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Book Of Salt
by Truong, Monique
- Used
- Paperback
- first
- Condition
- Vg In Wraps. Lightly Worn. Creases In Cover. Pages: 261.
- ISBN 10
- 0618446885
- ISBN 13
- 9780618446889
- Seller
-
Vancouver, Washington, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co./Mariner. Vg In Wraps. Lightly Worn. Creases In Cover. Pages: 261.. 2004. 1st Thus.. Trade Paperback..
Synopsis
"[He] came to us through an advertisement that I had in desperation put in the newspaper. It began captivatingly for those days: 'Two American ladies wish . . .' " It was these lines in The Alice B. Toklas Cook Book that inspired The Book of Salt, a brilliant first novel by acclaimed Vietnamese American writer Monique Truong. In Paris, in 1934, Bính has accompanied his employers, Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas, to the train station for their departure to America. His own destination is unclear: will he go with "the Steins," stay in France, or return to his native Vietnam? Bính has fled his homeland in disgrace, leaving behind his malevolent charlatan of a father and his self-sacrificing mother. For five years, he has been the live-in cook at the famous apartment at 27 rue de Fleurus. Before Bính's decision is revealed, his mesmerizing narrative catapults us back to his youth in French-colonized Vietnam, his years as a galley hand at sea, and his days turning out fragrant repasts for the doyennes of the Lost Generation. Bính knows far more than the contents of the Steins' pantry: he knows their routines and intimacies, their manipulations and follies. With wry insight, he views Stein and Toklas ensconced in blissful domesticity. But is Bính's account reliable? A lost soul, he is a late-night habitué of the Paris demimonde, an exile and an alien, a man of musings and memories, and, possibly, lies. Love is the prize that has eluded him, from his family to the men he has sought out in his far-flung journeys, often at his peril. Intricate, compelling, and witty, the novel weaves in historical characters, from Stein and Toklas to Paul Robeson and Ho Chi Minh, with remarkable originality. Flavors, seas, sweat, tears — The Book of Salt is an inspired feast of storytelling riches.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Vintage-Books
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- MASTER196572I
- Title
- Book Of Salt
- Author
- Truong, Monique
- Format/Binding
- Trade Paperback.
- Book Condition
- Used - Vg In Wraps. Lightly Worn. Creases In Cover. Pages: 261.
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Edition
- 1st Thus.
- Binding
- Paperback
- ISBN 10
- 0618446885
- ISBN 13
- 9780618446889
- Publisher
- Houghton Mifflin Co./Mariner
- Place of Publication
- Boston
- Date Published
- 2004
- Keywords
- Literature
Terms of Sale
Vintage-Books
Please indicate your preferred shipping method! Orders within the continental USA are shipped via media mail, unless otherwise arranged by you. We can also ship via USPS Priority Mail (uninsured).
Because of the USA situation with COVID and issues with USPS, we are currently shipping to USA addresses only.
If no shipping method is requested, we will ship via media mail (US Only). Washington state residents MUST add sales tax as per your local rate. All shipments are packed as carefully as possible. Larger books will cost more to ship Returns: You must notify us and return the book to us within 10 business days to receive a refund, with the item the same condition as when shipped. Shipping costs will not be refunded.
About the Seller
Vintage-Books
Biblio member since 2004
Vancouver, Washington
About Vintage-Books
Welcome to Vintage Books, an independent family owned bookstore and mail order business. We have been serving book-lovers and auto enthusiasts for 35 years. We've always put our priority where our hearts are: the best book selection we can offer and the most knowledgeable, dedicated staff. Our staff are all passionate readers-- the diversity of our preferences can be seen on our "staff choices" shelves. We work hard to make your book buying experience easy, and treat your books with the care we would treat our own. If you were to visit our physical store, you will find us to be pretty low key. Plain pine bookcases, old rugs, old chairs and a small couch in the children's area. Blank vertical surfaces are covered with old ads, sayings, booklists and displayed books. We are unable to list our extensive selection of used paperbacks, some of the automotive items and hardbacks on-line, because our inventory changes daily.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Trade Paperback
- Used to indicate any paperback book that is larger than a mass-market paperback and is often more similar in size to a hardcover...
- 1st Thus
- This indicates that this is not the first appearance of a book in print, but that this is the first appearance in a...
- VG
- Very Good condition can describe a used book that does show some small signs of wear - but no tears - on either binding or...
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