When (Literary) Worlds Collide

Blood, Bones & Butter

I just recently read this fantastic book by Gabrielle Hamilton called Blood, Bones & Butter. If you want to indoctrinate yourself into the world of cooking, how to be a gourmet chef, and perhaps get a glimpse of life in the world of restaurant kitchens, this book is it.  Gabrielle is a chef whom I'd originally seen on the PBS show, Mind of a Chef. That show, by the way, is phenomenal. Hosted by the late Anthony Bourdain, the episodes are short and sweet and stuffed full of new foods, cooking techniques, and recipes from all over the world.

Gabrielle's down-to-earth way of cooking, speaking, and her style in general, are what drew me to her. She also happens to be a literature graduate student, so from the moment I heard her speak, it felt like I'd known her for years. But, I suppose it feels that way to all who listen to her. She's that familiar and comfortable. She's someone you'd want to have coffee with.

Are you familiar with a famous person about which you feel the same? It could be a chef, musician, actor, or singer. It doesn't happen often, but when it does, you click with their career and way of presenting themselves. And though you may not know them, a part of you does -- that intrinsic, silent one.

Beverly, Right Here

While reading her book, I was also reading Kate DiCamillo's latest book, Beverly, Right Here. This book too is fantastic, as is all of her writings. She's a middle-grade author, but I dare you to read any of her works and not think they pertain more to adults.

In this book, the lead protagonist's name is Beverly. She is head-strong, feisty, and extremely observant (with an extensive vocabulary for a twelve-year-old). She is also alone, abandoned by her family, and left to fend for herself as she transcends into a teenager.

As I was a quarter way into the book, I realized why it felt like I already knew her: it was Gabrielle. It was the grown-up, famous, television-worthy, book-writing celebrity chef Gabrielle. And it was my perception of her that now lay on a child-like version named Beverly.

Has this ever happened to you before? Where the characters and backgrounds of one story could literally be swapped for another story? In this case, we have a grown-up world contrasting severely with a child's world. And though I don't know the real person Gabrielle, I think if she read this book by DiCamillo, she would agree with my take.

I also think Beverly would greatly approve of Gabrielle.

I know it doesn't happen often, this interchanging of characters, because not only do you have to get the right books at the right time, but you have to be reading them at the same time. I read enough to remember some books and enough to forget a lot! So, the real-time evolution of both stories cemented my thought process on it.

I think it's also good to pay attention to why this happened. Perhaps it's creating a character in my own mind, one that needs to be put to paper. Perhaps, it means this character reminds me of someone I need to reach out to. Perhaps it means I need to meet (or will meet) both Kate DiCamillo and Gabrielle Hamilton. (And if that's the case, I'm all for it!) It's being aware of what we read and how it relates to us that as a reader or writer, will benefit us as future readers and writers. Can I use this? Can I learn from this? Can I apply the lessons learned or experienced in the story to my own life?

As we live through this unprecedented time with this Covid-19 pandemic, the world has traveled back in time. We have gone back to a simpler "slow-living" time where cooking is normal, baking is extra normal and reading is an integral part of everyday life. If our world keeps anything from this pandemic, it would be a life filled with renaissance living: very full, very creative, and very full of family.

Full of the things that matter.

-HJS