When I was 23, I took a class on food writing. I hadn't been much into food writing, mostly because I didn't know anyone who did it, and I didn't live in a city with a newspaper who had a food critic or a food writer. But I saw the class on writers.com and had to give it a try. It was the most incredible writing class I've ever taken in my life. I hope to teach one similar to it someday, because it was an absolutely amazing experience.

If I learned one thing from that class, it was that there is a whole different level of connection that most people experience with food than with anything else. Not sex, not violence, not emotion, not politics or religion. We feel food on a deeper level than we feel anything else. So much so that even the reminder of a certain food can trigger memories and feelings that we thought long-dormant.

Since that class, I have been obsessed with food-writing. Both with finding the best food writers, and with reading as many books as I can possibly read about food experiences. As I said, this isn't really about cookbooks, although I'll get to that, too. I want to talk about a few specific food books that I've read over the years that have shaped the way I cook and the way I enjoy food.

Number 1
Garlic & Sapphires by Ruth Reichl

Ruth Reichl spent years as the New York Times food critic, and wrote a book about her experience as the critic, and the food that accompanied her along that journey. I have never in my entire life read a book where someone spoke with as much eloquence and beauty about food. In fact, I was so impressed with this book that I had to buy it on audio-book so I could listen to every single word and savor it the way a person might savor a delectable meal.

Her wit and courage are commendable. But what makes Ruth Reichl stand out among a plethora of food writers is her ability to connect you, the reader, to what is really important about the food experience--the senses. She focuses on such a wide range of experiences when she attempts to explain what it's like to eat at Le Bernardin. Of course, there's the fact that she's the NYT Food Critic, and has to dress up in costume not to be recognized. And I do find the whole story of her experience fascinating and interesting. But what sets her above the rest is her ability to engage you in the experience of eating when all you have been doing is reading. I swear to you, there were a few times while I was listening to that book that I swear I could taste the salty beads of caviar on the back of my tongue. Incredible. (Honestly, the fact that you can buy this book for $1.27 at Amazon is a travesty against the author, because I think it would be well-worth the money to pay $11 for it--or more--but if you must, click on the Amazon link and buy it for the $1.27... it'll be the best $1.27 you've spent in quite awhile.)

Number 2
Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
When I first saw the cover for this book, I knew I had to buy it immediately. Being both a foodie and a deeply spiritual person, the cover stood out to me and said, "please pick me up... you will enjoy me... I have been marketed directly to you." I didn't read the back cover, I didn't know anything about it. I just picked it up and bought it. So, Borders, if you're listening, it does happen. And thank you for so prominently displaying this book where I could easily fall prey to the marketing scheme.

It took me a little longer than I expected to read the book once I bought it, though, because I hadn't read anything about it. It was an impulse buy. I actually had a friend who called me after reading this book and told me I needed to go out and buy it immediately, and I said, "I already did!" And she said, "well, then stop whatever you're doing and read it. You are going to love it." So I did. And she was right. I am the ideal demographic for this book. I've been hurt in relationships, I love food, I am seeking spiritual fulfillment, and I want to fall in love. This book spoke to me on a level I can't even explain. (While I loved the book more than I can express, I am not excited about the fact that Julia Roberts is going to play Elizabeth in the movie. Not a good casting choice, I think... but I'll still go to see it.)

Anyway, for foodies, this book creates a sense of awareness about the connection between food, love, and the human (and divine) spirit that I think is so important. I love the almost hedonistic nature of this book at times, the way she eats her way across Italy with such gusto and beauty. Elizabeth Gilbert was not a chef, so there's not a lot of restaurant talk, but the engagement with food, and her enjoyment of it, is brilliant.

Number 3
Southern Belly by John T. Edge
I already wrote about how much I love John T. Edge this week.What I love the most about him is that he acknowledges the importance of understanding our food, understanding our food culture, and paying our past the respect it deserves. He is the most excellent food historian I have ever read, and quite possibly one of the most intelligent men in the food industry. This man has forgotten more about food than I will ever know, and I love him for it.

The reason I love this book is that it made me fall in love with Southern cuisine. I've been to the South... many times. The food was great, the culture is interesting. But that was just my experience. It takes someone who is really in love with a place to get you inside the cultural ethos. And it also takes someone with a gift for writing to really engage you in the experience of a cuisine.

But here's what I love the most about this book: John T. Edge realizes that food, like everything else, is best experienced through story. While I love information and data, it's hard to get a good feel for the experience of a place just by learning about the information behind it, or analyzing the data. (Not impossible, just difficult.) But John T. Edge, the "Faulkner of Southern cuisine", spins a great story. Better than some novelists I've read. He brings you into the Southern kitchen, and he makes you want to sit down at the table.

Number 4
Jamie at Home by Jamie Oliver
Okay, I know I said I wasn't going to write about cookbooks... but to be fair, this isn't only a cookbook. What I love about this book gets at the core of what I love about Jamie Oliver as a chef and a personality. He cares so much about making food at its best that he goes out of his way to make sure everyone has all the information they'll need to make that happen. He believes not only that your food should taste good, but that it should be at its peak, and it should be well-cared for and loved.

In this book, Jamie goes through each season of the year and picks the vegetables and fruits that are in season, and then does a few extra dishes on top of that. But he spends time explaining how to grow the food, how to care for it, when it's at its peak, what it should look and taste like, how it is best prepared (and how not to prepare it). I could go on and on. It's a little like being set up on a blind date, where your mother sits you down ahead of time and tells you everything you need to know about the person you're going to be seeing, in an attempt to make you more at ease with them. Jamie Oliver is the matchmaker, and I am on a blind date with strawberries, or asparagus. He makes me feel completely comfortable with the food, like I know more about it than I should, and then he provides these amazing recipes to showcase the best things about this new food I'm meeting. Really, a fantastic book.

Number 5
The Best Food Writing of _whatever year you want_ edited by Holly Hughes
If you ever want to write about food, you need to start reading articles and shorts by the best food writers in the world. And one of the best and easiest ways to do that is to start with these anthologies. Each year, a new version of this book comes out. This one was released about four months ago, and includes some incredible writing. Having read several of these anthologies by now, I will say that it's not the best one that's ever been put out. I much preferred the 2008 version, for instance, between Ben Paynter's article on the other other white meat (it's not what you think), and Molly O'Neill's love story to butter. But they're all excellent.

What this gives you that nothing else can really provide is a look into what the art of food writing is about from the perspective of freelance writers. Most magazines who cover food have some kind of creative journalism along the lines of this book. Not all will make its pages, but this is a good sampling of all types of different food writing (from restaurants to farms to the food itself to production to cooking to eating... all aspects of food are covered in this book). Plus, they're all articles that have appeared in publication already, so you can get a sense of the publications that ran them. For instance, you might bet better suited to Southern Living than you are to Gourmet, but you've never really picked them up off the shelves. Because each of these writers have published in a publication to the standards of that audience, it also gives you a sense of who their audience is, and whether or not you might fit in with them.

So what about you? What is the best book about food that you've read this year? Or that you've ever read? I'll devote some time later to novels, but you can feel free to talk about them, here, as well... I know there are some great ones out there...