Review: The School of Essential Ingredients by Erica Bauermeister

Once a month, eight strangers come together for cooling lessons from the vibrant Lillian. They come to cooking class for a variety of reasons. Companionship, alone time, the gift certificates they got last Christmas. They end up learning much more than just how to prepare sustenance. With her almost magical understanding of food, Lillian's classes gift each person with a unique lesson.

WARNING: This book will make you hungry. You may also experience a strange urge to go to your local market and buy strange (essential?) ingredients.

I'm having a hard time describing this book, but trust me, it's worth reading. Each chapter of the book focuses on the life of one of the participants in the cooking class, and as their lessons continue, their lives begin to weave together in unexpected ways. While I find it unlikely that in a room with nine people, everyone is essentially a good, likeable person, I really enjoyed all the characters. I think almost any reader will find someone to relate to in this book.

No matter how good the characters are, they are often more of a backdrop for the true star of the story: the food. Bauermeister's magical writing makes Lillian's polentas, tortillas, and lobster almost better than eating the real thing.

This book had really great pacing. In a story that shifts its central character so often, it can be difficult to maintain a cohesive feel, but this story manages it handily. Each chapter stands alone, and yet really feeds into the next. I don't usually read "foodie fiction," (in fact, I had no idea there was such a genre!) but if it's all like this I could get into it.

Final word: An enthralling book with great characters and descriptions that will make your mouth water, well worth reading.

Erica Bauermeister's website, with an excerpt, author Q&A, and discussion questions for the book.
Click the book cover to purchase from Amazon.

Second opinions: All About {n}