Eric Ripert, celebrity chef and close friend to Anthony Bourdain, published a memoir last May, and I am so disappointed. I finally got to listen to the audio version, and I honestly don't know why. Why, oh, why did I wait so long?! 32 Yolks: From My Mother's Table to Working the Line is so delightful, so brutally honest, and so delicately crafted that it made me feel like I already understand what it might be like to eat at his flagship New York restaurant Le Bernardin. 

The French chef recounts his childhood and his introduction to cooking, through the family kitchens he haunted as a kid, through his culinary school education (it may not be what you expect), and through his early experiences working the line. He talks about his mistakes as well as his successes, his shortcomings as well as the lessons he learned. Through heartbreak and hellfire, he came through all his challenges to become a world renowned chef with several restaurants and Michelin stars. 

The audiobook is unabridged, but only 7.5 hours, which feels way too short when you get caught up in his story. And I couldn't help but notice that this book only took us up to his big jump across the ocean. At the end of this memoir, he's still in his 20s and heading for a restaurant in Washington, D.C. Could that mean that there is another memoir in the works for us? Well, a girl can dream! I will read anything this man writes. And I loved the narration, although I would have loved to hear Chef Ripert read it himself too. 

I know it's still January, but this may be one the of the best books I read all year. Don't make the same mistake I did. Read this as soon as possible (the paperback version hits stores March 21), or even better, listen to the audiobook. It's quite a ride, and one well worth taking! 

I received this audiobook from the publisher through BloggingforBooks.com. For more information on this book, click here or here for Eric Ripert's website.