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Shark's Fin and Sichuan Pepper: A sweet-sour memoir of eating in China
 
 
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Shark's Fin and Sichuan Pepper: A sweet-sour memoir of eating in China [Paperback]

Fuchsia Dunlop
4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
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Product details

  • Paperback: 320 pages
  • Publisher: Ebury Press (2 Jun 2011)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0091918324
  • ISBN-13: 978-0091918323
  • Product Dimensions: 19.4 x 12.6 x 2.4 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 17,057 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Fuchsia Dunlop
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Product Description

Review

An insightful, entertaining, scrupulously reported exploration of China s foodways and a swashbuckling memoir. . . . What makes it a distinguished contribution to the literature of gastronomy is its demonstration . . . that food is not a mere reflection of culture but a potent shaper of cultural identity.--Dawn Drzal

Book Description

This is the story of an English girl who went to China to learn the language, but whose love of food led her down a very different path...

Inside This Book (Learn More)
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
14 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This is not just a Chinese cookery book - though it does include several recipes. Nor is it just another Chinese travel book - though it does provide an excellent insight into Szechuan (Sichuan) and other Chinese regions; nor is it simply an autobiographical account of living and eating in China. It is all of these things and more.

In "Shark's Fin and Sichuan Pepper" Fuchsia Dunlop provides a factual but fascinating and entertaining insight into experiences that most of us lack the linguistic and culinary skills and courage to contemplate undertaking first-hand - for example as the only non-Chinese person and almost the only woman on a Sichuan cookery course.

Fuchsia Dunlop writes beautiful prose. Her style of writing, skill with words, content and structure, combined with her enthusiasm for Chinese cookery, create that rare commodity, an un-put-downable non-fiction work. She writes in a compelling way, enabling the reader to see the people and places she visits and taste the dishes she describes.

No one who has read the book could accuse the author of eating anything and everything without a qualm. She absorbs herself in and embraces the regional language, culture and cuisine of different parts of China and describes these sympathetically but not uncritically. She looks at her own eating behaviour dispassionately but critically, seeing herself through both Chinese and Western eyes.

I would recommend this book to anyone who has ever eaten a meal with Chinese people or who is planning a visit to China.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Deliciously fascinating 23 April 2009
Format:Hardcover
The account of how a young middle-class English girl became obsessed with Sichuan cooking, her upbringing, her ruses and her commitment to the hottest cooking in the world in its chinese fastness: student living, uncompromising training, insights into an alien culture - the completely gripping true story of an insane love.
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24 of 28 people found the following review helpful
A delight 22 Mar 2008
Format:Hardcover
A fabulous book - I loved every single page and wished I'd been there trying the food. It's obvious what this book is about - if you don't like this kind of thing don't buy it or read it. Stick to lentils.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Chinese regional food
Do I agree with the eleven people who gave it five stars or the person who gave it one star. Actually neither, it is a four star book for me. Read more
Published 6 months ago by J. Livsey
Fuchsia Dunlop is eXpAt-tAcULar
Food writer Fuchsia Dunlop has written a savory, stir-fried memoir about her career as a professional chef in China. Food meets travel - a delicious recipe for reading.
Published 11 months ago by Xiamen Expat
Unmissable
I found this book unputdownable. A beautifully written, endlessly fascinating and very honest memoir from someone who is passionate about Chinese food. Read more
Published on 31 Mar 2010 by Linda
Excellent! A must have for fans of Chinese Cuisine
The book was a delight from start to finish. Having travelled a little in China myself, i empathised with some of the difficulties Fuchsia had, but also resonated with the many... Read more
Published on 11 Jan 2010 by T. J. Pavlou
A fantastic book, really inspiring, and tried all the recipes
A great book for foodies. Written really well - it gives you a real appreciation of Chinese cooking. The receipe for Dan Dan noodles is great.
Published on 28 Aug 2009 by jewelff
Quite fascinating
I saw the book at a window walking along Picadilly. Bought it on impulse as the title was intriguing. A very clever mix of travelogue sprinkled with a few well chosen recipies. Read more
Published on 22 Jan 2009 by R. Chang
Fin-tastic Fuschia!
Like other reviewers I adore this book, and found it utterly unputdownable. I am one of those strange folk who does not eat meat, but despite this and some initial squeamishness... Read more
Published on 23 Aug 2008 by K. Johnston
only just begun ...
I've just received my copy of Shark's Fin & Sichuan Pepper. I live in a tiny, isolated hamlet in south-west France and the postman arrives shortly before lunch. Read more
Published on 21 July 2008 by Mme Judith Clarke
Sheer magic - impossible to put down!
I loved reading this book so much that I found myself avoiding colleagues on the train in the morning just so I could keep reading. Read more
Published on 6 Jun 2008 by Jasmine
Disgusting
In this day and age, how could a publishing house think that such a book would be of interest to anyone? Read more
Published on 17 Mar 2008 by Jellyfish
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