Walking Book Group December 2020: “FEASTING”
Fiction:
Isak Dinesen (the pen name of Karen Blixen): Babette’s Feast (A story full of warmth and heart. Elaborate feast after austere country living.)
Joanne Harris: Chocolat
Sándor Márai: Embers (“In this tense, melancholy Hungarian novella, the feast consumes the entire novel: in an isolated woodland castle, an elderly general invites an old friend to dinner after a 41-year estrangement. The meal he serves is an exact recreation of the last one they shared together decades before—down to the food, wine, and candles—and their conversation resurrects the ghosts of the past.”)
J. R. R. Tolkien: The Hobbit
Charles Dickens: A Christmas Carol
Marsha Mehran: Pomegranate Soup (“For the inhabitants of the damp little Irish town of Ballinacroagh, the repertoire of gastronomic delights has never extended further than the limp meals of the local inn’s carvery. But things are about to change when three beautiful Iranian sisters arrive, determined to share the magic of their kitchen with the locals.”)
Enid Blyton: The Famous Five (series of children’s novels featuring wonderful picnics)
Muriel Barbery: Gourmet Rhapsody (“All the pivotal food scenes of a ruthless food critic’s life are laid out in this French novella, which takes place on the man’s death bed as he racks his memories for a flavor he can’t pinpoint from his youth.”)
George R. R. Martin: A Feast for Crows (vol. 4 in the “A Song of Ice and Fire” series)
Non-fiction:
Sylvia Malaguzzi: Food and Feasting in Art
Ernest Hemingway: A Moveable Feast (1964 memoir by the American author about his years as a struggling expat journalist and writer in Paris during the 1920s.)
Anissa Helou: Feast. Food of the Islamic World
Angel Adoree: The Vintage Tea Party book (“Angel set up the Vintage Patisserie in 2007, turning tea party dreams into reality and offering customers the complete experience, including dance, music and make up and of course a delectable menu. Her new book “The Vintage Tea Party Book” embraces the style and class of the Vintage Patisserie and illustrates how to beautifully recreate the tasty treats and classic styles of a magical golden era in your very own home with elegance and glamour and make your party go with a swing!”)
Amy Sedaris: I Like You – Hospitality Under The Influence (“No matter the style or size of the gathering – from the straightforward to the bizarre – I LIKE YOU provides jackpot recipes and solid advice laced with Amy’s blisteringly funny take on entertaining.” – “A deliriously twisted take on homemaking skills.”)
Marlena de Blasi: A Thousand Days in Venice (“A deliciously satisfying memoir by a food journalist, filled with the foods and flavours of Italy and peppered with culinary observations and recipes.”)
Poetry:
Homer: The Odyssey (epic poem; scenes of feasting are a central part of the work)
Christina Rossetti: Goblin Market
Plays:
William Shakespeare: Macbeth
Henrik Ibsen: The Feast at Solhaug
Children’s books:
Aliki: A Medieval Feast (picture book)
Lewis Carroll: Alice in Wonderland (featuring the unforgettable Mad Hatter’s Tea Party, a set-piece of the absurd)
Louisa May Alcott: An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving
York Bike Belles 