What do you think?
Rate this book
Save Room for Pie: Food Songs and Chewy Ruminations
Our best-laid plans will yield to fate.
And we will say, “We lived. We ate.” Roy Blount Jr. is one of America’s most cherished comic writers. He’s been compared to Mark Twain and James Thurber, and his books have been called everything from “a work of art” (Robert W. Creamer, The New York Times Book Review ) to “a book to read till it falls apart” ( Newsweek ). Now, in Save Room for Pie , he applies his much-praised wit and charm to a rich and fundamental food. As a lifelong eater, Blount always got along easy with food―he didn’t have to think, he just ate. But food doesn’t exist in a vacuum; there’s the global climate and the global economy to consider, not to mention Blount’s chronic sinusitis, which constricts his sense of smell, and consequently his taste buds. So while he’s always frowned on eating with an ulterior motive, times have changed. Save Room for Pie grapples with these and other food-related questions in Blount’s signature style. Here you’ll find lively meditations on everything from bacon froth to grapefruit, Kobe beef to biscuits. You’ll also find defenses of gizzards, mullet, okra, cane syrup, watermelon, and boiled peanuts; an imagined dialogue between Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden; input from Louis Armstrong, Frederick Douglass, and Blaze Starr; and of course some shampooed possums and carjacking turkeys. In poems and songs, limericks and fake (or sometimes true) news stories, Blount talks about food in surprising and innovative ways, with all the wit and verve that prompted Garrison Keillor, in The Paris Review , to “Blount is the best. He can be literate, uncouth, and soulful all in one sentence.”
And we will say, “We lived. We ate.” Roy Blount Jr. is one of America’s most cherished comic writers. He’s been compared to Mark Twain and James Thurber, and his books have been called everything from “a work of art” (Robert W. Creamer, The New York Times Book Review ) to “a book to read till it falls apart” ( Newsweek ). Now, in Save Room for Pie , he applies his much-praised wit and charm to a rich and fundamental food. As a lifelong eater, Blount always got along easy with food―he didn’t have to think, he just ate. But food doesn’t exist in a vacuum; there’s the global climate and the global economy to consider, not to mention Blount’s chronic sinusitis, which constricts his sense of smell, and consequently his taste buds. So while he’s always frowned on eating with an ulterior motive, times have changed. Save Room for Pie grapples with these and other food-related questions in Blount’s signature style. Here you’ll find lively meditations on everything from bacon froth to grapefruit, Kobe beef to biscuits. You’ll also find defenses of gizzards, mullet, okra, cane syrup, watermelon, and boiled peanuts; an imagined dialogue between Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden; input from Louis Armstrong, Frederick Douglass, and Blaze Starr; and of course some shampooed possums and carjacking turkeys. In poems and songs, limericks and fake (or sometimes true) news stories, Blount talks about food in surprising and innovative ways, with all the wit and verve that prompted Garrison Keillor, in The Paris Review , to “Blount is the best. He can be literate, uncouth, and soulful all in one sentence.”
304 pages, Hardcover
First published March 15, 2016
17 people are currently reading
392 people want to read
About the author
Roy Blount Jr.
71 books66 followersRoy Blount Jr. is the author of twenty-three books. The first, About Three Bricks Shy of a Load, was expanded into About Three Bricks Shy . . . and the Load Filled Up. It is often called one of the best sports books of all time. His subsequent works have taken on a range of subjects, from Duck Soup, to Robert E. Lee, to what cats are thinking, to how to savor New Orleans, to what it’s like being married to the first woman president of the United States.
Blount is a panelist on NPR’s Wait Wait . . . Don’t Tell Me!, an ex-president of the Authors Guild, a usage consultant for the American Heritage Dictionary, a New York Public Library Literary Lion, and a member of both the Fellowship of Southern Writers and the band the Rock Bottom Remainders.
In 2009, Blount received the University of North Carolina’s Thomas Wolfe Prize. The university cited “his voracious appetite for the way words sound and for what they really mean.” Time places Blount “in the tradition of the great curmudgeons like H. L. Mencken and W. C. Fields.” Norman Mailer has said, “Page for page, Roy Blount is as funny as anyone I’ve read in a long time.” Garrison Keillor told the Paris Review, “Blount is the best. He can be literate, uncouth, and soulful all in one sentence.”
Blount’s essays, articles, stories, and verses have appeared in over one hundred and fifty publications, including the New Yorker, the New York Times, Esquire, the Atlantic, Sports Illustrated, the Oxford American, and Garden & Gun. He comes from Decatur, Georgia, and lives in western Massachusetts.
Blount is a panelist on NPR’s Wait Wait . . . Don’t Tell Me!, an ex-president of the Authors Guild, a usage consultant for the American Heritage Dictionary, a New York Public Library Literary Lion, and a member of both the Fellowship of Southern Writers and the band the Rock Bottom Remainders.
In 2009, Blount received the University of North Carolina’s Thomas Wolfe Prize. The university cited “his voracious appetite for the way words sound and for what they really mean.” Time places Blount “in the tradition of the great curmudgeons like H. L. Mencken and W. C. Fields.” Norman Mailer has said, “Page for page, Roy Blount is as funny as anyone I’ve read in a long time.” Garrison Keillor told the Paris Review, “Blount is the best. He can be literate, uncouth, and soulful all in one sentence.”
Blount’s essays, articles, stories, and verses have appeared in over one hundred and fifty publications, including the New Yorker, the New York Times, Esquire, the Atlantic, Sports Illustrated, the Oxford American, and Garden & Gun. He comes from Decatur, Georgia, and lives in western Massachusetts.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
May 1, 2016
Roy Blount is a favorite--I love hearing him on NPR'S Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me, but I must admit I was disappointed in this. Perhaps if I had listened in smaller sections--even a disc was really more than I wanted to listen to at once--I would have appreciated it more. It might work better as a book that you can easily pick up and put down after each funny bit. And the bits are amusing and heartfelt and interesting, just too much of a good thing--and sometimes a less good thing.
February 26, 2023
This is my first experience reading Roy Blount Jr. I love him on NPR's news quiz show, "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me'" where he is a frequent and funny panelist. And I mostly liked this collection of essays and ruminations on food, but I didn't love it.
In this book, Blount Jr. writes about almost every food group you could imagine: fruits, eggs, meats, fish, plants, food in the arts, food on travels and drink. However, he give short shrift to dessert. While I'm not overly concerned about the pitifully inadequate attention to dessert, dessert deserves better. Dessert is why some people put up with a less than gratifying meal in the first place. They must eat their way to dessert because they are polite and it's the expected thing to do when dining with friends or at a restaurant.
I more or less enjoyed Blount's writing style and his approach to the topics. I could have done with less songs, because, for the most part, they are not great. In my opinion, they do not add much to the book. There were a few that I could attach a tune to but most of them eluded my attempts to sing them. This was not for lack of trying because I did try to sing all the songs, at least in my head.
I am a food lover (really, who hates food?) and appreciator of humor. So it was natural that I bought and read this book. I will read more of Roy Blount Jr. because I'm interested in finding out if his writing style is different in other books. If you like food (who doesn't? And if you don't like food, there might be something wrong with your taste buds), I recommend giving Blount Jr.'s essays a read. Some are quirky and some are laugh out loud funny. And if you come up with some music to any of his songs, I'd record them and send the song to him. He might enjoy it.
In this book, Blount Jr. writes about almost every food group you could imagine: fruits, eggs, meats, fish, plants, food in the arts, food on travels and drink. However, he give short shrift to dessert. While I'm not overly concerned about the pitifully inadequate attention to dessert, dessert deserves better. Dessert is why some people put up with a less than gratifying meal in the first place. They must eat their way to dessert because they are polite and it's the expected thing to do when dining with friends or at a restaurant.
I more or less enjoyed Blount's writing style and his approach to the topics. I could have done with less songs, because, for the most part, they are not great. In my opinion, they do not add much to the book. There were a few that I could attach a tune to but most of them eluded my attempts to sing them. This was not for lack of trying because I did try to sing all the songs, at least in my head.
I am a food lover (really, who hates food?) and appreciator of humor. So it was natural that I bought and read this book. I will read more of Roy Blount Jr. because I'm interested in finding out if his writing style is different in other books. If you like food (who doesn't? And if you don't like food, there might be something wrong with your taste buds), I recommend giving Blount Jr.'s essays a read. Some are quirky and some are laugh out loud funny. And if you come up with some music to any of his songs, I'd record them and send the song to him. He might enjoy it.
May 26, 2018
"Save Room for Pie" is a complete dog's breakfast of a book, but it's still a lot of fun.
Loosely grouped into even looser categories (meat, condiments, food on trips, desserts), this book presents doggerel (in the guise of songs), sections of dialogue, and essays. It's the dialogue sections that are the best, featuring a real ear for personality differences and regional similarities. It's clear that what we have is a real everything-and-the-kitchen-sink kind of compilation: for example, there's a 1976 article about the emerging sport of professional bass fishing. This textural variety is added to by boxes featuring made-up news stories from his "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me" appearances.
I think this book could have been much better if it were shorter. The dessert section in particular demonstrates how to keep things short and sweet. The variety of texture doesn't really change throughout the book, so one's impression of it drifts from an enjoyment of the unexpected to a quirky sameness.
This book is probably better as an audiobook so that you can enjoy the accents and dialect better. If you do read it, I recommend finding a book reading online. You'll get readings of some of the best pieces, which will add to your appreciation of those parts as you read them in print. The entire experience will be better with RB's voice in your head.
Loosely grouped into even looser categories (meat, condiments, food on trips, desserts), this book presents doggerel (in the guise of songs), sections of dialogue, and essays. It's the dialogue sections that are the best, featuring a real ear for personality differences and regional similarities. It's clear that what we have is a real everything-and-the-kitchen-sink kind of compilation: for example, there's a 1976 article about the emerging sport of professional bass fishing. This textural variety is added to by boxes featuring made-up news stories from his "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me" appearances.
I think this book could have been much better if it were shorter. The dessert section in particular demonstrates how to keep things short and sweet. The variety of texture doesn't really change throughout the book, so one's impression of it drifts from an enjoyment of the unexpected to a quirky sameness.
This book is probably better as an audiobook so that you can enjoy the accents and dialect better. If you do read it, I recommend finding a book reading online. You'll get readings of some of the best pieces, which will add to your appreciation of those parts as you read them in print. The entire experience will be better with RB's voice in your head.
June 25, 2017
I love Roy Blount's way of talking -- his easy, friendly, amused sound. I enjoy the poems, the stories, etc. I may take to heart his advice (which I'm paraphrasing here) -- before you reach for another cheese doodle, think -- if a piece of pie suddenly appeared, would you have room for it? This is good advice for me. I should apply it to non-food things too. The thing is, after about 2 1/2 hours of listening to this book in the car, in the middle of several poems and disquisitions about fish -- trout, panfish, catfish, mullets, etc. -- suddenly I was full. I couldn't eat or listen to another bite. No more room for "Save Room for Pie."
If it were a hardcover book I could have it by my bed, dip into it in the evening, chuckle and fall asleep. Or I could skip around. If this were a portable player (and not CDs), I could listen to it as I fell asleep. The lack of plot would be an advantage there. I wouldn't have to rewind and find out what I'd missed -- it wouldn't matter that much. It's the equivalent almost of those bathroom reading books.
As long as I enjoyed it, I enjoyed it -- 3 stars. But if I consider the fact that I didn't bother to go on, 2 stars may be more appropriate.
If it were a hardcover book I could have it by my bed, dip into it in the evening, chuckle and fall asleep. Or I could skip around. If this were a portable player (and not CDs), I could listen to it as I fell asleep. The lack of plot would be an advantage there. I wouldn't have to rewind and find out what I'd missed -- it wouldn't matter that much. It's the equivalent almost of those bathroom reading books.
As long as I enjoyed it, I enjoyed it -- 3 stars. But if I consider the fact that I didn't bother to go on, 2 stars may be more appropriate.
May 10, 2018
(AUDIO) Borrowed this from the library via Libby (as an aside, this is my new favorite audio book app. Very easy to use, like the interface). The subtitle of this book is "Food Songs and Chewy Ruminations". Its a collection of his poetry, essays and his lifelong experiences with food. From is opinions about bourbon, to his and his son's experiences with piranha in South America, to his praise of Pimento Cheese and a bizarre story about the possum fanciers group where he was a judge at a possum show. He also sprinkles in some of the stories he presented in the "Bluff the Listener" segement on NPR's "Wait, Wait... Don't Tell Me", where he is a frequent panelist.
This was a really fun "read", that, while you can get it in book form, its much better if you get it in audio form. Half the charm of this book is listening to Blount's "down home" Southern drawl.
8/10
S: 4/15/18 - 5/5/18 (11 Days)
This was a really fun "read", that, while you can get it in book form, its much better if you get it in audio form. Half the charm of this book is listening to Blount's "down home" Southern drawl.
8/10
S: 4/15/18 - 5/5/18 (11 Days)
July 21, 2018
Roy Blount Jr can be politically incorrect, seem insensitive, make me flinch, and then make me laugh heartily all within a couple sentences. A regular on NPR's "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me" , he spreads thick his southern humor on a slice of bread and hands it to the reader of this book. This collection of short stories, essays, limericks, poems, songs and news flashes (you get to figure out if they're true or not) is entertaining and light fare. A great break after several serious books in a row!
August 13, 2025
I liked this book much more than I expected too. I thought my indifference towards food would put me off the book and in the beginning I debated putting it down, but I’m glad I didn’t. This book felt like a more salt of the earth Michael Pollan. This book had more asides and anecdotes and bits here and there. I listened to it on audio and the author read it himself and his voice is fantastic. I really really enjoyed it.
November 28, 2016
This book is mainly a collection of anecdotes, reminiscences, and verses about food, mostly in an American context. It's written in a folksy style and centres around how food brings people together, but also delineates social and geographical divisions. It's worth reading, particularly if you like food!
October 18, 2022
My first Roy Blount book but not my last. Probably one reason I liked it so much is because I recognized a lot of his haunts as I too am from "around these parts." He can be hilarious and he can be serious. I do admit that SOME of his pieces were a bit confusing or hard to comprehend with all his word plays but all in all, I enjoyed it.
August 9, 2017
Some of the essays are so funny as narrated by Blount, but others are puzzling. Just shows how different everyone's taste is. Blount talks about various foods, restaurants, and life.
November 28, 2017
More like 3.5 stars. Strange little book. but in a good way.
December 13, 2018
Sometimes funny, sometimes interesting (I like the philosophy of saving room for pie as a motivation for moderation in life) but often bizarre in a dull way.
June 8, 2019
Absolutely superb as read by the author.
July 16, 2019
Listened to this on our way home from OH. Did not enjoy it nearly as much as I usually enjoy his stuff. I wanted food talk, not professional bass fishing...
Read
May 15, 2020Entertaining short articles and funny poems.
October 5, 2020
I HATE to say it, but this was a messy disappointment.
January 9, 2022
Fun read about different categories on food. Humorous and light.
August 10, 2024
Terrible. Did not finish. Not funny at all.
August 8, 2016
It took a while for it to grow on me but I ended up really liking this book. The songs, interspersed with funny essays drawn from the author's life as well as the are they or aren't they real "this just in" segments broke the reading of this book and made it take a while for me to get into it, but by the end those were the same things that made it enjoyable. This book had a radio show feel to it (in fact on of the segments said it was previously a radio drama performed on Prairie Home companion) that really grew on me as I read. I found myself laughing out loud as I read more and more the farther I got into the book. I would rate this book 3.5 stars if Goodreads allowed half stars. I Received a free copy of this book from the Publisher through Goodreads First Reads giveaways.
August 23, 2016
Clever, funny and weird. Recommended.
*Or you can ask yourself, "What if, in the next moment, a piece of pie comes along? If we eat one more Cheez Doodle, will we have room for that pie?"*
*She backed off, and in due time I became a trencherman. Today, with pretty much the sole exception of Japanese red-bean desserts, I say yes to the comestible universe. I even kind of like fruitcake."*
*That was insensitive of me, I realize now. I should not have drawn an analogy between my sinuses and my compost, because I love my compost. My sinuses follow me around, nagging. My compost stays out in the yard and works.*
*Or you can ask yourself, "What if, in the next moment, a piece of pie comes along? If we eat one more Cheez Doodle, will we have room for that pie?"*
*She backed off, and in due time I became a trencherman. Today, with pretty much the sole exception of Japanese red-bean desserts, I say yes to the comestible universe. I even kind of like fruitcake."*
*That was insensitive of me, I realize now. I should not have drawn an analogy between my sinuses and my compost, because I love my compost. My sinuses follow me around, nagging. My compost stays out in the yard and works.*
December 21, 2016
There's much in here that is familiar to long-time Roy Blount fans, but then again, a good piece of writing is always worth revisiting. I'm not sure how the collection would be received by people who aren't already fond of his stuff--the poems might be a bit much, when taken as a whole. There are some real gems amongst the essays, though, and as food is clearly a subject dear to the author's heart, his passion for all manner of foodstuffs (and their related histories) comes through as loudly as his comedic voice.
June 2, 2016
This book has three components: essays that are food-related (but much more about human nature), “humorous” poems about food, and sidebar anecdotes about food/people. I was over the poems after two or three of them. As with all essays, some were better than others, but I generally enjoyed those. Also liked most of the sidebar anecdotes, but the placement within the essays made it hard to focus on either one.
July 3, 2016
This wide-ranging collection of ruminations on food will likely please anyone who is already a Blount fan; judging by the reviews, others may not be quite as delighted. I enjoyed the read very much, even though some of these essays have appeared in previous Blount collections - although several seem to have been edited or rewritten here. As others have indicated, perhaps dipping into this book a few selections at a time is a better way to approach it than a cover-to-cover read.
June 4, 2016
It seems to me that I would have enjoyed this book more if I owned it (rather than borrowing it from the library) and just dipped into it here or there rather than reading it straight through. Like a lot of tasty treats, if you eat them all at once, it's too much. Savored over the course of weeks and months, you can really enjoy the individual flavors.
October 21, 2016
Roy Blount is well known for his books and appearances on NPR. He is funny, smart and has a point of view. The book is filled with food related poems, essays and sidebar anecdotes. It is almost the "small plate" version of a book, read a little, take a break and then read more!
A solid good read.
A solid good read.
October 14, 2016
Listened to the author read the audio book... which added much flavor, though required some additional concentration, since the book is composed of so many little pieces. It was sometimes hard to follow without the visual cues that a new section, song, or poem was being served. Looking forward to reading his other books, too.
October 28, 2016
Well, it's stretching the truth a little to mark this read, because i ran out of time before leaving town, and didn't quite finish. But loved every word and section that I read.
A writer who is good with the English language writing about food. What could be better?
A writer who is good with the English language writing about food. What could be better?
Read
April 19, 2016Book not received as of this date.
April 26, 2016
Just not what I think is humorous, or even mildly entertaining.
June 4, 2016
Would have been funnier at half the length.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews