Broccoli and Other Tales of Food and Love

The characters in these witty, tender, and beautifully observed stories by the acclaimed author ofThere Are Jews in My Housecrave the taste and smell of home, whereverand with whomeverthat may turn out to be. Each of Vapnyar's stories invites us into the uniquely captivating private worlds of Eastern European emigres. There's Nina, a recent arrival from Russia, for whom colorful vegetables represent her own fresh hopes and dreams; Luda and Milena, who battle over a widower in their English class with competing recipes for cheese puffs, spinach pies, and meatballs; and Sergey, who finds more comfort in the borscht made by a paid female companion than in her sexual ministrations.

Lara Vapnyar emigrated from Russia in 1994. She is also the author of of the novel Memoirs of a Muse. There are Jews in My House was nominated for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize and the New York Public Library Young Lions Fiction Award, and won the Prize for Jewish Fiction by Emerging Writers from the National Foundation for Jewish Culture. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, The New Yorker, and Open City. She lives with her family on Staten Island.


From the Hardcover edition.