Hercules (I wondered how he came to be called Hercules), is an amazing chef whom George Washington acquired as payment for a debt. Hercules had more freedom than most slaves since he was able to go out every evening, roaming the streets of Philadelphia wearing his dapper clothing.

He’s able to afford his clothing because he can sell the leftover food from his kitchen and keep the monies – about $200 a year, which is quite a sum.

This book is a fictional account of Hercules life and the author uses real people, as well as fictional people, in this story. This novel touches upon so many things, slavery, free Blacks….Hercules lives in Philadelphia, in a free state, yet he is enslaved. You see him interacting with both slaves and free Blacks. The issue of mixed race Blacks passing as White is also addressed in this story.

The story is good and well-written and also shows how hard it is to work in a kitchen, a professional kitchen, and not get paid for your labors. Hercules is not your ordinary Black man and after reading this novel, I longed to know more about him.

The food! I loved how the author mentioned all of the different foods that Hercules and his staff prepared for President Washington. Hoecakes, carrot pudding, chicken pudding, fish, oysters, roasts….I found myself stopping to research the foods which I’d never heard of, like carrot pudding. I noticed in the author letter that she mentioned some colonial cookbooks that she used for research. I’d like to make some of these meals myself!

The family dynamic is also addressed in this tale. Hercules doesn’t get to see his children very much and this hurts him. Slavery is so wrong – tearing apart families…abuse…Slavery is such a shameful part of US History. Makes my heart sad to read about it.

I highly encourage all readers to try this incredible secular novel. You’ll learn a lot and enjoy an amazing story!

Impressive fictionalized story of Hercules, George Washington's enslaved chef. I love historical fiction and I am constantly trying to find new stories related to the colonial period of American History and to the enslaved community in particular.
While most of the book is pure speculation, it is apparent that a lot of research has been done to try to interweave some truth into the narrative.
I particularly enjoyed the detailed descriptions of Hercules' meal preparation, and his dominance of the kitchen.
Loved it!

I really enjoyed this book. It was very well written an excellent and piece of historical fiction gave great insight to the story of Hercules, George Washington’s cook and slave. This is one I highly recommend.

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The General’s Cook by Ramin Ganeshram is a historical fiction book taking place in 1793, following Herucles, a slave as well as President George Washington’s chef. Mr. Ganeshram is a journalist, chef and food writer.

Hercules has been a property of George and Martha Washington since he was a child, his ability to cook earns him the advantages of having money, nice clothes, freedom of movement and other benefits, but not his freedom.

Hercules, however, rebels in his own way by learning how to read and having an affair with a mixed-race woman.

I have heard of Hercules before from reading several biographies of George Washington and visiting his home in Mt. Vernon. Even though we know little of Hercules, The General’s Cook by Ramin Ganeshram takes the little we know and expands upon it to create a rich story of early America.

The picture the author constructed of 1793 Philadelphia, where most of the story takes place, that of a bustling town where people from all walks of life interact. At that time a law stated that if a slave was in Philadelphia over six months, they would be considered free. The Washington’s sent their slaves back and forth to Mt. Vernon so the clock will start ticking again.
At a bind they’ll send them over to New Jersey, to step over the line and come back.

The slaves were aware of this law, as is our protagonist. Hercules, however, is more than just a slave, he is also a loyal servant to George Washington, both men smart enough to admire the other’s strength even though, obviously, the President certainly always has the upper hand.

I really enjoyed the author’s description of how the kitchen worked and ran. The meals that Hercules planned and prepared sounded fantastic and accurate to the time. To enhance this part of the story, the author introduces Nate and Margaret, a young slave and indentured girl, which Hercules trains.

This book is a gorgeous mix of food, history and food history. This is a fascinating book taking place in a time where the country, as well as men, where trying to find their place.

As George Washington's chef, Hercules leads a good life in Philadelphia where he not only ruled the kitchen but enjoyed strolling around town, shopping at the market stalls, respectfully acknowledged by all who knew him. But even though Hercules was paid a wage he was still a slave and not free to live as he wanted. I was shocked to learn that the Washingtons kept many slaves, not only on their farm, Mount Vernon in Virginia but also in Philadelphia as house servants. Although Philadelphia had emancipation laws allowing slaves their freedom after living there continuously for 6 months, the Washingtons made sure their slaves were sent back to Virginia before that time was reached, bringing them back a few weeks later. Hercules at least got a chance to visit his children who lived at Mount Vernon in the slave quarters.

To construct this fictional account of Hercules' life, the author has pulled facts from biographies of Washington and historical accounts of Mount Vernon and Philadelphia. At the time, around five percent of Philadelphia was comprised of free slaves and there were organisations set up to help slaves escape and obtain their freedom. I very much enjoyed the picture painted of Philadelphia in the 1790s, particularly the bustling markets and the busy kitchen where Hercules planned and prepared the many sumptuous dinners and events hosted by the Washingtons. The daily life of the kitchens is seen through Hercules' two young apprentices, Nate a young slave and Margaret, an indentured white orphan girl, as Hercules patiently teaches them to cook and prepare dishes, showing them how to select only the finest ingredients. A portrait of Hercules hangs in a gallery in Madrid and the author weaves this into his novel, describing how Hercules might have come to have his portrait painted by Gilbert Stuart, whose famous unfinished portrait of Washington features on the dollar bill.

As Washington plans his retirement from the Presidency, Hercules has his own plans for freedom and a new life, although these are thrown into disarray when Washington leaves him in Mt Vernon. Well written by Ramin Ganeshram, a journalist, food writer and chef, this is a very engaging story combining history and food with the quest for freedom.

I really didn't get much of a feel for the Hercules - other than he was a proud man who continued to serve General George Washington, even though he had earned his freedom under the Philadelphia law. I don[t know that I ever knew Washington owned slaves, but this book did not focus on his ownership but on Hercules who was a footnote in history as Washington's favorite cook. I learned more about the food that was prepared and eaten, then I ever learned about Hercules. iI know there is not much about Hercules in history, but perhaps he should have been left a footnote.in the history books.

This was a very different book. It was interesting to read about the foods and what they cooked in Washington's day. Quite different from what we do today. It is very informative and intersting. Characters were very well written.

This book is the true juxtaposition of food and history, taking us back to the days of George Washington and into the world of his chef, a slave named Hercules. Told with vivid and delicious description about a little known part of our American history, The General's Cook is a book that food lovers really should not miss. Hercules was one of Washington's prized men, someone who found his favor through the delicacies that graced his plate. The story weaves us in and out of the cities of Philadelphia and Mount Vernon where Washington skirted a law that allowed slaves to become free if they spent more than six months in the city of Philadelphia--so he made sure that they didn't by swapping his slaves back and forth from his homes. Beautifully and thoughtfully told, Ramin Ganeshram's talents as a chef and cookbook writer translate perfectly to the page. Yum.

Hercules was the cook to General Washington. He was a master chef, highly praised by Washingtons. But the story also reveals a darker side of the history. When “President George Washington came to serve his tenure in Philadelphia in 1790 bringing enslaved ‘servants’ with him from his household in Virginia. Most were eventually sent back to their estate, Mount Vernon, because the First Couple feared they would take advantage of Pennsylvania’s 1780 Gradual Abolition Act, which allowed for enslaved people to petition for freedom after six months of continuous residency. (…) He moved them out of Pennsylvania and into slave states to reset their tenure. (…) This rotation of enslaved people lasted throughout the Washington’s seven years in Philadelphia.”

Philadelphia, 1793.

Once Hercules longed for the quiet Virginia countryside, but not anymore. He got to love the city of Philadelphia where a man couldn’t be whipped or chained.

Hercules is confident in the kitchen and knows his spices well. But there is a different kind of spice he’d like to use in his life. It is to learn to read. As free as the capital city is, it still holds some limits. He needs to do it in secret.

When Gilbert Stuart comes back to America after 20 years in England of painting “better sort of people,” he approaches General Washington. But when the president refuses him, Stuart approaches Hercules. And they come to an agreement.

Once back in Philadelphia, after a summer in Virginia, which reset the tenure, Hercules is introduced to a group of abolitionists. At first, he doesn’t want to have anything to do with them. But with time, he starts questioning if he was too haste.

As the story progresses, the layers are being peeled revealing the past, including how he became Washington’s slave, his cook, and about his four children.

Vividly told story with rich historical background, weaving between two places of Mount Vernon in Virginia and Philadelphia.

Kudos to authors, who dig through the pages of history to uncover the lesser-known characters and have them resurface in history from the dusted pages.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this book. Unfortunately, I found it really dull and the main character unlikable. I couldn't finish it. My apologies.