Three years ago, Stanley Tucci gave us one of the most captivating and endearing modern food memoirs with Taste: My Life Through Food, which recounted childhood family meals as well as his battle with oral cancer. His new book, out this week, offers a deep dive into one gastronomical year of his life.
What I Ate in One Year (and Related Thoughts) delivers everything that fans of the actor-slash-foodie have come to love — menus described in scrumptious detail, juicy tidbits of celebrity life, shameless name dropping, wine-soaked happy hours, and Tucci’s signature dry humor and curmudgeonly attitude. Only this time, he arranges everything in a classic diary structure, beginning in January of 2023 and ending with a postscript written earlier this year.
As with any journal, the entries vary in length and topic, depending on where the writer is and who he’s with. We accompany Tucci to the Italian set of the new Edward Berger film, “Conclave” — coincidentally, also out this month — and to Guy Ritchie’s estate in the English countryside. He describes birthday celebrations with Woody Harrelson and Matt Damon, and quiet family dinners with his wife and young children. But the central focus is always food — glorious food — lots of it Italian, most of it homemade, and some of it in convenient recipe form, so you can attempt your own paloma or pasta sauce and pretend you’re cavorting with Hollywood elite.
Once again, the audio version is narrated by Tucci himself, and a great way to take in this year-in-the-life memoir. Because no one describes food — and especially Italian food — quite like Stanley Tucci. His passion and expertise come through in every page and each delicious bite.