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Belle in the Big Apple: A Novel with Recipes
Now in paperback, a lively tale about a sassy, food-loving Southern gal who moves to New York City to become a jour- nalist—“think Scarlett O’Hara, and, dare we say it, maybe just a hint of Rachael Ray.” — Daily News (New York)
When vivacious, tart- tongued Belle Lee decides that the only way she’ll ever make a name for herself as a journalist is to head to New York, she quickly realizes just how daunting life in the big city can be. But with heroic persistence, a wicked sense of humor, and a taste for the gourmet, Belle finally catches her big a job as a produc- tion assistant at a conservative twenty-four-hour news network.
There she suffers the sexually suggestive commentary of one of the station’s better-known male anchors, fetches scripts, and pulls footage in the wee hours of the morning—never losing her Southern charm and positive attitude. But when Belle uncovers the truth behind an illegal network deal, she has no choice but to take matters into her own hands.
With thirty recipes for everything from Bribe-Your- Coworkers Pound Cake to how to make the perfect Manhattan—all told in the delightful and plucky voice of a determined and saucy young woman— Belle in the Big Apple is about following your dreams and finding love in the most unlikely places.
When vivacious, tart- tongued Belle Lee decides that the only way she’ll ever make a name for herself as a journalist is to head to New York, she quickly realizes just how daunting life in the big city can be. But with heroic persistence, a wicked sense of humor, and a taste for the gourmet, Belle finally catches her big a job as a produc- tion assistant at a conservative twenty-four-hour news network.
There she suffers the sexually suggestive commentary of one of the station’s better-known male anchors, fetches scripts, and pulls footage in the wee hours of the morning—never losing her Southern charm and positive attitude. But when Belle uncovers the truth behind an illegal network deal, she has no choice but to take matters into her own hands.
With thirty recipes for everything from Bribe-Your- Coworkers Pound Cake to how to make the perfect Manhattan—all told in the delightful and plucky voice of a determined and saucy young woman— Belle in the Big Apple is about following your dreams and finding love in the most unlikely places.
240 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2008
6 people are currently reading
110 people want to read
About the author
Brooke Parkhurst
4 books3 followersBrooke is a southerner living in New York City. After eighteen years of standing next to her grandfather and her mother at the typewriter and at the stove, Brooke realized that journalism, cooking and writing about cooking was her destiny. While attending Davidson College, she landed a television news internship in Charlotte, North Carolina and spent her weekends as an assistant in the pastry kitchen of Dean & DeLuca. Placing second in NBC’s “Aspiring Young Journalists of America” competition didn’t deter Brooke from parlaying a weekend trip to New York City into a permanent gig.
This belle had to live in the Big Apple.
At age 22, Brooke moved to New York City to chase her journalistic star and, instead, lost her way. After an intense, short-lived gig in television news, she decided she was more interested in soufflés than sound bites. As a birthday gift to herself, Brooke quit her job and moved out of the newsroom and into the kitchen.
Brooke’s debut novel with recipes, “Belle in the Big Apple,” (Scribner) hits shelves in September. She is also an ABC contributor and the host of ABC News NOW and the James Beard Foundation’s, “Eat & Greet.” On March 26th, 2008, Brooke’s “Belle in the Big Apple Food and Wine Column” debuted in the Gannett-owned, Pensacola News Journal. In it, Brooke acts as the big city, foodie correspondent for small town America, translating cosmopolitan, cutting edge trends for at-home cooks below the Mason-Dixon.
More of Brooke’s culinary and fish-out-of-water musings have been featured on Conde Nast’s “Elasticwaist.com” and on television and in such national and international media outlets as the Big Idea with Donny Deutsch, New York Post, Corriere della Sera, BBC, Salon.com and Gawker.
Brooke currently lives in SoHo, near her favorite butcher and bread maker.
This belle had to live in the Big Apple.
At age 22, Brooke moved to New York City to chase her journalistic star and, instead, lost her way. After an intense, short-lived gig in television news, she decided she was more interested in soufflés than sound bites. As a birthday gift to herself, Brooke quit her job and moved out of the newsroom and into the kitchen.
Brooke’s debut novel with recipes, “Belle in the Big Apple,” (Scribner) hits shelves in September. She is also an ABC contributor and the host of ABC News NOW and the James Beard Foundation’s, “Eat & Greet.” On March 26th, 2008, Brooke’s “Belle in the Big Apple Food and Wine Column” debuted in the Gannett-owned, Pensacola News Journal. In it, Brooke acts as the big city, foodie correspondent for small town America, translating cosmopolitan, cutting edge trends for at-home cooks below the Mason-Dixon.
More of Brooke’s culinary and fish-out-of-water musings have been featured on Conde Nast’s “Elasticwaist.com” and on television and in such national and international media outlets as the Big Idea with Donny Deutsch, New York Post, Corriere della Sera, BBC, Salon.com and Gawker.
Brooke currently lives in SoHo, near her favorite butcher and bread maker.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews
April 23, 2014
I wanted to like this book . I really wanted to like this book. I picked it up on a whim because it was discounted at Books A Million and I just ran with it. I liked the premise, I myself am doing an internship at a news channel next semester, I've been really into coming of age story involving New York City recently, and I am an English major. The stars were in my favor to like this book.
Now, lets talk about what happened.
From page one it was clear that Belle was a person of privilege, heck in the description it tells you this, so no surprise there, but what I was not expecting was for Belle to be so freaking codependent. If you're moving to New York City but your grandfather is paying your rent - you're not really moving to New York City. There are situations where this can be appropriate, where it's just a few months or it's until you get on your feet, but the entire point of Belle moving was to get away from her family... but she never does.
She moves up to NYC with a truckload of her family's antiques and an apartment that her grandfather found for her, and her break is even given to her because of her grandfather. It's not realistic, and making it seem like it is that easy for everyone makes people hate you.
Life is a struggle, and a story about a "struggle" that doesn't really seem like much of a struggle just is annoying. Moving to NYC is huge, it's a dream, and for most it includes being miserably poor for months or years, it's not as simple as telling your grandfather you're going to go and be a rich girl there instead. While this did not destroy my opinion of the book, it just got on my nerves. She spoke about things being hard and then on the next page called her grandfather who set up a meeting for her. Maybe there just wasn't enough characterization for me to feel for her, which I think is the heart of the problem.
Now, for the redeeming qualities...
The recipes were interesting, though I think there were only one or two I would make myself. I'm from Tennessee, so I also found the references to the south interesting as well, though... it's not all Spanish moss and honey suckles...
The south is always painted in a very interesting picture in novels, we're either Southern hicks or the home of hospitality and hoop skirts, and I felt the later in this novel. Yes, the South is wonderful, but we're not that cut away from the modern world as I feel was demonstrated in this novel.
We have large cities, we have technology, and we also have some mountains and fields and family traditions, but we're not backward. That was kind of a strange thing for me, some aspects of her descriptions I liked and appreciated, while others I felt were not accurate at all.
Now, lets talk about what happened.
From page one it was clear that Belle was a person of privilege, heck in the description it tells you this, so no surprise there, but what I was not expecting was for Belle to be so freaking codependent. If you're moving to New York City but your grandfather is paying your rent - you're not really moving to New York City. There are situations where this can be appropriate, where it's just a few months or it's until you get on your feet, but the entire point of Belle moving was to get away from her family... but she never does.
She moves up to NYC with a truckload of her family's antiques and an apartment that her grandfather found for her, and her break is even given to her because of her grandfather. It's not realistic, and making it seem like it is that easy for everyone makes people hate you.
Life is a struggle, and a story about a "struggle" that doesn't really seem like much of a struggle just is annoying. Moving to NYC is huge, it's a dream, and for most it includes being miserably poor for months or years, it's not as simple as telling your grandfather you're going to go and be a rich girl there instead. While this did not destroy my opinion of the book, it just got on my nerves. She spoke about things being hard and then on the next page called her grandfather who set up a meeting for her. Maybe there just wasn't enough characterization for me to feel for her, which I think is the heart of the problem.
Now, for the redeeming qualities...
The recipes were interesting, though I think there were only one or two I would make myself. I'm from Tennessee, so I also found the references to the south interesting as well, though... it's not all Spanish moss and honey suckles...
The south is always painted in a very interesting picture in novels, we're either Southern hicks or the home of hospitality and hoop skirts, and I felt the later in this novel. Yes, the South is wonderful, but we're not that cut away from the modern world as I feel was demonstrated in this novel.
We have large cities, we have technology, and we also have some mountains and fields and family traditions, but we're not backward. That was kind of a strange thing for me, some aspects of her descriptions I liked and appreciated, while others I felt were not accurate at all.
August 3, 2011
Like a previous poster, I couldn't finish this book either. The character is one dimensional, whiney and otherwise annoying. There is no way to like her, or feel sorry for her predicament. All it is is a book about a spoiled little southern girl who depends on Grandaddy for everything. Ho hum, yawn.
I am tremendously happy that I borrowed this book, and didn't spend a cent on this, otherwise, I may have contacted the author for a refund.
I am tremendously happy that I borrowed this book, and didn't spend a cent on this, otherwise, I may have contacted the author for a refund.
September 21, 2010
I read to page 59 and can go no further. This book just is not what I am looking for. I need more action going on - every thought Belle has is so painfully detailed it takes 3 pages for her just to turn around! I've given up on this one and will pass it along to someone who can appreciate it more than I can.
October 8, 2012
This was terrible. It was billed as a chick-lit/girl in the city kind of book and instead it was like the author wanted to write literature instead of fiction. There may or may not have been a good story in there but I just couldn't get past the writing. Left at a bus station.
October 28, 2008
Mama says life is like a box of chocolate. I mean, Mamma makes gumbo. The only enjoyable pages of this book are the recipes.
October 23, 2008
Hated it!! The writing didn't flow well and I quickly got over the whole "southern girl in the big city" BS.......
April 27, 2019
A political novel that never quite succeeds in making the main character believable ...
May 12, 2025
An incredibly fun book about a southern girl moving to New York City to make her journalist dreams come true. Plus, there's recipes!
April 20, 2014
I wanted to like this book . I really wanted to like this book. I picked it up on a whim because it was discounted at Books A Million and I just ran with it. I liked the premise, I myself am doing an internship at a news channel next semester, I've been really into coming of age story involving New York City recently, and I am an English major. The stars were in my favor to like this book.
Now, lets talk about what happened.
From page one it was clear that Belle was a person of privilege, heck in the description it tells you this, so no surprise there, but what I was not expecting was for Belle to be so freaking codependent. If you're moving to New York City but your grandfather is paying your rent - you're not really moving to New York City. There are situations where this can be appropriate, where it's just a few months or it's until you get on your feet, but the entire point of Belle moving was to get away from her family... but she never does.
She moves up to NYC with a truckload of her family's antiques and an apartment that her grandfather found for her, and her break is even given to her because of her grandfather. It's not realistic, and making it seem like it is that easy for everyone makes people hate you.
Life is a struggle, and a story about a "struggle" that doesn't really seem like much of a struggle just is annoying. Moving to NYC is huge, it's a dream, and for most it includes being miserably poor for months or years, it's not as simple as telling your grandfather you're going to go and be a rich girl there instead. While this did not destroy my opinion of the book, it just got on my nerves. She spoke about things being hard and then on the next page called her grandfather who set up a meeting for her. Maybe there just wasn't enough characterization for me to feel for her, which I think is the heart of the problem.
Now, for the redeeming qualities...
The recipes were interesting, though I think there were only one or two I would make myself. I'm from Tennessee, so I also found the references to the south interesting as well, though... it's not all Spanish moss and honey suckles...
The south is always painted in a very interesting picture in novels, we're either Southern hicks or the home of hospitality and hoop skirts, and I felt the later in this novel. Yes, the South is wonderful, but we're not that cut away from the modern world as I feel was demonstrated in this novel.
We have large cities, we have technology, and we also have some mountains and fields and family traditions, but we're not backward. That was kind of a strange thing for me, some aspects of her descriptions I liked and appreciated, while others I felt were not accurate at all.
Now, lets talk about what happened.
From page one it was clear that Belle was a person of privilege, heck in the description it tells you this, so no surprise there, but what I was not expecting was for Belle to be so freaking codependent. If you're moving to New York City but your grandfather is paying your rent - you're not really moving to New York City. There are situations where this can be appropriate, where it's just a few months or it's until you get on your feet, but the entire point of Belle moving was to get away from her family... but she never does.
She moves up to NYC with a truckload of her family's antiques and an apartment that her grandfather found for her, and her break is even given to her because of her grandfather. It's not realistic, and making it seem like it is that easy for everyone makes people hate you.
Life is a struggle, and a story about a "struggle" that doesn't really seem like much of a struggle just is annoying. Moving to NYC is huge, it's a dream, and for most it includes being miserably poor for months or years, it's not as simple as telling your grandfather you're going to go and be a rich girl there instead. While this did not destroy my opinion of the book, it just got on my nerves. She spoke about things being hard and then on the next page called her grandfather who set up a meeting for her. Maybe there just wasn't enough characterization for me to feel for her, which I think is the heart of the problem.
Now, for the redeeming qualities...
The recipes were interesting, though I think there were only one or two I would make myself. I'm from Tennessee, so I also found the references to the south interesting as well, though... it's not all Spanish moss and honey suckles...
The south is always painted in a very interesting picture in novels, we're either Southern hicks or the home of hospitality and hoop skirts, and I felt the later in this novel. Yes, the South is wonderful, but we're not that cut away from the modern world as I feel was demonstrated in this novel.
We have large cities, we have technology, and we also have some mountains and fields and family traditions, but we're not backward. That was kind of a strange thing for me, some aspects of her descriptions I liked and appreciated, while others I felt were not accurate at all.
September 26, 2008
Fair warning: Your ability to enjoy this novel will be directly proportionate to your ability to cope with sentences like "White-collar Manhattan is an overly sanitized urban bazaar, Lisa, and I'm just a country girl used to the smells of the county fair." Some people are going to find that sort of thing charming, others aggravatingly precious, and over the course of the novel, maybe a little of both.
There are some typical first-novel problems here; so much time is spent on defining Belle's voice that other characters suffer by comparison. And keeping the spotlight on Belle and her outsized personality is consistently privileged over narrative action -- the last third of the novel in particular feels especially blurry and it becomes harder to recognize why certain plot developments matter. Narrative payoffs are blunted in other ways; it's promised in the promo literature, for example, that Belle will be mistaken for a call girl in a midtown hotel bar, but in the actual story, this literally amounts to some ironic remarks from another woman, then some guy offering to buy Belle a drink and her ignoring him.
In fairness, though, getting the mixture of worldliness and naivete necessary to make Belle work as a character is extremely tricky, and I think some of the frustrations I mention above stem from the fact that the opening chapters do a better job of taking the time to establish Belle and to give her a solid grounding as a character and to make the reader care about her arrival in New York City and her efforts to make it in the big city, no matter how cornball that sounds. In those chapters, we get a sense of a new southern voice, something in the vein of a younger, hipper Michael Lee West, maybe. I just wish the novel could have maintained that pace all the way to the finish line.
As the plot fragments, though, the recipes sprinkled throughout the novel get better, and there's several dishes here that I'll probably wind up trying to make myself. (The recipes are also a place where Belle's voice is particularly strong, probably because the compact intros require every turn of phrase to be just right.)
There are some typical first-novel problems here; so much time is spent on defining Belle's voice that other characters suffer by comparison. And keeping the spotlight on Belle and her outsized personality is consistently privileged over narrative action -- the last third of the novel in particular feels especially blurry and it becomes harder to recognize why certain plot developments matter. Narrative payoffs are blunted in other ways; it's promised in the promo literature, for example, that Belle will be mistaken for a call girl in a midtown hotel bar, but in the actual story, this literally amounts to some ironic remarks from another woman, then some guy offering to buy Belle a drink and her ignoring him.
In fairness, though, getting the mixture of worldliness and naivete necessary to make Belle work as a character is extremely tricky, and I think some of the frustrations I mention above stem from the fact that the opening chapters do a better job of taking the time to establish Belle and to give her a solid grounding as a character and to make the reader care about her arrival in New York City and her efforts to make it in the big city, no matter how cornball that sounds. In those chapters, we get a sense of a new southern voice, something in the vein of a younger, hipper Michael Lee West, maybe. I just wish the novel could have maintained that pace all the way to the finish line.
As the plot fragments, though, the recipes sprinkled throughout the novel get better, and there's several dishes here that I'll probably wind up trying to make myself. (The recipes are also a place where Belle's voice is particularly strong, probably because the compact intros require every turn of phrase to be just right.)
September 1, 2008
I was truly disappointed with this book. The main character is a bad caricature of the south (Her name is Belle Lee, for goodness sake, and it gets worse from there) who moves to NYC in hopes of being a news personality. I suppose that was meant to be the plot, though you really can't find one as you read the story.
Belle is supposed to be a debutante from Alabama with a grandfather who owns most of the town, including the newspaper she for which she worked. That said, the author seemed to prefer making Belle look like a backwards hillbilly. This girl from a rich family, whose mom has a maid and interior decorators, supposedly buy her only business suit second hand in Alabama before going north. Not deb behavior. Then the girl doesn't even know how to eat an artichoke in a scene that--I am guessing about but not laughing at--was aimed at humor. The accent is exaggerated and she is presented at stupid and vain.
I believe the author tried to carry this short novel on southern wit alone, though it just didn't work. You could see everything before it happened. The ending was anticlimactic and not too believable. At one point she meets a love interest that just doesn't have any spark or realistic base. He's a chef paid to cook her dinner, they kiss once on the porch, then he drops everything to whoosh up to her NY doorstep?!
The one good point to this novel is that there is a very nice collection of recipes included.
Belle is supposed to be a debutante from Alabama with a grandfather who owns most of the town, including the newspaper she for which she worked. That said, the author seemed to prefer making Belle look like a backwards hillbilly. This girl from a rich family, whose mom has a maid and interior decorators, supposedly buy her only business suit second hand in Alabama before going north. Not deb behavior. Then the girl doesn't even know how to eat an artichoke in a scene that--I am guessing about but not laughing at--was aimed at humor. The accent is exaggerated and she is presented at stupid and vain.
I believe the author tried to carry this short novel on southern wit alone, though it just didn't work. You could see everything before it happened. The ending was anticlimactic and not too believable. At one point she meets a love interest that just doesn't have any spark or realistic base. He's a chef paid to cook her dinner, they kiss once on the porch, then he drops everything to whoosh up to her NY doorstep?!
The one good point to this novel is that there is a very nice collection of recipes included.
February 22, 2010
I got this book on a whim from paperbackswap.com because it's about the 25-year-old granddaughter of the (fictional) Mobile Constitution gone to NYC to work for the American News Channel (Fox News). And of course I relate as a 20-something journalist about to move to Mobile.
It seemed like it would be a light, breezy, stupid read, but in fact, I was quite impressed with author Brooke Parkhurst's attention to detail and overall intelligence in her writing. It was honest and brazen, not light and fluffy. An engrossing, fast read.
It seemed like it would be a light, breezy, stupid read, but in fact, I was quite impressed with author Brooke Parkhurst's attention to detail and overall intelligence in her writing. It was honest and brazen, not light and fluffy. An engrossing, fast read.
February 16, 2019
DNF. I thought the beginning of this book was tasteless and really rather disgusting - and, since I never finished the book, I never could figure out how it fit in with anything. Probably the worst beginning I've ever read to a book.
I stuck with it for at least 2-3 recipes (one way to mark your progress), but it got no better.
Like others who have commented, I really wanted to like this book. I didn't absolutely hate it. It just never came together for me. To inane, too disjointed, and when not too good, then not enough.
I stuck with it for at least 2-3 recipes (one way to mark your progress), but it got no better.
Like others who have commented, I really wanted to like this book. I didn't absolutely hate it. It just never came together for me. To inane, too disjointed, and when not too good, then not enough.
August 15, 2016
I wanted to like this book. I'm a southern woman in the media field. The idea of a woman making it big in the city, making her own way, is very appealing. Except that's nothing what this book is about. It's all about Belle Lee's relationship with her grandfather, who pays for her rent, and keeps referencing some South that hasn't existed since 1843. Looking at Parkhurst's life, this book feels like a thinly-veiled attempt at a humblebrag. Read to page 39 and then quickly put the book the down. Couldn't finish.
May 20, 2009
Cute read. Good writing but sometimes her story telling didn't quite flow for me. The ending seemed to happen a little too fast as well. Loved the idea of throwing in recipes for chapters. I really liked the character of Belle, wish Chef had entered in earlier in the book. I'd recommend it for fun to others.
December 23, 2008
Lacking in Southern charm... Belle leaves her cushy job in Alabama to try her luck in NYC. Of course the position her newspaper-owning grandfather helps her get isn't what she thought it would be. But all works out well in the end, especially with her new boyfriend, whom she met on a visit home. Not being a "foodie," the recipes at the end of each chapter were pretty annoying.
January 12, 2010
Definitely not impressed with the book. For a small read it took me way to long to read and the only reason I kept reading, beside my need to finish books even if I don't like them, was because of the recipes. I kept trying to figure out the plot and the purpose and then it was like plot, climax, and end all at once. I was disappointed.
December 5, 2008
I thought I'd really like this book. I love New York City and the main character was a journalist. But the book started off very slow and never really picked up. I think that it was lacking dialouge. Disappointing.
June 4, 2009
I felt this book moved slow and abruptly ended. It took Belle the whole book to find a boyfriend and then they are a perfect match. The recipes appear to be fantastic and I'm going to copy a few down to try.
September 2, 2009
Maybe I just wasn't in the mood? A transplant from a newspaper family in Mobile, Alabama, Belle comes to NYC to make it in print or broadcast media. Premise was promising, a few mildly amusing episodes, but it never really delivered. Even the recipes did not particularly appeal.
August 15, 2011
really disliked this book - I browsed or skimmed a lot of it - I've read other books that included recipes but this one was mainly that - ONLY recipes! where was the actual substance to the book? the story?!?!?!!? I definitely don't recommend this one.
March 26, 2012
Although my expectations weren't high, I was still disappointed by this book. The plot is really slow for 90% of the book and then really rushed in the end. (Especially the love story.) But the recipes looks good.
August 8, 2013
This book was terrible it was horribly organized and half of the sentences didn't make sense. Also the only thing she talks about for the first 100 pages is how her granddaddy is super rich. Only reason it's getting 2 stars is because the last 30 pages were decent.
Read
February 15, 2016I abandoned this book. It didn't seem to flow in a way that I could understand. There were recipes at the end of each chapter, but the character rarely referred to baking or cooking. I just didn't get it, and I found that I was not invested in the main character.
September 5, 2008
Enjoyable beach read.
September 9, 2008
I'm not sure I'll finish this one...
October 15, 2008
A VERY SLOW READ......BUT SOME GOOD THINGS TO MAKE...AS IN COOK....IN THE KITCHEN...
January 12, 2009
Quick read. The plot was good, but not what I had expected. The book ended kind of suddenly without wrapping some things up.
October 25, 2008
This one fell sort of flat for me -- the story line had a lot of potential, but I think it was not well or fully developed and was therefore unsatisfying.
December 31, 2008
Gave up halfway through. Bad stereotypes and horrible sentence structure.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews