If you’ve been following my blog for a while, you may have noticed that my posts have slowed up somewhat. But I haven’t hung up my pen (or my typing fingers). In fact, far from it. Instead, I have been beavering away on my laptop, devoting more energy to writing than ever before. That’s because… I am writing a book!
‘Friday Night Chicken’ is a personal story, with themes close to my heart – a coming-of-age food memoir set in North Manchester’s Jewish community, told through the eyes of my food-loving childhood self. Here my world was steeped in chopped herring and chicken soup, challah and bagels; my Grandma spooning out crisp baubles of gefilte fish from the deep-pan fryer. It is both an intimate portrait of family life, where food is connection and devotion, and a wider lens to explore themes of immigration and identity, religion and ritual.
It’s still in its early stages, and isn’t due out until April 2027. However, the book was recently shortlisted for this year’s Jane Grigson Trust Award (for books in development by first-time food book writers), which has resulted in a bit of a reveal. It is a recognition I am very honoured to receive, not least as it’s a prodigious award and features a panel of judges whose writing I really admire.
