I really didn't know anything about this little scrap of American history, and this was a short, interesting take on it. He was speculative, definitely, but he tried to put his speculations in the context of Mary Mallon's Irish heritage and her place in society. I wouldn't necessarily use it as source material for a college paper, but it was a good read, and it will probably inspire (for me, at least) further reading on the history of diseases and also the history of New York City. ( )

An interesting little biographical study. Bourdain proves he can be a good writer without the snark of his usual non-fiction (not that I have anything against snark). ( )

In some ways this book was very good (unexpectedly good!) and in some ways I found it rather frustrating.

What is very good about this book - and what surprised me the most - are Mr. Bourdain's assessments of the overarching historical and cultural forces at work in that time and place. He shows himself to be an astute and insightful cultural historian.

The major problem with this book - and it's a major problem, as it speaks to Mr. Bourdain's entire premise - is that he makes far too many assumptions about the thoughts and feelings of Mary Mallon. He states in the Author's Introduction that there are very few direct records of her, yet he makes assertions about her with what comes across as absolute certainty. It seems to me that he spends most of this book projecting his own personality, worldview, frustrations, etc., onto her character - so this book is not so much about why she did what she did, but why Mr. Bourdain would have done what she did, had he been in her situation.

He based his interpretation of her feelings and actions on the fundamental premise that all cooks share common experiences and posses certain universal character traits. I'll buy the common experiences but I need a lot more evidence to accept his universal character trait theory. I'd very much like to know what other cooks think of this book, whether or not they agree with his interpretation. That's what would seal it for me.

In the end, this book isn't anything very special but it is worth a read. It's interesting to me mainly for the historical perspective on the food culture in New York at the dawn of the 20th century, and because it shows the breadth of Mr. Bourdain's interests - chef, world traveler, amateur historian... and did you know his first published books were mystery novels? His writing style makes the read go quickly and the book is very short, so it won't cost you too much time even if you don't like it. ( )

I really enjoyed Anthony Bourdain's take on Mary Mallon's life. (I cringe to refer to her as "Typhoid Mary.") The book isn't very long, but he did his homework and offered the perspectives of Mallon's allies and adversaries. Also, Bourdain wrote about a cook as a cook, which was a fresh perspective for me.
The only distractions were two or so personal rants that had little to nothing to do with Mary Mallon. Reading a biography of Mallon, I wanted to learn about her, not Bourdain's professional history, emotions, or attitudes. These pages were easily and readily skipped.
Bourdain's book is an enjoyable read, and I recommend it to all, especially those who are interested in NYC history, public health, culinary arts, microbiology, ethics, law, cultural studies, and more. ( )

This was an interesting perspective on Typhoid Mary, a woman I didn't know much about before reading this book and hope to know more about now that I've finished. ( )