Kitchens of the Great Midwest by J.
Ryan Stradal
Eva Thorvald’s mother is convinced
she would be a horrible mother and her baby would be better off without her, so
she leaves her husband and infant daughter to pursue her dreams of being a
sommelier in California. Eva is left
behind in Minnesota to be raised by her epicurean father who begins feeding her
puréed braised pork shoulder as soon as he sees fit. Eva’s love of food as a result starts VERY
early and her love of fresh foods, gardening and planting is the defining
factor of her life.
If you are a fan of eating local and
fancy dinners you will love reading about the evolution of the chef with the
most sought after dinner reservations around.
After a lifetime of hard knocks Eva becomes a culinary sensation running
dinners in interesting locales.
Reservations are booked online, sometimes years in advance, and if you
are “called” you have a week to change whatever plans you may already have and
get to the location of your $5,000 a plate dinner. Yes, it’s completely over the top, but seeing
this young woman succeed so well is a joy.
The construction of the book is
unique. Each chapter is a short story
revolving around an ingredient, one that shows up on the plate of the final
dinner of the book. The stories all
feature Eva, but not necessarily as the main character. In fact, in at least one of the stories I
didn’t know why exactly it was included until I got to the end of the
book. I enjoyed the book, but it wasn’t
the cozy lighthearted book I expected based on reviews and the cute cover. This is a story of a life and the lives that
life touches in all sorts of ways.
