A Life of Love, Family, and Food
January 29, 2018
Chef and restaurateur Bastianich (Lidia’s Celebrate Like an Italian) offers a look into her culinary background in this charming memoir. Bastianich grew up in the former Yugoslavia under Communist rule and spent two years in an Italian refugee camp before immigrating to America with her family in 1958. While recounting youthful hardships—always from an optimistic point of view—Bastianich includes fond food memories, such as gathering wild asparagus, catching branzino with a favorite uncle, and working in the Queens bakery owned by actor Christopher Walken’s father. She also chronicles the history of her Upper East Side restaurant, Felidia, and lovingly follows her children’s entry into the food business—Joe as the founder and owner of Manhattan restaurant Becco and co-owner of Babbo and Lupa, and Tanya as the head of Bastianich’s Tavola Productions. “The cornerstone of my life has always been food: growing it, sometimes not having enough of it, preparing it, and relishing the many tastes and smells,” Bastianich writes. Whether recalling her lean years in Yugoslavia, cooking with Julia Child, or reeling in sockeye salmon during an Alaskan fishing trip with one of her grandchildren, Bastianich passionately evokes the concept that food is life. Through her lyrical prose, she also encourages readers to find the bright side of any situation. This is a welcome addition to any food lover’s library.
May 28, 2018
Noted chef, restaurateur, and public television personality Bastianich brings a natural kindheartedness to the audio edition of her autobiography. The book provides a sprawling account of Bastianich’s life, beginning on the Istrian peninsula, where she was born in February 1947, the same month the region was overtaken by Tito’s Communist regime. At age 11, she moved to a refugee camp in Trieste, Italy, where she lived for two years before relocating permanently to America. In her new country, she was able to turn her love of food into a host of family-run business ventures. Bastianich opts for a straightforward reading and speaks lovingly of farm rituals, including slaughtering livestock, harvesting crops, and—most importantly—cooking family meals. Bastianich’s tone manages to blend a somber reverence for the challenges of immigrant life with a whimsical, adventuresome spirit. Her serious devotion to food and family is evident throughout this enjoyable audiobook. A Knopf hardcover.