Through the Kitchen Window: Women Explore the Intimate Meanings of Food and Cooking

by Arlene Voski Avakian (Editor)

These days any woman knows that the sensual pleasures of food and cooking are all too often obscured by the increasing demands of careers, families, battles over body image, and the desire for a life outside the 'traditional' domain of the kitchen. With contributions by Dorothy Allison, Maya Angelou, Letty Cottin Pogrebin and Marge Piercy among others, Through the Kitchen Window offers a fresh look at food and cooking as more than the makings of a meal. For the writers in this provocative collection, food is a cultural declaration, an expression of hidden hungers, a symbol of our intimate connections to one another.Including memories of Latina, Geechee, Chinese and Indian kitchens, Through the Kitchen Window reveals everything from the painful struggles to overcome an eating disorder to the tantalizing delights of cornbread and barbecue eaten from a lover's hands, and challenges assumptions about women, food, and the true satisfaction of cooking.

Genres: Food, Nonfiction, Food History, Foodie

336 pages, Paperback

First published July 20, 1997

Reviews

[Serena · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enlightening look at food, cooking, and eating, and what they mean to women, from gender identity to cultural and family history and legacy. Never has a topic been fraught with so much emotional, cultural, social, and political implications, especially for women. Food not only sustains us, but defines who we are as people, and in turn, is defined by us. You will not look at food in the same way ever again after reading this book. Four out of five stars. Definitely worth the read!

[Bethany Divakaran · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice collection of food-related stories by different authors, memoirs related to heritage, family, and gender. I appreciated the various points of view represented and the thoughtfulness in exploring the personal and collective meanings of food/eating/cooking. The stories started to blend together a bit as the book went on as the stories didn't vary dramatically in writing style.

[Desiree · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish I could give this book more stars. Some of the stories were absolutely beautiful and moving and educational and inspirational.
Then there's the one from an aptly titled collection called "Trash." Near the end, it's called "A Lesbian Appetite," and includes scenes of (spoiler alert, also TMI and not for prudes)...



...shoving sliced vegetables into orifices (orifi?) and then force-feeding them, and golden showers. Described in graphic detail. I'm not against erotica or anything, and certainly not girl-on-girl, but frankly the whole thing made me want to retch and I wish it hadn't been included in a collection of otherwise deep and fascinating memoirs. It's also one of the only stories which includes no childhood memories, cultural explorations or formative anecdotes (which is what makes the rest of them so interesting), just goes on and on about the various women the author has F'ed. Hoo boy. She's got ISSUES, I say, and I wish I could un-read that story. Burned into my mind forever... Bah.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

Organized into three sections - inheritance, transformations, and resolutions - these feminist essays discuss cooking, food, and eating as elements of a woman's life, revealing differences, commonalities, and the overarching power of food.

[julie · Rating 2 out of 5]

this book had the potential to be good, but was so self-conscious and insecure about its feminism that it ended up a mish-mash. some essays are good, some should have been edited much more.

[Kim · Rating 2 out of 5]

Started off strong and petered out. I tried one recipe twice and it still didn't work.