Relish

May 05, 2013 oriana rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-2013, books-with-pix

This is a fun memoir. It's really a series of vignettes of a life in food: grandma's pickles, a perfect croissant in Venice, Mom's chocolate-chip cookies, seared halibut with Dad. Lucy was born & raised a foodie before there was even such a term. Her mom worked at the very first Dean & Deluca in NYC in the 70s, and was behind the cheese counter for most of her pregnancy. They then moved upstate and Lucy spent her adolescence in farms, farmers markets, and working as a waitress for her mo...more

like 4 likes · see review

Apr 10, 2013 Kelly rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: graphic-novels, favorites, read-in-2013

This graphic memoir is fantastic, especially if you are at all into food, either the cooking of it or the eating of it.

There's not a strong narrative, but rather, this is a collection of vignettes. Lucy shares stories of growing up in a family that relishes in cooking and eating good food. But it's not an upturned-nose sort of foodie memoir, which is why I appreciated it so much. It's about the joy of and celebration of the role food plays in a social way and in a very personal way. It doesn't m...more This graphic memoir is fantastic, especially if you are at all into food, either the cooking of it or the eating of it.

There's not a strong narrative, but rather, this is a collection of vignettes. Lucy shares stories of growing up in a family that relishes in cooking and eating good food. But it's not an upturned-nose sort of foodie memoir, which is why I appreciated it so much. It's about the joy of and celebration of the role food plays in a social way and in a very personal way. It doesn't matter if that food is direct from the chicken coop in your yard or from the fast food joint miles away.

There are times RELISH is laugh-out-loud funny and there were times when I cheered because yes, mayo is the most disgusting thing you can add to anything you're cooking or eating (ew). It's really a book about growing up and around and appreciating the way that food and cooking entwine with every other aspect of your life, whether or not you're paying close attention to it or not. Pairing the food stories with her development in adolescence in many ways makes perfect sense. The experimentation, the failures, the successes, the awkward situations, they all complement one another in really interesting ways. Likewise, the art in this graphic novel is never distracting from the writing, much like the writing doesn't take away from the enjoyment of the art. Complements!

Aside from the vignettes, the book incorporates recipes for things like sangria, pesto (with pine nuts), huevos rancheros, sushi, and more. The way the recipes are presented in graphical form and in a very loose manner appeal to me as a reader and as someone who loves to cook -- because the crux of the book is that it's imperfect, that it's an art you master and understand as you experiment, this methodology works.

This is a book for adults and for teens. It IS a sensory experience, from the descriptions to the illustrations -- just SEEING the Blommer Chocolate factory in the background of one of the panels brought the smell of the place to my nose.

Full review here: http://www.stackedbooks.org/2013/04/r... (less)

like 3 likes · see review

May 06, 2013 christa rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is huge: Lucy Knisley made me mushroom curious. Me. A lifelong hater of all things fungal. I always imagine them as something slick and slug-like, tasting of moldy earth. My mom would take a can, open the lid, pluck fingerfuls of mushrooms the way I do now with black olives. She would give me contradictory messages: So good, she would say. I’d grimace. You can’t even taste them, she would then say. She would dump them into the pasta sauce, ensuring that I would stick to plain noodles with b...more This is huge: Lucy Knisley made me mushroom curious. Me. A lifelong hater of all things fungal. I always imagine them as something slick and slug-like, tasting of moldy earth. My mom would take a can, open the lid, pluck fingerfuls of mushrooms the way I do now with black olives. She would give me contradictory messages: So good, she would say. I’d grimace. You can’t even taste them, she would then say. She would dump them into the pasta sauce, ensuring that I would stick to plain noodles with butter and parmesan.

Devotees of mushrooms are, I’m sure you’ve learned, assholes. They can’t order a pizza without them. When a mushroom hater objects, she might be granted a half pizza without mushrooms. Sure as shit, at the end of the night it’s the mushroom-y pieces that remain. Even the mushroom fans have dipped into the plain old cheese piece just to mix it up. Still hungry? Eat one with mushrooms.

“Just pick them off,” someone will say.

Impossible. That wet insole taste lingers, man, well after the mushrooms have been flung far from the plate.

In an effort to be 100 percent legit, I’ll admit this: Twice I have not hated mushrooms. Episode One: My mom filled a crockpot with mushrooms, like a pound of butter and Hidden Valley Ranch dried seasoning. This has everything to do with butter and nothing to do with mushrooms. Episode Two: I have enjoyed raw, sliced mushrooms from a veggie tray. But they cannot be even slightly damp or have the appearance of having once been damp.

So what does Knisley have to do with this? Everything. The artist’s comic book “Relish: My Life in the Kitchen” is a love letter-memoir to all things food, especially her mother’s culinary influences. In between chapters there are recipes for hueves rancheros or tutorials on cheese done in her whimsical and charming style. One of these is a simple recipe that actually made me salivate … over mushrooms. If a book can inspire that kind of mushroom curiosity, I have to give the creator props.

Lucy’s parents were foodies -- her mother the cooking kind, her father the enjoying kind -- and she grew up tasting the mix of fare in New York City. When her parents divorced, Lucy went to upstate New York with her mother, where they gardened and worked at the farmer’s market and learned to appreciate farm-to-table. During a trip to Japan, Lucy samples sushi and struggles with soy. During another trip, she goes nutso on Pixie Sticks. She ends up in Chicago and has the chance to discover a food scene the way her parents had in New York City.

This is a quick-hit book and a fun read. I spend a lot of time with memoirs considering why I should want to read this person’s story. I mean, this is just one woman’s food memoir. We’ve all got one: My mom rotated through the same five dishes every week and then after I went to college got creative and started making awesome foods. I learned to cook by honing vegan recipes. That’s mine. Done. But Knisley doesn’t have to sell anyone. She’s so descriptive and earnest that it makes for a completely charming story. (less)

like 2 likes · see review

Apr 20, 2013 Shirley rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: graphic-novel

Reading this book made me want to put on my apron and go into the kitchen to make something to eat! I loved reading about Lucy Knisley's childhood experiences and about how she remembers things through food. And the illustrations in comic book format was so fun to read--very colorful and expressive.

The book is told through a series of memories and how each memory relates to the foods that Lucy has eaten and what she remembers about them. I was so envious reading about her trips to Europe: either...more Reading this book made me want to put on my apron and go into the kitchen to make something to eat! I loved reading about Lucy Knisley's childhood experiences and about how she remembers things through food. And the illustrations in comic book format was so fun to read--very colorful and expressive.

The book is told through a series of memories and how each memory relates to the foods that Lucy has eaten and what she remembers about them. I was so envious reading about her trips to Europe: either with her Dad while a teenager and exploring all the great food in Rome (I found it funny that while surrounded by all the great Italian dishes nearby, all she wanted to eat was a burger from the nearby McDonald's) or backpacking through Europe in college and enjoying the most she can from a college student's budget. It was also fun reading about her family history (both parents enjoy good food--her mom is a renowned caterer/painter, while her dad has a refined palette and will splurge on fancy restaurants). Each chapter includes a recipe, complete with illustrations of the ingredients and steps...I really wanted to try some of them, especially the pesto! She makes everything seem so easy!

What I liked most about the book was that it made me realize that we should have a connection to the food we eat--kind of like how kids learn about the farm and realize that food doesn't just grow on the shelves of supermarkets! This book made me want to take my time when eating, and really appreciate all the flavors and the process in making meals (if and ever I do find the time to get into the kitchen!). I also liked that Lucy talks about enjoying ALL types of food--not just gourmet dishes. Whether it's a homemade meal by her mom, or a simple mushroom dish, or even fries from McDonald's...everything is eaten with "relish."

And lastly, reading the book made me really want to make an effort to learn all my mom's dishes. I've always told myself that I will one day take the time to learn how to cook the delicious meals that she makes everyday...but now, I really want to take that time! (less)

like · see review

Apr 10, 2013 First Second Books marked it as first-second-publications

One of the most interesting parts about publishing books with cooking in them is recipe-testing them!

(We run into people all the time who are like, 'Publishers actually make all the recipes in the cookbooks they publish to make sure they work? Are you . . . crazy?' But of course we do -- the same way that textbook publishers check all the facts that are in their textbooks. Cookbooks are one of the easiest things to mess up with accidental typos, second to math books -- if you change just one num...more

like 6 likes · see review

Apr 05, 2013 Elizabeth rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: graphic-novels

Bottom Line: Delicious book. Should be in all medium and larger sized libraries who collect adult graphic novels. Would recommend for anyone who watches the food channel, Anthony Bourdain and/or is a "foodie".

Review clipped from blog entry. To read full review go here: http://bornlibrarian.blogspot.com/201...

This is the story of both a recognizable middle class childhood (divorced parents, travel, school, friends), but also of a lot of different foods.

The tales of childhood and young adult tran...more

like 2 likes · see review

Apr 05, 2013 Cindy Hudson rated it 4 of 5 stars

Lucy Knisley is a graphic artist who also writes about food, travel and life in general. She grew up with parents who not only loved to eat good food, but who gave it to their daughter from the beginning. Knisley combines her artistic ability with the story of her childhood and early adult adventures with eating and cooking in her graphic novel, Relish: My Life in the Kitchen.

Knisley’s stories of her early life in Manhattan and her days spent on a farm in upstate New York are interesting. She’s...more

like 1 like · see review

Cindy Hudson Lucy Knisley is a graphic artist who also writes about food, travel and life in general. She grew up with parents who not only loved to eat good food,...more
05 avr. 13:01

Apr 01, 2013 Chibineko rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: amazon-vine

I slightly waffled between giving this four stars and giving it five stars. The book has some minor flaws, but none that really ruined it for me as a whole. Relish pretty much falls into the type of graphic novel I've come to expect from this publisher: a nice alternative/indie type niche read that is of good quality.

While this is undeniably an autobiography of her life, it's also a story of food. Good food, bad food, and all that falls between those two groups. Knisley utilizes an episodic for...more I slightly waffled between giving this four stars and giving it five stars. The book has some minor flaws, but none that really ruined it for me as a whole. Relish pretty much falls into the type of graphic novel I've come to expect from this publisher: a nice alternative/indie type niche read that is of good quality.

While this is undeniably an autobiography of her life, it's also a story of food. Good food, bad food, and all that falls between those two groups. Knisley utilizes an episodic format with recipes or culinary advice sandwiched inbetween the tales. Most of the story is told in a linear format, but there are one or two mentions of her childhood later in the book. This works well, as it keeps the reader from getting too bored with the minute details. After all, meals are a relatively short portion of our lives and daily routine when you get down to it (even those meals that last for a few hours), so it makes sense that the stories should only be a few pages at a time. This might frustrate some readers that want to know more about a specific time period, though. I have to say that occasionally I wanted to read more about one or two things, such as Knisley's time at college.

The artwork was something I really enjoyed and it helped out in some instances where the words couldn't entirely portray the scene alone. Now you might be thinking "but it's a graphic novel- it's naturally reliant upon pictures, right?" I'd agree, but there are some instances in graphic novels where the scene is given a complete narration/description, but is so well depicted in the artwork that the written descriptions are superfluous and/or just a bonus extra. The scene I'm specifically thinking of is the scene of Knisley enjoying a brief respite from her busy catering/waitstaff job when she finds herself in a room with a large metallic sculpture she'd always admired from afar. Her communion with the piece is very well drawn and does an amazing job of showing her peace and reverence for the artwork and her joy at being given the ability to be alone with it due to her job. It's something that I think all of us can relate to in some form, even if we're not artists.

In the end I'm giving this five stars. My main gripe of wanting more is pretty minor when I got down to it and I really loved this book. It's an easy read that I know I'll end up flipping through again in the future specifically because it's written in little vignettes rather than a longer narrative. (less)

like 2 likes · see review

Mar 16, 2013 Shweta rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: graphic-novels, got-an-arc-to-review, funny-and-lot-more, will-be-reading-again

The process of reading this graphic novel was one of steadfast determination. You ask why? I was hungry ever so often while looking at lovely illustrations and the mouth watering descriptions of gourmet foods, snacks, cakes and cookies that concentrating was out of question. There is only so much one can resist! I finally decided that the best way to go ahead with reading this book was to have a huge bowl of pasta with tomato garlic pesto next to me as I devoured page after page of Lucy Knisley’...more The process of reading this graphic novel was one of steadfast determination. You ask why? I was hungry ever so often while looking at lovely illustrations and the mouth watering descriptions of gourmet foods, snacks, cakes and cookies that concentrating was out of question. There is only so much one can resist! I finally decided that the best way to go ahead with reading this book was to have a huge bowl of pasta with tomato garlic pesto next to me as I devoured page after page of Lucy Knisley’s autobiographical gastronomical journey.
Born to New Yorker parents who appreciated good food, Lucy had her encounter with gourmet dishes and elaborate preparations much before she discovered the usual fare of junk food. From toddler years in New York to her teens in the countryside and later at arts school in Chicago, Lucy was always surrounded by foodie corners and food lovers who influenced her palate. The most important among them being her mother, an arts school graduate who she says is among the best and most versatile cooks and also a caterer by profession who catered to the likes of Annie Leibovitz.

Lucy’s food memories are so tangible that thanks to her excellent medium of description, mouth waters at the mention of enchiladas, her mother’s famous basil pesto and the most delicious croissants she reminisces about. These famed croissants in question were the ones Lucy had in the city of Venice in a bakery close to her hotel with the yummiest core of apricot jam and buttery layering. The struggle to make them at home with similar effect on her palate lead to the point of a nervous breakdown with exhaustion which needed a friend to finally intervene and stop her. Incidents like this are scattered in various sections of the book reminding readers like me that food memories are hardest to erase.

The beauty of the book lies in Lucy’s ability to laugh at herself and her adventures. Needless to say there are numerous adventures that will keep the reader engrossed. Though its not an entirely chronological narration its one that works excellently. Divided into chapters based on foods of her choice and sometimes on events, the book sees Lucy from her time on the high chair to the point of her being an illustrator who loves cooking, alongside her mother, whom she regards as Demeter to her Persephone!

Lucy Knisley’s book is fun to read filled with anecdotes and a time tested recipe at the end of the chapter. This book will be an invaluable addition to your book shelf . Go splurge!

Review Copy provided by First Second – Macmillan US
(less)

like · see review

Feb 07, 2013 Andrew Shuping rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: graphic-novel

Lucy Knisley is the daughter of a chef/caterer and a gourmet foodie. So unsurprisingly she also loves food and equates many of her memories growing up with it. In this thoughtful and funny memoir, Lucy shares with readers key moments in her life -- her parents divorce, her moving to the countryside, trips out of the country -- and how food framed each moment of this journey. We see how a trip to Italy is influenced, not by Italian cooking, but by eating a local McDonald’s that brought the comfor...more Lucy Knisley is the daughter of a chef/caterer and a gourmet foodie. So unsurprisingly she also loves food and equates many of her memories growing up with it. In this thoughtful and funny memoir, Lucy shares with readers key moments in her life -- her parents divorce, her moving to the countryside, trips out of the country -- and how food framed each moment of this journey. We see how a trip to Italy is influenced, not by Italian cooking, but by eating a local McDonald’s that brought the comforts of home. And we learn how even though her parents are separated that home cooked meals prepared by Lucy’s mother can bring them together once again. Through many meals and snacks, Lucy shares with us her memories of growing up and the unique experiences she has. Each chapter concludes with an illustrated recipe that ties into the just completed chapter, daring us to sample some of the adventures.

Like many people, I was first introduced to Lucy Knisley through her travelogue French Milk and I was quickly enthralled. Her simple, yet evocative, line drawings created an entertaining story that made me feel like I was sitting with a good friend, sharing a meal, and listening to their adventures. Since that time I’ve eagerly kept up with Lucy’s work and career and she has quickly become one of my all time favorite artists and storytellers. And her latest work of course is no exception.

What I love best about this story, is not only that Lucy shares her journey and her story with us, but I find it easy to relate to her work. I know that sounds strange because I’m not a foodie and I’m not female, but I can honestly say that I can look at her work and find some trace of myself in it. Mainly because Lucy doesn’t try to hide those unflattering moments that so many of us wish we could hide, such as being a brat and rebellious towards are parents. Lucy instead embraces it and share it with us in such a way that we can relate to it and remember our own experiences growing up. And I stress that point because some authors seemingly want nothing more than pity or take such a hard look at themselves they no longer seem human. Lucy’s writing puts us on her level and makes it easy to relate to her and feel like we’re talking with a good friend, which to me is the sign of a great writer.

While the story is fantastic, Lucy’s artwork is even better. Her watercolor paintings of her adventures are bright, colorful, and exude life. It makes me feel like I’m standing right there with her sampling exotic candies in Mexico and smelling fragrant cheeses in Chicago as she serves them to customers. She has an elegance to her work that easily captures the human figure without overwhelming it with detail and unnecessary lines and just brings the story to life. I could say more, but why give unnecessary detail? Go check out her work and you’ll be impressed as well.

As you can tell I really enjoy Lucy’s work and I think a y’all will as well. I highly recommend this book. The story is simple, easy to follow, and flows naturally and the artwork is beautiful. And I can’t give it any higher praise than that.

ARC provided by Gina at FirstSecond(less)

like 1 like · see review

Jan 29, 2013 Seth Hahne rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: comics

I was unlucky in birth. I mean, sort of. Really everything went pretty swimmingly save for the fact that I was born with a very narrow palette. My range of acceptable tastes and textures is lean and withered. I am, others have judged, a picky eater.

Relish by Lucy Knisley

[This was not me.]

I'm fine with a small battery of stand-bys (meats, potatoes, dairy, most fruits), but vegetables and items with more exotic textures remain holy and set apart for sacrifice to other eaters. I mean, I absolutely adore steamed articho...more

like 8 likes · see review

Dec 14, 2012 Darren rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: cookery-food, gen-ebooks

This is not the usual kind of book that we review at YUM yet this caught our eye…

Here is an interesting thing that might appeal more to the younger reader, yet even us older folks might learn a thing or two along the way. The author is a foodie, as one might imagine the daughter of a chef and gourmet to be, and here she has presented her life to date in the form of a series of quite good self-drawn cartoons. There are also a number of recipes, a mixture of both treasured family dishes and a few...more This is not the usual kind of book that we review at YUM yet this caught our eye…

Here is an interesting thing that might appeal more to the younger reader, yet even us older folks might learn a thing or two along the way. The author is a foodie, as one might imagine the daughter of a chef and gourmet to be, and here she has presented her life to date in the form of a series of quite good self-drawn cartoons. There are also a number of recipes, a mixture of both treasured family dishes and a few of the author's own invention.

The book's marketing information says that it is "… a book for our time: it invites the reader to celebrate food as a connection to our bodies and a connection to the earth, rather than an enemy, a compulsion, or a consumer product." That might go over the head of some, whilst for others it might fasten a strong connection. In any case the combination of humorous cartoons that impart a serious message and many great recipes make this book a curious, interesting thing to behold. Certainly this reviewer would not have knowingly picked up "just a food cartoon book" from the shelf, yet the author has managed - in a positive way - to get under this reviewer's skin and awaken some interest.

Teenagers may like this book, even if they disagree with some of the messages, whilst it remains accessible and interesting to those for whom their teenage years are but a distant memory. The author has managed to carefully construct a cartoon series that can be appreciated by all ages. The recipes, if only by virtue of them appearing in a similar cartoon-style, are more likely to appeal to the younger audience even though if they were more conventionally-presented they would not be out-of-place in a more traditional book. Whilst this reviewer enjoyed looking at the cartoons, reading and reacting to the recipes just felt a bit too much like hard work. Different strokes for different folks, though.

What to say about this book? It might be one of those things you either love or hate. Certainly it would be a more unique gift for the cook who has everything and it might even spur your teenage children into being a little more adventurous with the food and maybe give them the cooking bug too. Or it might get you back into the kitchen, but as a YUM reader one can expect you are already spending a lot of time there! Take a look for yourself and see.

Relish: My Life in the Kitchen, written by Lucy Knisley and published by First Second. ISBN 9781596436237, 176 pages. Typical price: USD17.99. YYYY.

// This review appeared in YUM.fi and is reproduced here in full with permission of YUM.fi. YUM.fi celebrates the worldwide diversity of food and drink, as presented through the humble book. Whether you call it a cookery book, cook book, recipe book or something else (in the language of your choice) YUM will provide you with news and reviews of the latest books on the marketplace. //(less)

like · see review

Sep 24, 2012 Yodamom rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: comics-anime, cookbooks, drama-rama, netgalley

Raised in upscale New York by foodie parents and friends. She dined on the finest of foods and at gourmet parties. Then her world turned upside down, her mother divorced and moved her to the country. There she learned how to grow food and make fresh food products. She found out food doesn’t just appear on the shelf at the markets.

Her mother started baking, when they found they had too many egg laying chickens. This was the start of her cooking her mother told her if she wanted something she had...more

like · see review

Sep 24, 2012 Lady Lioness rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: genre-graphic-novels, genre-non-fiction, read-september-2012, subgenre-autobiography

Snagged from NetGalley.

Like many people, I was first introduced to Lucy Knisley through French Milk and I've been following her LiveJournal ever since. I enjoyed French Milk so much, when I started working at the library here, I recommended they add it to our popular reading collection.

Relish is not a complete story like French Milk, but instead is a series of loosely linked vignettes. At the end of each chapter, Knisley provides a recipe that fits the theme of the chapter. Comfort food, this i...more

like 1 like · see review

Sep 25, 2012 Maria M. Elmvang rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: foodies

Shelves: 2012, 4-stars, arc, memoir, owned, e-book, non-fiction

This book should come with a disclaimer: Warning! Will make you HUNGRY! ... and not just plain ole hungry that any apple or biscuit could satisfy. No, hungry for good, high-quality food. Alas all I had available was a bottle of water :-/ So perhaps the disclaimer should be extended to say Make sure you have a snack readily available while reading.

I had not realized that "Relish: My Life in the Kitchen" was a graphic novel when I received it. Actually, I'm rather glad I hadn't, because I think th...more

like · see review

Feb 21, 2013 Tasha rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: graphic-novels, teen

This memoir in graphic novel form details Lucy Knisley’s relationship and ongoing love affair with food throughout her childhood and young adulthood. With each chapter in the book showing an episode in her life that impacted how she related to food, Knisley has penned a book that is not at all about weight watching, but instead the story of how a gourmet is born. The daughter of a chef, Knisley grew up helping out at farm stalls and working at her mother’s catering jobs. She also details how her...more

like · see review

May 13, 2013 Alison rated it 3 of 5 stars

I generally love Knisley's work and think she's a strong illustrator and storyteller. However, I really got the impression this book had too much in the way of editing and polishing, and I missed the rawness of her earlier and online work. The recipes and diagrams at the back of each chapter really stood out to me as the strongest, and the storytelling got a little lost in the over-saturated and cramped panels. I also wish she'd given herself the chance not simply to resort to stereotypes of fat...more

like · see review

May 14, 2013 Breanne rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: graphic-novel, non-fiction

This is another book I have chosen in my new-found enthusiasm for nonfiction graphic novels, and I enjoyed it a lot. I tried to read her earlier graphic novel, French Milk, but I was a bit disappointed when there wasn't a narrative arc to the book: it was more like a sketchbook and travel journal. (Sorry - maybe it had an arc later, I didn't get very far).

This was much better, presented as a series of vignettes of important moments in her life involving food, how the food shaped her memories as...more

like · see review

Feb 27, 2013 Aleks rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: memoirs, graphic-novels-comics

Every time I say how much I love Lucy Knisley I feel a bit like a stalker. I should rephrase that and say how much I love her work. But it’s through her work (that is primarily autobiographical) that I feel like I know her so well. Check her out through her blog, tumblr, Facebook, etc.

A few years ago when Graphic Novels (not just comic books) were becoming the thing to be seen reading I picked up Knisley’s French Milk and first fell in love. French Milk is a travel journal (or as the French say...more Every time I say how much I love Lucy Knisley I feel a bit like a stalker. I should rephrase that and say how much I love her work. But it’s through her work (that is primarily autobiographical) that I feel like I know her so well. Check her out through her blog, tumblr, Facebook, etc.

A few years ago when Graphic Novels (not just comic books) were becoming the thing to be seen reading I picked up Knisley’s French Milk and first fell in love. French Milk is a travel journal (or as the French say, Carnet de Voyage) from a trip Knisley took with her mother to Paris in January. It’s a glimpse into the touristy things we all would love to do with our mothers in Paris, if we had the kind of relationship that Knisley has with her mother. There are lots of sketches of baguettes and cheese. All the ‘je ne sais quai’ of Paris is rendered into full page panels with little notes of what was seen and experienced.

What I like most about Knisley’s writing is that she doesn’t shy away from telling it how it is. Amongst the beautiful sketches of cobblestone streets in Paris there are anecdotes of her momentary meltdowns over turning 22 and not being financially responsible. (Oh, if only I could be 22 again, I’d tell myself to relax more.) We see how not all travel moments can be magical, that it can rain and be freezing in the most wonderful of places on earth. French Milk is a personal and wonderful story of a young woman’s journey through adulthood. It may sound cheesy but the more stinky the cheese the better.

You can imagine my excitement when I saw that Knisley was coming out with a new book in the Spring of 2013. As a bookseller I am lucky enough to be surrounded by books everyday but the biggest perk of the job is getting to read those books that everyone is waiting for first. I asked for an advance reader’s copy not expecting anything but hey, it never hurts to ask. And when I got approved and got the first look at the beautiful, full colour illustrations I nearly lost my mind.

Relish: My Life in the Kitchen (Published by First Second) which comes out in April is so cool. Just imagine the super fan girl (that’s me) with wide eyes clutching this book as I tell you how cool it is. First of all it’s in colour. Not that I mind reading comic books and graphic novels in black and white but when you see the work that you love so much in Technicolor, well there’s no going back after that. Not only is this book in colour but it’s all about food.

Good food is such a wonderful thing. We as humans can have such visceral reactions to food. Just notice what happens to you when someone bakes you a fresh batch of chocolate chip cookies. Or how nice you feel, if even for a moment, when you’re sick and someone makes you chicken soup just the way you like it. Humans can be very emotional eaters it’s only one of the many reasons we’re having such problems with obesity in North America. There’s always a valid excuse for that bucket of ice cream. And who hasn’t celebrated a momentous occasion with a good meal?

In Relish we see Knisley’s life told through the food that has helped her become the person she is today. It doesn’t hurt that her parents were total foodies even before she came into this world. Her mother worked in a cheese shop while she was pregnant with Knisley and thinks that perhaps the cultured dairy had an effect on the unborn artist? In French Milk the readers got to see the complex relationship that isn’t always perfect between a young, not yet fully adult woman and her mother. Being in your early 20s is still an awkward time and even more so in the age of “you can be whatever you want to be”. But in Relish we get to see how Knisley’s relationships were formed not only with her mother but with her father and extended family, friends, coworker by the food they enjoyed together.

Scattered throughout the book are visual recipes for some of the special dishes Knisley mentions. I love how each ingredient magically jumps into the bowl. I hope Knisley makes prints of these recipes. This book is one part cookbook and 2 parts memoir.

The only trepidation I have about these types of autobiographical and deeply personal graphic novels is that the artists can sometimes go off on tangents. There’s a fine line between telling the whole story and going overboard. Food is clearly a very important part of Knisley’s life but I sometimes felt that there was only so much to be said about one’s nutritional history. Nonetheless I really enjoyed this book and would highly recommend it to anyone who loves to eat and read comics. Or both at the same time!!
(less)

like · see review

May 01, 2013 Elise rated it 5 of 5 stars

"Relish" is such a delight! I knew I'd love this book as soon as I read about it about a month ago in the NYTimes--a graphic novel about food and cooking?! It's like Lucy Knisley wrote/illustrated this book just for me. I devoured the book in almost a single sitting (I'm trying to be better about going to bed early). The illustrations are wonderful, and I especially enjoyed her illustrated recipes. Although "Relish" is mostly about growing up around food, and the way food plays a prominent role...more

like · see review

May 15, 2013 Paul Fergus rated it 3 of 5 stars

Grab bag of mild foodie introspections, with a bonus recipe after every meal.

I really ought to have liked this more. I like both cooking and comics, so how could I lose? I think, the flaw must ultimately be the lack of a strong focus in the material. It's a hodge podge of insights, memories and experiences, not all of them interesting. The recipes at the end of every section are a random mix of ideas and technique, at times spot on, other times way too complex to be any more than filler.

The artw...more Grab bag of mild foodie introspections, with a bonus recipe after every meal.

I really ought to have liked this more. I like both cooking and comics, so how could I lose? I think, the flaw must ultimately be the lack of a strong focus in the material. It's a hodge podge of insights, memories and experiences, not all of them interesting. The recipes at the end of every section are a random mix of ideas and technique, at times spot on, other times way too complex to be any more than filler.

The artwork is warm, friendly and simple. It suits the subject matter well, inviting you in and making the book a lighthearted journey through pleasant memories. At times there's a strong progression of story, at others a montage of associations that give the pages a complex soup of ideas and images.

Let's face it -- food is central to everything we do in life -- so this is serious business despite the approach the author uses. It's important for us to explore what it means to have a collective nest of experiences based around food. Our identity is formed out of these moments and make us who we are. Things have changed and mutated so much in the United States that it's easy to lose track of what we've gained and lost as a result of the journey. I applaud the author for tackling this subject.

This comes through strongest in the section about the author's trip to Mexico as an adolescent. The culture shock, the unexpected freedom due to both adults on the trip being temporarily taken down by the flu, and a coming of age transition--the author's first period and her co-adventurer boy friend's first naked magazine obsession due to sudden easy availability. It's primal and unforgettable storytelling of the highest order, centered around the basic act of eating--candy, snacks, and whatever grub you can scare up in the unknown. Great stuff.

Most of the rest of the book doesn't come close to this. Another experience in a foreign country--this time in Japan--ends up being too scattered and short to reach any kind of manifestation of story. A missed opportunity there.

Still, there are plenty of brief and interesting observations throughout the book. I especially liked the author's comparison of her parent's relationship to that of Zeus and Demeter, then using that to explain their divorce and current interaction.

In the end though, Relish is mainly a self-directed exercise in remembrance and committing to form. A pleasure, and at times that pleasure is shared, but the work isn't strong enough as a whole to reach any height of satisfaction.

(less)

like · see review

May 10, 2013 Leslie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Relish:My Life in the Kitchen is a delicious treat! Part memoir, part cookbook, formatted as a graphic novel, somehow this mash-up works beautifully. This is undoubtedly due to talent of Lucy Knisley, the author/artist. It mixes childhood memories, teenage angst, and young adult dreams together with a dash of humor and a pinch of insight and a heaping cup of cleverness. I was so impressed by Relish that I immediately ordered French Milk, an earlier work of hers that recounts her time spent in Fr...more

like · see review

Feb 04, 2013 Kendal rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: graphic-novels

I LOVED THIS BOOK!! I just started in the graphic novel genre and I have been very fortunate on the choices I've made. First Second posted a picture of the book on Twitter and I wrote to them to see if they would please send me a copy. And they DID! I'm so thrilled that they did!

Lucy Knisley has a wonderful way of telling her life story. Her illustrations are witty and quirky. I warn you your stomach will be growling after reading only a few pages. I loved the recipes at the end of each chapter;...more

like 1 like · see review

Aug 28, 2012 Kristen rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: comics, food, nonfiction, self-destructing-digital-arc

I was one of those people who loved all the food logging in French Milk, so I was excited about this one. And probably the biggest difference I noticed between the two is the lack of angst in this one. Go figure because the author is older and more settled. But even in the vignettes from her adolescence, there's none of the attitude and resentment and her parents are simply awesome. Which is fine, of course. That contrast can provoke as much thought in the reader about their own evolving relatio...more

like 1 like · see review

Apr 28, 2013 Erin rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2013, om-noms, comics-graphic-novels

A memoir about food seems like an obvious thing. We all have memories when we smell or taste or see some food from our childhood- be it as high class as foie gras, or as out there as peanut butter fluff a nutter sandwiches (looking back on my own childhood, I don't know how I didn't develop childhood diabetes.) Kinsley has a more food involved history than most, growing up as the child of two food obsessed parents. Relish details Kinsley's journey to adulthood bite by bite, but my favorite part...more

like · see review

Sep 22, 2012 Elia rated it 3 of 5 stars

Relish is not the type of book I typically read. Yes, it's a graphic novel, and I love those, but it's also a memoir, something I very rarely approach on the shelf. Also, it's a memoir that doesn't really have a "point." Lucy Knisley isn't trying to convey any deep philosophical meaning here - her message is simply "I love food, and here is why."
The book is simply a collection of stories from the author's early childhood through young adulthood about her relationship with food. The part that so...more

like · see review

Aug 25, 2012 Jason rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: graphic-novels, memoir

An entertaining and moving tribute to the role food has shaped her life, Lucy Knisley's graphic novel memoir is an homage to her caterer mother, fastidious father, and all the food in between--from apricot croissants in Italy to sinfully delicious McDonald's French fries. Knisley concludes most of the thematic chapters with a related recipe--Americanized sushi, shepherd's pie, sangria. As an added bonus, the memoir includes some photographs of the author and her family and friends throughout her...more

like · see review

Apr 14, 2013 April rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: graphic-novels, for-review, memoir, vine

I love graphic novels. I love books about the act of cooking and eating. Thus, Relish: My Life In The Kitchen by Lucy Knisley immediately caught my eye, as it combines two of my favorite things ever. Lucky for me, Relish was just as delightful and tantalizing as expected. Also? Bonus! There are recipes throughout the book where the instructions are visually illustrated. The down side is that I now wish ALL cook books were like this – as that would make following a recipe so much easier. I digres...more

like 2 likes · see review

Apr 27, 2013 Tamsyn rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: best-books-in-the-year-i-read-them, books-that-teach, food-writing, graphic-novels, realisticfiction

One of the best graphic novels I've read, in large part because it is also a food memoir, filled with entertaining stories and appealing recipes (I plan to try almost every single one, which is rare, so we must have similar taste!) Lucy was born in NYC and lived there until her parents divorced, when her mother bought a home in Rhinebeck, in NY's Hudson Valley. Both her parents loved good food, but her mother was a wonderful cook, working everywhere from a newly opened Dean & DeLuca's to far...more

like · see review

Apr 01, 2013 Jessica at Book Sake rated it 4 of 5 stars

Reviewed by Jessica for Book Sake.

I love my food. I remember events according to what restaurant I was at, what I was eating, what I was cooking, the tastes, the smells, sigh. I love my food. Relish is a welcome graphic novel and is completely different in formatting than any other food related book or graphic novel that I’ve read before. The comic panels are charming and easy to follow along with. The story is just as easy to get into.

The bonus: recipes. Recipes that I actually want to try. I’m...more

like · see review

title link	preview: Relish: My Life in the Kitchen
avg rating	preview: Relish: My Life in the Kitchen Goodreads rating: 4.19 (389 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15786110-relish?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1345686126l/15786110.jpg[/img][/url] [url=https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15786110-relish?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Relish: My Life in the Kitchen by Lucy Knisley[/url]

Relish: My Life in the Kitchen

Friend Reviews

Lists with This Book

Community Reviews

new topic
Discuss This Book

Genres

About Lucy Knisley

Books by Lucy Knisley

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website

Trivia About Relish: My Life i...

Relish: My Life in the Kitchen

Friend Reviews

Lists with This Book

Community Reviews

new topicDiscuss This Book

Genres

About Lucy Knisley

Books by Lucy Knisley

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website

Trivia About Relish: My Life i...

new topic
Discuss This Book