16 Books to Watch for in May 2011
This month, we're showcasing books that tell the truth—or part of it, anyway. From a bittersweet memoir of an exceptionally bad dog to a stunning novel of a family's scandal, there's something for everyone.
Photo: Marko Metzinger/Studio D
16 of 16
The Kitchen Daughter
By Jael McHenry
288 pages;
Gallery
Ginny Selvaggio, avid amateur cook and devotee of online culinary
community Kitcherati, realizes that there's something different about
her. She may never be officially diagnosed as having Asperger's
syndrome, but in The Kitchen Daughter
(Gallery), 26-year-old Ginny is known by friends and family to be
challenged as well as challenging. Then her parents die suddenly, and
Ginny takes refuge in her favorite room—not to mention solace in the
meals she can make there. Jael McHenry writes passionately about food
and foodies—"If it had to be an olive his skin would be a cured
Arbequina." More impressive, not one of her novel's plotlines—whether
about an enraged ghost, an act of charity, or a fumbling flirtation
between Ginny and her housekeeper's grief-stricken son, David—ends
predictably. While Ginny is wonderfully single-minded about cooking, her
fresh, sharp story has as many layers as a good pâte à choux.
— Bethanne Patrick
Published 04/26/2011