There are recipes, but this is not really a cookbook. Todd Selby is a photographer, and in his book Edible Selby, he documents chefs and artisans from all over the world, from Chad Robertson of Tartine Bakery in San Francisco to René Redzepi of Noma in Copenhagen to Yoshiyuki Okada of Tatemichiya in Tokyo. He shows how they create, shooting them in their homes, kitchens and gardens.
The book makes me want to travel and see all these things for myself. I had the same feeling when I saw Spain, On the Road Again and had to visit the country after watching it. It’s a book to be inspired by and get lost in with countless photographs, handwritten captions, and chefs’ drawings that explain how certain dishes and products came to be.
The featured recipes are not entirely useful. Some are written in Japanese; others are just plain hard to read since they’re all handwritten. Selby even has a disclaimer saying none of the recipes were tested and if you make something and it’s a mess, don’t blame him or his publisher. If you do attempt one of these recipes, he requests you tweet him pictures @theselby.
After all, recipes aren’t really the point of this book. You see personalities shine through, their devotion, senses of humor and love for what they do. It’s one of my favorite books at home, and it’s a definitely a gift for someone who loves food.
What book, TV show or film was so powerful, it inspired you to buy a ticket for a foodie trip? Tell us in the comments section below for a chance to win a copy of Edible Selby. We’ll announce the winner in next week’s By the Book column. And now, we’d like to congratulate Jimmy, whose comment on last week’s By the Book column has won a copy of Daniel: My French Cuisine. Jimmy, keep an eye out for an email from the Sauce crew!
This article appears in December 2013.
