Bread and Wine - Getting Back to the Table
I've been intimidated by cooking, by recipes, for as long as I can remember. Bread and Wine has helped me "see" differently. Shauna demonstrates passion, blended with simplicity, for approaching numerous recipes and learning to "create" something beautiful, something memorable--not just in our kitchens but in our hearts and lives.
Shauna takes the time and care to address eating sensitivities, such as sharing that her husband Aaron eats gluten-free. This was especially helpful to me as I have been gluten-free for three years now, and that fact has further intimidated me in the kitchen. Shauna offers real, simple substitutions to make the recipes gluten-free.
Shauna is back: Bread and Wine is filled with her trademark sensory details that make us feel like we are right there with her--stirring, blending, learning--our senses engaged through her imagery while she speaks to us like a real life friend. This book has also given me an education more valuable to me than my college degrees, for Shauna provides sustenance not only in the form of recipes and nutrition but also in life itself.
She shows us that life in the kitchen can be messy and imperfect and that that is okay; this is another point that has held me back in my own kitchen: perfectionism. I, also like Shauna, am a "truly terrible recipe follower." I'm a bit of a rebel, a rules-breaker.
Our senses feel more alive after reading this book, more inspired to do more, be more, reach out to nurture others more and in the process, feed not only our bodies, but our souls. Shauna makes me realize how much I have been waiting in my life...waiting for that perfect time, the recipe I finally perfect, or the perfect décor in the my kitchen/dining room. Always waiting... Yet what I learn from this book is that community is most important. Here and now.
The table in Shauna's world is more than an object: it's a symbol. In her chapter entitled "What the table is for," Shauna states, "The table is the life raft, the center point or the home base of who we are together." This tangible item bonds, binds, and beckons us one to the other. Family and friends become one at the table.
She describes friendship, like she describe cooking and recipes, masterfully: "Like a boeuf bourguignon, something you cook for hours and hours, allowing the flavors to develop over time, changing and deepening with each passing hour on the heat." She encourages us to try. "You don't always know what's going to come of it, but you put the time in anyway, and then, after a long, long time, you realize with great clarity why you put the time in: for this night, for these hours around the table, for the complexity and richness of flavors that are so lovely and unexpected you're still thinking about them the next day."
So many times, we think it won't be worth it, we don't have the time, or it's too hard to coordinate it all. Then we let it all slip away... Shauna writes from the other side of all that: the end result of living and loving; she depicts the layers of life that merge over a seemingly simple meal, yet we learn how each woman in her cooking club has completed her part to create the beautiful, never-to-be-forgotten whole, and we see that yes, it is all worth it.
The following words resonated with me, more than any others, in Shauna's new book: "I want so badly to release my stranglehold on my plan, my way, my calendar...I want to live without anxiety, fear, and deadlines. But it seems that every chance I get, I grab back those pretend reins and allow myself to believe the myth that I'm in control." In recent years, more than in any other time, I have learned how little control I have over my own life. That feeling fills me with dread and makes me push harder, strive more, and time after time, I am left disappointed.
"And I remember that people can change. That I can change. That the same old refrains can get rewritten, and that all it takes sometimes is paying attention to your tears, and ignoring that voice that tries to hypnotize us with next year, next year, next year. Later, later, later is what I tell myself. But later, really, needs to be now.
At last, Shauna Niequist encourages us to "open the door": "What people are craving isn't perfection. People aren't longing to be impressed; they're longing to feel like they're home." The time is now--for friendship, for love, for abundance. "You'll miss the richest moments in life...if you're too scared or too ashamed to open the door."
We learn from Shauna that "food matters." Beyond physical sustenance and maintenance, we are reminded of the holiness of sharing food--and a table. "Share food with people you love." It's that simple; it's that priceless.
Shauna provides the opportunity in our lives for a fresh start. She tugs at the reader's self-doubts, as she nudges, "I remember that people can change. That I can change." All is not lost; all is not hopeless. In a constantly connected world, Shauna shifts our focus and challenges us to pay closer attention to the "hours logged," to apply this thought to friendships. To unplug from the rest of it for a while and to tune in to what really matters.
We can never get this time back. "We knew when we moved away that something like this wouldn't necessarily happen again. It was a moment in time, a gift, an event that we happened to be a part of just for that season."
Shauna Niequist embraces life and reaches out. Whether it's bringing Lara Bars and magazines to a friend in a crisis, taking the time to meet with her dinner club, or to simply share her stories, she "shows up." She exposes her own rawness and vulnerabilities, her heartbreaks and joys. We are bettered and renewed as we turn the pages of Shauna's new book.
Most of the chapters end with a recipe that relates to each of the stories she tells. "Food is life" is what she is saying. The bread and the wine, the blood and the spirit. The self and the community, the human and the divine. It's all about community. We close the book at the end and crave fellowship, more time for deeper friendships, and physical and spiritual nourishment... Bread and Wine instructs and inspires. We hunger yet are satisfied.
Enjoy fast, free delivery, exclusive deals, and award-winning movies & TV shows with Prime
Try Prime
and start saving today with fast, free delivery
Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.
Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.
Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.
Great on Kindle
Great Experience. Great Value.
Putting our best book forward
Each Great on Kindle book offers a great reading experience, at a better value than print to keep your wallet happy.
Explore your book, then jump right back to where you left off with Page Flip.
View high quality images that let you zoom in to take a closer look.
Enjoy features only possible in digital – start reading right away, carry your library with you, adjust the font, create shareable notes and highlights, and more.
Discover additional details about the events, people, and places in your book, with Wikipedia integration.
Get the free Kindle app: 
Enjoy a great reading experience when you buy the Kindle edition of this book. Learn more about Great on Kindle, available in select categories.
There is a newer edition of this item:
Bread and Wine: A Love Letter to Life Around the Table with Recipes
$12.00
(1,787)
Only 1 left in stock - order soon.
$12.00
(1,787)
Only 1 left in stock - order soon.
Book recommendations, author interviews, editors' picks, and more. Read it now.
Frequently bought together
$19.38
Get it as soon as Thursday, May 16
Only 1 left in stock - order soon.
Total price:
To see our price, add these items to your cart.
Choose items to buy together.
Similar items that may deliver to you quickly
Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1
From the brand
Books by Shauna Niequist
Scroll right to shop for books and studies by New York Times bestselling author Shauna Niequist.
From the Publisher
A Note from the Author
My daily life—and my daily table—has changed dramatically since the writing of this book. But my passion for food, for connection, and for those sacred moments that we share when we eat together has only grown.
It looks different these days. Most meals I serve in our tiny New York City apartment are eaten off plates balanced on knees. And it looks different because ours isn’t a baby or toddler home anymore—those little boys have become big boys, complete with big appetites and friends who crowd into our kitchen for spaghetti and meatballs or brownies or french toast.
But what was true years ago still holds: this morning, after several days away for work, I found myself in the kitchen—cutting board, knife, vegetables. My mind still does its best work while my hands chop, and my heart is still fullest when the people I love are eating soup or bread or cheese, letting themselves be fed and restored, brought back to life by nourishment and connection.
—Shauna Niequist
WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING
|
|
|
|
|
|---|---|---|---|
“Bread & Wine is one of those rare books that grabs all of you—your mind, body, and spirit.... I couldn’t put this book down.”—Brené Brown, New York Times bestselling author Photo by BBeargTeam (resized and cropped), licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. |
“After reading this book you may feel as you do driving away from dinner with a friend—grateful and full.”—Donald Miller, New York Times bestselling author |
“I decided to send this book to everyone I know.”—Jen Hatmaker, New York Times bestselling author |
“This magnificent book is a feast for the soul! A wise, thoughtful, and delightful read that will nourish your heart.”—Ian Morgan Cron, New York Times bestselling author |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I Guess I Haven't Learned That Yet | Present Over Perfect | Cold Tangerines: Celebrating the Extraordinary Nature of Everyday Life | Bittersweet: Thoughts on Change, Grace, and Learning the Hard Way | Savor: Living Abundantly Where You Are, As You Are | |
| Customer Reviews |
1,291
|
8,368
|
1,092
|
1,032
|
839
|
| Price | $2.53 | $16.46 | $13.46 | $17.09 | $16.92 |
| Other Books by Shauna Niequist | Discover new ways of living when the old ways stop working. Here is a clear-eyed look at what happens when everything we've been clinging to falls apart—what we keep, what we let go, and how we're transformed along the way. | Immerse yourself in this compelling vision for an entirely new way to live: soaked in grace, rest, silence, simplicity, prayer, and connection with the people that matter most to you. | Shauna Niequist calls us to see the beauty, hope, and dimension in our ordinary days through the life-giving practice of celebration. | Discover how the waves of trials can carry you into a deeper awareness of the presence of God, even in the midst of turmoil, and experience the precious gifts and wisdom that only come the hard way—through change, loss, and transition. | A 365-day devotional that invites you to expand your vision of spiritual living by incorporating prayer and recipes for gathering with family and friends. |
About the author
Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Reviews with images
challenged, engaged, and cooking!
This is a wonderful read and an even better cookbook. I am challenged, engaged, and cooking!I even wrote a post about it on my blog - Inspiration Clothesline.I was inspired to do a 31 days of cast iron cooking after reading this book and the quality of food my family is eating has gone way up. Not to mention I have a renewed passion for entertaining and using food to bless those around me. Niequist is a master of words, includes humor, and an honest perspective on herself, food, and cooking.I feel lucky to have found this book.Pictured are her "goat cheese biscuits."
Top reviews from other countries
RAW
"Ein Liebesbrief an das Leben rund um den Esstisch"
Reviewed in Germany on January 14, 2014
KatyP2011
A hearty feast for the soul
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 13, 2014
