Finding Freedom: A Cook’s Story; Remaking a Life from Scratch

Warning: whatever snacks you have on hand while you read Finding Freedom will seem inadequate as you devour these descriptions of food. Erin French is known for her well regarded and highly publicized restaurant in Freedom, Maine. The title of her new memoir refers to her beloved small town that she once believed she would have to escape in order to have any kind of a happy life. It also refers to her emergence from addiction and a hellish divorce. She was bankrupt and broke—but somehow came up with the money to pay off her medical bills and open a new restaurant. It was the doctor’s fault that she became dependent on prescription drugs, her father’s fault that she felt worthless, etc. She seemed to be entirely friendless—but a host of friends magically appears in the final chapters to help re-launch The Lost Kitchen. For pages, she rakes her sister and ex-husband over the coals—but now her sister works for her, happily, it seems. Ultimately, I found her life narrative to be inauthentic—primarily casting herself as a hapless victim who then discovered her inner spunk. This poorly edited book is timed to release with a companion TV series. No doubt her fans will eat it up but I am not among them.