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Are you craving some good books that involve food with the holidays coming soon.  The food novels are also novels about community, family and friendship because cooking brings people together. 


Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson 

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Black Cake book cover

Eleanor Bennett has died and left a strange inheritance to her children Benny and Byron.  She leaves a recording where she talks about family secrets that her children have never heard of before.  She also asks her children to sit down and share a piece of black cake when the time is right. What family secrets does Eleanor have? What is the secret of the black cake? 


Chocolat by Joanne Harris 

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Chocolat book cover

 Vianne Rocher moves to a small French town with her 6-year-old French daughter where she plans to open a chocolate shop. But she is opposed by pastor Francis Reynaud who does not like Vianne untraditional ways. He tries to get the chocolate shop closed and to run Vianne out of town. However, her chocolate shop is doing good things for the town. Will it succeed? 


Fried green tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg. 

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Fried green tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe book cover

 Evelyn Couch befriends Ninny Threadgoode who lives in a nursing home. Ninny ends up telling Evelyn stories about her life, family, and friends in the 1920s . Ninnie especially talks about the friendship between her sister in law  Iggie and Iggie best friend Ruth who run the Whistlestop CafĂ©. What types of adventures will Iggie and Ruth get into?  Will Ninnie and Evelyn help each become less lonely? Find out in this novel about family and friendship? 


The kitchen front by Jennifer Ryan 

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The kitchen front book cover

Audrey, Gwendoline, Zelda and Nell are competing in a BBC World War 11 cooking competition called the kitchen front. The winner will get to cohost a cooking tv show. Each woman desperately wants to win the competition for various reasons. Will the competition become cutthroat? Will the women find friendship and community among the other competitors or will they bring them further apart? 


Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus 

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Lessons in Chemistry book cover

Elizabeth Zott is a brilliant chemist in the 1960s who is also a single mother and host of a popular tv show Supper at Six. But Elizabetg is not the conventional cooking show host; she turns all her recipes into science and chemistry lessons. She also teaches her viewers to rebel. How will people react to Elizabeth getting her viewers to rebel? How did Elizabeth go from chemist to hosting a cooking show? Find out in this timely humorous novel about an unconventional heroine who makes her own path. 


Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquive 

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Like Water for Chocolate book cover

Tita wants to marry her lover Pedro but they cannot marry because Tita mother wants  her to take care of her until she dies. To stay in Tita life Pedro agrees to marry her older sister Rosaura. Tita also loves to cook and express herself through her cooking. Odd things tend to happen when Tita cooks, maybe even magical things.. .  Will Tita and Pedro every be able to marry? Will Tita ever learn how to disobey her mother?. Come find out in this emotional novel of magical realism that focuses on love , family and friendship.  


Sweetbitter by Stephanie Daniler 

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Sweetbitter book cover

Tess movies to New York city and gets what is supposed to be a temporary job in a Brooklyn restaurant. Along the way, she gets involved with a bartender named Jake and a waitress named Simone. Jake and Simone have an unusual connection to each other. She also became intoxicated to working in a restaurant and with a restaurant’s lifestyle. Will Tess be able to handle the restaurant lifestyle? Find out in this bittersweet novel about finding yourself. 


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Author: Caitlin J.