ENCORA RUTH REICHL!

I've just requested a long list of books from the library, most of them new and not yet available - but the book I really want to read is Ruth Reichl's new one, Garlic and Sapphires, the Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise. I want to read it so badly that I think I'm going to make the long trek down to Salisbury this afternoon and buy it at B & N.  Reichle is currently the editor of Gourmet Magazine, so of course she writes on food.  Her two previous books, Tender to the Bone and Comfort Me With Apples, are on my all-time top favorite books list.  The new one is about her adventures as restaurant critic for the NYT, the two earlier ones are from her foodie days in California, Chez Panisse and all that jazz.  Truly though, this woman could write about anything, and I'd read every word.

Here's some intro to her, if you don't already know her.  Read Dave Weich's interview with her at Powell's, for a delicious taste of Ruth.  And here is what Publisher's Weekly has to say about Garlic and Sapphires:

Review:

"As the New York Times's restaurant critic for most of the 1990s, Reichl had what some might consider the best job in town; among her missions were evaluating New York City's steakhouses, deciding whether Le Cirque deserved four stars and tracking down the best place for authentic Chinese cuisine in Queens. Thankfully, the rest of us can live that life vicariously through this vivacious, fascinating memoir. The book — Reichl's third — lifts the lid on the city's storied restaurant culture from the democratic perspective of the everyday diner. Reichl creates wildly innovative getups, becoming Brenda, a red-haired aging hippie, to test the food at Daniel; Chloe, a blonde divorce, to evaluate Lespinasse; and even her deceased mother, Miriam, to dine at 21. Such elaborate disguises — which include wigs, makeup, thrift store finds and even credit cards in other names — help Reichl maintain anonymity in her work, but they also do more than that. 'Every restaurant is a theater,' she explains. Each one 'offer[s] the opportunity to become someone else, at least for a little while. Restaurants free us from mundane reality.' Reichl's ability to experience meals in such a dramatic way brings an infectious passion to her memoir. Reading this work — which also includes the finished reviews that appeared in the newspaper, as well as a few recipes — ensures that the next time readers sit down in a restaurant, they'll notice things they've never noticed before. Agent, Kathy Robbins. (On sale Apr. 11)" Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)