Description

THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

From Erin French, owner and chef of the critically acclaimed The Lost Kitchen, comes a life-affirming memoir about survival, renewal and the pleasure of bringing joy to people through food.

Erin French grew up barefoot on a farm, fell in love with food as a teenager working the line at her dad’s diner and found her calling as a professional chef at her tiny restaurant The Lost Kitchen, tucked into a 19th-century mill-now a world-renowned dining destination.

In Finding Freedom in the Lost Kitchen, Erin tells her story of multiple rock-bottoms, from medical student to pregnant teen, of survival as a jobless single mother, of pills that promised release but delivered addiction, of a man who seemed to offer salvation but ripped away her very sense of self. And of her son who became her guiding light as she slowly rebuilt her personal and culinary life around the solace she found in food-as a source of comfort, a sense of place, as a way of creating community and making something of herself, despite seemingly impossible odds.

Set against the backdrop of rural Maine and its lushly intense, bountiful seasons, Erin French’s rollercoaster memoir reveals struggles that have taken every ounce of her strength to overcome, and the passion and courage behind the fairytale success of The Lost Kitchen.

Publisher Review

'A master chef and owner of the destination restaurant The Lost Kitchen, in Freedom, Maine, French overcame addiction and grueling hardship on her way to success. Her memoir tells all.' * ?New York Times * "Readers will root for French and will be fascinated by her efforts at survival, redemption, and rejuvenation. Notably heavier on insight and lighter on hubris than the average chef memoir, this will speak to both the brokenhearted and those with kitchen dreams of their own." * Publishers Weekly * "It is a terrific book. I couldn't put it down... Finding Freedom in the Lost Kitchen is a page-turning, tear-provoking recollection of a life that was anything but perfect...Talk about a story of resilience...Erin French is a life force, a magnet and a mirror for others." * HARRY SMITH, NBC Today Show *