 1940's - 1980's. I found the quality uneven, some writing drew me into the time and place being written about. Other stories were strangely sterile and cold. A few pieces were personal experiences that for some reason the author wrote in......more