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by P. D. James - Fiction, Historical Fiction, Historical Mystery, Mystery

Inspired by a lifelong passion for Jane Austen, mystery writer P. D. James draws the characters of Austen’s beloved novel PRIDE AND PREJUDICE into a tale of murder and emotional mayhem.

by N. M. Kelby - Fiction, Food, Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction

WHITE TRUFFLES IN WINTER imagines the world of the remarkable French chef Auguste Escoffier (1846-1935), who changed how we eat through his legendary restaurants at the Savoy and the Ritz.

Editorial Content for White Truffles in Winter

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Norah Piehl
As N.M. Kelby writes in her afterword to WHITE TRUFFLES IN WINTER, her novel is "based on the bones of facts." Although the main characters are actual historical figures, only the broadest outlines of famed chef August Escoffier's life are known. But perhaps that makes her job as a novelist that much more fun, as she uses her own imagination to fill in the numerous gaps in his official biography.
 

Teaser

WHITE TRUFFLES IN WINTER imagines the world of the remarkable French chef Auguste Escoffier (1846-1935), who changed how we eat through his legendary restaurants at the Savoy and the Ritz.

Promo

WHITE TRUFFLES IN WINTER imagines the world of the remarkable French chef Auguste Escoffier (1846-1935), who changed how we eat through his legendary restaurants at the Savoy and the Ritz.

About the Book

WHITE TRUFFLES IN WINTER imagines the world of the remarkable French chef Auguste Escoffier (1846-1935), who changed how we eat through his legendary restaurants at the Savoy and the Ritz. A man of contradictions --- kind yet imperious, food-obsessed yet rarely hungry --- Escoffier was also torn between two women: the famous, beautiful, and reckless actress Sarah Bernhardt and his wife, the independent and sublime poet Delphine Daffis, who refused ever to leave Monte Carlo. In the last year of Escoffier's life, in the middle of writing his memoirs, he has returned to Delphine, who requests a dish in her name as he has honored Bernhardt, Queen Victoria, and many others. How does one define the complexity of love on a single plate?

N. M. Kelby brings us the sensuality of food and love amid a world on the verge of war in this work that shimmers with beauty and longing.

December 2011

This is the time of year when “Best Of” lists are everywhere. While we could compile one for ReadingGroupGuides.com, we prefer to hear what YOU have to say about this topic. So we are asking "What was the 'best' book that your group read this year?" Share your picks (you can name up to three) between now and January 31st by filling out the form found here. We’ll share the results in February. Please share this link with the members of your group as we want as many folks to weigh in as possible.

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How heated are your conversations about what books your group reads? Please check as many as apply.

December 1, 2011, 255 voters

 

November 2011

In August, September and October, I spent days as a frontier girl sans electricity as hurricanes, rainstorms and a freak October snowstorm rolled through my town. Let’s just say that those Little House on the Prairie books made life before electricity look a lot more cozy and fun than I found it to be. But then again, Laura and the clan were not dealing with running a group of Internet sites or trying to read books 'til all hours of the night. They went to bed when the sun went down as they had to get up early to do things like churn the butter. Instead, I, the consummate night owl, was seeking out power like a gold miner. I learned to bring a power strip anywhere where there might be power so I could plug every device in. I also learned that an iPad can light up a room like a lamp when on the max brightness setting. I had lunch with a friend yesterday who told a story about how she and her husband were both reading on their iPads and quickly realized that they were like twin bed lamps. I wonder if Steve Jobs thought about THAT as a role for the iPad.

 

If there is no discussion guide available for a book, will your group still select it?

November 1, 2011, 409 voters

Interview: Elizabeth Letts, author of The Eighty-Dollar Champion: Snowman, the Horse That Inspired a Nation

Oct 27, 2011

In THE EIGHTY-DOLLAR CHAMPION, award-winning author Elizabeth Letts tells the incredible true story of rider Harry de Leyer and his horse, Snowman. In November 1958, Harry and Snowman, outsiders to the wealthy horseback-riding culture, won the National Horse Show at Madison Square Garden against all odds. Letts narrates the unbreakable relationship between the two and the story behind their success. In this interview, conducted by Bookreporter.com’s Alexis Burling, Letts describes her original discovery of the story, which led to a phone conversation with de Leyer himself. She also shares some of her childhood experiences with her own horse, Pretty Boy Floyd, recommends a few of her favorite horse-related books, and gives advice on how anyone can become involved in the world of horses.