Recipes for something beyond the kitchen

Erica Bauermeister, author of "The School of Essential Ingredients," will talk about her first novel at presentations at five area libraries as part of the North Idaho Reads program.

She will be at the Coeur d'Alene Public Library on Oct. 23 at 7 p.m.; and on Oct. 25, she'll be at the Community Library Network Post Falls at 2 p.m. and the Community Library Network Hayden at 7 p.m.

Bauermeister's novel is about eight students who gather once a month on a Monday evening in Lillian's restaurant kitchen for a cooking class. They come to learn the art behind Lillian's dishes, but it soon becomes clear that each one unknowingly seeks a recipe for something beyond the kitchen.

One by one, they are transformed by the aromas, flavors and textures of what they create. Over time, the paths of the students intermingle and intertwine, and the essence of Lillian's cooking expands beyond the restaurant and into the secret corners of their lives, with results that are often unexpected and always delicious.

Each year, North Idaho Reads, a joint project of local libraries, brings a book to the regional community, encouraging residents to read it and participate in programs developed around the themes of the book.

Bauermeister was born in Pasadena, Calif., in 1959, "a time when that part of the country was both one of the loveliest and smoggiest places you could imagine," writes the author, on her website, ericabauermeister.com.

"I remember the arching branches of the oak tree in our front yard, the center of the patio that formed a private entrance to our lives," she writes. "I remember leaning over a water faucet to run water across my eyes after a day spent playing outside. It's never too early to learn that there is always more than one side to life."

Bauermeister says she always wanted to write, but when she read Tillie Olsen's "I Stand Here Ironing" in college, she finally knew what she wanted to write - "books that took what many considered to be unimportant bits of life and gave them beauty, shone light upon their meaning."

"The only other thing I knew for certain back in college, however, was that I wasn't grown up enough yet to write them," she said. "So I moved to Seattle, got married, and got a Ph.D. at the University of Washington.

Frustrated by the lack of women authors in the curriculum, she co-authored "500 Great Books by Women: A Reader's Guide" and "Let's Hear It For the Girls: 375 Great Books for Readers 2-14." In the process she read, literally, thousands of books, good and bad, which is probably one of the best educations a writer can have, she said.

"The School of Essential Ingredients," about eight cooking students and their teacher, set in the kitchen of Lillian's restaurant was her first novel. She said it's about food and people and the relationships between them - about taking those "unimportant" bits of life and making them beautiful.

"The book is currently being published in 23 countries," Bauermeister said. "And I have received letters and emails from readers around the world."

Her second novel, "Joy For Beginners" came out two years later and follows a year in the life of seven women who make a pact to each do one thing in the next 12 months that is new, or difficult, or scary - the twist is that they don't get to choose their own challenges.

Bauermeister's third novel, "The Lost Art of Mixing" returns to some of the characters from "The School of Essential Ingredients" whose stories simply weren't finished. It begins one year later, and throws four completely new characters into the mix, in an exploration of miscommunication, serendipity, ritual, and, of course, food.

Seating is open at her North Idaho Reads speaking engagements. For additional information, visit NorthIdahoReads.org, or call a participating library. Coeur d'Alene Public Library, 702 N. Front Ave., 769-2315; Community Library Network Post Falls, 821 N. Spokane St., 773-1506; Community Library Network Hayden, 8385 N. Government Way, 772-5612.