Cooking With Fernet Branca
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Review
"'Wickedly witty... Anyone who does not add this hilarious divertimento to their summer reading list should be put on a forced diet of Gerald's inimitable Alien Pie.' Michael Dibdin, Guardian; 'A deliciously nasty farce set in [Hamilton-Paterson's] adopted Tuscany... Cooking with Fernet Branca had me laughing out loud and uproariously. All Tuscanites should read it, preferably over a plate of stewed otter chunks in lobster sauce.' Sunday Telegraph; 'Larded with bitter satire and piquant wit, at the expense, often, of its readers and their dreams of Italy... I laughed out loud several times a chapter' The Times"
Product Description
Gerald Samper, an effete Englishman, lives on a hilltop in Tuscany. He is a ghostwriter for celebrities, and a foodie, whose weird tastes include 'Mussels in Chocolate and Garlic' and 'Fernet Branca Ice Cream'. His idyll is shattered by the arrival of Marta, a vulgar woman from a former Soviet republic now run by gangsters, notably male members of her family. She is a composer in a neo-folk style who claims to be writing a score for a trendy Italian film director. The neighbours' lives disastrously intertwine. The entourages of the rock star and the director come and go; mysterious black helicopters bring news of mayhem in Voynova, Marta's homeland; and along the way the English obsession with Tuscany is satirized mercilessly.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I was given this for Christmas, and found it an excellent antidote to the January blues! The narrative flow from two points of view, with overlaps, is a terrific comic device. Gerald is a great character, in both senses of the word, with a truly witty turn of phrase and some hilarious one-liners. I loved his attitude towards his ex-pat bachelor lifestyle, and of course his outrageous cuisine (don't worry - it's not a cookbook!). Marta is perhaps slightly less rounded as a character, but it doesn't matter too much as the whole book is such fun to read. Deep and meaningful it isn't, but if you've done the demanding bit and it's time for some light relief, this is for you. I'll really miss it now I've finished it. More please!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
The book: Gerald Samper is a ghostwriter for the famous and stupid; he works best in his secluded villa in the hills high above Viareggio. That is, until he discovers he is not all that secluded: an eastern (or central)European neighbour wanders over with a bottle of Fernet Branca, advice and trouble. Though he is an aesthete and sensitive soul, Samper (of the Shropshire Sampers) rises magnificently to the challenge, distributing operatic song and recipes (oyster and turnip profiteroles, otter chunks with lobster sauce) through the hills; plus some observations on Italian estate agents, British tourists, the rich and famous, and the philosophy of life.
My opinion: a comic masterpiece, I think, for specialists who enjoy morbid wit, beautiful writing, and taking potshots at almost everything... It is obvious Mr Samper (and his author) love Italy, but have seen some slightly less wonderful sides of it, as well. A glorious book which has me buying *anything* by this guy, and laughing out loud when I read it. And again. And again... highly recommended, a feast for connaisseurs and for anyone who takes themselves, and their foibles, not too seriously.
My opinion: a comic masterpiece, I think, for specialists who enjoy morbid wit, beautiful writing, and taking potshots at almost everything... It is obvious Mr Samper (and his author) love Italy, but have seen some slightly less wonderful sides of it, as well. A glorious book which has me buying *anything* by this guy, and laughing out loud when I read it. And again. And again... highly recommended, a feast for connaisseurs and for anyone who takes themselves, and their foibles, not too seriously.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
The book is written as alternating chapters by the two protagonists, describing their own view of the same bizarre events. Gerry, effete,witty,with a well-developed sense of the ridiculous, but takes himself and his culinary work rather seriously. Marta is an eccentric Eastern European, living amongst the beautiful Tuscan hills in happy squalor, whilst she tries to come to terms with modern technology to help compose a film score. You can't help but grow fond of these two characters as they merrily score points off each other.Very cleverly written, like watching a good film.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Cooking with Fernet Branca
One of those really quirky funny book that makes you laugh out load and cause other people on the bus to wonder what you are reading...
Published 2 months ago by Dessy
Not for me
We decided on this book for our book club after a review on the radio. I did read two thirds of it as I thought it would have to improve - but - it did not. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Elsbeth
A fabulous find
I have now bought four copies of this book to share my delight with my friends and although not everyone is reduced to the helpless giggling which overcomes me the movement I open... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Nils
"Death Roe" and other recipes
No, dear reader, this is not a recipe book. Oh, what fun I`ve had browsing some of the reviews on this page, bemusedly aghast at how some people will always miss the point. Read more
Published 11 months ago by GlynLuke
A clever comic gem
This first novel featuring the obnoxious but irresistible Gerald Samper is a mixed bag. The prose coruscates, the recipes repel and obsess as much as Samper himself, though the... Read more
Published 23 months ago by barbicandy
entertainingly odd
Picked this up in a charity shop when looking for mindless books to read on holiday, and mindless this certianly was - but in a reasonably entertaining way. Read more
Published on 18 Nov 2009 by Feasel 81
review
This is a book. All the pages have printing on them and if you can read you can make sense of it. It's very funny indeed.
Published on 26 Feb 2009 by Mr. Kw Jenkins
Wicked, witty, wacky
I've bought this book on sale at the local library partly because it was ridiculously cheap and partly because of the hilarious narrative inside the cover of the book that made... Read more
Published on 21 Jun 2008 by Trionon
At last...
What a treat to read a book where the story line is driven by highly developed characters. This surely is one sign of a skilled writer. Read more
Published on 8 May 2008 by Urban Yuppie
this is NOT a cookery book!
My fault - I DID read the blurb and understood that this book was going to be a humourous book but I(wrongly)assumed that somewhere in this book there would still be real recipes... Read more
Published on 15 Jan 2008 by Petes Pa
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