I actually dived in thinking that this was going to be another one of Kurlansky's micro-histories - and then proceeded to get confused! After I corrected my initial mistake and read over the summary, I was much better able to appreciate for what it was - a very fun little fiction read that tries to capture a neighborhood over the ages through its range of characters, all while being quite food-centric. A good time was had - even more so read I finished it up, and to me delight found that Kurlansky took care to make the last part of the book a little nonfiction history overview of cheesecake.

A fun, historical-ish read about cheesecake and NYC!! I loved reading a book surrounding the theme of cheesecake without it being a full cookbook, but still has the fun of recipes included!

In a word .. delicious. Or scrumptious.

I've loved cheesecake since I was in high school. yum.

Cheesecake: A Novel is a story that goes round and round, but cheesecake is definitely the re-occurring theme. Very, very enjoyable read.

Lots of recipes. I really wanted to call New York and order a cheesecake as I was reading. Would love to figure out how to order one from Herb Grosinger, that sounds like the perfect option. Looks like he also wrote a book.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury USA publishing for approving my request to read the advance read copy of Cheesecake by Mark Kurlansky in exchange for an honest review. Approx 208 pages, publication date is July 15, 2025.

This book was fun to read. What’s not to love about a rivalry between restaurants and cheesecakes. This book and characters had me laughing, wanting to bake a cheesecake and eat it while reading this story! Highly recommend!