Save Me the Plums

March 15, 2019
The renowned food writer recounts her adventures as editor-in-chief of the noted epicurean magazine Gourmet in its last decade.A native New Yorker, Reichl (My Kitchen Year: 136 Recipes that Saved My Life, 2015, etc.) grew up reading the magazine, and food soon became her "own private way of looking at the world." While working as a chef in Berkeley, California, in the 1970s, she began writing about food, at New West and then the Los Angeles Times, before returning to New York to become the formidable restaurant critic for the New York Times. In 1999, at age 51, somewhat fearfully--she lacked magazine experience and faced managing a staff of 60--Reichl took the editorial helm of Gourmet, at six times her Times salary plus perks, with free rein from Condé Nast publisher Si Newhouse to revamp the staid magazine. In this fun, gossipy, and beguiling memoir, Reichl offers revealing glimpses of her parents, both introduced in earlier books, but the focus is on the heady process of "magazine making," which meant turning an old-fashioned book into a modern, edgy monthly. She describes the exhilaration of working with talented, quirky staffers, and she provides vivid snapshots of Condé Nast honchos, including publishers Newhouse (supportive) and Gina Sanders (who "relished" fights) as well as the "large, loud," yet appealing CEO Steve Florio, who regaled her with tales of Newhouse ("You know that Roy Cohn was his closest friend?"). Throughout, the author tells winning stories--of goings-on in the celebrated Condé Nast cafeteria, midnight parties for chefs, zany annual meetings, and providing food to 9/11 firefighters. Her success in introducing provocative articles like David Rakoff's "Some Pig," about Jews and bacon, and David Foster Wallace's classic "Consider the Lobster," on the ethics of eating, taught her that "when something frightens me, it is definitely worth doing." A dream job, it ended in the late-2000s recession, when declining ads forced the closing of the venerable publication.An absolutely delightful reading experience.

COPYRIGHT(2019) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Starred review from April 1, 2019

October 5, 2009, was a dark day for food lovers, when Gourmet magazine suddenly ceased publication. No one was more surprised than editor-in-chief Reichl, who had prevailed over its revitalization. This latest memoir focuses on the author's wild ride after leaving her post as restaurant critic for the New York Times to take on the unexpected challenge of leading Gourmet. Initially hesitant and feeling woefully unprepared, Reichl finds herself in the alternative universe of Condé Nast: luxurious, fashionable, and status-conscious in a way that Berkeley-loving, frizzy-haired Reichl never aimed to be. Yet it's her love of what the magazine had been in her youth and could be again--progressive, thoughtful, and forward-thinking--that drives her. During Reichl's tenure Gourmet published some of the most memorable food essays of the early millennium and broke new ground in design and presentation. She offers sharp observations about the magazine world, but none of this is about blame. VERDICT This look back in time will appeal to Reichl's many fans, foodies, as well as general readers. It's part elegy, part picaresque for a recent history that already feels like another era after the Great Recession and the evolution of digital publishing.--Devon Thomas, Chelsea, MI

Copyright 2019 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 1, 2019
Gourmet's final editor reflects on the tumultuous years (1999-2009) she spent at the magazine's helm, transitioning from powerful New York Times restaurant critic to managing a complex editorial job for a periodical in crisis. When Reichl took over Gourmet, it had been absorbed into the world of Cond� Nast. At the time, Cond� heir S. I. Newhouse needed to expand Gourmet's audience beyond consumers of luxury goods and lifestyles: from gourmets and gourmands to the suddenly burgeoning world of foodies; from households that had salaried cooks to eager, informed people who cooked for themselves and ate in ethnic restaurants as a matter of course. Reichl's coterie of ambitious Manhattanite editors contributed both new style and substance to the magazine, recruiting edgy, avant-garde writers on the order of David Foster Wallace. But just as the magazine seemed poised to triumph, the advent of the internet and an economic downturn combined to deliver the magazine's deathblow. Reichl's sharp eye and descriptive gifts render both food and people vital. A few recipes support her text's narrative.HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Author of several previous best-sellers, Reichl is one of the most recognizable names in food writing. Order enough to feed a crowd.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)

Starred review from April 1, 2019

October 5, 2009, was a dark day for food lovers, when Gourmet magazine suddenly ceased publication. No one was more surprised than editor-in-chief Reichl, who had prevailed over its revitalization. This latest memoir focuses on the author's wild ride after leaving her post as restaurant critic for the New York Times to take on the unexpected challenge of leading Gourmet. Initially hesitant and feeling woefully unprepared, Reichl finds herself in the alternative universe of Cond� Nast: luxurious, fashionable, and status-conscious in a way that Berkeley-loving, frizzy-haired Reichl never aimed to be. Yet it's her love of what the magazine had been in her youth and could be again--progressive, thoughtful, and forward-thinking--that drives her. During Reichl's tenure Gourmet published some of the most memorable food essays of the early millennium and broke new ground in design and presentation. She offers sharp observations about the magazine world, but none of this is about blame. VERDICT This look back in time will appeal to Reichl's many fans, foodies, as well as general readers. It's part elegy, part picaresque for a recent history that already feels like another era after the Great Recession and the evolution of digital publishing.--Devon Thomas, Chelsea, MI

Copyright 2019 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from March 15, 2019
The renowned food writer recounts her adventures as editor-in-chief of the noted epicurean magazine Gourmet in its last decade.A native New Yorker, Reichl (My Kitchen Year: 136 Recipes that Saved My Life, 2015, etc.) grew up reading the magazine, and food soon became her "own private way of looking at the world." While working as a chef in Berkeley, California, in the 1970s, she began writing about food, at New West and then the Los Angeles Times, before returning to New York to become the formidable restaurant critic for the New York Times. In 1999, at age 51, somewhat fearfully--she lacked magazine experience and faced managing a staff of 60--Reichl took the editorial helm of Gourmet, at six times her Times salary plus perks, with free rein from Cond� Nast publisher Si Newhouse to revamp the staid magazine. In this fun, gossipy, and beguiling memoir, Reichl offers revealing glimpses of her parents, both introduced in earlier books, but the focus is on the heady process of "magazine making," which meant turning an old-fashioned book into a modern, edgy monthly. She describes the exhilaration of working with talented, quirky staffers, and she provides vivid snapshots of Cond� Nast honchos, including publishers Newhouse (supportive) and Gina Sanders (who "relished" fights) as well as the "large, loud," yet appealing CEO Steve Florio, who regaled her with tales of Newhouse ("You know that Roy Cohn was his closest friend?"). Throughout, the author tells winning stories--of goings-on in the celebrated Cond� Nast cafeteria, midnight parties for chefs, zany annual meetings, and providing food to 9/11 firefighters. Her success in introducing provocative articles like David Rakoff's "Some Pig," about Jews and bacon, and David Foster Wallace's classic "Consider the Lobster," on the ethics of eating, taught her that "when something frightens me, it is definitely worth doing." A dream job, it ended in the late-2000s recession, when declining ads forced the closing of the venerable publication.An absolutely delightful reading experience.

COPYRIGHT(2019) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.