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Man on Fire: Of Life, Love, Literature, and Really Good Barbecue
This fascinating memoir by global grilling authority Steven Raichlen reveals how a kid from Baltimore—armed with a degree in French literature—launched a barbecue revolution worldwide.
Known for his popular PBS TV shows and internationally bestselling books, Raichlen is the man who re-invented modern barbecue—a passion that led him to 75 countries on 6 continents, earning 5 James Beard Awards and an induction into the Barbecue Hall of Fame. Long before that, though, he was a French literature scholar, medievalist, translator at a renowned Parisian cooking school, restaurant critic, wine and spirits writer, and novelist.
With candor and passion, Man on Fire shares the formative moments that shaped Raichlen’s career, including the early struggles as a freelance writer, his breakout success with The Barbecue! Bible, and how an awkward first appearance on The Today Show kicked off a television career spanning more than two decades in English, French, and Italian. From friendship with Julia Child to his first multi-million copy bestseller, from a private grill session with Howard Stern to a battle with the Iron Chef in Tokyo, Raichlen reveals how he overcame childhood tragedy to become “America’s Master Griller” (Esquire.)
Readers will gain insider insights into live fire cooking (Raichlen is the founder of Barbecue University®), and the life lessons that helped shape his extraordinary career—plus 25 recipes including authentic Baltimore crab cakes, medieval mulled wine, mango-spacho from his adopted Miami, maple sriracha chicken wings from Quebec, and the barbecued ribs that beat the Iron Chef in Tokyo.
This book is a love song to the evolution of food and its impact on community and culture, and it will make you very hungry. Man on Fire is the perfect book not just for foodies and barbecue buffs, but travelers, history lovers, entrepreneurs, and anyone who wants to be their own boss.
Known for his popular PBS TV shows and internationally bestselling books, Raichlen is the man who re-invented modern barbecue—a passion that led him to 75 countries on 6 continents, earning 5 James Beard Awards and an induction into the Barbecue Hall of Fame. Long before that, though, he was a French literature scholar, medievalist, translator at a renowned Parisian cooking school, restaurant critic, wine and spirits writer, and novelist.
With candor and passion, Man on Fire shares the formative moments that shaped Raichlen’s career, including the early struggles as a freelance writer, his breakout success with The Barbecue! Bible, and how an awkward first appearance on The Today Show kicked off a television career spanning more than two decades in English, French, and Italian. From friendship with Julia Child to his first multi-million copy bestseller, from a private grill session with Howard Stern to a battle with the Iron Chef in Tokyo, Raichlen reveals how he overcame childhood tragedy to become “America’s Master Griller” (Esquire.)
Readers will gain insider insights into live fire cooking (Raichlen is the founder of Barbecue University®), and the life lessons that helped shape his extraordinary career—plus 25 recipes including authentic Baltimore crab cakes, medieval mulled wine, mango-spacho from his adopted Miami, maple sriracha chicken wings from Quebec, and the barbecued ribs that beat the Iron Chef in Tokyo.
This book is a love song to the evolution of food and its impact on community and culture, and it will make you very hungry. Man on Fire is the perfect book not just for foodies and barbecue buffs, but travelers, history lovers, entrepreneurs, and anyone who wants to be their own boss.
Kindle Edition
Published October 20, 2026
About the author
Steven Raichlen
127 books81 followersSteven Raichlen is a multi-award winning writer, television host, and novelist. His books include the international blockbusters The Barbecue Bible, How To Grill, Project Smoke, and the New York Times bestselling Planet Barbecue. His novel, The Hermit of Chappaquiddick, tells a story of love, loss, redemption and really good food set on Martha's Vineyard. Translated into 17 languages, Raichlen's books have won 5 James Beard Awards and 3 IACP-Julia Child Awards and have sold more than 5 million copies. Raichlen also hosts the popular TV shows, Project Smoke and Project Fire on PBS; Steven Raichlen Grills Italy in Italy; and Le Maitre du Grill in Quebec. He lives and writes in Coconut Grove, Florida, and on Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts. His websites are stevenraichlen.com and barbecuebible.com
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
⭐⭐ More Career Retrospective Than Memoir
Man on Fire: Of Life, Love, Literature, and Really Good Barbwcue left me with the strange feeling that I had spent hours learning about Steven Raichlen’s career without ever really getting to know Steven Raichlen himself. I listened to the ALC through NetGalley expecting a memoir about the person behind the barbecue empire, and I was genuinely curious because I knew very little about him beforehand. What I found was a book full of professional milestones, travel, publishing, television, and food, but surprisingly little emotional intimacy. Raichlen has clearly built an extraordinary career, and there is no question that he has much to be proud of. Still, I wanted the memoir to explain not only what he accomplished, but what motivated him, what frightened him, what shaped his ambitions, and how those experiences changed him.
The sections that worked best for me were the moments when he became more personal. His reflections on his father and the sadness surrounding the loss of his mother gave me brief glimpses of the person behind the public career, and those passages had an emotional weight that much of the rest of the book lacked. I also found myself wanting much more about his marriage. His wife is clearly important to both his life and professional success, yet she often remains on the margins of the narrative, to the point that late in the book I realized I still did not feel like I knew much about her or their relationship. Those omissions mattered because they reinforced my sense that the memoir was more comfortable discussing accomplishments than relationships, vulnerability, or private life. Whenever the book moved toward those more intimate areas, I became more interested, but it rarely stayed there for long.
Around the first third, the emphasis increasingly shifts toward Raichlen’s books, television programs, travels, and various stages of building his culinary career. I understand why those accomplishments belong in his story, especially for longtime fans, but eventually the accumulation began to feel more like a professional retrospective than a memoir. The organization also felt scattered to me, with one project introduced, another story interrupting it, and an earlier subject sometimes returning later. At different points, I was unsure whether the book wanted to be autobiography, food memoir, entrepreneurial guide, cookbook companion, or celebration of a successful career. The barbecue and culinary material may be fascinating to readers deeply invested in that world, but since I am not particularly knowledgeable about barbecue, much of it did little to compensate for the lack of personal connection. By the end, I knew an impressive amount about the Steven Raichlen brand but still felt distant from Steven Raichlen the person.
There is certainly an audience for Man on Fire. Longtime fans, serious barbecue enthusiasts, food-media readers, and people interested in how someone builds a successful culinary career may find considerably more here than I did. Raichlen’s accomplishments are substantial, and his persistence in turning specialized interests into books, television, and a recognizable public identity is undeniably impressive. For me, however, a memoir needs reflection alongside achievement, and I kept waiting for a deeper examination of the motivations, relationships, failures, and emotions behind the résumé. That emotional center never fully emerged. I finished the book knowing what Raichlen had done, but still wondering who he really was, which is why this ultimately landed at two stars for me.
Thank you to NetGalley, author Steven Raichlen, and Brilliance Publishing / Brillian Audio for an ALC in exchange for an honest review.
Man on Fire: Of Life, Love, Literature, and Really Good Barbwcue left me with the strange feeling that I had spent hours learning about Steven Raichlen’s career without ever really getting to know Steven Raichlen himself. I listened to the ALC through NetGalley expecting a memoir about the person behind the barbecue empire, and I was genuinely curious because I knew very little about him beforehand. What I found was a book full of professional milestones, travel, publishing, television, and food, but surprisingly little emotional intimacy. Raichlen has clearly built an extraordinary career, and there is no question that he has much to be proud of. Still, I wanted the memoir to explain not only what he accomplished, but what motivated him, what frightened him, what shaped his ambitions, and how those experiences changed him.
The sections that worked best for me were the moments when he became more personal. His reflections on his father and the sadness surrounding the loss of his mother gave me brief glimpses of the person behind the public career, and those passages had an emotional weight that much of the rest of the book lacked. I also found myself wanting much more about his marriage. His wife is clearly important to both his life and professional success, yet she often remains on the margins of the narrative, to the point that late in the book I realized I still did not feel like I knew much about her or their relationship. Those omissions mattered because they reinforced my sense that the memoir was more comfortable discussing accomplishments than relationships, vulnerability, or private life. Whenever the book moved toward those more intimate areas, I became more interested, but it rarely stayed there for long.
Around the first third, the emphasis increasingly shifts toward Raichlen’s books, television programs, travels, and various stages of building his culinary career. I understand why those accomplishments belong in his story, especially for longtime fans, but eventually the accumulation began to feel more like a professional retrospective than a memoir. The organization also felt scattered to me, with one project introduced, another story interrupting it, and an earlier subject sometimes returning later. At different points, I was unsure whether the book wanted to be autobiography, food memoir, entrepreneurial guide, cookbook companion, or celebration of a successful career. The barbecue and culinary material may be fascinating to readers deeply invested in that world, but since I am not particularly knowledgeable about barbecue, much of it did little to compensate for the lack of personal connection. By the end, I knew an impressive amount about the Steven Raichlen brand but still felt distant from Steven Raichlen the person.
There is certainly an audience for Man on Fire. Longtime fans, serious barbecue enthusiasts, food-media readers, and people interested in how someone builds a successful culinary career may find considerably more here than I did. Raichlen’s accomplishments are substantial, and his persistence in turning specialized interests into books, television, and a recognizable public identity is undeniably impressive. For me, however, a memoir needs reflection alongside achievement, and I kept waiting for a deeper examination of the motivations, relationships, failures, and emotions behind the résumé. That emotional center never fully emerged. I finished the book knowing what Raichlen had done, but still wondering who he really was, which is why this ultimately landed at two stars for me.
Thank you to NetGalley, author Steven Raichlen, and Brilliance Publishing / Brillian Audio for an ALC in exchange for an honest review.
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October 2, 2026Read today at work because I am interviewing him and I am excited about it
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews