The Best Cook in the World

Tales from My Momma's Southern Table: A Memoir and Cookbook

By: Rick Bragg

Narrated by: Rick Bragg

From the beloved, best-selling author of All Over but the Shoutin', a delectable, rollicking food memoir, cookbook, and loving tribute to a region, a vanishing history, a family, and, especially, to his mother.

Margaret Bragg does not own a single cookbook. She measures in "dabs" and "smidgens" and "tads" and "you know, hon, just some." She cannot be pinned down on how long to bake corn bread ("about 15 to 20 minutes, depending on the mysteries of your oven"). Her notion of farm-to-table is a flatbed truck. But she can tell you the secrets to perfect mashed potatoes, corn pudding, redeye gravy, pinto beans and hambone, stewed cabbage, short ribs, chicken and dressing, biscuits and butter rolls. The irresistible stories in this audiobook are of long memory -- many of them pre-date the Civil War, handed down skillet by skillet, from one generation of Braggs to the next. In The Best Cook in the World, Rick Bragg finally preserves his heritage by telling the stories that framed his mother's cooking and education, from childhood into old age. Because good food always has a good story, and a recipe, writes Bragg, is a story like anything else.

I will now buy the print book too!

I always love Rick Bragg’s stories about his people who, though not mine, share the same tenor. It’s specially nice to have him read it to me.
Now I’ll buy the print edition so the recipes are easier to find and for the pictures.

Rick Bragg Never Disappoints

I loved every word. These recipes remind me so much of my great grandmother, from whom I learned to cook with love. Thank you, Mr. Bragg, for sharing your family recipes with all of us.

Mouth watering from front to back

I have read Rick Bragg’s books over and over for years but nothing compares to having him read them to me. Beautifully done from the heart.

great story, fantastic author/narrator

The performance perfectly matched the story. You can imagine yourself there, listening to your southern mother/grandmother telling you the tale.

My only complaint is that the recipes aren't also included in a PDF format to accompany the audio.

wonderful tribute

Rare is the talent of making the ordinary seem extraordinary and then have the speaking talent to verbally tell it. The story was a tribute to an ordinary life made extraordinary by the writing in words and then telling.