Blurb

An unprecedented behind-the-scenes view into the life of Anthony Bourdain from the people who knew him best.

When Anthony Bourdain died in June 2018, fans around the globe came together to celebrate the life of an inimitable man who had dedicated his life to traveling nearly everywhere (and eating nearly everything), shedding light on the lives and stories of others. His impact was outsized and his legacy has only grown since his death.

Now, for the first time, we have been granted a look into Bourdain’s life through the stories and recollections of his closest friends and colleagues. Laurie Woolever, Bourdain’s longtime assistant and confidante, interviewed nearly a hundred of the people who shared Tony’s orbit – from members of his kitchen crews to his writing, publishing, and television partners, to his daughter and his closest friends – in order to piece together a remarkably full, vivid, and nuanced vision of Tony’s life and work.

From his childhood and teenage days, to his early years in New York, through the genesis of his game-changing memoir Kitchen Confidential to his emergence as a writing and television personality, and in the words of friends and colleagues including Eric Ripert, José Andrés, Nigella Lawson, and W. Kamau Bell, as well as family members including his brother and his late mother, we see the many sides of Tony – his motivations, his ambivalence, his vulnerability, his blind spots, and his brilliance.

Unparalleled in scope and deeply intimate in its execution, with a treasure trove of photos from Tony’s life, Bourdain: The Definitive Oral Biography is a testament to the life of a remarkable man in the words of the people who shared his world.

Review

Most of us know the story of Anthony Bourdain. This oral history (it is mostly a collection of interviews loosely organized) lets you get to know Tony. As told by those close to him, following his death in 2018. It gives us a view of a man who managed to be lonely while beloved by all. It makes me want to dive back into his world, even if it is with a sad heart. And I especially appreciated the last voice we hear in the book being the voice of the daughter.

I typically write a little more in my reviews. But the truth is I finished this one a few weeks ago, and did not take my normal notes as I mostly just went along for the ride here. A poignant, somber ride.

4 of 5 stars.