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The Cook
The Cook: A Novel | Maylis de Kerangal
13 posts | 6 read | 15 to read
Maylis de Kerangal follows up her acclaimed novel The Heart with a dissection of the world of a young Parisian chef More like a poetic biographical essay on a fictional person than a novel, The Cook is a coming-of-age journey centered on Mauro, a young self-taught cook. The story is told by an unnamed female narrator, Mauros friend and disciple who we also suspect might be in love with him. Set not only in Paris but in Berlin, Thailand, Burma, and other far-flung places over the course of fifteen years, the book is hyperrealisticto the point of feeling, at times, like a documentary. It transcends this simplistic form, however, through the lyricism and intensely vivid evocative nature of Maylis de Kerangals prose, which conjures moods, sensations, and flavors, as well as the exhausting rigor and sometimes violent abuses of kitchen work. In The Cook, we follow Mauro as he finds his path in life: baking cakes as a child; cooking for his friends as a teenager; a series of studies, jobs, and travels; a failed love affair; a successful business; a virtual nervous breakdown; andat the enda rediscovery of his hunger for cooking, his appetite for life.
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KatieDid927
The Cook: A Novel | Maylis de Kerangal
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Pickpick

Fun French novella about the unbridled passion and dedication the culinary arts can inspire in a person.

48 likes2 stack adds
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samizdat
The Cook: A Novel | Maylis de Kerangal
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samizdat
The Cook: A Novel | Maylis de Kerangal
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samizdat
The Cook: A Novel | Maylis de Kerangal
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akfreeborn
The Cook: A Novel | Maylis de Kerangal
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Pickpick

This was really unique. It reads from the perspective of a quietly observant friend of a self taught chef who is figuring out his career path and his own self. Really short but super engaging and very accurate as to life of someone in restaurants. I also loved it for being very French!

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Sapphire
The Cook: A Novel | Maylis de Kerangal
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"(Mauro) began to emerge from latency, that kingdom of youth". As a mother of a 20 year old finding her way, this phrasing gives me a feeling of hope.

ValerieAndBooks 💖! This hits home with me too, as the mother of three young adults (one recent college grad and 2 in college). 5y
12 likes1 stack add1 comment
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Sapphire
The Cook: A Novel | Maylis de Kerangal
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Airport reading

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MirrorMask
The Cook: A Novel | Maylis de Kerangal
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1. Tagged
2. Crunchy
3. Sunrise
4. Depending where I am: I can spend all of that on clothes by going to a few shops that are right next to each other, I could visit Love Sac which I've always wanted to try but don't have the money for, or I could do it from home by booking a trip to Hawaii or abroad. Easy peasy!!!! 😁
5. Kindergarten, I was a big fan of recess and nap time.

#FriyayIntro @howjessreads

ShananigansReads Ohhh a lovesac is a great idea. 5y
Lreads #5 Naptime! 😴👍 5y
45 likes2 comments
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MirrorMask
The Cook: A Novel | Maylis de Kerangal
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Pickpick

“Mauro‘s work is a reminder that, contrary to what many believe, the most gifted and innovative chef is not necessarily the one who transforms the ingredients, but perhaps the one who most intensely restores their flavors.”

This book was an absolute delight from start to finish. At only 100 pages, it tells the story of how a young man becomes a chef through the eyes of someone that knows him.

#gastronomy

Amor4Libros I loved it! 5y
Bklover Great photo! 5y
52 likes2 comments
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Schlinkles
The Cook: A Novel | Maylis de Kerangal
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Pickpick

3.5⭐️
I think I liked this because of its accurate depiction of working in the culinary industry and especially someone working in the culinary industry by choice as opposed to not having options to do something else. I agree with others that it didn‘t feel like a complete piece, this should be a beautifully written part of something larger.

CaliforniaCay What a cute Gilmore Girls mug! 🤩 5y
44 likes1 comment
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Schlinkles
The Cook: A Novel | Maylis de Kerangal
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Love this cover ❤️

Tamra That is a great cover - makes me hungry. 5y
36 likes1 comment
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Amor4Libros
The Cook: A Novel | Maylis de Kerangal
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Why do I have to go to work when all I want to do is stay on my couch reading this? #NetGalley #ARC

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Denimchild
The Cook: A Novel | Maylis de Kerangal
Pickpick

The Cook follows the intense life of Mauro, an economics student turned chef who flits between jobs and school, never settling down for long. His social life and health deteriorates as he works 70 hour weeks. If this novel taught me anything, it‘s that I myself never want to enter the restaurant business. The fast-paced work, the long shifts, the intense competition between colleagues… I think I‘ll just stick to enjoying food.