Aimee Nezhukumatathil,  author of a collection of nature essays, World of Wonders, and a professor of English at the University of Mississippi, Oxford, has written another book of personal essays, Bite By Bite  In this collection, she muses about memorable meals, tantalizing tastes and smells, family recipes, and culinary traditions. The singular subject of each of the forty essays is a fruit, vegetable, or herb.

Occasionally, Nezhukumatathil interrupts a lyrical essay with the prosaic history of the food, which while informative, is often jarring, but still these one-to-two-page essays are a joy.