White Jacket Required: A Culinary Coming-of-Age Story (2012) - Plot & Excerpts
Full disclosure - I didn't get to her first day of class - well I skipped ahead to it while she was talking about running versus not running in the 5th chapter and then was completely underwhelmed by her first day so I stopped reading. Nothing was happening, and it read like a diary (but not in the good, compelling to read more kind of way). The recipes weren't anything special (though maybe they get more interesting as she learns more?). The biggest problem is everything is so cut and dry. She is just telling what happened like it was a laundry list. I can see why her style would make for an interesting blog. Her food stories could be rewritten in the same style but short for a blog and would add a bit of personality to a recipe. I am sure her experience was really important to her ("coming of age" and all that) and I don't want to knock any of the story, but I think I'll give her blog a try instead. This book was weak. The recipes she included sounded good and I do think she knows what she's talking about when it comes to food, so I'm giving the book a star for that.But her writing needs a lot of work. A good portion of the book read like it was written by a high schooler. I was hoping to see something akin to Kitchen Confidential but from a female perspective. Instead I got a book that was basically a series of boring blog posts. Every time I thought she was building up to something interesting, it would run flat. It wasn't until the final chapters when she experienced some trauma and major life changes that I started to warm up to her, but by that point it was too late to save the book.I didn't know anything about the author before reading the book, but apparently she's a popular blogger. Unfortunately for her, being a good blogger does not equate to being a good author.
What do You think about White Jacket Required: A Culinary Coming-of-Age Story (2012)?
Great easy read. Enjoyed the story and following your passion is so rewarding.
—Klaproos
Loved it so much I have read it twice in less than a year
—MrsHayes21
