Book Review: Sourdough

by Jenn Seiler-Patrick, Five Points West Regional Branch Library

Sourdough
Robin Sloan

“It was a fungal party hellscape.”
― Robin Sloan, Sourdough

I’m actually on my 2nd time through Sourdough, if that is any indication of my affection for the novel. I am a true lover of sourdough (any bread, to be honest), so I read this book for that reason alone. But it also spoke to my soul—because I like a little bit of magic thrown into real life. AKA the “magical realism” genre, if you’re trying to be fancy.

Lois moves to San Francisco to work a million hours a week creating coding that teaches robotic arms all kinds of tasks. Which is going fairly poorly, until she is gifted a sourdough “starter” that happens to be equal parts: magical, picky, moody, and delicious. Lois’ journey to happiness and self-discovery is funny and uplifting, while also being relatable to those of us who have struggled with the questions: “what are you doing with your life” and “can bread sing/am I crazy?”

Here are some other magical realism books at the library that might interest you as well:


Garden Spells (Waverley Family #1) by Sarah Addison Allen
The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot DΓ­az
The Dinner List by Rebecca Serle
The Sisters of the Winter Wood by Rena Rossner
The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender

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