Elspeth's Reviews > Day of Honey: A Memoir of Food, Love, and War

I loved this book! I love food writing, like much of Calvin Trillin's work or Salt & Saffron by Kamila Shamsie. This book looks at the conflict in Baghdad and Beirut in the past five years through the lens of local cuisine and community. The author started dating a Shiite Muslim from Beirut shortly before 9/11, both journalists. They eventually found themselves in the Middle East, specifically Baghdad and then Beirut, during some of the violent times there. The author responded to the stress by cooking, cooking, cooking all the local fare she could. The book details the encounters with people she met, as well, many who became friends. Her mother-in-law plays a prominent role in their lives while they are living in Beirut, and she is hilarously, lovingly portrayed. Read this book if you like food, or if you want to understand more of what has been happening in the Middle East.