The Migrant's Table: Meals and Memories in Bengali-American Households [Paperback]

Krishnendu Ray (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 2004 | ISBN-10: 1592130968 | ISBN-13: 978-1592130962

To most of us the food that we associate with home - our national and familial homes - is an essential part of our cultural heritage. No matter how open we become to other cuisines, we regard home-cooking as an intrinsic part of who we are. In this book, Krishnendu Ray examines the changing food habits of Bengali immigrants to the United States as they deal with the tension between their nostalgia for home and their desire to escape from its confinements. As Ray says, "This is a story about rice and water and the violations of geography by history." Focusing on mundane matters of immigrant life (for example, what to eat for breakfast in America), he connects food choices to issues of globalization and modernization. By showing how Bengali immigrants decide what defines their ethnic cuisine and differentiates it from American food, he reminds us that such boundaries are uncertain for all newcomers. By drawing on literary sources, family menus and recipes for traditional dishes, interviews with Bengali household members, and his own experience as an immigrant, Ray presents a vivid picture of immigrants grappling with the grave and immediate problem of defining themselves in their home away from home. Author note: Krishnendu Ray is Associate Professor of Liberal Arts and Management at the Culinary Institute of America.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Indeed, it is Ray's willingness to tread nonconformist waters that makes The Migrant's Table not only innovative and intellectually stimulating, but also a pleasure to read. His research makes several important contributions." Gastronomica "The Migrant's Table will make a major contribution to our understanding of modernization, globalization, immigration, and neo-ethnicity. We can see how migrants are quintessentially modern in placing great hope in the future while also seeking to anchor their identity in nostalgia for the past. The discussion of how immigrants have adapted to the 4th of July and Thanksgiving is brilliant and eye-opening. Ray is one of the most astute, well-grounded commentators working in the field of food studies today. This is an extremely impressive book." --Warren Belasco, Department of American Studies, University of Maryland, Baltimore County

From the Publisher

How food choices reflect the dilemmas of ethnicity

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Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Temple University Press (September 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1592130968
• ISBN-13: 978-1592130962
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,269,774 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Meals, Migration, and Modernity, Tagore to Rushdie, September 29, 2006

By 

Sharif Islam "Khepa Baul" (Urbana, IL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Migrant's Table: Meals and Memories in Bengali-American Households (Hardcover)

"After the Irish Bengalis are the greatest Potato eaters in the world".

Mr. Ray's scholarly research comes alive in the book with memoir and little tidbits about Bengali food. If you are interested to learn about educated migrant communities in the U.S and how food plays a role, this is a must read. Although, the book focuses on mostly the migrant's from West Bengal, the author brings other cultural aspect such as Italian, Jewish as well. He also provides a good insight on some cultural identity issues and shows the relation of culture and food. He mentions the issue of gender role in Bengali kitchen. However, it would have been nice if he elaborated little more about that. Overall, A well writtten and researched work. I enjoyed reading it and learned a lot.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Meals, Migration, and Modernity, Tagore to Rushdie, March 31, 2005

By 

Sharif Islam "Khepa Baul" (Urbana, IL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Migrant's Table: Meals and Memories in Bengali-American Households (Paperback)

"After the Irish Bengalis are the greatest Potato eaters in the world".

Mr. Ray's scholarly research comes alive in the book with memoir and little tidbits about Bengali food. If you are interested to learn about educated migrant communities in the U.S and how food plays a role, this is a must read. Although, the book focuses on mostly the migrant's from West Bengal, the author brings other cultural aspect such as Italian, Jewish as well. He also provides a good insight on some cultural identity issues and shows the relation of culture and food. He mentions the issue of gender role in Bengali kitchen. However, it would have been nice if he elaborated little more about that. Overall, A well writtten and researched work. I enjoyed reading it and learned a lot.