Not as good as the first two I read of her.

Comfort Me with Apples: More Adventures at the Table was a delightful memoir and sequel to Tender at the Bone: Growing Up at the Table by Ruth Reichl. This book begins in 1978 when Ms. Reichl changes careers becoming a restaurant critic for the Los Angele Times. It is in this capacity that we are introduced to changes in the culinary scene with the movement in the restaurant industry to develop a cuisine unique to California utilizing their own foods and wines. On this changing scene in California were renowned chefs like Wolfgang Puck and Alice Waters. Ms. Reichl developed a close friendship with her hero M.F.K. Fisher having read every word that she had written over the years since she was a little girl and admiring Fisher's attitude towards food. And in the author's own words:

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"She can make you taste things just by writing about them, but that's not the point. She actually makes you pay attention to your next meal, feel more alive because you're doing that. When you read her you understand that you need to respect yourself enough to focus on the little things of life. She celebrates the everyday by making it seem momentous."

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Throughout this memoir, there were many changes in her life. As she traveled the world, I was entranced with all of the experiences as well as her selection of wonderful recipes that meant something to her. Some of my favorites were her recipes for Crab Cakes, Asparagus with Balsamic Vinegar, Mushroom Soup, and Grilled California Goat Cheese on Toast.

A beautifully written, inspiring book, full of amazing descriptions of food (though some foods, like boiled brain, don't sound all that appetizing) along with recipes that are woven into this story. This book is an autobiographical account of the author's early life as a restaurant critic. I found it compelling, but perhaps mainly because I had already read her second volume of life in NYC. This book I read chronologically out of order, but had already fell in love with the author, so her descriptions of affairs, pregnancies, joys, and burdens moved me. I'm not sure I would have been so moved if I hadn't already been introduced to her in a more purely food-oriented piece. Anyways, I loved this book; I love her! I want to eat at her house for dinner. I'd even give up vegetarianism for one night, because she truly makes eating dinner sound like such a sensual, life-altering experience.

I just could not get into this book--I have very little patience for people who want sympathy while living obviously self indulgent and absorbed lives.