Soup of the Day

by Frances Starn

Academic and journalistic lives and ways are skewered and roasted tenderly in this comedy of manners set in a food-centered university town that is a ringer for Berkeley, California.

Genres: Fiction

208 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 1990

Reviews

[Karla Huebner]

My reaction to this novel is much the same now as it was when the book was new and I happened to be enrolled in a class with the author. The writing is lovely and clever, and the tale is gently satirical throughout (especially if you know Berkeley, its Gourmet Ghetto, and its street people). Yet all the way through, I wanted to be more enthusiastic about it than I actually was. I felt too distant from the central female character and her troubles (and also her husband's), and perhaps insufficiently pulled into the world of her journalist renter, the central male character. The book has many wonderful qualities and witty moments, yet never quite becomes either sad enough or funny enough.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this one from my local library booksale or free shelf. I forgot which. It is a book I had never heard of. However, I am very familiar and fond? of academic fiction. Changing Places and Small World by David Lodge are two of my favorites. Changing Places takes part in ‘60s Berkeley and in the UK. This book is set in a fictional university campus, like Berkeley in the ‘90s. It’s the story of an academic family and also has some biological family stuff too. My brain kinda feels like it’s the people of Changing Places if they were later. There’s a cast of characters like Romana, a chef, her husband, Peter, Louise, his mistress, Jane and Sam, their friends, Agnes, a therapist, Tristan, the newspaper editor to the local paper and many more. Starn is a journalist and critic. One of the things that she’s critiquing in the book is the foodie element of San Francisco compared to the homeless situation of a soup kitchen. That there is a housing shortage in Clelland and a lot of people are falling through the cracks. Considering the ‘90s, that was a big issue and still is.

We also have academic issues where Peter has gotten a Pulitzer prize for his work on a Feminist writer and has left Romana, his wife, for Louise, the reporter who interviewed him. In addition, the local newspaper, the Klaxon, is trying to stay afloat in these uncertain business times. And a lot more. They are definitely a family, and are there for each other during times of trouble. I loved Jane and Sam Weissbrot, Romana’s friends. Sam seems like an Eric Bogosian character and Jane speaks the truth, be it harsh or not. Earlier this year, I reviewed Less by Greer which also had academic characters, which the author won the Pulitzer for. I did not like it much as the mix of satire and other didn’t work for me. I’m not sure why this worked better for me. Possibly because I had less expectations from it. Like the characters are a bit more likeable and the end is less sappy. Though, I kinda don’t buy the end either. It’s from 1990, so some of the things are very dated, but a lot of issues are still an issue. Also, there’s a store called Truffle Duffel which I think is a great name for an overpriced, gourmet store. In short, I enjoyed its mix of humor and light satire. Would I recommend you all go seek it out? Not sure. But, I enjoyed it enough.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dated, but good for light reading.