I knew I was going to be a literary foodie

At a young age, I was destined to be a foodie. (Completely disregard the fact that I was a horribly picky eater, refusing to eat any pizza besides cheese pizza, turning my nose up at all beef products, and was convinced that drinking water would probably result in a sudden and painful poisoning. Truth be told, I'm not sure how my mom and dad put up with my antics)

But anyway, I was predisposed to be a lover of food. Just not in my early years. My favorite children's book, as a kidlet, was the classic Tawny, Scrawny Lion.

The idea behind the story is that the lion was always hungry because he would always have to chase down animals for his meals. The camels, bears, elephants, and zebras that were the lion's dinner, sneakily asked the cute little bunny rabbit to try and convince the lion to stop eating the big animals for supper. The rabbit makes the lion carrot soup and then the lion is no longer hungry because he has delicious carrot soup to eat!

I used to wander around my backyard with a bucket, gathering rocks, leaves and berries in an effort to recreate the rabbits' "carrot soup." I also vividly recall forcing my little neighbor friends to play this game with me. What can I say, I've always been a bit bossy :)

When I started reading longer chapter books, my favorite foodie book was Laura Ingalls Wilder's Farmer Boy. My parents can attest, I couldn't read this book without first having to find a snack. Those pioneer farmers, man, did they eat good! Things like baked potatoes roasted in bonfire ashes ... freshly churned butter ... pies. Dear me. I should also note that in one of the other Little House on the Prairie books she mentions making candy using maple syrup and snow. I can't tell you how many times I made a mess in the yard, trying to make candy this same way.

This was a book I read in 4th grade. This book, in hindsight, is totally implausible. I mean really, how many parents do you know who would consent to letting their child go live completely by himself on the side of a mountain? But I thought this book was soooo cool. The main character carves out the side of tree for his home, teaches a falcon how to hunt, and eats turtle soup! Totally awesome.

And my love for foodie books hasn't stopped. Last year I read and reviewed in this post The Dirty Life: On Farming, Food and Love.

My friend Nicole just lent me French Women Don't Get Fat. It combines recipes with non-diet advice. I'm looking forward to reading through this!