Description
Reluctant Canadian restaurateur Emmet Argentine is stuck in Khrushchev-era Vilnius, Lithuania, trapped under the tyranny of two equally formidable forces - the Soviet Union, and his staunchly socialist mother.
Raised in the kitchens of Toronto's Royal York Hotel, Emmet's talent for hospitality catches the attention of a high-ranking architect, who hires Emmet to helm a magnificent new restaurant. The Seaside Cafe Metropolis, though located neither by the sea nor in a major metropolitan area, aspires toward elegance without pretention, bohemianism without vulgarity. Evading the repressive communist regime through guile, wit, and charm, Emmet assembles the menu and the staff to create a sophisticated and atmospheric fine dining experience in the heart of the Soviet Union - all while KGB operatives listen in on the restaurant from the basement.
Grand Budapest Hotel meets A Gentleman in Moscow in this Cold War comic novel, set in a bohemian restaurant in the Soviet Union.
About the Author
Antanas Sileika is a Canadian author of six previous books of fiction, as well as two memoirs. His collection of short stories, Buying on Time, was shortlisted for the Stephen Leacock Award for Humour and the Toronto Book Award, and longlisted for CBC's Canada Reads in 2016. His books have repeatedly received starred reviews from Quill & Quire and have been listed among the one hundred best books of the year in The Globe and Mail. One of his novels, Provisionally Yours, was adapted into both a feature film and a television serial in Europe. He currently lives in Toronto, ON. antanassileika.com
Reviews
"Antanas Sileika has invented a new genre: the culinary picaresque. Throw in the Cold War, dissident shenanigans, an ideologue mother, knife-fighting love story, iron curtain Bohemians, and more than half a dozen traditional and innovative Lithuanian recipes and you get a sense of the many flavors Sileika blends to perfection in this sad, funny, insightful, propulsive banquet of a novel. This is a rare dish served by a master chef."
-- Tamas Dobozy, author of the Governor General's Award-shortlisted and Writer's Trust Fiction Prize-winning Siege 13"A delicious peek into the world of spies, artists and food at the fringes of the Soviet Union. Sileika's prose is wry and wise, and conjures up a place and time that glimmers like a bittersweet memory." -- Trevor Cole, author of Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour-winning Practical Jean
Book Information
ISBN 9781770868106
Author Antanas Sileika
Format Paperback
Page Count 240
Imprint Cormorant Books,Canada
Publisher Cormorant Books,Canada
Weight(grams) 200g
Dimensions(mm) 216mm * 140mm * 25mm
