Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a free advanced copy of this book to read and review.

This was a brilliantly written memoir and I consumed it in one sitting. 5 stars

California Soul is a compelling and eye opening overview of his life in Watts, the politics of prison and racist enhanced charges used during and after the way on drugs, family and food. James Beard nominated food. Food I really want to try!

I admire Keith for sharing his story- for always wanting to learn more. Do better. reach more people. I hope Keith writes more about his life as a chef, mentor, dad and husband/partner.

Thank you #netgalley and #randomhouse for the complimentary book

Acclaimed chef Keith Corbin’s first experience with cooking was as a teenager cooking crack in 1980s Los Angeles. Later, in a high security prison, he began experimenting with the meager commissary options to make impressive creations. In this memoir, Corbin shares how his difficult past led to his success as visionary California soul food chef, and how the “gangbanger redemption story” fails to encompass the truth of his journey.

Corbin's story is full of danger, loss, bold moves, and delicious flavors. Corbin and his co-author Kevin Alexander tell this brave, true story with an authentic voice and a lots of nuance, refusing to reduce Corbin to his worst mistakes or his biggest successes. California Soul paints a picture of a flawed man who wants to do better for his community and himself. It's eye-opening, inspiring, and impossible to forget.

This was a tough read but ultimately satisfying knowing how things have turned out for the author. I think many readers will be very surprised that someone who has been affected by the drug trade as acutely as this man, was able to succeed outside of its clutches.

4 Redemption Stars
* * * *
California Soul: An American Epic of Cooking and Survival by Keith Corbin; Kevin Alexander tells the tale of one man who actually was able to overcome the hurdles he experienced and gives a clear picture of what he experienced without pretty filters. Corbin lays out exactly what he lived, how it formed what he thought was available to him as a life, the ugly, and then the actual break in the cycle of his criminal experiences.

He was able to do more...yet there are so many who never are able to see through the ugly due to no opportunities during the formative years. All these brilliant talented minds just waiting for another situation then what they have, would make such a difference.

*Thank you to Random House, Keith Corbin, and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review*

This book was fabulous! I enjoyed reading about a side of life that I have never experienced or knew about. It is partly sad and terrifying and very uplifting to know there are men and women that can move past their childhood and upbringing to make something of themselves. The best part of the book is how Keith "Fresh" learns to cook and identify with food. I will recommend this everywhere.

Chef Keith Corbin tells his story growing up as he says literally in the Drug game in the area of Watts. He was taught early on that family is family and he did have some stability form his granny the kind of Grandma you know who feeds the whole neighborhood. If you are not from the area of Watts or Compton, he gives a detailed description of the area and the projects and how in the projects it was its own thriving underground business like a strip mall. After relative got tired of him asking for money showed him how to earn his own money and this led him into what have to do to make money when you have limited opportunities. The author pulls no punches of his descriptions of dealing, being in a gang and being in prison where he may have ended up gaining some of his cooking chops. This is a good redemption story as well as a good story of Chef giving back to his communities. It was definitely a quick read.

This was interesting. I really could not put the book down. I found it to be like watching a movie's car chase, waiting for the inevitable crash to end it all.
The author; raised in Watts, a gang member, a drug dealer and abuser, a convict; has so many strikes against him that he really has no way of succeeding.
Yet, somehow, he does. He discovers something inside himself to keep going, despite his own self sabotaging behavior. Thanks to some lucky breaks, some good mentors, and a great deal of luck, he finds himself part owner of a very successful restaurant.
I found the author to be, at times, incredibly unlikable. Yet part of me kept reading, hoping to see if he would see the light and come out a success.
Even at the end of the book, despite all his success, I still find myself wondering if he is going to eventually crash the car.