"[He] came to us through an advertisement that I had in desperation put in the newspaper." It began captivatingly for those days: "Two American ladies wish..." It was these lines in The Alice B. Toklas Cook Book that inspired The Book of Salt. In Paris, 1934, Binh has accompanied his employers, Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas, to the train station for their departure to America. His own destination is unclear: will he go with "the Steins," stay in France, or return to his native Vietnam? Binh has fled his homeland in ...
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"[He] came to us through an advertisement that I had in desperation put in the newspaper." It began captivatingly for those days: "Two American ladies wish..." It was these lines in The Alice B. Toklas Cook Book that inspired The Book of Salt. In Paris, 1934, Binh has accompanied his employers, Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas, to the train station for their departure to America. His own destination is unclear: will he go with "the Steins," stay in France, or return to his native Vietnam? Binh has fled his homeland in disgrace, leaving behind his malevolent charlatan of a father and his self-sacrificing mother. For five years, he has been the live-in cook at the famous apartment at 27 rue de Fleurus. Before Binh's decision is revealed, his mesmerizing narrative catapults us back to his youth in French-colonized Vietnam, his years as a galley hand at sea, and his days turning out fragrant repasts for the doyennes of the lost generation.
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Add this copy of The Book of Salt to cart. $42.82, good condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Newport Coast, CA, UNITED STATES, published 2013 by Blackstone Audiobooks.
I found the idea of the book intriguing (story of an Asian chef's hard life till he gets hired in Paris by Alice B. Toklas and Gertrude Stein) but did not enjoy the way it unfolded. Ultimately, I got bored. I do recall that it received a good review.
Sebastienne
May 11, 2007
sad and moving
I couldn?t care less about Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas, but I cared very much about their Vietnamese cook, Binh, who narrates this fictional story. While the author?s time-shifting is a little confusing at times, you reach a point where it all begins to make sense. Binh?s story is bittersweet, and while the bitter predominates much of the time, the reader quickly develops empathy for his sufferings and comes to admire the way he plods on in spite of each tragic episode he faces. Truong?s style is lyrical and there is much understated humor. Binh is homosexual, which adds to his troubles, yet he makes no apologies and never forsakes his dignity.
