A delightful, witty, humorous and serious book about the way we live now, as expressed in our relationship with food and gardens.
If you can manage to simultaneously practice laziness and purity you will eat pretty well, because the food will be simple and good.'
In prose as sensuous and seductive as a fine wine and a tasty dish, Marion Halligan takes us with her on a wandering journey into her novels, between past and present, across continents and on long sea voyages, with even a sojourn or two in France. The Taste of Memory has us sitting in gardens - or labouring in them - as well as at tables. And it celebrates the great oral tradition of cooks throughout time who pass on recipes out of the love of friends and food.
The Taste of Memory invites us to look at the world and find it good.
WINNER 2004: Gourmand World Cookbook Awards in the English - Rest of the World section for the Best Food Literature Book category.
Marion Halligan is an award-winning novelist, essayist and short story writer. Her novel, The Fog Garden was shortlisted for a swag of distinguished literary prizes including the Commonwealth Writers' Prize and her previous novel, The Golden Dress, was shortlisted for the Dublin IMPAC Prize, and the Miles Franklin Award. She has also received the Age Book of the Year, the ACT Book of the Year, the Nita B. Kibble Award, the Steele Rudd Award, the Braille Book of the Year, the 3M Talking Book of the Year and the Geraldine Pascall prize for critical writing. Marion Halligan's previous books are the novels The Point, Spider Cup, Lovers' Knots and Wishbone; many books of essays, non-fiction and short stories, including Collected Stories, Eat My Words, Out of the Picture, Cockles of the Heart; a children's book, The Midwife's Daughters; and Those Women who Go to Hotels, co-written with Lucy Frost.