Sweet, with an authentic voice.As a food lover as well as a lit lover I enjoy when the worlds collide. I love the celebration around food, and this book brought it to life.

I loved this book so much I started right back at the beginning once I'd finished it. There's such a wealth of information that in a kind of process and outcome way, it helps to loop back and forth as you progress through each chapter.

If you enjoyed Sara Roahen's Gumbo Tales, Ian McNulty's Louisiana Rambles and Lolis Eric Elie's Treme: Stories and Recipes from the Heart of New Orleans, you'll find Ken Wells' book a worthy addition to the Louisianan culinary canon.

The history of gumbo is long and intense. So many variations, so many opinions. Ken Wells does a good job of covering the many sides. His own background adds even more flavor. I don't know how anyone could read this without getting hungry.

I enjoyed this book! it made me smile reading it. While I'm not from Louisiana, or even French, I enjoy reading about other cultures and particularly Cajun and Creole cultures. I've never eaten gumbo or jambalaya, but have heard about them my entire life! I really just need to get to New Orleans someday to taste the regional dishes. But in the mean time, there are numerous gumbo recipes collected in this book! Thank you, Ken Wells!