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The School of Essential Ingredients  By  cover art

The School of Essential Ingredients

By: Erica Bauermeister
Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell
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Publisher's summary

From the author of Reese Witherspoon's Book Club pick The Scent Keeper comes a “heartbreakingly delicious” national best seller about a chef, her students, and the evocative lessons that food teaches about life.

Once a month on a Monday night, eight students gather in Lillian's restaurant for a cooking class. Among them is Claire, a young woman coming to terms with her new identity as a mother; Tom, a lawyer whose life has been overturned by loss; Antonia, an Italian kitchen designer adapting to life in America; and Carl and Helen, a long-married couple whose union contains surprises the rest of the class would never suspect. The students have come to learn the art behind Lillian's soulful dishes, but it soon becomes clear that each seeks a recipe for something beyond the kitchen. And soon they are transformed by the aromas, flavors, and textures of what they create...

©2008 Erica Baurmeister (P)2008 Penguin

What listeners say about The School of Essential Ingredients

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
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    330
  • 4 Stars
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  • 4 out of 5 stars
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  • 4 Stars
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  • 3 Stars
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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Lovely, lovely book

This is a wonderful book for these times - a way to remember to slow down, appreciate what we have and just forget for a few hours the bad news we hear every day. It is beautifully recorded and the writing is superb. Its sensuality is another example of what a treat it is to listen to a book.

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29 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Outstanding story on cooking, life, and love.

Recently, I mentioned that Cassandra Campbell was fast becoming one of my favorite narrators for audio books. There is an atmosphere her voice creates, light and humorous (as in Very, Valentine) or mournful and haunting (as in The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks). It's always perfect for the story. So when Sandy at You've GOTTA Read This! commented that I should pick up The School of Essential Ingredients, I did. When it comes to audio, Sandy's an exceptional guide.

I'm never going to get tired of books about cooking food and living life. I love it. The connection of recipes, knowing which spice should go with which dish, and how that translates back to relationships, loss, and love, will fit the bill for me every time, and this story did not disappoint.

The story is told by the eight students taking a cooking class on Monday evenings, their personal stories and memories meaningfully unfolding for the listener. There is humor, tragedy, sadness, loss, and newly found love. Usually, when there are more than three or four characters sharing their stories, it can become overwhelming or confusing, or one character may be completely uninteresting, but not so with this story. All of the characters contributed a significant part of their lives, and not one was overdone, or wasted, or skipped over. It all fit.

At the heart of it is Lillian, the instructor and owner of the restaurant where the classes are held. She, too, has a quietly compelling story, one that has shaped her with whom she has become. She was an exceptional character, the rock of knowledge for each of the students, quickly learning what they needed to be taught. She is what kept them moving forward, both in their cooking skills and in life.

Erica Bauermeister's novel was released in 2009, and the story has such a sophisticated style that it's surprising it was a debut novel. It's a story that will make you cry and laugh, but most importantly, it will remind you that living is about the here and now, and that while mistakes happen, the choice to never let a moment pass you by is clear. Love, and be loved, and do so with integrity and kindness.

While the school deals with the essential ingredients of cooking, it is by far the fundamental elements of living that are the most important lesson to be learned. I cannot wait to read (or listen to) Joy for Beginners which was released in June 2011.

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12 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Rich descriptions - boring book

The descriptions of food are rich and enticing. The book has very little plot, and has very little to keep a reader interested. The audio performance was SO SLOW. Painfully slow. I kept listening thinking that surely more was going to happen...but nothing happens! It’s just a book of food descriptions and character descriptions.

I don’t recommend the book or this audio performance.

A waste of money.

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

not worth it

I used a credit to buy this. I want my credit back. the narration is painfully slow, so I sped it up. the story skips around terribly, and the transitions aren't smooth. I've never given a book 1 star before, but really, save your money.

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

No story

This was an interesting development of characters but I didn’t think there was much story at all. In fact I was shocked when I was at the epilogue. I thought, “ Is that it?” Narration was the same, sort of ho hum for all the characters.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

calming story, thinking different about food

Narrator was outstanding! Interesting story, really inspired me to look at food differently - to slow down and savor. Love how the author described dishes down to the very bites. I found this book to be calming, making it an enjoyable read at the end of the day.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

my favorite book ever

As a cook this story hits deep into my foodie soul and I love it!

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

School of Mundane Ingredients

Is there anything you would change about this book?

I love a good ensemble story but this book seemed to meander without a satisfying conclusion to any of the characters. I stuck with it because I hoped it would have a strong ending but was sadly disappointed. I think Bauermeister would have benefitted from focusing more on one character and adding something substantial to the narrative,

Any additional comments?

I have always been a fan of novels that weave food into the narrative - some of the recipes sounded delicious but I would still recommend Chocolat and Garden Spells over this one.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Predictable, sappy.

I kept hoping it would get better. It started with promise. Halfthrough I became to dislike the characters because they were so cliche and not in a good way. By the last chapter, I was annoyed for wasting a perfectly good audible credit.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Characters came alive

I enjoyed this book immensely. when I finished it was like saying goodbye to an old friend. I am looking forward to the next in the series.

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2 people found this helpful