The Hungry Mother: Recipes for Recovery and Life in the Kitchen

Jane Fox’s “The Hungry Mother: Recipes for Recovery and Life in the Kitchen,” is a cross between Matthew Perry’s autobiographical tell-all, “Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing,” and Nora Ephron’s roman a clef, “Heartburn.” It is a brutally candid and fiercely compelling account of how cooking helped a nice Jewish girl from the suburbs overcome the demon of addiction compounded by a husband’s betrayal.Like Perry, she opts for a non-linear approach to relay her trajectory from addiction to recovery, a technique that some readers may find challenging. And in a nod to Ephron, Fox sprinkles a variety of comfort-food recipes throughout the book, providing a welcome leavening to the harrowing intensity of her tortuous trip along the road to sobriety.

The book is an honest look at one woman's recovery but anyone who has been there can totally relate.I wasn't reading it for the recipes, but they are terrific, unique and delicious. The 'tips' for remaining sober are creative and can make the journey easier. Well written, oftentimes funny, and very heartfelt.