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How long does it take before somebody becomes a national treasure? It’s certainly happened to Nigel Slater, and
Eating for England is a highly enjoyable reminder of just why we esteem the estimable Mr Slater. Subtitled
The Delights & Eccentricities of the British at Table, this is wonderfully entertaining stuff, explaining such matters as how some of our most cherished foods are the result of frugality (bread and butter pudding, for instance, is the direct result of utilising a few slices of leftover bread and a pat of butter, rather than culinary aspiration). As Slater points out, the British have a relationship with food which is quite unlike that of any other nation -- for many years, we were reluctant to discuss food matters (leaving culinary discussion to, for instance, the French), but we now appear to be in the grip of a national food obsession, with program after program on television and -- inevitably -- a host of books on the subject. But few are written as entertainingly as Nigel Slater’s. It isn't just the discussion of food itself (from haute cuisine to the humblest of comfort foods) that’s so diverting here, but other sociological (and tongue-in-cheek) related matters, such as ‘A Teenager at the Table’ (‘The shoulders droop, the head hangs sulkily down, eyes glaring intently at an invisible spot on their lap. Their whole body seems to say ‘I'm not eating this’). And Nigel Slater is perfectly happy to address subjects not found in any other food books (such as the modest chocolate bar -- different varieties are entertainingly compared and contrasted).
This is a personal portrait of the British and their food, filled with love of the eccentricities and peculiarities that encapsulate the national character. And it's great fun. --Barry Forshaw
Review
'[Nigel Slater] is a national treasure.' Bee Wilson, Sunday Times 'A joyously tongue--in--cheek nostalgic mix!yum, yum.' Jenny Uglow, Sunday Telegraph 'Nigel Slater understands as well as anybody how to turn ingredients into a meal, but his big thing is his grasp of how a meal can turn into a new confection in the mind. For Slater, a meal isn't just nourishment, it's memory, nostalgia, excitements and heartache!A wonderfully comforting book.' William Leith, Evening Standard 'From mashed swede, home made gingerbread, funeral teas and dinner parties to washing up, tipping and Heinz ketchup, Nigel Slater celebrates the eccentricity and diversity of the British attitude to food, cooking and eating.' Woman and Home 'Slater's fans will be sure to snap this one up.' Harpers Bazaar 'At last, I have found a little remedy for my food--overdose moments!My antidote is Nigel Slater's latest, highly addictive, extremely funny and thought--provoking book on British eating habits. I love it -- one of my favourite food books this season and it doesn't even feature a recipe.' Easy Living 'Warm, funny and soulful writing. Grab a copy, lock yourself away and enjoy.' Sainsbury's magazine 'Packed with his never--bettered brand of veneration for all things quirkily British.' Kate Colquhoun, in the Daily Telegraph 'Books of the Year' Praise for 'Toast': 'Everyone who loves good food warms to Nigel Slater's rich descriptive writing, but this touching memoir proves he's more than a cookery writer. Its emotional impact will strike a chord with many.' The Sunday Mirror 'Proves he can write mouth-wateringly about families and life, too: I gobbled it up.' Daily Telegraph Books of the Year 'It should come as no surprise that Slater's autobiography connects emotions, memory and taste buds. The genius of his food writing comes from an obvious belief that food and happiness share the same organ in the brain.' Lynne Truss, Sunday Times 'Toast is England's answer to Anthony Bourdain's Kitchen Confidential.' Daily Telegraph '[A] coming-of-appetite story.' Time Out 'Proves that Slater can write well about anything.' Joanna Blythman, Scottish Sunday Herald 'Food was the boy, is the man!It is his very ordinariness, the commonness of [his] story, that makes this wonderful, precise autobiographical journey so extraordinary.' Matthew Fort, Observer
by Nigel Slater
by Simon Hopkinson
by Nigel Slater
by Nigel Slater
by Nigel Slater
