Ann Mah

Even though this wasn’t highly rated, I had read and really enjoyed Ann Mah’s 2022 novel that also took place in Paris (“Jacqueline in Paris”) so was looking forward to this memoir about Ann’s year of living in Paris, published in 2013.

I have to admit I was disappointed. The title was clever, a riff on Julia Child’s famous cookbook “Mastering the Art of French Cooking,” and the concept promised to be engaging. Like Julia Child, Ann’s husband was a diplomat and Ann was left alone for much of her year in France. As a foodie and Francophile, she used the time to explore the true stories behind the country’s signature regional dishes. Each of the ten chapters focuses on one traditional dish and includes Ann’s adventures in learning the dishes’ origins as well as how each is made. Recipes are included.

Yes, this is a book about living, working, shopping, cooking, and eating in Paris. But I didn’t like the way Ann padded each chapter with boring and dry statistics about ingredients, the region, the history of the dish, etc. She says she is telling the “link between history and place, culture and cuisine.” But it reads as if there are two books that don’t blend well – the nonfiction research and the personal memoir. And it was the memoir that was the part I wanted to read. She describes how, after her husband is suddenly assigned to a diplomatic placement in Iraq while she is left in Paris, she feels disconnected from Paris “an observer of the city rather than a participant.” This book becomes a way for her to practice her French, force herself out of a self-imposed isolation, and give her career a boost in a positive direction.

I know Ann Mah can write well because of the “Jacqueline” novel, but in this book she is timid, a little whiney, and spends too much time writing about feeling sorry for herself.

Two positive things: in addition to the recipes, the book has an index. But I can’t give this more than two stars – it was just OK.… (mais)