A Literary Feast

by Lilly Golden

A Literary Feast is a sumptuous gathering of stories, essays, and excerpts that expound upon the art of eating, penned by some of the finest writers of our century. These twenty-seven pieces were chosen first for their literary quality and second for the gustatory pleasures they explore. They should prove excellent sustenance for those who are as passionate about reading as they are about eating. Our culinary appreciation - which has elevated food from a basic element required for survival to one of our foremost loves - has overflowed into the literary world. Gastronomy as a worthy subject has become a literary tradition. Well-laden tables that have long inspired the imaginations of readers are featured in A Literary Feast, in works like James Joyce's "The Dead," Isak Dinesen's "Babette's Feast," Virginia Woolf's wonderful dinner in To the Lighthouse, and "Hunger Was Good Discipline" from Hemingway's A Moveable Feast. Also included are such writers as M. F. K. Fisher, A. J. Liebling, and Ludwig Bemelmans, who have delighted our appetites for literary food writing for decades. You'll find contemporary surprises as well, such as Thomas Pynchon's banana breakfast from Gravity's Rainbow and short stories by Tobias Wolff, John Hersey, Hortense Calisher, and V. S. Pritchett, who have now taken their places among the great fiction writers of our day. Whether fact or fiction, whether playful or serious, the tales herein offer delectable accounts of repasts great and small, extravagant and simple. Best of all, they are a joy to read. Sit down to A Literary Feast and share in its bounty.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Food

256 pages, Paperback

First published April 13, 1995

Reviews

[Holly · Rating 4 out of 5]

An anthology of stories about food, this collection was a pleasure to read. I've always struggled with anthologies - they always seem a sampler, fragmented rather than a well-rounded final product, almost like the literary equivalent of surfing the internet; they are meant to have enough connection in their theme that they have enough strength to stand alone...that the shift from one narrator/author to the next doesn't jar or annoy. For this connection, it was definitely LESS the connection between food that the stories shared and more the connection of voice - and that is a nod to Golden's ability to string stories together in a cohesive way.

I discovered a few new writers. My favorite stories were:
"The Three Fat Women of Antibes" by W Somerset Maugham
"Define This Word" by M. F. K. Fisher
"Mrs Fay Dines on Zebra" by Hortense Calisher
"Babette's Feast" by Isak Dinesen

[Molly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Food or eating viewed from many different perspectives. Really liked a few of the stories or pieces that I have never read before like "The Dead" and "Babette's Feast" and reading some authors I have never read before like Pynchon and Pritchett, Have to say Hemingway really shines, and I've read that piece before from "Moveable Feast".

[Alice Verberne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anyone who loves writers and food needs this book.

[Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved reading Thomas Wolfe's excerpt and Babette's Feast, the movie of which I had really enjoyed.