The Book of Salt

A fictional story of Binh, a Vietnamese man who is a cook to two real people in the 1930’s – Gertrude Stein and Alice Toklas. Stein ruled the roost by her presence, but Toklas did all the heavy lifting. Toklas typed, edited and proofread all of Stein’s work. She handled schedules, was the bouncer for......more

A novel full of distinct ideas and images that never quite came together. Monique Truong's debut book centers on Binh, a gay Vietnamese cook who flees Saigon in 1929 to work as a galley hand at sea. He narrates his journey while later employed as a live-in cook for Gertrude Stein and Alice Toklas, t......more

I read this book for a course on queer historical fiction. The story is told by a gay Vietnamese cook who works for Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas in Paris during the late '20s/early '30s. There's not too much plot, but what's there is dispensed slowly, with another piece being added to several......more

In this slim novel, there are some lovely passages that evoke a forlorn loneliness, and the writing about food is quite sensual, depicted in what is often sumptuously poetic prose. But far too often, I longed for Monique Truong to have her narrator speak more clearly to the heart of the matter, rath......more

I would like to say that I liked it more, but I just can't. I feel pretty well read, but this story is a mystery of wandering thoughts. Some parts flowed nicely and others were very disjointed and felt completely chopped up. I still do not understand the title, even at the end. There were many obser......more