If you’re a reader who loves to eat, do I have a book group for you.
The Hive Center for the Book Arts, in partnership with Little Butch Provisions and Southeast Evanston favorite Booked!, has created a new book group concept, Eat Their Words. The group will gather each month to discuss a food-centric book while enjoying a bespoke meal or food experience that helps bring the book to life.
The first meeting of Eat Their Words will take place at Booked! (506 Main St.) on Monday, April 8 from 7:30 – 9:30 pm. The April book is Delicious! by noted food critic and writer Ruth Reichl, a 2014 novel heavily informed by Reichl’s time as the Editor-in-Chief of the late, lamented Gourmet magazine.
Tickets for the first event cost $45 and include a copy of the book, a charcuterie board with paired beverage prepared by JT Newman of Little Butch Provisions, and a tax-deductible donation of $5 to Hive Center for the Book Arts. Future locations and adventures are TBD, but upcoming books include Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner (May) and Fieldwork by Ileana Regan (June).
Newman, a queer and nonbinary chef, writer, and food influencer, will also be leading the book discussions. “I created this project with Hive Book Arts to unite food and writing, my two deepest passions,” says Newman.
Originally planning to launch Eat Their Words in Chicago, Newman and Hive’s founder and Board President Jamie Lou Thome, both Evanstonians, decided that they wanted to be Evanston-based. They wanted to shine a light on small businesses in Evanston, while also “highlighting books by women, LGBTQIA+ people, and BIPOC folks,” says Newman.
“There are so many white male chef books out there in the world, and I’m interested in curating a book club that includes a broader range of perspectives. As we cover other cultures’ food experiences, we’ll see out other chefs and food people from those cultures to guide us through bringing the books to life. Future book club meetings may involve field trips, supper clubs, and other curated food experiences.”
If you’d like to learn more about Hive, be sure to check out “Free the Books,” their current exhibition at the Evanston Public Library, running through April 28 in the third-floor exhibition space, and then traveling to other cities around the country.
“We’re all about building community and connections through the book and literary arts, in Evanston and beyond,” says Thome.
Eat Their Words kicks off new foodie bookclub April 8 is from Evanston RoundTable, Evanston's most trusted source for unbiased, in-depth journalism.
