Life, on the Line: A Chef's Story of Chasing Greatness, Facing Death, and Redefining the Way We Eat

I heard about Achatz from my ex-caterer husband. My current husband, who used to be a caterer, I mean. He's still a foodie, and tends to come up with the oddest trivia- in this case, he was all excited about Achatz's cold griddle, which freezes foods the way a hot griddle cooks them. Then my stepmom, who is something of a connoisseur of memoirs by people who are facing some terrible medical issue, read and loved this book. So I sought it out.

Achatz is an interesting character- intense, driven, and not the kind of guy you'd want to date. (Paraphrasing: "It's Wednesday, I've been here for 17 hours and have 70 hours in this week already") His philosophy of food is fun to read about, as is his relationship with Thomas Keller of The French show more Laundry. Some of the things he does with food sound purely goofy- and he's aiming for goofy, so that's okay. There's a playfulness about the food I'm reading about here that makes me want to taste it and see for myself. The part about his tongue cancer treatment was less engrossing for me, but I'm glad it seems to have worked out well for him.

Recommended for foodies and/or cancer memoir junkies. show less

An absolutely fascinating book about an almost painfully addictive passion for the development of food that is really far beyond the word "creative." It's hard to even begin to imagine how Chef Achatz's mind works but it most certainly sounds exhausting, exhilarating, and any of a number of other adjectives all mixed together! The book is extremely descriptive of a very young man's overly full life, who is suddenly faced with a horrendous cancer that nearly destroyed his career and his life. His concentration on the presentation and taste of food in combinations he originates is just incredible. It's not that it is necessarily food "I" would want to eat but his dedication to it and to his restaurant dream is almost super human. His show more achievements are astounding but I had to look him up to see his "Next" restaurant----when you reach one goal it is almost personally devastating until you can find another one. show less

I'm not sure why I decided to read this book (listen to book on CD, actually), since I'm definitely not into trying different kinds of foods or eating in fancy restaurants. But I'm glad I did read it. I found the story rather universal - one person's quest for excellence in a certain field. I thought he told the story with honesty, describing the bad side effects that focus can have on a personal life and the sacrifices made. Yet there it is, the undeniable driving force to be the best. I never expected to almost come to tears reading a book about a chef, and yet I did, when he talked about his fight against cancer I had to hold back tears while driving down the road. You don't have to be a "foodie" to be interested in this book.

This book has been passed from one person to another through my Book Club, as fast as it can be read. Grant Achatz isn't a great writer, but he has a great story to tell, and he turns that life story and passion for food into one terrific read. You may find yourself at the close of the book searching the internet for his restaurant website, and dreaming of making reservations at Alinea.

Great book. I really enjoyed the story of Achatz's life, the process of opening his restaurants and his fight against cancer. The only issue I had with this book was the transition between sections written by Achatz and those written by Kokonas. The transitions weren't very well done and made a lot of the book feel very disjointed and confusing.

Grant Achatz is an extremely talented chef and an extremely mediocre writer. The book delivers what it says it will - a clear explanation of the drive and inspiration that shaped Achatz's culinary career, and a chronicle of the cancer that nearly took his life. The book is at its best when Achatz shares the details of his illness, but it's also plagued by stylistic problems throughout. Most annoyingly, about halfway through the book, the narration begins switching randomly between Achatz and his business partner, Nick Kokonas. Since there's no warning when the narrator changes, reading sometimes became a very confusing experience. Beyond that, Achatz's prose is lackluster, and his writing often fails to convey any emotion. Still, the show more book was a quick enough read, and Achatz's career is genuinely interesting. You will probably enjoy this book if you are a serious foodie and feel a bit bored if you are not. Achatz's cancer story is genuinely moving, but it occupies only the last few chapters, so I wouldn't recommend reading the book just for that. show less

Very engaging, heartfelt account of the evolution of a creative chef and his trials with cancer.