If You Can't Take the Heat
Tales of Food, Feminism, and Fury
2 of 3 copies available
“With charm and humor, Geraldine DeRuiter welcomes us into her personal history and thus reconnects us with ourselves.”—Mikki Kendall, New York Times bestselling author of Hood Feminism
ONE OF NPR’S BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR
When celebrity chef Mario Batali sent out an apology letter for the sexual harassment allegations made against him, he had the gall to include a recipe—for cinnamon rolls, of all things. Geraldine DeRuiter decided to make the recipe, and she happened to make food journalism history along with it. Her subsequent essay, with its scathing commentary about the pervasiveness of misogyny in the food world, would be read millions of times, lauded by industry luminaries from Martha Stewart to New York Times restaurant critic Pete Wells, and would land DeRuiter in the middle of a media firestorm. She found herself on the receiving end of dozens of threats when all she wanted to do was make something to eat (and, okay fine, maybe take down the patriarchy).
In If You Can’t Take the Heat, DeRuiter shares stories about her shockingly true, painfully funny (and sometimes just painful) adventures in gastronomy. We’ll learn how she finally got a grip on her debilitating anxiety by emergency meal–planning for the apocalypse. (“You are probably deeply worried that in times of desperation I would eat your pets. And yes, I absolutely would.”) Or how she learned to embrace her hanger. (“Because women can be a lot of things, but we can’t be angry. Or president, apparently.”) And how she inadvertently caused another international incident with a negative restaurant review. (She made it on to the homepage of The New York Times’s website! And she got more death threats!)
Deliciously insightful and bitingly clever, If You Can’t Take the Heat is a fresh look at food and feminism from one of the culinary world’s sharpest voices.
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
March 12, 2024 -
Formats
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OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9780593828472
- File size: 275783 KB
- Duration: 09:34:32
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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January 22, 2024
Everywhereist blogger DeRuiter (All Over the Place) dishes on gastronomy and gender in this delightfully salty memoir-in-essays. During the height of the MeToo movement in 2017, DeRuiter was incensed by the apology letter celebrity chef Mario Batali wrote after he was accused of sexual misconduct, which included a recipe for cinnamon rolls. She responded with a blog post in which she made Batali’s cinnamon rolls and eviscerated his apology (“Was his PR team drunk?”). The post went viral, ultimately winning a James Beard Award for long-form personal essay. With that piece as the collection’s guiding light, DeRuiter zeroes in on indignities she and other women face in the food world, from the time DeRuiter was second-guessed about the details in her negative review of a Michelin-starred restaurant to the expectation that women chefs “fight against sexism, misogyny, and harassment... all while cooking excellent food that would never get the same attention as their male counterparts.” Whether discussing her obsession with Red Lobster or highlighting offensive portrayals of women’s relationships with food in film and television, DeRuiter seamlessly blends gallows humor and sharp observation. The result is a witty and empowering volume that will satisfy foodies and non-foodies alike. Agent: Zoe Sandler, Sanford J. Greenburger Assoc. -
May 31, 2024
James Beard Award-winning blogger DeRuiter (All Over the Place) presents an amusing and wholly relatable memoir that speaks to a wide range of issues, including body image, misogyny, and social media abuse. DeRuiter was working on her blog, The Everywhereist, when she wrote about her disgust with chef Mario Batali's vapid and tone-deaf apology for sexual misconduct. The post went viral and eventually earned her the James Beard Award for her long-form personal essay while also attracting countless death threats, gross insults, and personal attacks. A few years later, a hilarious post on an absurdly pretentious 27-course dinner she and her husband experienced in Italy also went viral, bringing the same results. DeRuiter narrates the audio production and certainly knows how to present her material with perfect comedic timing and wry humor. She shows her anger and happiness where appropriate and is all about the freedom to feel her feelings. Her sharp wit and a deep understanding of herself and the people around her make for a refreshing listen. VERDICT Fans of memoirs, food critics, and bloggers will eat this one up.--B. Allison Gray
Copyright 2024 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
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