Like Wafers in Honey: A Discussion with Leah Eskin

The Book Stall is thrilled welcome food writer and author Leah Eskin to the store for a discussion featuring her debut historical novel, Like Wafers in Honey. Based on the experiences of a real Italian-Jewish cook named Edda Servi Machlin, the novel tells two stories: that of Stella, a Jewish girl from the Tuscan town of Pitigliano, who spends the winter of 1943 fleeing Fascist and Nazi brutality, and that of Edda, a Westchester housewife trying to save a lost treasure — Italian Jewish cuisine. Each chapter includes a recipe updated for modern kitchens.  Ms. Eskin will be in-conversation with editor Arthur Levine. 

Leah Eskin writes about food and other pressing matters. For almost thirty years, her award-winning column “Home on the Range” ran in the Chicago Tribune and other newspapers. She is the author of the memoir Slices of Life: A Food Writer Cooks Through Many a Conundrum. Bestselling cookbook author Meathead Goldwyn dubs Eskin “the poet laureate of recipes.” Baking diva Dorie Greenspan calls her work “smart, honest, literate, and funny—very funny.” Eskin writes the dessert column for Midwest Living magazine and is the owner of Crumble Handmade Pastry. She lives in Chicago with her husband and their chocolate Lab, Milo. You can reach her at leaheskin.com.

Arthur A. Levine founded Levine Querido in April 2019, after a 23-year tenure as the President and Publisher of Arthur A. Levine Books, an imprint of Scholastic. His determination to bring a diverse selection of "The Best of the World's Literature for Young People" to American readers is his guiding principle. This mission resulted in the introduction to North American audiences of the work of great writers such as Daniel Nayeri, Shaun Tan, Sacha Lamb, and Jaclyn Moriarty, among others. Arthur sees this search for great writers from around the world as a continuum with Levine Querido's search for diverse, powerful, unique voices and visions from the multitude of cultures closer to home. In addition to overseeing the company, Arthur edits between eight and ten books annually.