Interesting non-fiction account of the joys and challenges of living in a small Spanish village and spending years in perfecting a cheese. The book is full of Spanish history and gives a good insight into the Castillian culture and lifestyle.

It was touted by my fellow book club members as a fabulous, we-just-loved-it! book. I could not get into it, and I really tried. I don't know what I expected after hearing all the kudos, but it just didn't float my boat, ring my bell, or make me want to turn another page. I didn't finish it; from what I did read, I think it was about a writer who becomes obsessed with a particular type of cheese, and pretty much uproots his life and family to find out all he can about it. The biggest question for me was WHY? And why was this interesting to read about? Then there were the footnotes. Often longer than the actual writing on a page, sometimes carrying over to AN ADDITIONAL PAGE!, completely segueing to a different subject - lots of historical research is included here - and if I took the time to read a footnote I usually lost track of whatever I had been reading about, and had to re-read the original footnoted paragraph. I felt like I was completely out of my depth - I was obviously not intelligent or erudite enough to "get" the fabulousness of this book. Whatever the attraction was it was totally lost on me, and to make matters worse, I was hosting the meeting! I loved Under the Tuscan Sun, a non-fiction travelogue adventure, but I'm telling you, this book just gave me a headache!

This is book, appreciated and sold best to Foodies, and as a travel book perhaps for those going to the LaMancha, planes area of Spain. It is more than this, but without a desire to know more about the culture and artisan cheese making, or a real appreciation for the small village life and rhythm of Europe - it's a hard slog. It's an erudite book I think, with a hefty dose of story-telling, a larger than life character, and an American's author's fascination with him and his 'philosophy of life.'

Fun read, great use of words and descriptions. Good reflection of cultural differences and perceptions. Made me want to explore Spain.