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Published in USA
Feb 2010
272 pages
Genre: Biography/Memoir
Publication Information
Meet Kathryn Borel, bon vivant and undutiful daughter. Now meet her father, Philippe, former chef, eccentric genius, and wine aficionado extraordinaire. Kathryn is like her father in every way but one: she's totally ignorant when it comes to wine. And although Philippe has devoted untold parenting hours to delivering impassioned oenological orations, she has managed to remain unenlightened. But after an accident and a death, Kathryn realizes that by shutting herself off to her father's greatest passion, she will never really know him.
Accordingly, she proposes a drunken father-daughter road trip. Corked is the uncensored account of their tour through the great wine regions of France. Uproarious, poignant, painfully introspective, and filled with cunning little details about wine, this is a book for any reader who has sought a connection with a complex family member or wanted to overcome the paralyzing terror of being faced with a restaurant wine list.
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"The narrative ends in a reconciliation that, like the whole book, is refreshingly unsentimental, grounded, perhaps to an extreme, in flashes of candor and humor." - Publishers Weekly
"A fast-paced read with nuggets of wine trivia that will appeal to anyone who has struggled to understand their parents." - Kirkus Reviews
"Borel writes with plenty of humor as her father's absurd perfectionism gives birth to many dramatically charged encounters with natives as the pair progresses about the French countryside." - Booklist
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Kathryn Borel was born in 1979 in Toronto, the daughter of a hotelier. After several years, she became the older sister to Nico, who was named after the family cat. She spent her early years living in hotels in Paris, Bermuda, Dallas, and New Jersey, finally settling in Quebec City. In 2002 she moved to Toronto to follow a man. The relationship ended. She continues to live in Toronto where she works at the Canadian Broadcasting Company. She has written food and wine reviews for radio and print. Her journalism includes a column which ran in the National Post under the title "Indignities."Corked is her first book.
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"Berlin's new book is a marvel, filled with deeply touching stories about lives on the fringes."—NPR
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