Hungry Monkey: A Food-Loving Father's Quest to Raise an Adventurous Eater

I finally finished reading Hungry Monkey, and I can’t believe it took me this long to write about it. I’ve certainly mentioned it enough, like how I laughed out loud on the bus, at a Mexican restaurant, and countless other places and got funny looks every time. Or how I spent most of the book trying to figure out in what neighborhood the author lived; I figured it out (Capitol Hill), and was so proud until he said it flat out two pages later. (Can’t win.)

Well, I finally finished, all that to say. The book itself is laugh-out-loud funny. I love that he’s a Seattle homeboy (did I really just type that?) and that he catalogued this journey; makes me appreciate the struggle it can be to get a child to eat something (particularly one show more they swore they loved last week, this morning, five minutes ago).

I also particularly enjoyed Matthew’s stories of his daughter, with her epic punchlines (“Did you know there’s a plant called chard?”) he found himself quoting repeatedly. I don’t have kids of my own but have two darling nieces, the most handsome nephew on the planet, and many, many cousins’ kids of varying ages to dote on. And they all just say the darndest things (really) that now weave their way into everyday conversation and send me, or my parents, and extended family into gales of laughter. (How I wish I could post some here; however, I will plead the fifth on behalf of each just in case some of my own ‘quotable quotes’ could ever potentially find the light of day.)

The recipes are fantastic and I look forward to trying them. The rest of the book, the actual purpose for writing, is to theoretically share about getting a picky eater to eat. It’s actually more about Matthew and his daughter, Iris, spending time together in the kitchen as she’s growing up. This is great, and entertaining, but I feel as though it was slightly mistitled/mismarketed. He even discusses this in his afterword, which is more telling than anything (I can be pretty dense to plot holes and misnomers so I’m very proud of myself when I actually pick up on it, aside from the fact that you then know it’s blatantly obvious – because even I picked up on it.)

Foodies will appreciate the read, but parents looking for tips and tricks on how to feed a picky child may find it lacking. Enjoy for the laughs, and for the recipes – like this one, Thai shrimp curry. show less

I love books that reinforce my own prejudices, and this book does so in spades. I love books that star people I know and like. I especially love books that make me laugh and follow my family around to read aloud to them. Amster-Burton strikes all the right notes in this memoir-cookbook hybrid. He's wryly hilarious and sweet without being treacly. His recipes are clear and readable and mostly appetizing, though I remain unconvinced regarding polenta. His loving, warm descriptions of his 4-year-old daughter may come back to haunt him when she's a teenager (Oh. My. God. Dad, how *could* you?) but it will have been worth it to the rest of us. Highly recommended for people who have ever had children or have ever been children.

Matthew Amster-Burton was a restaurant critic and food writer long before he and his wife, Laurie, had Iris. Now he's a full-time, stay-at-home Dad and his experience with food has changed …a little.Hungry Monkey is the story of Amster-Burton's life as a food-lover--with a child. It's the story of how he came to realize that kids don't need puree in a jar or special menus at restaurants and that raising an adventurous eater is about exposure, invention, and patience. He writes of the highs and lows of teaching your child about food--the high of rediscovering how something tastes for the first time through a child's unflinching reaction, the low of thinking you have a precocious vegetable fiend on your hands only to discover that a show more child's preferences change from day to day (and may take years to include vegetables again). Sharing in his culinary capers is little Iris, a budding gourmand and a zippy critic herself--who makes hug sandwiches, gobbles up hot chilis, and even helps around the kitchen sometimes.A memoir on the wild joys of food and parenting and the marvelous mélange of the two--Hungry Monkey takes food enthusiasts on a new adventure in eating (with dozens of delicious recipes!). In the end, our guide reminds us: "Food is fun, and you get to enjoy it three times a day, plus snacks!" show less

Love, love, love. I'm SO glad I bought this book after borrowing it from the library. It has great advice for parents cooking for little ones (and picky adults...) and even better stories. I love Matthew's podcast with Molly Wizenberg, Spilled Milk, and I could hear his voice in my head as I read.

Read it all at once or in little drips and drabs like I did - it's still satisfying and full of good advice. After I finished it this morning, I went back to the beginning and revisited some of the "first tastes" pages and realized that yes, Henry COULD eat the squash and zucchini I over-peppered. And he loved it.

This was a pretty charming and funny "blog turned book" by a food writer with a hilarious/precocious kid. It mostly made me want to write down everything my kid says (well, once he starts talking, so this is a futuristic want) in the hopes that I can write a charming and funny book about him. The food sounded good although most of it was meaty and alas, did not do my vegetarian household much good. There's a chapter in here about the author being the only man who has to be "snack mom" for his daughter's preschool since he's the only stay at home dad that my husband found pretty amusing.

This book was totally written for me -- a foodie who is homesick for the Pacific Northwest and planning to start a family soon and incredibly concerned about picky eating, not least because it's tolerated (celebrated!) in my boyfriend's family. I even used to read the author's stuff. Every kid (and parent) is different, of course, but I still found this reassuring overall. And frequently hilarious. Most of the recipes were pretty appealing as well, although I haven't tested any yet. Many of the general parenting experiences/opinions were interesting to read as well.

I'd read this when your baby is around 4 months old. The early part of this book captures some things I've learned the hard way in getting our baby started on solid food. When do you start? When she's staring at the food you put in your mouth. What do you feed her? The baby-friendly parts of whatever you're eating.

It's certainly flawed, but it's a light read about calm, happy parenting, and the recipes have actually been tested by home cooks.