Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain- A feeble attempt at analyzing and emulating the writing of "Chef-dom"

I would almost feel guilty choosing Anthony Bourdain's Kitchen Confidential as my literary emulation assignment. On the surface, it seems that Bourdain writes and tells his story in a very lucid, conversational style. Accompanied by his casual, "Remember-that-one-time-when" tone, Anthony Bourdain has a writer's voice that I would guess many can emulate to some degree. Not to degrade his writing in any shape or form, it's a very cool thing actually, to have a style and voice one can easily dive into, or just as easily sit back and soak in the details of it's content.

This is trickery however.

His story-time writing style has much more depth to it than one would initially assume a piece about French cuisine could. He implements exquisite technique in ordering the flow and feel of his stories. From setting description, chronological sequencing of events, and emphasizing on key points in his narrative-- Bourdain presents evidence of his skill outside of "Chef-dom".

Two notable techniques that Bourdain makes prominent use of are, emphasizing key ideas through short, explicit paragraphs, and narrative interruptions. This isn't surprising, as the story is a reflection upon an adolescent adventure experienced by Bourdain, and we all know that adolescent adventures involve a lot of epiphanies and narrative interruptions. Bourdain does an invigorating job of halting the particular story is telling, and giving us full details of what he was experiencing internally, and what insight he has gained since.

"I took it in my hand, tilted the shell back into my mouth as instructed by the now beaming Monsieur Saint-Jour and with one bite and a slurp, wolfed it down. It tasted of seawater... of brine and flesh... and somehow... of the future.
Everything was different now. Everything.
I'd not only survived-I'd enjoyed.
This, I knew, was a magic of which i had until now been only dimly and spitefully aware. I was hooked..."

"...I'd learned something. Viscerally, instinctively, spiritually- even in some small, precursive way, sexually- and there was no turning back. The genie was out of the bottle. My life as a cook, as a chef, had begun.
Food had power."

Anthony uses a very personal, open writing style. He gives us the full details of his experiences, and lavishes them with savory and enveloping details. Almost as if one were reading a menu detailing the delectable foodstuffs one was about to inhale. Perhaps that is the key to Anthony's writing... He manages to bridge the love of food and appreciation for good cuisine with excellent story-telling. Food has power.