Paula Deen: It Ain’t All About the Cookin’

Famed Savannah restaurateur Paula Deen, whose drive to create a better future for her two sons helped fuel a rags-to-riches entrepreneurial adventure, dispels the notion of herself as the model of motherly virtue, confessing to a nagging smoking habit and a less than wholesome workplace vocabulary. More seriously, she admits that chronic agoraphobia and an inability to come to terms with the effects of her first husband’s drinking rendered her a less than ideal maternal figure. During the taping of an early episode of Deen’s Food Network program, a meddlesome producer chided her to take only “princess bites” of on-air creations, advice that she wisely rejected. Admittedly, Deen may at times seem to sink her teeth into too many personal issues and cathartic experiences, at least for the most casual of listeners. Yet Deen’s legions of fans will find themselves enthralled by the spunky, confessional tone and undeniable down-home charm of her audio performance. She addresses her listeners as “ya’ll” with a grace and sincerity capable of winning hearts on both sides of the Mason-Dixon line. Simultaneous release with the S&S hardcover (Reviewed online). (Apr.)