The Oxford Companion to Italian Food (Oxford Companions)
by Gillian Riley
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Book Summary Information
Author: Gillian RileyEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2009-04-01
ISBN: 0195387104
Number of pages: 672
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Book Reviews of The Oxford Companion to Italian Food (Oxford Companions)
Book Review: Very uneven and mostly not helpful
Summary: 1 Stars
This is a very uneaven book. For a companion to food, the book has too much a historical focus - and unfortunately is always pre-20th century history. It is always as if Italian food in 1925, 1950, 1975, and 2000 does not evolve. I would have loved to get the 20th century history of pasta for instance, but this is not something, in which the author is interested. We are only told that pasta became dominant after the second world war. Period. Naturally, this begs the question 'Why?'. The author is silent.
One gets the impression that the author loves Italy and travels there on vacation, but doesn't know any Italians. There is no information about current chefs in Italy, there is nothing about 20th (or 21st) century food trends, etc. The entry on cookbooks only lists Italian cookbooks written by English speaking authors. Where is the information about Italian cookbooks written by Italian speaking authors? My guess is that the author gets all her information from the British Library in London.
The style is similar to Davidson's "Oxford Companion to Food", but that is a much more fascinating book because it covers such a broad spectrum. I wish the current author would have teamed up with an Italian who knows ingredients and what has happened in Italy during the last 50 years. That would have created a very interesting book. The current book can not be recommended to people who just like Italian food, but if you are crazy about Italian food, please check it out.
Summary of The Oxford Companion to Italian Food (Oxford Companions)
Universally acclaimed by the critics, and now available for the first time in paperback, here is an inspiring, wide-ranging, AZ guide to one of the worlds best-loved cuisines. Designed for cooks and consumers alike, The Oxford Companion to Italian Food covers all aspects of the history and culture of Italian gastronomy, from dishes, ingredients, and delicacies to cooking methods and implements, regional specialties, the universal appeal of Italian cuisine, influences from outside Italy, and much more.Gillian Riley here celebrates a heritage of amazing richness and delight. She brings equal measures of enthusiasm and expertise to her writing, and her entries read like mini-essays, laced with wit and gastronomical erudition, marked throughout by descriptive brilliance, and entirely free of the pompous tone that afflicts so much writing about food. The Companion is attentive to both tradition and innovation in Italian cooking, and covers an extraordinary range of information.
For anyone with a hunger to learn more about the history, culture and variety of Italian cuisine, The Oxford Companion to Italian Food offers endless satisfactions
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