I loved the idea behind these books. They explore the history and impact of immigration through cooking and food. Each book focuses on a specific culture or part of the world. Chapters about immigration talk about why people decide to leave home, how they end up in a country, what they do to settle in, how they adjust and assimilate into a new culture, and how they keep in touch with their roots. Sidebars about food explore the culture’s cuisine.
Links to order on Amazon:
The South American Family Table
When my editor asked me to write for this series, I had a choice of half a dozen different regions. I chose China and South America because I personally knew families from both areas. I interviewed these acquaintances as well as others who I found through social media. These were challenging regions to cover, though, since both are not one culture, but many! Each region has a huge variety of different cuisines and cultural traditions.
I am very grateful to those who shared their stories with me. When I spoke with my friend from South America, I got to try mate, a traditional tea from Argentina. And when I spoke with my friend from China, I got to taste a moon cake. I wish more of my research involved new tastes and smells!
