Mastering the Art of Soviet Cooking

Through a kaleidoscopic mix of family life, politics, history, and jokes, von Bremzen evokes in her book a whole Soviet-era world of deprivation and delight. * Tablet * von Bremzen has conjured up the Proustian aromas of her Soviet life for her enjoyable 'foodoir'... perceptive and funny on the subtleties of life under Soviet rule and in exile. -- Charlotte Hobson * Spectator * a monumental but deeply human book that reads like a great Russian novel, filled with dark humor and nostalgia. It opens up an entire universe, teaching us about the many deep meanings of food: cultural, political, social, historical, personal. It is also an utterly magical journey into a rich, mysterious land of totalitarian tyranny, and a portrait of a courageous, passionate people. * Ferran Adria * I don't think there's ever been a book quite like this; I couldn't put it down. Warm, smart and completely engaging... this is a book you won't forget -- Ruth Reichl, author of Tender at the Bone One-of-a-kind ... Breathtaking feats of raconteurial skill... Mastering the Art of Soviet Cooking is not only a magic tablecloth, it's a magic carpet that revisits the roads and lanes of the former Soyuz, surveying the tales of hardship and hardwon joys of von Bremzen's relatives and the Russian people... -- Liesl Schillinger * The Daily Beast * The culinary memoir has lately evolved into a genre of its own... But Anya von Bremzen is a better writer than most of the genre's practitioners, as this delectable book, which tells the story of postrevolutionary Russia through the prism of one family's meals, amply demonstrates... von Bremzen moves artfully between historical longshots...and intimate details. The descriptions of meals are delightful... * New York Times * You will read few better books about food, family, exile or the Soviet tragedy-and none, I'll bet, which combines all those themes this magically. Funny, angry, ingenious and moving. * AD Miller, author of 'Snowdrops' * Rollicking and heartrending * Time * Absorbing... a social history of the Soviet Union cast through the prism of food * Jewish Chronicle * wry, provocative, genre-busting... * Wall Street Journal * This poignant memoir is an education in the richness of eastern European cuisine, and the story of Soviet communism, through the lens of family experience. * Observer * By turns funny, tragic and nostalgic, this is a wonderful, fascinating volume, which puts a human face on the grim pages of the history books * The Lady * Vastly entertaining... A real treat. * Woman & Home * Heartbreakingly poignant and laugh-out-loud funny. This is an important book, a must read! * Heston Blumenthal * Moving and darkly comic -- Niki Segnit * The Sunday Times *