Like the savory, simple dishes she favored, M. F. K. Fisher's writing
was often "short, stylish, concentrated in flavor, and varied in form,"
writes Joan Reardon in her introduction to this eclectic, lively
collection. Magazine writing launched and helped to sustain Fisher's
long, illustrious career and in these 57 pieces, we experience again the
inimitable voice of the woman widely known to have elevated food writing
to a literary art.
A Stew or a Story covers five decades of Fisher's writing for such
notable and diverse publications as Gourmet, Bon Appetit, Ladies
Home Journal, Atlantic Monthly, Harper's Bazaar, The New York
Times, The New Yorker, and Vogue. But collected here also are
articles nearly impossible to find from lesser-known, more ephemeral
magazines. Essays on people, places, and of course food, mix here with
delightful fiction to become a delectable feast.