It’s both exciting and daunting to think about all there is to discover and experience in the world. All of the different people, places, and realities that exist. And in any minute of any day, with access to the world at your fingertips, you can come across so many new things. Billions of people with unique lives, so unlike our own. As much as I enjoy other types of books, I feel autobiographies and memoirs give a special glimpse into the mind and experiences of someone very different from myself.

This is the case with Anthony Bourdain. He is famous, and I had of course heard of him and had seen advertisements for his many series about food and travel. But I’ve never watched an episode he’s hosted, and really knew little about him. He ended his life a few years ago, which is so tragic. Searching the available audiobooks at my library through the Libby app, I came across Kitchen Confidential. Why not try to learn about a person and world I know nothing about? The book was short enough to finish during one delivery shift, a length that I enjoy and mostly prefer.

What an entertaining and eye-opening book! How many times have I been to a restaurant, without giving much of a thought to the lives of those who make it all possible? No doubt Anthony’s take on the behind the scenes reality that he experienced is not everyone’s story. The drugs, drinking, foul language, sex, theft, mob connections, and all other forms of dysfunction, were fairly shocking and eye-opening. But there was also the love of food, and I think that impressed me most.

As I was listening I just kept thinking, what a naive and sheltered life I’ve led. But then maybe most people who have not consumed mountains of drugs, or risked their lives confronting a mob boss, would feel the same way. I’m probably being too hard on myself as usual. My life has not been boring, but Anthony definitely seems to have lived a life beyond the edges, and there is something curious and appealing about that. Especially for someone who has mostly played it safe, with a lot of fear and risk aversion. I’m grateful he shared a peek into this other world and life, and I’m inspired to listen to more memoirs and autobiographies to help expand my understanding and compassion for people in all their variety.

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