My Life as a Wife Love, Liquor and What to Do About Other Women

Wonderfully wise and moving memoir ... This is a book suffused with love - of food, family, and of a clearly charismatic man. It is the story of a life with an epic sweep ... This is some woman; this is some life Scotsman A brilliantly funny yet moving memoir Daily Mail Elisabeth Luard, serious contender for Greatest Living Food Writer ... writes books that are fiercely intelligent but without preachiness, deliciously pragmatic and laced with humour ... exploring food, family and grief with equal frankness Daily Telegraph [Luard] joins a line of inspiring cooks who write about the everyday necessity of food as the ultimate refuge from the harsh reality of death The Times There are many things in the book to enjoy, not the least the recipes which accompany each chapter. Elisabeth's account of her childhood is amusingly dreadful and her portrait of Miriam Rothschild is a minor masterpiece -- Carolyn Hart Telegraph Luard calls this "a love story with flaws" and I admire her for not trying to put a rosy glow on what sounds like a difficult marriage -- Lynn Barber Telegraph She writes movingly, too, of the death of her journalist daughter, Franscesca ... There is a lot of pain in My Life as a Wife, but overall it is a celebration of life, second nature to a professional cook and lover of food -- Gerald Jacobs Jewish Chronicle