book review: "What She Ate"...

... written by Laura Shapiro, published by Viking, 2017. It is subtitled: 'Six remarkable women and the food that tells their stories'.  About some very different, well known personalities, most of whom had considerable impact on society and food consumption.  Some made their reputations and fortunes by what they did in the kitchen, while others cared little about recipes, planning or production of meals. Notable people from history, as well as some from more recent years. Interesting, fascinating in the same way we enjoy peeking into the personal lives of those who are today's media focus, plus a sprinkling of truly bizarre, like serving deviled eggs as a main course at the President's table for formal dining. Maybe not a State dinner,  but still... During the hard times of the 1930's , but really....?!

The women who were so thoroughly researched include Dorothy Wordsworth who was the sister of the famous English poet, William.  Dorothy was devoted to her brother, lived with him until he married, then became a housekeeper for  a nephew, eventually dying with dementia. Then there is Eleanor Roosevelt, where Shapiro relates that "on many nights, dinner was in the White House was served in two different rooms." Another of those women was the mistress of Adolph Hitler, Eva Braun, who has been largely overlooked by historians.  More currently, the final section was about Helen Gurley Brown,  the long-time editor of "Cosmopolitan" magazine. Brown was a compulsive dieter, and likely victim of various eating disorders, though she was vocally devoted to her image of 'thin'.

I read a review of this book and thought it would be interesting. These six women were unique, from different centuries and backgrounds, but all left a written trail to follow: diaries, journals, shopping lists, recipes, correspondence to friends. The author obviously invested a great deal of time in sleuthing out the resources she unearthed to discover details of their lives. A bit slow at times, when the subject was obscure, but definitely an enjoyable read.