The Man Who Ate Too Much: The Life of James Beard

James Beard, a renowned authority on cooking and eating, created an American cuisine based on passion and delight, influenced by his struggles as a closeted gay man. John Birdsall's biography, "The Man Who Ate Too Much," reveals Beard's journey from loneliness to acceptance and his contribution to the nation's food culture.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 480 pages
Publication date: 18 March 2022
Publisher: WW Norton & Co

After the Second World War, a newly affluent United States sought its own gourmet culture, comfortable with the French international style of Escoffier but also distinctly American. Enter James Beard, the authority on cooking and eating, his larger-than-life presence and collection of whimsical bow ties were synonymous with the nation's food for decades, even after his death in 1985.

In the first biography of Beard in twenty-five years, acclaimed writer John Birdsall argues that Beard's struggles as a closeted gay man directly influenced his creation of an American cuisine. Starting in the 1920s, Beard escaped loneliness and banishment by traveling abroad to places where people ate for pleasure, not utility, and found acceptance at home by crafting an American ethos of food likewise built on passion and delight. Informed by never-before-tapped correspondence and lush with details of a golden age of home cooking, The Man Who Ate Too Much is a commanding portrait of a towering figure who still represents the best in food.

Weight: 368g
Dimension: 211 x 140 x 28 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781324020240