Welcome to Litsy!

Someone told me that books that make you feel things you don't like are actually good for you, growth or something like that.... so many times I thought of bailing on this book but her voice was so enchanting and it was out of my comfort zone to read so I finished it but was still a so so read for me.
I've never seen Top Chef so went into this read knowing nothing about her.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I‘ve watched Top Chef off & on for several seasons, but have never been a massive Padma fan, admittedly because I knew nothing about her. Growing up, she had one foot in America, the other in India, not feeling as though she fit in either place. There‘s depth to her story. She‘s more than a pretty face & a ropy scar. Here, Padma lays her life bare discussing her health & relationships with candor. There isn‘t much sugar-coating, if any.

I've had this on my Kindle for years, and I think I thought she'd be shallow or full of herself so I didn't crack it open. Instead I found Padma Lakshmi to be refreshingly open, honest, and direct about her relationships, health issues, career, and her love for food. She starts in 2007 when she moves out of the home she shared with Salman Rushdie, then goes back in time before catching us up to the almost present.

▶️🎧 Really enjoying Padma‘s memoir so far. I started listening to it in honor of the Top Chef Kentucky finale tomorrow night. My good friend Chef Sara Bradley is a finalist!! 👩🏻‍🍳🍽👏🏻 I‘m so proud of her. Freight House, her restaurant in our hometown Paducah Ky, is the first farm-to-table in the area plus it‘s an impressive bourbon bar. 🥃 Great things are happening for Sara!! It‘s been a blast watching her on TV!

The title of this book is aptly named! It really was all about love, loss and what was eaten. I love Padma on Top Chef so I was eager to read this and really enjoyed it. There were moments where I think she was trying to hard to prove how smart she was with her words, but it was great getting to know her more through this audio book. She has the most soothing voice ever so if you need something calming, read this. #femaleauthor #food #love

Any guesses what books might be wrapped up as blind dates?
Left: The story of one mother‘s tragic loss and one man‘s last chance for solution.
Right: Breakups burn! What better way of dressing your emotional wounds than with your favourite foods?
[Seen at a used bookstore/coffee shop in Edmonton yesterday.]

Ive kind of always thought she's an interesting person when Ive seen her in interviews and read articles about her. Her history, stance on women‘s health issues and her foodie/homecook status made me hope for the best with this one.
Unfortunately, I could only find her interesting for about 40 pages before her writing just really turned me off. Sorry, Padma.

I have to do a few #Recommendsday posts today, last one I promise! I picked this one up for a challenge two years ago, and was pleasantly surprised. I have never followed her career and knew almost nothing about her going in, and although some have bashed this book because of info on her former, famous husband (again I had no idea going in), I found the book honest, and with a lot of female empowerment as she found her own way and her own voice...

These kindle deals get me every time. That one click button is dangerous. But $1.99.

Just started. Padma's doing a nice job reading her book so far. She's got a pleasant voice 👍🏽

I read this for my #nonfictionfood/drink for the #litsyreadingchallenge. I'm a long time fan of Top Chef and really enjoyed this memoir, especially her childhood memories of her time in India. She also spent much of her twenties traveling through Europe when she was modeling, learning to enjoy the cuisine of many different cultures.

Great memoir from Padma! I love Top Chef so always intended to pick this up, but didn't expect such an interesting life story. She jumped around a bit but overall this was really entertaining.

I was so excited about my new wireless headphones, but I experienced the downside today when they died 5 minutes into my #audiorun. 🤦🏼‍♀️ Thank goodness my gym has TVs to keep me entertained! I really am enjoying this memoir though, and Padma reads it beautifully.

Sooo... I think I thought this book was something else when I impulsively checked out the audiobook from my library. Having read "Joseph Anton" when it came out, I had serious reservations about this book, as Rushdie had nothing good to say about his 4th wife. But there are 2 sides to every story and I'm so glad I decided to get this one as I fell in love with Lakshmi. Her love of food didn't hurt, as I've always been an adventurous foodie myself.

This book has been wonderful AND has recipes inside!! I can't wait to try some of them out.

I write these up in my journal but I though I could mix it differently here. Friday's inbox/outbox. #fridayinboxoutbox

I've been meaning to pick this one up for a while, and I came across a used copy today. Perfect timing, considering #TheSatanicVersesBuddyRead is underway! Such an interesting examination of #family in this book, both Lakshmi's own and as a theme. #jubilantjuly

My pick for the 📚 #ReadingWomenMonth challenge 📚Day 28: #BooksAboutFood is: Love, Loss, and What We Ate by #PadmaLakshmi #TBR #Memoirs #BeautifulCover 🙌🏼

Note: Day 30 is now #FridayReads

Oh hey.. Padma got me a bingo! Now to go for the cover all 📚 #litsyreadingchallenge

⭐️⭐️⭐️ I enjoyed the first half of the book and her memories of growing up in India and NYC and her modeling/acting career, but that made the second half of the book so much more disappointing. She was way too good for all the men in her life and she forgave their gross behavior way too easily 😕 I could however listen to Padma Lakshmi recite recipes all day. #audiobook #memoir #celebrity

#audiobook read by the author on my way Up North to our little farm. I hadn't known that Padma Lakshmi was married to Salaman Rushdie. I'm mildly tempted to refer to him now as her ex instead of as the famous author 😝 #memoir #food

I knew very little about her other than her being married to Salman Rushdie and Top Chef which I've never seen but this was a $1.99 ebook purchase #becauseofLitsy. Found the India culture and foodie parts interesting but her personal life left a bad taste in my mouth. Not trying to judge, but her saying that men do this all the time when she was two-timing (and oops, got pregnant w/o being sure which was the father) made me 😬. Almost a pan!

Every time I read a food memoir I remember how much I love food memoirs.

I know this got mixed reviews but this was everything I wanted from a memoir! She was so honest and I found her life incredibly interesting! #favoritememior #GIVEAWAYTHETRUTH

So I've been listening to Padma Lakshmi's memoir on audiobook and she's talking about her relationship with Salman Rushdie. I've tried to read The Ground Beneath Her Feet (although that was quite a few years ago) and didn't finish it. But I would like to try again, probably with a different book. Any suggestions of which Rushdie book would be a good one to read?

Stayed up way too late last night finishing this one because I just didn't want to put it down. I loved it! Padma weaves in the past with the present and provides a vivid and genuine account of her life so far. I like her even more now than I already did from watching Top Chef. If you like celebrity memoirs, I highly recommend this one. Cheers! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Bedtime reading for the last few nights. Over halfway through and loving this one. Padma is honest and genuine which makes for a great memoir.

I couldn't resist ordering this book from Amazon after finishing this season of Top Chef. Getting to read a sample on my kindle makes me even more excited to get the hard copy! #memoir #nonfiction

A sad and interesting memoir by Top Chef's Padma Lakshmi. Quite interesting if your a fan of Lakshmi herself, but be prepared for a bit of privileged whining.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1915891004

#bookstagram #booksandcoffee #books #bookreview #padmalakshmi #audiobook

#currentlyreading

I've always had mixed feelings about Lakshmi as a tv host. She's beautiful and mysterious, but I've often found her a bit cold. This book has changed my mind about that totally. She's lived a very interesting life, and I enjoyed reading this. I also loved hearing about her family and the close relationship she has with them. Oh. And the food. I love reading/listening to smart people talk about delicious food, and this totally fits that bill.🥘

I had a great time listening to this audiobook. I didn't know anything about Lakshmi going into it and I really enjoyed hearing her story - she's a woman getting shit done and I love that. She's a wonderful narrator and wonderful to listen to. I think the book could have been trimmed a little, but who am I to dictate how someone should tell their life story?

I visited my local botanical gardens today for the first time. The wintry weather made me seek out a warm refuge. I was delighted to find several of these little nooks that invite guests to sit and read for awhile amongst the quail, tortoises and peaceful waterfalls. There's even a little free library! I'll be coming back soon!

As someone with a lot of scars, this definitely resonates. 💕💕

#day26 #readjanuary #autobiography For someone who usually has a diet of mostly fiction... I seem to have read an awful lot of memoirs this month! Born a Crime on audio was amazing, and Alan Cummings memoir in pictures was as fun and off-beat as expected... just started Padma... I'm as big top chef fan so thought I'd give it a try.... 📚💕

You've just finished the #24in48readathon. What do you do?
A. Clean your house. Sure, you got the laundry done, but it's a mess!
B. Go to the grocery. You're going to need food next week, right?
C. Start a new book!

Uh, C. I'm a hopeless reader! 🤣🤣📚

A shout out to Padma Lakshmi for talking on this march day about endometriosis, and the importance of Planned Parenthood, and women's healthcare issues.

Great book too, by the way!

I really enjoyed listening to this - Lakshmi has a lovely voice and as someone who also has endometriosis it meant a lot to listen to her speak so eloquently and honestly about her experience with it. The best bits were obviously the food tho 🥗🍔🌭🍕🍤🧀🥒🥕🌽🍆🌶🍯🍿🍩🍪🍭

I love Top Chef; I had not considered the amount of food the judges sometimes have to eat, particularly at the beginning of each season when there are often 16 contestants.

I enjoyed this book. I especially liked all the exploration of Indian culture and I really identified with her when she described living in two different worlds but not belonging to either! The one down point for me was that some of the food tie ins were a little forced. Also if you don't like memoirs where people explain their thought process behind their (bad) decision making, because it just sounds like excuses, then maybe skip this.

Winter vacation read number seven! If you are looking for an interesting food memoir with recipes, then this might be for you. Good to discuss with the Top Chef fans in your life too!

Eating a cranberry old-fashioned donut, reading this food memoir on my phone, and then studying Japanese this evening! #currentlyreading #booksandcoffee

Man, celebrity memoirs are my jam but this one was just so meandering, it was hard to stay interested. If it had been better organized I would have liked it more.

Husband bought me a pile of Sherpa blankets on #blackfriday sale this morning! Howie and I are so lucky (and cozy)! #catsoflitsy #howiereads

Good haul from Kindle this November. #photoadaynov16

#Recommendsday Still looking for a food memoir for a reading challenge? I read this one and really enjoyed it, not just food, but also relationships, serious health issues, and a wonderful look at some of the foods and customs of India. On sale at Amazon today!

🔔📚🔔 and one more!

LOVED this. I adore the show Top Chef and thought Padma was a badass, but her story outside of Top Chef is fascinating and a roller coaster of emotions. The descriptions of food are heavenly and the only thing I wanted more of was recipes. Definitely a great memoir to pick up.

"My love of cheese was liberated." She gets me, y'all, 100%.

Y'all I am in love with this book! I'm not terribly far in yet but I am super sucked in to Padma's life, and also her descriptions of food are AHmazing.