The Cooking Gene --by Michael W. Twitty

 Nonfiction / African American / Memoir / History / Recipes (some)

480 pages

5 Stars

 

I first reviewed this book, September 2019. I read it on my Kindle, and thoroughly enjoyed it. I am one of those people who retain information better when read from a paper copy rather than an electronic one, so recently purchased a hard copy of the book, and reread it for the first time.

 

I remembered a great deal of the book, but had forgotten a great deal, and it was a pleasure to read it again. Originally, I was in hopes it was a recipe book with stories, but it’s a story of his search for self, with a few recipes. BTW, I’ve tried a couple, and they’re wonderful. I love the Kitchen Pepper!!! 

 

My imagination is pretty good, but I cannot, try as I might, understand on a bone-deep level what it means to be black in America. I grew up knowing I came from Scot/Irish stock. I had it more or less drummed into me from childhood. I’m a descendant of Robert the Bruce. I can trace my family back to before his time. Big Deal.

 

But, if my family had been stolen, sent to another continent, enslaved, their names taken and given new names that mean nothing to them, I’m pretty positive I would have different thoughts and emotions about my ancestry. I would want to know, who am I? From where did I come? Who are my people? What is my heritage? I would have hundreds, if not thousands of questions. Michael Twitty had those questions, and this delightful book tells how he found many of the answers, and what they are.

 

I now realize the history I learned in school had been pretty well bleached, especially about the enslaved and their owners. Still, there were several parts in this book that brought tears to my eyes. I’ve seen and photographed many cotton plants through the years. But never reached a hand out to pick it—it wasn’t on my property, and I didn’t want to be caught ‘stealing.’ I had no idea of the pricklies hiding in wait for a cotton-picker’s hands. If you’re interested in the history of our country, I heartily recommend this book. If you want a good understanding of the African American history of our country, I heartily recommend this book.