Death by Pad Thai: And Other Unforgettable Meals

by Douglas Bauer

Food isn’t just a gustatory pleasure; it is the stuff of life. At its best and most memorable, a meal becomes a story—and a story becomes a feast. In this collection of essays by some of the country’s finest writers, food is the central player in memories both exquisite and excruciating. Steve Almond recounts the gleeful daylong preparation of a transcendent lobster pad thai dish. Sue Miller reveals that after a lifetime of practical cooking, she is finally fed by a man who presents food as an offering, made just for her. Aimee Bender ponders her lifelong envy of what everyone else is having for lunch. Richard Russo relates the celebratory day he and his wife spent eating their way through haute Manhattan—and departing utterly famished.Expertly compiled and edited by Douglas Bauer—including pieces by Amy Bloom, Peter Mayle, Jane and Michael Stern, Ann Packer, and Andre Dubus III—this unforgettable collection presents food as education, test, reward, bait, magnet, and, most of all, gift. Gathered here are meals that sate our most complex palate, the appreciation of life.

Genres: Food, Nonfiction, Essays, Memoir, Foodie, Cooking, Food and Drink

240 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

I’ve written three novels, Dexterity, The Very Air, and The Book of Famous Iowans, each of them set in small towns, in Upstate New York, in Texas, and in Iowa. Their subjects and interests are as varied as their settings, although reviewers have pointed out that they all concern themselves in some fashion with mothers’ unpredictable presences and absences and the effect of that unreliability on their sons.

I’ve also written two non-fiction books, Prairie City, Iowa and The Stuff of Fiction. The first covers a year of reunion with the tiny farm village of the title, where I was raised and to which I returned at the age of 30 in order to try to understand the place where I grew up and, not incidentally, some things about myself as I reached that critical age. The second is a series of essays devoted to the craft of fiction writing. The essays cover the elements of character creation, dialogue, narrative strategies, how to start and end a story, and many more. There are exercises accompanying the essays.

In addition to the books I’ve written, I’ve edited two anthologies, Prime Times: Writers on their favorite television shows; and Death by Pad Thai and Other Unforgettable Meals. These anthologies feature contributions from some of the most prominent writers of our time, including Sue Miller, Andre Dubus III, Aimee Bender, Richard Russo, Claire Messud, Nick Hornby, the late and very great Barry Hannah, and on and on.

My stories and essays have appeared through the years in The Atlantic, Harper’s, Esquire, Tin House, The New York Times Magazine and Sunday Book Review, The Massachusetts Review, Agni, and other publications.

I’ve received grants in both fiction and non-fiction from The National Endowment for the Arts.

I’ve taught at several colleges and universities, including Harvard, Smith, The University of New Mexico, Rice, and since 2005 at Bennington College. My courses there include literature classes in the works of Charles Dickens, my favorite author in the language, as well as Twentieth Century writers such as Willa Cather, Saul Bellow, Philip Roth, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway.

Reviews

[audrey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Possibly the most depressing book about food I have ever read. Which is extra baffling because in the editor's introduction to the collection, he describes the book as in some ways an homage to a joy-filled trip to New Orleans he once took with renowned food critic MFK Fisher. A couple high and low-lights:

Aimee Bender's tale of stealing children's food is disturbing and odd, and not in the good way you usually find in her fiction.

Michael Gorra and Jane Stern's essays are easily skipped for everyone's safety. Michelle Wildgen's "Beach Food" is one of those exercises you do in therapy to work shit out, and therapy is where it should've stayed.

Henri Cole's "Dinner with Seamus" is what happens when one poet really really loves another poet and can't figure out how to explain he wants a bj. I realize that a volume of Cole's poetry has been a finalist for the Pulitzer, but I read a line like "Steam forced through roasted and powdered coffee beans makes a shrieking sound, like truth" and I can't refrain from vigorous wanking motions.

And that's not even from the bit where Cole compares the object of his affections to a haddock.

Amy Bloom's efforts at creating a perfect date lasagna result in a mildly strange and charming tiny essay that I read three times; Sue Miller's "Foodums" is unforgettable in its portrait of a group of self-involved, partying parents of latchkey kids and the kinds of hunger that leads to; Andre Dubus' "Home" presents a nice counterpoint in the portrait of his working mother's valiant efforts at keeping everyone fed.

Samantha Lan Chang's "Yes" and Diana Abu Jaber's stories are the best of the collection: both luminous and delightful, rich in detail and the unexpected joy that was missing from most of the other stories. Steve Almond's piece was wonderful but I'm biased because I enjoy his writing immensely in a more general way.

Much like a highly anticipated meal that turns out rubbish, this collection was very disappointing.

[Katherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a collection of essays about memorable experiences with food. It's not particularly ground breaking or even my favorite "these are cool writers writing about something else" collection (for that, see Speaking with the Angel, ed. Nick Hornby), but it was perfect for me right now. I'm learning to cook slowly but surely, and I'm interviewing at a mile a minute for law firm jobs, so I needed something light I could pick up and enjoy and then put down for a while. I thought this was an interesting mix of pieces, well edited, and enjoyable.

[Hailey · Rating 3 out of 5]

“They had cooked this feast for is, for our enjoyment, and just as much for themselves, for the sheer pleasure of a thing created together.”

If I could give half stars this would be a 3.5. It’s somewhat disorienting, as collections of short stories can be, jumping around from author to author. There’s so many small revelations I came to throughout the book but the theme is clear: eating is more than chewing and digesting, food is more than fuel. This is a poetic argument for the cultural meaning of food. And a beautiful examination of how food impacts our relationships.

[Soon Har]

I'm reading all these 'food books' because of a project for my last class. Death by Pad Thai and other unforgettable meals is different from Eat, Memory in that the entries are at least twice as long, and more like (true) stories. Unlike the New York Times essays, which were uniformly sharply written, the writing quality here ranges from brilliant (Henri Cole on his dinner with Seamus Haney in Cambridge) to funny (Jane and Michael Stern in a self-deprecating piece on entertaining a couple of European guests) to so-so (Ann Packer on cooking). Claire Messud's remembrance of a "perfect" meal with her family in France, where she lived as a child, is a joy to read just for the lyrical and vivid descriptions. All the contributors are professional writers, whether literary or culinary. I like the idea of writing a story inspired by a memory of food; most of these are very well done and lead me to think about my own food memories and the stories entwined in them. There are so many ....

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

These essays explore the power of food and memorable meals, be they positive or negative experiences. Each essay is around 10-15 pages, so it's a good book to pick up and put down for a busy reader.

I read this book in increments over several weeks, generally reading an essay or two while I waited for water to boil or the oven timer to buzz as I made my own meals.

While not an earth-shattering book, the writing was good -some authors and entries being quite funny and others more sentimental. This isn't essential reading, even for food lovers, but it is decent entertainment for food lovers who need a read on-the-go.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like any book that has many different stories from different authors, it was inconsistent in nature. Some of the stories were more interesting to me than others. I do like how the editor emphasized that while this book was about meals - it was not just the food, it was the whole experience. Many of the authors did a great job of setting that stage. As with most books, I completely ignore the recipes at the end, those these were a bit more tongue in cheek.

[Sara Gustafson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this one as part of a summer reading challenge, and as a self proclaimed foodie I really enjoyed it! Eating and cooking are huge parts of my life, and I loved reading about other people’s experience tying food to emotions and experiences 🥘

[Lopeadro · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing book

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought this would be full of humorous short stories, but most of them were more depressing than humorous. There were a few that I enjoyed.

[Sophie · Rating 1 out of 5]

just an excuse for a bunch of pretentious writers to trauma dump (except for claire messud, my queen). a disgrace to pad thai.

[Margaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book of 20 essays by writers, the broad theme of which is "a meal they'd never forgotten and would surely not forget... meals made unforgettable by their occasion." The essays vary greatly in tone (humorous, not so humorous, poignant, almost slapstick) and meal (from the high to the low to not so much a particular meal but a theme of many meals). What they all share, despite 20 different writers plus a "bonus" Introduction essay by editor Douglas Bauer, is terrific writing. This is the type of writing that I'll miss in the finest of the recently deceased "Gourmet" (USA) magazine; the late Laurie Colwin would have been right at home here, and two of the essays are submitted by each of Jane Stern and Michael Stern (not jointly, but two separate essays describing different stories). I loved this book and was sad when it came to an end, which was quickly since I only put it down periodically and reluctantly to tend to some task at home such as, oh, feeding my own family.

[Ruben · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is just a collection of stories that relate to food, based on the memories of various writers. Far too many of the stories were written by long winded people who couldn't stay on topic if their lives depended on it! Worse were the stories written by people who think "the more adjectives, the better!" You can tell that too many of the writers were trying too hard to be poetic and lyrical in creating a verbal portrait of their lives, only to end up spending 1000 words on describing a cold day. Just bad writing on a lot of the writers' parts. There were, however a few gems. Tip: Just skip to the end of the book for the best story of the collection titled, like the book, "Death by Pad Thai."

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't really like it because it wasn't what I expected. I was hoping for a book version of the TV show "Diary of a Foodie" from Gourmet. 'Pad Thai' seemed to mostly be written about people who weren't necessarily food people. So you get a bunch of essays that aren't really about food but just become tangential to food at some point.

And for some reason, many of the essays involve divorce. As I read each essay, I started taking bets as to how soon the divorce would come up.

The book helps itself out with its title essay at the end of the book. If all the essays were like the final one, it'd be a lot closer to what I hoped it would be.

I would not recommend to a friend.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this up because the title caught my eye. Various writers contributed reminiscences about a memorable meal experience. The resulting collection of essays is uneven, and there are enough similarly sentimental pieces to make some recede from memory. A few stand out: Michael Stern’s hilarious account of his misguided attempt to take some European visitors for a real American culinary experience; Amy Bloom details how cooking and food took different roles at different times in her life; Steve Almond’s closing essay about making lobster pad thai is a funny but reverent paean to food and friendship.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

At first glance at the title, one might think this was an exotic murder mystery, but the subtitle, “and other unforgettable meals” dispels that notion. Here twenty writers such as Richard Russo, Peter Mayle, Jane and Michael Stern and others write delightful essays about their experiences with food. Some are memorable because they were really enjoyed, others are memorable but might best be forgotten. Michael Stern’s piece, “My Dinner with Andy Warhol’s Friends” is about the most disastrous event. Steve Almond’s “Death by Lobster Pad Thai” was my favorite.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Collection of short stories from several writers about their most memorable meal (not necessarily "best food" or "most expensive" but the one with which they have the most emotional connection-many included references to Proust's famous remembrance (of things past) upon eating a little madeleine cake, which got a bit tiresome by the third or fourth story). As with most anthologies, there are a few gems (and a few recipes as well) but most of the stories were not as entertaining or engaging as I would have liked.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is another compilation book of essays, this one focusing on food stories. Even though I am not the best cook I am completely fascinated by food/chef books. Death by Pad Thai is a pretty good collection of memorable food experiences. The title story about Lobster Pad Thai is probably the best one in the book, but the one by Jane & Michael Stern is hilarious. I would definitely recommend this to anyone interested in food stories.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

The premise of the book is simple: authors are asked to describe their most memorable meal, with preference given to descriptions that are not too Proustian. Some of the responses are joyous fun indeed (reading Peter Mayle's response in particular made me remember why I so enjoyed A Year in Provence), but some of the selections also have a hint of bitterness and disappointment to them. Even if it comes at an unhappy time, shouldn't food be a happy thing?

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book wasn't really what I thought it was going to be. From the title, I was expecting a book about exotic, strange food, like squid livers or lion's tongues, but then I realized that it was more about the meals themselves than what was eaten. I continued to read. Sort of a mixed bag for me. Or should I call it a smogasbord? Some stories are great, some sort of rambling and overly descriptive. And for such a slim volume, I would not consider it a quick read, oddly.

[Maria (Ri) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This mostly enjoyable collection of essays was not a good one to read in bed at night - it made my tummy rumble and wish I were downstairs devouring a snack! I particularly enjoyed "My Dinner with Andy Warhol's Friends" by Michael Stern. It had the same horrifying draw that The Office or Ben Stiller movies have. I just felt so badly for them, but couldn't stop reading about the train wreck! A few of the essays were snoozers, but overall, it was a yummy read.

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some of these stories were very good, but this was not really a book about food - it was a compilation of stories that had a very weak theme: an unforgettable meal. Some of the writing was very verbose. Some incomprehensible. I can certainly understand unforgettable meals, but these were more life stories. And the title story is actually Death by LOBSTER Pad Thai. Why change the title? And why put it as the LAST story? Overall an ok read, but I won't pick it up again.

[Gina · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was my tub book (the book I kept by the tub to read during my brief breaks from the baby when I could take a bath and relax). Composed of a bunch of short stories about each author's individual expeirnece with cooking or a memorable meal, it was a really easy read. Some of the stories were a little wierd, but overall I enjoyed it.

[Daniel · Rating 2 out of 5]

For the most part, nothing here was particularly memorable, with the exception of Steve Almond's bit of comic relief, and Michael Stern's tale of perhaps one of the worst dining evenings ever.

None of the essays were bad. While reading them I was usually moderately engaged, but except for the two mentioned, they didn't stay with me.

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

i can't seem to get through this book, something that seemed like it would be a quick read. i get into a story, connect with the author and then two pages later it's over and there is a brand new voice telling a brand new story.

if i'm going to read a book of essays, i prefer the essay to be written by one author (ala sedaris, klosterman, etc).

[Wan Ni · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very lovely anthology on food, by contemporary authors. It is an immense joy reading their recollection of unforgettable meals, not all good and lavish but unique experiences that deserve all the exposition they can garner. Each short story is a delight to read, so much so I was sad when I got to the end of the book. this is highly recommended for all food lovers.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

As with any collection of stories, some were better than others. But overall, none of the stories really hooked me. The collection seemed overly focused on a group of people with similar backgrounds -- there were multiple stories of growing up in the 60s and 70s on Midwest staples of overcooked meat and vegetables. I was not entranced by either the food described or the lessons learned.

[Andrea Conarro · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a yummy compilation of food essays. I am about 2/3 of the way through, and have to say I prefer the first stories the most. Maybe my favorite is the story of one woman's quest to make a lasagna for her lover...

[MeganPGray · Rating 4 out of 5]

A charming collection of food writing, short essays by 21 well-known and lesser-known authors who usually write about other things. Excellent bedtime reading because each chapter is its own short essay.

[Caroline · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was relieved that this book doesn't cover the same ground as the anthology I'm working on; I was disappointed that many of the essays are just meandering collections of each writers's food memories.

[Desiree · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a bad colletion. A few hilarious moments and some wonderful, emotional stories. Occasionally cheesy, intermittently irrelevant (some people didn't seem to grasp the assignment of writing about a memorable-- to the soul, not just the palate-- meal), but overall entertaining.