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Dinner for One: How Cooking in Paris Saved Me

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The memoir of a young American woman living alone in Paris and cooking dinner simply for herself doesn’t sound inviting, but don’t judge hastily. Sutanya Dacres, Jamaica-born, Bronx-raised, bitterly divorced from her French husband, resolves to rescue herself from excessive despair, drinking, and dating. When she fell in love and crossed the Atlantic to make a new home in Paris, the future was rosy. But not for long. The marriage went awry and many pages are taken up with her pity-party until she finds salvation in adventurous cooking.

Paris seduces her with its magic, the small shops in her neighborhood, allow her to avoid big-box supermarkets, and instead she explores a litany of greengrocers, fishmongers, butchers, florists, an ice-cream shop, a fromagerie where cheese is a whole new world, not just Cheddar or Colby. She takes a break in the several nearby cafes to indulge in people-watching, feeling welcome despite her less than perfect mastery of the language.

Dacres’ writing is perceptive and charming, even eloquent. The chapters address first her emotions, then her surroundings, a successful podcast, a clutch of her recipes, all complemented by a generous dash of humor. Undeniably, Dinner for One is a small treasure.


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Author Sutanya Dacres
Star Count 4/5
Format Hard
Page Count 352 pages
Publisher Park Row
Publish Date 21-Jun-2022
ISBN 9780778333036
Bookshop.org Buy this Book
Issue July 2022
Category Biographies & Memoirs
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