Another book from my 2018 book list, Give a Girl a Knife is the second memoir I’ve read. Spoiler: I’m kind of digging memoirs!

Give a Girl a Knife: Amazon Description

Before Amy Thielen frantically plated rings of truffled potatoes in some of New York City’s finest kitchens—for chefs David Bouley, Daniel Boulud, and Jean-Georges Vongerichten—she grew up in a northern Minnesota town home to the nation’s largest French fry factory, the headwaters of the fast food nation, with a mother whose generous cooking dripped with tenderness, drama, and an overabundance of butter.

Inspired by her grandmother’s tales of cooking in the family farmhouse, Thielen moves north with her artist husband to a rustic, off-the-grid cabin deep in the woods. There, standing at the stove three times a day, she finds the seed of a growing food obsession that leads her to the sensory madhouse of New York’s top haute cuisine brigades. But, like a magnet, the foods of her youth draw her back home, where she comes face to face with her past and a curious truth: that beneath every foie gras sauce lies a rural foundation of potatoes and onions.


My Review


I loved this book! Amy’s references to Minnesota culture and food were spot on! The mayo-based pasta salads, the fruit salads and the hot dishes made with the gelatinous cream-of-mushroom soups. In contrast, she went to NYC and worked in several fine dining establishments. Being a food-lover from Minnesota this book nailed it.

I have two (minor) complaints about this book, that might make me sound like an old lady. First, the text seemed really small or maybe I need some cheaters!? And second, the pages have that jagged, unfinished edge. They make it hard to flip through to see how many pages until the next chapter. Why do some books have those pages? Is it cheaper or is it a style thing?