I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti by Giulia Melucci

The title of this blog should say it all - I like books more than people. Those who know me might not think that's such a big deal given my distrust towards people in general, but it really does mean something. I promise.

This book was one of my favorite kinds - food combined with chick lit. Really, what could be better? The (few? imaginary?) male readers of this blog are probably thinking "Ummm...anything?" but I loved it...and I think you would too.

Melucci's story is autobiographical. It describes how she learned to cook through the important (yet failed) romantic relationships of her adult life. Her desire to be able to cook for the men in her life taught her the way around the kitchen. I know, I know, I get it. We're supposed to be educated, evolved women of 2009, no longer deriving pleasure from cooking for men...but I've gotta say, there is little I enjoy more than cooking for the loved ones in my life and watching their faces as they enjoy the food. I can burn an extra bra for that if you want, but I love it. And I loved that Melucci unapologetically wrote an entire book about how much she loved it. Granted, it wasn't entirely about how she loved to cook for men - rather it was about the effect her romantic relationships had on her evolving self - but it was honest and interesting.

She described the men in her life, their relationships, and the food she cooked for or with them. I enjoyed reading the recipes she included and her descriptions of how cooking made her feel. I am glad that I am able to say that as a reader, I appreciated learning more about her relationship with herself and her cooking than I did learning about her relationships with the men in her life. Granted, maybe it's just because I didn't think any of the men in the book sounded particularly appealing (one of them was over 60 years old) , but I think it says something about where I am in my life and what interests me. Something I like.

The book is a quick and easy read. It has food and sex. Quick, easy, food, sex. Now are the men interested?