Sweet Honey, Bitter Lemons: Travels in Sicily on a Vespa

I hadn't realised that Matthew Fort is one of the judges on The Great British Menu. Read this book while on holiday in Sicily. Was very interesting to read while you are actually out there. We like eating local and it was great to be able to identify some of the dishes we ate afterwards, and I will try some of them at home from his recipes provided at the end of each chapter. Also gave pointers on what to see in particular places, as well as desciptions of how things are made eg Modica chocolate. Impressed my fellow travellers with details of how it is made that gives the chocolate its 'grittiness'! Matthew has a good writing style and it is the type of book that you can just pick up and put down and skip chapters if you are travelling to a particular area and read the others later. His reflections on what makes Sicilians Sicilians are very interesting given their patchwork of a heritage, but food seems to be what makes them tick.

Great to read after enjoying Eating up Italy, easy. Humorous and fab descriptions

Just back from 10 days in Sicily, and made time to read this book before I left. It provides an interesting insight into Sicilian life, or at least those aspects that relate to food. It also provides a worthwhile steer on which bits of Sicily to go to and which bits to leave alone. Now that I'm back, I think I must have eaten several of the dishes for which recipes are included in this book - so I now need to go back through the book, see which dishes I tried, and then decide which ones we might cook at home.It might be an odd comment to add, but I was disappointed in the quality of the proof-reading. There were several occasions when I felt a word had been mis-spelt (or at least where I thought I'd spotted an inconsistency in spelling between successive mentions), be it a placename, an ingredient or an Italian phrase. I guess most people would not find that too irksome...Anyway, I found it an entertaining book, worth reading if you're about to visit Sicily for the first time, though in various ways it is a bit unbalanced in the way it seems to skip over bits of the journey.And yes, I enjoyed my 10 days in Sicily very much - early October and lots of blue sky and warmth!

I bought this book in advance of a first holiday to Sicily. I enjoyed reading it, and found so many things when I got to Sicily that the author had remarked on especially some of the local foods on offer.This made our mealtimes and shopping quite fun as I had heard a bit about these items and was then able to try them for myself, mostly agreeing with the author's opinion!

Quite pleased that I bought the book. It is interesting in parts and he does visit a few of the more isolated places in Sicily. His warmth and love for the Island shines through. I should have expected this anyway but there was too much detail about recipes and food for my liking. I would have preferred more on the places he visited, the sites and travel tips, but each to their own. It is worth reading.

In another of his culinary adventures, Matthew Fort manages to convey the colour, fragrance and sights of Sicily in this gastronomic tour. Just as in 'Eating up Italy', there are little historical tidbits, and recipes he's picked up along the way. There are lovely anecdotes of people he's met, or suppliers he's found - even of the locals he watches go about their business. Unlike the last book, there's no index, but then Sicily isn't as large as Italy (and there is a map to track his movements). If you loved 'Eating up Italy', it's a great book to lock yourself away with on a rainy British day...

I bought this as a gift for my son-in-law as he and my daughter were about to go to Sicily for their honeymoon. I gather they enjoyed the book and Sicily itself is absolutely amazing.

Matthew Fort explores Sicily on his trusty Vespa, Monica, and engages local people in a gastronomic exploration of their food and culture. There are recipes at the end of every chapter which offer the reader the opportunity to create a bit of Sicily for themselves, based on the evocative descriptions of family celebrations, simple rustic cafe meals, and rural festivals which Fort encounters on his meandering journey across and around the island. The only advice I would give is to leave space between chapters, or you may feel you have over-indulged (as Fort regularly appears to do). Also, vegetarians may feel slightly queasy at the frequent mention of pig fat! Overall, a very satisfying read which should encourage an influx of visitors to this intriguing island.

Fantastico libro descrive la meravigliosa terra siciliana. Grande anche l'autore. La Sicilia regala emozioni uniche ben raccontante in questo libro.

Etant moi-meme d'origine Sicilienne, j'ai adore ce livre qui parle magnifiquement bien de ma region. Parfait a lire et a suivre chacun de ces conseils!

i like this author, used read him in the illustrated london news--his sicilian experience was not unlike ours on a walk there, it really evokes the earthy life

I enjoyed this book, but I found the author's personality to be a little distracting. I was hoping for some more details about Sicily itself. I had visions of descriptions of churches and monuments, squares and farms. Instead, Fort seems overly preoccupied with his physical comfort or discomfort, his emotional needs and desires, and his frustrations with people and places he seems to feel are beneath him. He seems to be disturbed by the presence of tourists, remarking condescendingly on those whose ignorance of the local cuisine irks him, forgetting that is still a tourist himself. While that may be normal for a preeminent food critic, it does not make for pleasant reading.Never the less, Fort's descriptions of the meals that he eats and the people he meets are wonderful. He describes his food with the voice of a lover, allowing the flowing description to roll effortlessly. He is particularly enamored of the deep rich flavors of the traditional Sicilian cooking. And each chapter ends with several recipes for the reader to try themselves.Read this book for love of Sicily, for the descriptions of the food, and for a good chuckle over a middle-aged, self-satisfied foodie!

I was expecting a new book and not a used library book but I guess for the price it’s A OK…?? I was not expecting a book as outdated as it was. Perhaps I should’ve read the description more closely however, I just started to read into a few pages. Can’t review the book itself as of yet. Tough to get into being as it’s a older hard copy library book. Haven’t seen one in a very long time. I’m sure the book content is lovely.