The Telling Room
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4.0 • 1 Rating
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- £7.99
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- £7.99
Publisher Description
In the medieval Castilian village of Guzmán (population: 80), villagers have gathered for centuries in the 'telling room' to share stories and drink the local wine. It was here, in the summer of 2000, that Michael Paterniti found himself listening to a compelling tale about a cheese made from an ancient family recipe that was reputed to be among the finest in the world. Until, Ambrosio said, things had gone horribly wrong. Hooked on the story, Paterniti relocated his young family to the tiny hilltop village to find out more. But like many Spanish villages, Guzmán was rife with gossip and old feuds, secret alliances and plotted vengeance and before long Paterniti was sucked into the heart of an unfolding mystery. When he learned that the cheesemaker had apparently plotted to murder his closest friend, the village began to spill its long-held secrets, and Paterniti found himself implicated in ways he never expected ...
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Working as a proofreader on the newsletter for his local deli, Paterniti stumbled upon the story of a sublime cheese, P ramo de Guzm n (named after the family village from which it originates), that the deli's owner discovered by chance in London. Made from the fresh milk of Churra sheep, "the cheese was submerged, after its first aging, in extra-virgin olive oil and aged again, for at least a year." Intrigued by the story, as well as by the craft and love that went into making the cheese, Paterniti sets off on a quest to find the creator of P ramo de Guzm n and to listen to his story. Over the course of a decade, Paterniti (Driving Mr. Albert) visits Ambrosio Molino's contador, or telling room (a space in a handmade cave that in earlier times functioned as cold larders for individual families and villages), listening raptly as the cheese maker recounts a tale both joyous and sad, of discovery, betrayal, revenge, and restoration. Much as Molinos regales Paterniti with his rich voice, Paterniti entertains us by retelling this saga of a man who successfully recovers his family's cheese recipe, whose childhood friend betrays him by stealing the business, and who half-heartedly seeks revenge for the betrayal. Yet, this is also Paterniti's story: "Ambrosio gave me a brief glimpse of a different, compelling sort of life, a life in which there seemed to be more time for family and conversation, for stories and food." So in 2012 Paterniti moved his family to Guzm n. Paterniti's zestful storytelling carries us along on a delightful journey through a village rich with the traditions of food and family.
