The Mountains Sing by Nguyen Phan Quê Mai with recipe by Kenny Atkinson
Author
Born 1973, A Vietnamese poet and writer of novels, fiction and non-fiction, Nguyen Phan Quê Mai has some top literary prizes under her belt.
In 2020, her first novel written in English, the fictional The Mountains Sing, was a family saga which when it hot the markets, became an international bestseller and was runner up for the 2021 Dayton Literacy Peace Prize, just one of the many accolades it accumulated helping Nguyêns reputation to grow.
With work translated into more than twenty languages, she still had time to get her PhD in Creative Writing from Lancaster University and be named by Forbes Vietnam as one of 20 inspiring women of 2021.
Nguyen didn’t let the paint dry too much before releasing her novel Dust Child, in 2023. This is another book which unravels Vietnamese history and received critical acclaim and in 2024, was nominated for the Dayton Literary peace Prize.
Nguyen Phan Quê Mai
Book
The Mountains Sing is a multigenerational story set against the Viet Nam War and spanning almost a century of Vietnam history.
From the French colonial period through the communist Viet Minh’s rise to power, through the separation between north and south Vietnam, all the way to the present day.
One of the main characters, Tran Dieu Lan Born 1920, was forced to run away from the family farm. Taking her six children with her, she escaped during the then communist governments land reform, as it rose in the north.
Years later, her granddaughter, Huong born 1960, sees her uncles head off to the Ho Chi Minh Trail to fight in the conflict which was to tear her country, and her family, apart.
The ending of The Mountains Sing focuses on family reconciliation and the enduring power of storytelling.
Huong and her grandmother, Dieu Lan, find a sense of peace and hope after the war.
Huong finds love with Tam and they plan to marry. Though there are temporary setbacks, the families are eventually reconciled, and they honour Dieu Lan by sharing their family story, ensuring their history lives on through future generations.
July Book and chef
My Thoughts
I liked this book, and thought it was well constructed, with a narrative I got into pretty quickly.
I enjoyed the historical nature of the read, something which I’ve enjoyed in the past with other books.
It moved along at a nice pace with main characters who had full and rounded personalities.
The author didn’t skimp on the work with these peripheral characters either. The back stories of these characters matched the depth of the main characters and had nuances that worked to keep the story on track, weaving around the story when needed.
All in all, I would recommend the book to others, but it’s not one I would read again. Not that I didn’t enjoy it, as I said earlier, I did, but the story is one that I’ve read a few times over the years, just with different authors.
I give the book a 3 egg rating!
3 egg Rating
Chef
Kenny Atkinson
Kenny Atkinson was born in December 1976 in Newcastle Upon Tyne in an area north of the St James Park stadium.
He was brought up by his mother after his parents divorced and began working at the age of fourteen packing Christmas paper and on market stalls.
At the age of sixteen, he left school with six GCSE qualifications and began working in the kitchen of the Ravensdene Lodge Hotel owned by his uncle, washing dishes.
He completed NVQ levels one and two at Newcastle Upon Tyne College in catering and hospitality and began working at a variety of restaurants in Newcastle. He also spent five months working as a chef in Crete
After returning to Newcastle, he was spotted by Steve Waites, who took Kenny with him to a new restaurant in the Midlands.
During his two weeks of annual leave, he decided to work for free with Simon Radley at his restaurant within the Chester Grosvenor & Spa.
Following Radley's advice, Kenny moved to London where he gained a position at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel.
He then took his first head chef position at a restaurant within the Greenway Hotel in Cheltenham.
Kenny helped it get three AA Rosettes but decided to make a move to the Scilly Isles to work at the St Martin's in the Isle restaurant.
It was there that he won his first Michelin star, which was covered in the national press as the reviewer needed to travel some 400 miles to visit the restaurant.
Success led to a new head chef position a little closer to home, at the White Room restaurant within Seaham Hall in County Durham. Another Michelin star followed.
Whilst working there in 2009, he was offered the opportunity to appear on the BBC Two television show, Great British Menu.
With only two weeks to prepare (Another chef had dropped out), compared to four months for all the other chefs and went on to win his heat and his starter dish was selected for the banquet.
This is when the whole world began to appreciate how talented Kenny is.
He began to make appearances on the BBC television show Saturday Kitchen and won Chef of the Year at the Catey awards later that same year.
He returned to the Great British Menu for the following year, and again won the heat.
This time his fish course was included in the banquet. It was based on a dish created by Mary Smith with potted mackerel and gooseberries.
The additional exposure from the television show resulted in Atkinson being offered a position as Food Director, heading up three restaurants at Rockcliffe Hall in County Durham.
Where is Kenny now? Right back in his home town of Newcastle Upon Tyne in his Michelin Starred restaurant House of Tides.
In 2022, Atkinson and his partner Abbie opened Solstice by Kenny Atkinson, a small fine dining restaurant in a venue the pair had previously operated as Violet's Café, less than half a mile from House of Tides.[13] After operating for only 8 months, it was awarded a Michelin star in March 2023[14] - the first time there has been multiple Michelin star restaurants in Newcastle upon Tyne.
Of course
Obviously, cooking for Foodie Book Clubs Lockdown Lunches is as big of an achievement as a Michelin Star or two! Maybe not, but for me, I couldn’t be more excited to chat to one of my foodie heroes.
If you missed Kenny cooking live the first time, watch it again on Foodie Book Clubs YouTube channel.
Kenny Atkinson
Recipe
Smoked Chicken Risotto with Peas, Wild Garlic& Parmesan
Makes 4
Ingredients
50 gm Rapeseed oil
250 gm Risotto Rice
1 Banana shallot, peeled and diced
1 clove of garlic chopped
500 ml Chicken or Veg stock
50 gm Mascarpone
100 ml White wine
30 gm Parmesan, grated
200 gm Smoked chicken – diced
4 leaves Wild garlic
20 gm Chives - chopped
200 gm Peas – fresh or frozen
1 lemon for grating & juice
Method
Firstly, bring the stock to the boil
In a separate pan add the oil then add the garlic & shallot and lightly sweat down without colour for 1 minute, add the rice and cook for a further minute without colour stirring at all times, lightly season with a little salt.
Add a splash of wine and reduce, then add a ladle of the stock a little at a time stirring the rice at all times.
Continue this process until the rice has absorbed the liquid and the rice is just cooked.
To finish the risotto, add the wild garlic, peas, mascarpone & parmesan and seasoning.
The texture should be slightly loose, add more stock if needed, add the smoked chicken and a little lemon juice.
To serve, spoon the risotto into bowls top with some shaved parmesan and a little grated lemon zest.
