I’m a voracious reader and so the blog shall become my personal book review site. I just finished an odd book called “The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake.” It started slow and rather boring but got interesting near the middle. Rose can taste the emotions of the person who makes her food — her gift and her curse. As a former waitress, I often consider the outside circumstances that might be affecting a waiter’s day. Perhaps they just broke up with someone or found out some bad news before their shift. I try to give people the benefit of the doubt because you just never know the extenuating circumstances of their lives. With Rose’s skill, she can transfer anxiety, disgust, joy, sadness, humor, etc. from baked good into her own emotional circuit. The more directly homemade, the more clearly and powerfully she experiences the other person’s mental state. In short, the book is about humanity and all of the people we run into on a daily basis. Behind their smiles, their frowns, their bad jokes — they are layers of emotion, human beings of rich history, broken hearts, high hopes and great fears. For me, it was a reminder to look past superficial exterior and reach for something more. Who is your neighbor, really? If you were Rose, you’d need only one bite of their chocolate chip cookies.
I’ve already started my next book — ironically titled “Cakewalk.” I really do like cake 🙂