In the Weeds: Around the World and Behind the Scenes with Anthony Bourdain by Tom Vitale
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Web ID: 13391211An exhilarating page turner
I’d always considered Anthony Bourdain a brilliant, larger than life, if somewhat mercurial, personality, and was shocked to hear of his suicide in June 2018. Tom Vitale, Bourdain’s longtime director and producer, traveled with him on a near non-stop run of 80 trips – roughly five trips a year – to almost every corner of the globe, constantly meeting strangers, often through the context of their food and culture, in the process making over 100 episodes of television. Vitale is a masterful travel writer and his richly detailed observations of people and faraway locales with the emphasis on his behind-the-scenes work with Bourdain make “In the Weeds” an exhilarating page turner.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Hoping the best for Tom!
Absolutely loved this book! It transported me to the destination and it really gave me a better understanding of the extream effort that went into making the show! It was an emotional roller-coaster for Tom and I could really feel his struggles. I watched everything Anthony Bourdain did! I never watched another episode after hearing of his suicide. I was truly upset and couldn't bring myself to continue the show, knowing he was dead! Tom helped bring me some kind of closure! I hope Tom is doing well and I wish him the best in his personal and future endeavors!
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Loved it!
This was gifted to me by a friend who had recently started it as well. I normally shy away from books written by the friends of the deceased, but this was truly a wonderful read. The way the stories were woven together offered an authentic journey. It had light hearted, funny moments, as well as pretty horrific ones. On the travel side, it painted some great vibrant pictures. I enjoyed watching the episodes mentioned in the book as I read, as well. Definitely recommend it.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
A real look behind the scenes
TW from the author: INCIDENTS INCLUDED IN THIS book are not intended to glamorize or endorse acts of cannibalism, drug use, smuggling, torture, extortion, bribery, wire fraud, attempted vehicular manslaughter, or the poaching of endangered species. Obvi TW: suicide One of the strongest first pages I’ve possibly ever read in a book. This book is full of tales highlighting the diabolical chaos that occurred behind the scenes while filming Tony’s shows. It’s a glimpse into the minds and mayhem that surrounded Anthony Bourdain. Any fan will enjoy this as a different perspective—truly behind the scenes and immersive—and I look forward to watching back some of the shows this focused on to see how everything plays out again with this extra knowledge. While it is a fascinating look into Bourdain’s world it also feels very...invasive. Not to say we shouldn’t talk about the dark sides of someone after they pass, especially from someone who was pretty forward with their feelings and emotions but this takes it to an exploitive of level with personal details, and I found it uncomfortable at times yet I couldn’t put this down.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Adventure and Emotional Reflection
I genuinely enjoyed this book in the same way that I enjoy watching hours of talk show interviews with a favorite celebrity. It's fun, sometimes bland and repetitive, but oddly addicting. Tom Vitale's insights and behind the scenes "shock factor" of making Anthony Bourdain TV felt like a tell-all with a heavy dose of personal reflection and hunt for resolution. The narrative and general structure of the book seemed to jump from one anecdote to the next as if it was a television show. A format that I don't believe worked as well when pen was put to paper. Nevertheless, I appreciated the story and how this memoir seemed to serve as therapy, a mode of putting everything on the table. It was fascinating to know how themes of othering and tracking who the beneficiary of tourism really is in these destinations was consistently in the minds of those filming. I enjoyed the story and it's play on the control we can create in telling others' stories as well as our own.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com