What we thought: Kitchens of the Great Midwest by J. Ryan Stradal

Evening Book Club August 2016

Kitchens of the Great Midwest

J. Ryan Stradal

“...have a house without a pie, be ashamed until you die.”
― J. Ryan Stradal, Kitchens of the Great Midwest

Kitchens of the Great Midwest, is a story of how regional food is the background of our lives and forms lasting impressions of comfort and home. The discussion centered on the characters and how they fit into the life of Eva Thorvald, the girl with a once-in-a-generation palate. It continued throughout the evening with comments about the how did the characters fit into the story. There was confusion about the brief introduction of some of them and why they were essential to Eva’s story, but most said they liked Eva. Some said there were too many of them and that a few plot lines were not necessary to the story. Others said the characters reappeared later and tied up loose ends and left some questions to be answered by the reader. This is how Stradal writes, quirky and jumping from one situation to another. Readers are forced to fill in the blanks and make up their own stories. 

Most readers appreciated the humorous situations but were put off by the reality of gritty living conditions of rural life in Minnesota. It was decided that the author wrote about the culture of Minnesota and how food reflected the tastes and history of the people who live there.  All readers agreed that they liked the parts about some of the food, especially the local tomatoes and sweet corn as well as the story about Pat’s bars. Readers enjoyed one member’s recreation of Pat’s chocolate peanut butter bars for the group’s snack.

The most intense discussion was reserved for the end of the evening when everyone had strong opinions about Eva’s pop-up dinner party with the non-refundable $120 reservation, $10,000 cost for two people, and  three year wait with no choice of date. The menu was good, but the portions were small and there were no substitutions or seconds available. Readers questioned whether the diners were deliberately chosen for that particular evening and how they were part of Eva’s life. Did Eva know her mother would be at the dinner and how would she have known?

Listed here are books readers suggested.  The Beans of Egypt Maine, Caroline Chute , Shotgun Lovesongs, Nickolas Butler, Jan Karon’s Mitford Cookbook and Kitchen Reader, edited by Martha MacIntosh.

Have you read Kitchens of the Great Midwest? What did you think? Please share your thoughts in comments.