The Sharper Your Knife, the Less You Cry: Love, Laughter, and Tears in Paris at the World's Most Famous Cooking School,   ISBN:9780143114130

Customer Rating: 

I attended Le Cordon Bleu in Paris and found the author's account to be very accurate. Her style of writing is very well done and easy to find yourself in the story. She create an interesting story with several dimensions; part love story, part war story in the kitchen, part cultural challenge in Paris learning the language and the people. This book was a delight to read.

Customer Rating: 

I love to cook, but am mostly self-taught. Even though I worked in a variety of professional kitchens and learned much on the job, I've never taken formal cooking lessons. After reading the Julia Child bio My Life in France (Movie Tie-In Edition) (Random House Movie Tie-In Books), I wondered what it would be like to attend the modern-day Cordon Bleu. Kathleen Flinn does a wonderful job of bringing the reader along for her experiences going through the program. Beyond the excellent vicarious education it provides, the book is a colorful travelogue filled with fascinating characters. A very enjoyable read that I was sorry to finish.

Customer Rating: 

This book was terribly written. I was glad to have purchased it for the Kindle because I would have been embarrassed to be seen reading it on the train once I got into it. It felt like a first draft, and the pat pre-recipe "Life is so complex, like a difficult roux" portions of the book were so childish and simple that I wondered how this could have been published without a stronger editorial hand to tear the adolescent elements out and to re-work the text with more soul, depth, and honesty. Everyone in the book seemed to lack depth. Everyone was too simple, even the author, which is a shame because she had an opportunity to be more honest and interesting and seemed to abandon both paths. Major disappointment.

If readers are interested in a fabulously written memoir about time in France I highly recommend "I'll Never Be French (No Matter What I Do)" instead. He's a gifted writer.

Customer Rating: 

As someone who is considering following the same path, the story of a corporate worker trading in the office life for a life in food resonated with me right away. This book pulled me in fast and hooked me to the end, as my title says the only complaint I have is wanting to know more about what happened after the author made this huge life change. I know there are lots of similar stories out there, but Kathleen Flinn tells hers well with laughter, tears, disappointment and most of all - inspiration. I picked up this book before a recent vacation, finished it in less than a week and recommend it highly to anyone interested in food, cooking, or just a feel-good story of someone with the guts and heart to follow their dreams.

Customer Rating: 

Really enjoyed this book - wish I had the courage to leave my life behind and follow a dream like she did!