A Bite-Sized History of France

Derek Perkins narrates this engrossing audiobook on French cuisine with style, sass, and a sense of irony. His decidedly English accent and diction work well with the stories of French food and provide a kind of middle road through the culinary love-hate relationship between France and the U.S. The authors, a husband-and-wife team, are American and French. Stories of France's adoption and creative uses of foreign imports such as chocolate (Mexico), potatoes (the Andes), and wine (the Romans) make this cultural history sparkle. Legends and myths are debunked, and the political, economic, and social practices of French gastronomy and history are explained. Regional cuisines are celebrated and terroir explored: Think Roquefort, Comte, and Brie and, of course, wines from Burgundy and Bordeaux. A.D.M. � AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine