How to Feed a Dictator

August 1, 2020

Polish journalist Szablowski (Dancing Bears: True Stories of People Nostalgic for Life Under Tyranny) explores history as seen from the kitchens of notorious dictators. The voices of three narrators set the table. Michael Crouch enthusiastically reads the third-person reports of Szablowski's interviews, which help frame the remaining narratives. The rich baritone of Peter Frances James smoothly handles the sometimes shockingly violent accounts of all but one of the cooks. Maggi-Meg Reed reads the only female cook, Moeun, who is seemingly and inexplicably infatuated with the murderous Cambodian dictator Pol Pot. VERDICT Recommended for those who enjoy history, foodways, and politics. The reader should be aware, however, that the fractured structure can make this book a bit confusing, though it is improved somewhat by the multiple voices. Additionally, the descriptions of sociopathic violence may be disturbing to some sensitive listeners. --David Faucheux, Lafayette, LA

Copyright 2020 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 13, 2020
In this heavily researched history, Polish journalist Szablowski (Dancing Bears) shares the stories of six personal chefs of five dictators, among them Fidel Castro, Saddam Hussein, Idi Amin, Enver Hoxhas, and Pol Pot. These are the kinds of stories only a chef could know: whether it’s being accused of poisoning Amin and being exiled, or having to pay Hussein for the wasted meat if he found it oversalted, the chefs Szablowski interviewed divulge morsels of character from their respective rulers. Each chef elaborates on the dictator’s favorite dish—such as Amin’s Roasted Goat (stuffed with “rice, potatoes, carrots, parsley, peas,” recalls chef Otonde Odera) and Hussein’s Thieves’ Fish Soup—and tells stories of their unsettling attributes (Pol Pot “had an incredible sense of humor. He was like a clown, he really was,” his unnamed chef recalls) and, in some cases, their eventual demise. Throughout, Szablowski entertains with disturbing rumors, such as Amin eating human flesh (whatever the case, his chef never cooked it for him), and strange obsessions (Castro preferred the milk from a single cow named Ubre Blanca, or “white udder”). Food and history buffs will find these firsthand accounts irresistible.