Tummy Trilogy by Calvin Trillin (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, $16). Under the guise of “food writing,” Trillin covers family, place, politics, history, and the quirky, hilarious truths about life. I could easily have listed Feeding a Yen here; in fact, I don’t believe that Trillin has written a bad book on any subject.
Home Cooking by Laurie Colwin (Harper Perennial, $8.50). Pick this one up when you get tired of reading wide-eyed writings about molecular gastronomy, worshipful stories on the noble radish, or four-figure restaurant bills. Colwin’s sincere approach to home cooking—and to writing—is truly satisfying.
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Death by Pad Thai edited by Douglas Bauer (Three Rivers, $14). Not only will you find stories by famed food and travel writers here (the Sterns, Peter Mayle) but also prized literary writers on the subject of food (Claire Messud, Richard Russo).
Food and Booze, edited by Michelle Wildgen (Tin House, $17). For once, a book that manages to write about alcohol (and food) without a trace of cloying sentimentality or diatribes on soil variation. Instead, the essays bring suspense, beautiful phrasing, and memorable characterization to the subject.
Alone in the Kitchen With an Eggplant, edited by Jenni Ferrari-Adler (Riverhead, $23). Another collection of great writers, this time talking about the foods that they eat alone—whether that solitude is chosen or not. Nora Ephron eats buttery mashed potatoes in bed; Jaime Attenberg trades cocaine for room service; Jonathan Ames once poisoned himself on three fried eggs.
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September 18 editorial cartoonsCartoons Thursday's political cartoons include a man who would be king, an inconsistent court, and social media in the trash
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Spinal Tap II: The End Continues – laughs are sadly ‘thin on the ground’Talking Point Disappointing sequel to the classic rock’n’roll spoof
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What the 2025 Autumn Budget could mean for your walletChancellor Rachel Reeves will reveal her latest plan to balance the nation’s finances in November
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Fannie Flagg’s 6 favorite books that sparked her imaginationFeature The author recommends works by Johanna Spyri, John Steinbeck, and more
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Jessica Francis Kane's 6 favorite books that prove less is moreFeature The author recommends works by Penelope Fitzgerald, Marie-Helene Bertino, and more
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Keith McNally's 6 favorite books that have ambitious charactersFeature The London-born restaurateur recommends works by Leo Tolstoy, John le Carré, and more
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Garrett Graff's 6 favorite books that shine new light on World War IIFeature The author recommends works by James D. Hornfischer, Craig L. Symonds, and more
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Helen Schulman's 6 favorite collections of short storiesFeature The award-winning author recommends works by Raymond Carver, James Baldwin, and more
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Beatriz Williams' 6 timeless books about history and human relationshipsFeature The best-selling author recommends works by Jane Austen, Zora Neale Hurston, and more
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Aysegul Savas' 6 favorite books for readers who love immersive settingsFeature The Paris-based Turkish author recommends works by Hiromi Kawakami, Virginia Woolf, and more
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Geoff Dyer's 6 favorite books about the realities of warFeature The award-winning author recommends works by Ernie Pyle, Michael Herr, and more
