This is the only fictional "back of the house" in this category and while it hails itself as a novel it reads more like a collection of interweaving short stories. Lillian is a successful chef/restauranteur who conducts cooking classes "back of the house" where she teaches the essential basics of cooking. To me, she was the most interesting character, and at times I wished the whole book was about her but this is not what the author had in mind for her book. Each chapter follows the life of one of the eight students who take this particular round of cooking classes.
It is about the healing energy of cooking, the soul satisfying work of nourishing yourself and others with thoughtfully prepared simple food, and the mind stilling quality of "hands on doing" that the often repetitive tasks of cooking and baking bring. If you pay attention when watching a cooking competition or show you will often hear the chefs credit their back of house cooking life as the one that made all the difference, the one that turned their life around and gave their life meaning and purpose.
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