Always absorbing, often very funny, and surprisingly affecting, Wrestling with Gravy is a rich and wry memoir, seasoned with the zest of cooking, family, conversationâ€"and lounging around in tryptophanic stupors. With droll self-effacement and a sharp eye for detail, former New York Times food columnist Jonathan Reynolds shares wonderful characters and anecdotes: He relives the time that his father made a move on his girlfriend during a meal at Maxim's in Paris; extols the surprising virtues of baseball stadium cuisine (except in New York); and recounts how he once whipped up a seductive meal for a woman, only to have her excuse herself after dessert because she had another date lined up. Even on a glum Christmas day in New York City, and at the deathbed of his dear cousin the actress Lee Remick, food offers solace and a cathartic sense of home. Like a truly great meal, Wrestling with Gravy will entertain and satisfy any reader's appetite.