Heat

Foodies, Mario Batali fans (you know who you are), and anyone who eats in restaurants will enjoy this account of the author's behind-the-scenes kitchen experiences. It is at once hilarious, sympathetic, technical, and absurd, but always interesting and educational. Michael Kramer's low-key voice is easy to follow as he reads at a leisurely pace. However, he needs to be more animated, or at least more energetic, especially with the nd outrageous parts of the book. Furthermore, he needs to emphasize the key words in the funny passages, and he should use pauses more effectively. What we get is a nice read, but it could have been so much more. R.I.G. (c) AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine

July 10, 2006
Buford's voice echoes the rhythms of his own writing style. Writing about his break from working as a New Yorker
editor and learning firsthand about the world of food, Buford guns his reading into hyperspeed when he is jazzed about a particularly tangy anecdote, and plays with his vocal tone and pitch when mimicking others' voices. At its base, Buford's voice is tinged with a jovial lilt, as if he is amused by his life as a "kitchen slave" and by the outsize personalities of the people he meets along the way. Less authoritative than blissfully confused, Buford speaks the way he writes, as a well-informed but never entirely knowledgeable outsider to the world of food love. Listening to his imitation of star chef Mario Batali's kinetic squeal, Buford ably conveys his abiding love for the teachers and companions of his brief, eventful life as a cook. Simultaneous release with the Knopf hardcover. (Reviews, Apr. 3).