The Language of Food is an enthralling historical fiction novel, based around the life of Victorian poet and cookery book writer Eliza Acton (1799-1859). Outside the UK and Australia, the book has been published as Miss Eliza's English Kitchen: A Novel of Victorian Cookery and Friendship. The story is told through two perspectives, Eliza, born into a wealthy family who then loses it all and Anne, born into poverty with an alcoholic father and a Mother who has succumbed to dementia at an early age. The two meet when Eliza and her mother open a boardinghouse where Ann comes to work. As part of this French invasion, sometime in the thirteenth century, a word spelled variously flure, floure, flower, flour, or flowre first appeared in English, borrowed from the French word fleur, meaning “the blossom of a plant,” and by extension, “the best, most desirable, or choicest part of something.” [...] “Flower of wheat,” ... meant the very fine white flour created by repeatedly sifting the wheat through a fine-meshed cloth. Each pass removed more of the bran or germ, leaving a finer and whiter flour." This was a beautifully written and very engaging read for me right from the start. I enjoyed following the two women’s lives and both narratives. They two kind of run in continuum with each other since they are for the most part working together on the book, but there are segments where we also follow each of them individually as certain subplots unfold.

Interesting but even book that would be better as a magazine long-read. Why do menus or TV ads always use buzzwords to make foods sound better (juicy cuts of steak, fresh vegetables, locally-sourced products, etc.)? What's the origins of ketchup? Why do we propose a toast? A sumptuous banquet of a book that nourished me and satisfied me just as Eliza Acton’s meals would have... I adored it' Polly Crosby there are some unexpected, appreciated connections. i mean, how often do you think tupac turns up in linguistic tomes?Why do we eat toast for breakfast, and then toast to good health at dinner? What does the turkey we eat on Thanksgiving have to do with the country on the eastern Mediterranean? Can you figure out how much your dinner will cost by counting the words on the menu? Libations are still around too. Modern hiphop culture has a libationary tradition of "pouring one out" -- tipping out malt liquor on the ground before drinking, to honor a friend or relative who has passed away - - described in songs like Tupac Shakur's "Pour Out a Little Liquor." (It's especially appropriate that malt liquor, a fortified beer made by adding sugar before fermenting, is itself another descendent of shikaru.) The language of food helps us understand the interconnectedness of civilizations and the vast globalization that happened, not recently, as we might think, but centuries or millennia ago, all brought together by the most basic human pursuit: finding something good to eat. You might call it "EATymology." Eliza Acton’s original plan to become a poet came to an abrupt halt when a publisher dismissed her work and then had the audacity to suggest she write a cookery book. To make matters worse, her father suffered a reversal of fortune, prompting him to leave the country. Eliza, with limited options, reconsidered the publisher’s suggestion that she write a recipe book. I've noticed how the creation of verse mirrors the creations of the kitchen - the sense of being truly alive, the utter concentration so that one exists solely in the moment of exertion. These apply equally when I prepare a dish or when I write a recipe and must use the perfect prose." (pp.214-5)However, the women's contentedness is threatened when Eliza receives a marriage proposal from aging but sympathetic spice merchant Edwin Arnott. Should she accept his offer and submit to her pre-ordained future as a well-to-do society wife, thereby relinquishing any hope of the social and financial independence she craves? Or will a scandalous secret from her past threaten her future and all the plans she and Ann have?

Inspired by the little that is known of the life of poet, and pioneering cookery writer, Eliza Acton, and her assistant, Ann Kirby, The Language of Food (also published under the title Miss Eliza’s English Kitchen) is the third novel from British author, Annabel Abbs.Ann enjoys working under the guidance of Eliza, thriving in the kitchen, and even giving suggestions for mixing new ingredients when asked. Eliza had never cooked before but was now forced to. England has many exciting and new ingredients to use, and, in her experimentation, she was not afraid to try cooking foreign dishes with their spices and ingredients. The best ingredient in this story is the friendship between the twosome. As they cooked and chatted, I wanted to walk into that kitchen, grab a plate and join them. I am thinking in particular of that lovely French dinner that they linger over….. Based on the life of cookbook writer Eliza Acton, this is a really charming historical novel that’s full of gorgeous recipes and descriptions of food. At its core is the heart-warming story of the class-defying friendship between Eliza and Ann Kirby, her kitchen help” GOOD HOUSEKEEPING