October 4th, 2008
Book Review: A La Carte, by Tanita Davis
In Tanita Davis’s debut novel, A La Carte we meet a feisty, funny young chef. Lainey is seventeen, and dreams of having her own vegetarian cooking show. To that end, she practices constantly, whipping up new dishes in the kitchen of the restaurant her mother runs, feeding snacks to all her friends, and collecting her recipes in a very special notebook.
She’s not the most popular girl in school, but Lainey is a member of the jazz choir, and isn’t a total social pariah. Nevertheless the one boy she likes, Simeon (aka “Sim”) who used to be her best friend, has drifted away from their friendship, only talking to her now when he needs something, like her science notes, or emergency cash to run away from home.
Lainey is, then, caught between wanting to help her friend, and wanting to come clean with his parents, and her mother, and to help herself through the troubling teen years, she turns to her kitchen finding solace and inspiration.
What I liked about Lainey was that she seemed very real: not overly thin, but normal, even a little chunky, and worried about her weight in a way that doesn’t seem cloying. She tries to make her vegetarian recipes, which are scattered through the book, tasty as well as healthy - even the desserts have lower-fat options.
I also like that this book shows a mother-daughter relationship that is fairly positive. Yes, Lainey and her mother disagree on things, but they do it without knock-down-drag-out screaming matches or pettiness.
A La Carte is a YA novel, but it’s representative of the best of the YA genre: strong realistic characters, and a story that is compelling to people of all ages.
Be sure to check out our interview with Ms. Davis, in the October mid-issue update of All Things Girl.
