Fed, White, and Blue

Finding America with My Fork

By: Simon Majumdar

Narrated by: Tim Andres Pabon

Simon Majumdar is probably not your typical idea of an immigrant. As he says, "I'm well rested, not particularly poor, and the only time I ever encounter 'huddled masses' is in line at Costco." But immigrate he did, and thanks to a Homeland Security agent who asked if he planned to make it official, the journey chronicled in Fed, White, and Blue was born. In it, Simon sets off on a trek across the United States to find out what it really means to become an American, using what he knows best: food.

Simon stops in Plymouth, Massachusetts, to learn about what the pilgrims ate (and that playing Wampanoag football with large men is to be avoided); a Shabbat dinner in Kansas; Wisconsin to make cheese (and get sprayed with hot whey); and LA to cook at a Filipino restaurant in the hope of making his in-laws proud. Simon attacks with gusto the food cultures that make up America - brewing beer, farming, working at a food bank, and even finding himself at a tailgate.

Full of heart, humor, history, and of course food, Fed, White, and Blue is a warm, funny, and inspiring portrait of becoming American.

©2015 Simon Majumdar (P)2015 Gildan Media LLC

Amateurish all-around

What disappointed you about Fed, White, and Blue?

Only made 3 chapters -- amazed by lack of real content, and wasted words.

How could the performance have been better?

There's supposed to be tension about an outsider learning about America but the narrator has a flat mid-Western American accent, so all the possible tension is lost. I thought this was a book about an Indian learning about the U.S. I bought this as a Daily Special; otherwise I'd return it.

Just not for me

I could not get into this book. It did not hold my interest regarding story development, character development nor interest in travel. I tried several times. It was very calming to fall asleep to.

Meh

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

Nothing. It's pretty much irredeemable

Has Fed, White, and Blue turned you off from other books in this genre?

I like books about food and have listened to lots of them. This is just thoroughly mediocre.

What didn’t you like about Tim Andres Pabon’s performance?

Why would you have an American narrate a book about a Brit's search for the essence of America? It certainly doesn't ring true as he mentions his accent and over and over again, the fact that he is British when the reader is clearly American

What character would you cut from Fed, White, and Blue?

The main character - the author

Any additional comments?

the author is smug, self-important and an uninspired writer, over and over saying how pleased his hosts were when he liked their food, how privileged he felt upon receiving so many invitations, and the prodigious quantities of alcohol he drank. I did learn some things about food but looking back I would listen to something else. But I was working in the garden so I guess it occupied my attention

Wrong narrator for this book!

What did you like best about Fed, White, and Blue? What did you like least?

Interesting, if slightly disjointed. I'd have liked a more in depth discussion of the people and their foods.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

I'd like to read more about the individual subjects and why they were involved with what they did.

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

The narrator was actually quite good, just the wrong person to read this. I found it jarring how often the author mentions his upbringing in the UK, and his British accent, and this is said in a VERY American accent.

Did Fed, White, and Blue inspire you to do anything?

I'm going to look for more books about American foodways.

Any additional comments?

I'd like to see more continuity from chapter to chapter. It reads a bit like a series of blog posts.

Slice of Americana

Probably should have been longer. Overall though it's a nice series of vignettes from off the beaten culinary path. Worth a credit if you like unconventional travel stories, or are just a fan of food and all that goes into it.

Good book, good narrator, wrong combination.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Narrator seemed to read the book almost like a fairy tale. When he pronouced, Bloody, he lost my interest competely. Should have been a Brit reading.

Very uneven. Parts very good, others not.

First of all, I concur with most other listeners: the narrator should have had an English accent. What were they thinking??

I also give the narrator a little tick for quirky pronunciation throughout. He went out of his way to over-exaggerate the Spanish/Mexican words, but then massacred other languages. A Filipino reader complained about his tortured pronunciation of Filipino foods, and I have to chime in on the Jewish/Hebrew words. Very very nice that he included this section at all, grateful for that. His section on the Shabbat dinner was mostly well done -- except for the strange pronunciations. How tough can it be to master the word "Shabbat"?

I took out my earbuds during two sections -- he was just about to give a "disturbing" account of slaughterhouses -- which I didn't need -- and another on hunting, which I also didn't need. I eat meat -- not much, but some. I just don't need to hear the anguishing details of how it arrives on my plate. Is that hypocritical? I don't think so. If I needed extensive surgery, I wouldn't need a precisely detailed step by step account of what was going to be done to me, either. The basics will do just fine -- just make it happen, y'know? Since I didn't listen to these parts, I have no idea how well he actually did these sections.

There were great parts: I got a kick out of his account of spending time with the "Seoul Sausage" kids - as it happens, I did see that season of The Great Food Truck Race, and was pulling for them the whole time. It was fun to see this other side of the guys. That was well done. I enjoyed the account of fishing in Alaska, the chili-fixation in New Mexico, and the barbecue whenever it happened. All of those were interesting.

And it's difficult, I know, to strike a balance between heaping praise on one's hosts, and not making it sound self-serving, that all these people went so far out of their way because he was such an important guy. Some of that praise was laid on with a trowel -- I understand, they were welcoming, generous and kind. Got that, over and over. It got a little heavy handed at times.

Will I listen again? Probably not. But this was a "Daily Deal" so for whatever I paid for it, it was fine.

I enjoyed it but...

While I enjoyed Fed, White and Blue it is not without its flaws. The two biggest are not big mistakes but they keep the recording solidly in the good category and keep it from being excellent. The first misstep is the recording performer. He's fine. He did not do anything wrong. His speech was clear and he tried to interject emotion where appropriate. Problem is he almost couldn't be further from Simon Majumdar. The narrator was even and pleasant whereas Simon has a natural snark that gives his criticism bite and an almost childlike surprise and glee when he finds something he enjoys. Sadly the performer they got could not quite match that.

The other problem I have with this book might be a natural extension of the format. So much of this book was positive. I can fully understand why. Who wouldn't be overwhelmed by the gracious generosity shown to the author throughout the trip. How could he not have his experience buoyed by the outpouring of support? Problem is when there is chapter after chapter of positives it starts to cheapen the value of those responses. Still I can hardly blame the author for not wanting to attack people who have shared what must be a point of pride with him.

All in all worth it and enjoyable but sadly short of 5 stars.

Wrong reader

I've enjoyed Simon Majumdar on various Food Network shows and can't understand why the book was read by an American.

Why does the narrator have an American accent?

I liked the book but that ruined it for me. The author is British, right?