Cookbook review: The Fat Duck

Both the size and content of this book on their own are enough to make this edition stand out on a bookshelf, and you get both in one.  I ordered this online and don't envy the poor postmaster who had to lug it around.  As big as it is however, I was shocked at how much literary content it contained.  Chef Heston Blumenthal includes essays on all sorts of topics, from his background to more obscure accounts of the evolution taken by certain ideas (cabbage pate for example).  While there is more to read here than in most cookbooks, it is very interesting and approachable and matched up well with beautiful photography and artwork splashing across the pages.  For all the science involved, the artistry that inspires it hasn't been forgotten.  This is one of those books that may take you a day or two just to get past the first flip-through before you dive into the text - that will take you much longer.  I've re-read the initial history section a few times - I find it inspirational the way chef Blumenthal came about his conclusions regarding the usual process one takes in becoming a chef, and his equally determined, yet unorthodox alternative to that process.  You can read this book and learn about incredible dishes using strange ingredients, techniques and equipment, or you can read this book and discover a very human story about drive, determination, and belief in your own vision.  CHECK IT OUT HERE.