HEAT An Amateur's Adventures as Kitchen Slave, Line Cook, Pasta-Maker, and Apprentice to a Dante-Quoting Butcher in Tuscany

Foodies, Mario Batali fans (you know who you are), and anyone who eats in restaurants will enjoy this account of the author's behind-the-scenes kitchen experiences. It is at once hilarious, sympathetic, technical, and absurd, but always interesting and educational. Michael Kramer's low-key voice is easy to follow as he reads at a leisurely pace. However, he needs to be more animated, or at least more energetic, especially with the nd outrageous parts of the book. Furthermore, he needs to emphasize the key words in the funny passages, and he should use pauses more effectively. What we get is a nice read, but it could have been so much more. R.I.G. © AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine [Published: OCT/ NOV 06]