The characters were interesting and the story was engaging. I will look for other books by this author.

This book is a powerful collection of stories about repression and, at times, near-genocide, making it an emotionally difficult read. The chapter on the Rohingya's persecution and statelessness was heartbreaking, and the detailed account of the Uyghur people's systematic oppression by the Chinese government left me deeply unsettled. Yet, The Last Sweet Bite is equally a tribute to resilience, showcasing parents preserving culinary traditions, chefs revitalizing native cuisines, and activists fighting tirelessly for justice.

It is a truth universally acknowledged that food satisfies hunger.

What if that dish or ingredients of said dish, are no longer sustainable due to political strife? Or marginalized due to the action of nation states? What happens to its people, to its community, to future generations ? How is their personal and cultural identity affected?

This books seeks to answer these questions thru personal interviews, historical research and anecdotes. From Europe to South America and Asia, the author will have the Western reader who is safely encased in their home with easy access to their food sources ( travel by foot or car to their local market), question what others who inhabit this same planet have to endure to enjoy a meal.

Book was quite dense but informative. It will appeal to a reader of politics, history, and food.

This book seeks to

This ARC was provided by the publisher, Crown Publishing | Crown ,via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.


#TheLastSweetBite #NetGalley

Thank you to Crown, Michael Shaikh, and NetGalley for access to this digital ARC.

Part cookbook, part exploration of the resilience of humanity in the face of tyrannical oppression, human rights activist Michael Shaikh takes us into the homes and kitchens of wartorn communities around the world. Equal parts devastating and heartwarming, I could not recommend this more.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is a beautifully written book. It made me view food in a whole new light.

How do war and oppression change culinary heritage and subsequent identity? Shaikh, with his years as a human rights investigator for the UN, is adept at respectfully and accurately exploring this theme. Due to the horrifying nature of international violence in this book, it took me quite long to get through since I could only face in when I was in the right headspace. I would highly recommend to anyone who is interested in how geopolitical conflict affects local cuisines.

In this fascinating book about food history and the challenges of preserving recipes in the face of conflict, Michael Shaikh offers readers insights into the unique food cultures of the Czech Republic, Sri Lanka and the Tamil diaspora, Myanmar, Bangladesh, China’s Uyghur population, the Andean region of Bolivia, the Pueblo Nations of North America, and other populations within the United States. Drawing on interviews with locals as well as other sources to uncover the complex histories and social dynamics of these countries, Shaikh explores how food is a reflection of the nation’s political and social stability under peaceful or hostile regimes. Providing recipes at the end of each chapter, Shaikh helps keep these recipes and cultures alive by sharing them with the readers. With incredible prose and fascinating insights into these cultures, readers will love this brilliant new release and its unique take on global politics and internal and external conflicts. Brilliantly written and offering profound insights into these cultures, readers will love this international culinary journey that Shaikh guides them on. The book is well-written, engaging, and incredibly interesting, and readers will be totally immersed in this fascinating social history of food, community, and survival in the offered case studies.

A fascinating and unique way to look at the intersection of food and culture under unique circumstances.
You can't help but get caught up in each story and the descriptions. This is a book I'd go back and reread again.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. Fascinating!

The Last Sweet Bite is one of the most unique books I have read in the last few years. Shaikh explores how culinary culture is impacted by oppression, war, and genocide. The history, interviews, and recipes commingle in such a way that made time disappear while reading this book. The interviews are done in a very respectful way where the person's voice is able to shine and are incredibly informative. The Last Sweet Bite shows what happens to culinary culture when food is forced to be standardized by another country (Czech Republic under the USSR), the global criminalization of a local ingredient (Bolivia and the Andes), the limited use of knives (China and the Uyghurs), among other histories. My one regret when it comes to this book is that, at the time of this review, I haven't found the time to try to make some of these recipes.

A wonderful read I enjoyed it from beginning to end.Wonderful stories easy recipes a delight to dive into.#NetGalley #crown

Cooking in conflict…

This isn’t so much a cook book, but rather a collection of stories in war and conflict and about the people who are living and cooking in conflict. With a few recipes thrown in.
Recommend.

The Last Sweet Bite is part memoir, part recorded conversations, and overall, a thoughtful reflection on how violence and conflict disrupt culinary heritage, particularly in the traditionally feminine and often undervalued space of cooking.

Shaikh’s work stands out in the way it presents recipes. These aren’t generic “best” versions or polished reinterpretations. Each dish is deeply rooted in individual experience, recipes shaped by the people who shared them, often alongside deeply personal histories. Through interviews from each of the different geographical regions, Shaikh provides both a broad cultural context and a sharply focused sense of place. It’s a celebration of food that honors memory and survival amidst devastation.

From the book, I cooked: Tamim’s Saland-e Nakhod (Afghan Chickpea Stew), Roman and Jana’s Šišky s Mákem (Potato Dumplings with Poppy Seeds and Powdered Sugar), Roman and Jana’s Bramborové Šišky se Zelím a Slaninou (Potato Dumplings with Sauerkraut and Bacon), Marhaba’s Uyghur Polo, and Marian’s Piñon Nut Cookies.

The chickpea stew was hearty and comforting. The dumplings were excellent, especially the savory version with sauerkraut (I subbed the smoked bacon with tempeh). That dish, along with the sauercaccia recipe from Kenji Morimoto’s Ferment, has definitely convinced me to eat and cook with more sauerkraut. The Uyghur Polo hit a deeply satisfying note I didn’t realize I’d been craving (I used a mix of soy curls and tofu in place of the lamb shoulder), and the subtle heat of white pepper was so good I made it twice. The piñon nut cookies were intriguing, not sweet enough for my unsophisticated palate, but when paired with warm sweetened soy milk, they made for a surprisingly luxurious breakfast.

This is an engaging and thoughtful book. It prompted me to reflect on how government policies, agricultural methods, and food access shape what ends up on our plates and on how we can and should all work to preserve these recipes, culinary history, and culture.

Note: I usually try recipes as written, and especially given the subject of this book, I approached them with care and respect. Due to dietary restrictions, I used plant-based substitutes for yogurt, lard, butter, eggs, smoked bacon, and lamb shoulder. I hope these adjustments are received as modifications made with deep appreciation for the original recipes and their cultural significance.

Many thanks to Crown and NetGalley for providing an advance reading copy.

This analysis of food history and the ways that cuisine have been systematically changed/attacked in times of peril is intriguing and compelling. Incredibly well written and an interesting read. I highly recommend especially for anyone who likes nonfiction books about food (or needs some great new recipes)

(Note - I received this book via NetGalley as an advanced readers copy)

This book nearly brings together culinary tradition and geopolitical history into an engrossing package. The author comes from a human rights background and definitely demonstrates depth of knowledge not only in his chosen cultural heritage topics but in how he describes tragic and complex situations.

I do generally enjoy reading history and books on the social sciences but found the broad histories educational without being overwhelming (which can’t be easy to do).

In the course of reading this book, I was able to eat at a Ugyhur restaurant (delicious) and I’m hoping to try one of the recipes soon.

Food has always felt intimate to me; sharing a meal with someone can mean sharing a part of your culture. In this book, stories of oppression, diaspora, and genocide are explored and recipes shared to help continue and share the recipes fraught with the weight of a person's trauma. There was so much information packed into this book and many of the recipes I wrote down to make myself as they all sounded delicious.

Shaikh is a human rights is a human rights activist and has a journalistic style that did separate me from the atrocities I was reading about while also sharing the information and telling stories of individuals. It is a story of how food connects us and each chapter could be its own book.

A beautiful and surprising book. Although I have always appreciated the cultural value of food, I had never considered the importance of culinary heritage as one of the basic human rights - but the author makes a very convincing case. As he writes,

“Cuisine is more than an expression of what society eats on any given day; it’s a repository of people’s history handed down from generation to generation. Cuisine is akin to language. In its most rudimentary form, a cuisine is a way of one society communicating to another where its cultural, and in some cases territorial, boundaries begin and end. And like a language, a cuisine can change or even disappear when a community comes under intense pressure to integrate with another, more powerful group and is forced to surrender its identity”.

This thesis is supported by many real-life examples drawn from the author's direct experience as a human rights investigator working in many very different parts of the world. You will find some well-known stories here, such as the persecution of the Rohingya or Uyghurs, but also many relatively obscure cases, such as Tamils in Sri Lanka or coca growers in Bolivia.

Highly recommended for anyone interested in food and/or international affairs. This book will change your mind, you will never look at cooking as a mundane task again.

Thanks to the publisher, Crown, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me review this book. I’m a big fan of food histories and this was right up my alley. I was also happy to see several recipes included in the book as well. This book also tells how various groups are trying keep their ways of cooking and recipes alive. How history has changed so much and unfortunately what has been lost.

I really enjoyed this book. I look forward to reading more books by this author in the future. I would recommend this book to others.

I absolutely loved this book! It was such a captivating read, and I had a fantastic time diving into its pages. I definitely recommend it to anyone looking for something enjoyable and easy to read! Very easy recipes.

This book left a deep impression on me. The Last Sweet Bite is more than just a collection of stories and recipes—it’s a heartfelt tribute to cultures fighting to preserve their traditions in the face of conflict. The author treats every person he interviews with such care and respect, allowing their voices to shine, as well as a deep respect for every culture covered. I was moved by the resilience of these communities and fascinated by the history woven into their cuisines. It made me see food in a new light—not just as nourishment, but as identity, memory, and resistance. A truly beautiful and important read.