The School of Essential Ingredients
by Erica Bauermeister

Summary

Called "exquisitely written and heart-breakingly delicious" by reviewers, The School of Essential Ingredients expresses how the act of cooking provides an opportunity to slow down and focus on our senses rather than the speed of our world. One by one, cooking-school students are transformed by the aromas, flavors, and textures of what they create: a lesson in cake-making leads to reflections on a marriage, tortillas teach a girl to believe in herself, and a man learns about love while creating tiramisu. Over time, the paths of the students mingle and intertwine, with results that are often unexpected, and always delicious.

Published in 19 languages, The School of Essential Ingredients is an NPR Independent Bookseller's Best Summer Read and an Indie Next pick.

Erica says: "I think cooking is a language... The women I met in Italy had learned cooking as children from their mothers. They approached ingredients as parts of a conversation; they knew how each ingredient talked to the others and they didn't need or want a recipe to tell them what to do. They simply listened to the food..."

Praise

"In this remarkable debut, Bauermeister creates a captivating world where the pleasures and particulars of sophisticated food come to mean much more than simple epicurean indulgence...Delivering memorable story lines and characters while seducing the senses, Bauermeister's tale of food and hope is sure to satisfy." — Publisher's Weekly

"Fans will devour this first novel about a whimsical cooking school run by a gentle chef with a fierce passion for food." — People Magazine

"With magical language, first-time novelist Bauermeister weaves the lives of the students in Lillian's class with the meals prepared and life lessons learned. Strong, sensuous writing leaves the reader hungry for more." — Indie Next Pick

About the Author

Born in Pasadena, CA, and now a resident of Seattle (and sometimes Port Townsend), Erica Bauermeister received her B.A. from Occidental College and her Ph.D. from the University of Washington. She is the co-author of 500 Great Books by Women: A Reader's Guide and Let's Hear It For the Girls: 375 Great Books for Readers 2-14. Erica credits motherhood, and a recent two-year stint in Bergamo, Italy, with making her the writer she is today. She is currently at work on her second novel. Find more information about Erica at http://www.ericabauermeister.com.

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