Taste by Stanley Tucci

I like to listen to audiobooks while I ride my bicycle. Usually, I listen to books I've already read so that I don't miss anything in the plot if I get distracted. One of the exceptions that I make is memoirs. It is usually easier to keep up with the story being told and my favorite way to experience a memoir is through the voice of the person. My latest listen is Taste by Stanley Tucci. I have long enjoyed the parts he's played in movies, but now that I've listened to his book, I absolutely adore him!

Tucci tells about growing up in New York state with Italian parents and grandparents who loved food more than life itself. He shares family recipes and draws the listener into the family kitchen so that they feel like they are really there at the table. In one scene, he describes trying to leave his grandparents' house after a visit and the argument that ensued when his grandmother was trying to get his mother to take a large bag of food with her. I would try to describe it to you here, but that would only ruin the joy of you hearing Tucci telling the story himself.

He also talks about his first wife, who died from cancer, and his current wife with whom he lives in London. He talks about his acting career a little, his famous friends a bit, and even shares his own fight with cancer. Every story he tells drips with love, and also butter. He says only the nicest things and always in a way that you can tell he truly means it. I cannot recommend this book enough. Please add it to your list, and if possible, choose the audio version.