Read & Feed: Savor silky chocolate pudding with Lucy Grealy's "Autobiography of a Face"

BOOK: Getting cancer of the jaw when she was 9 wasn't so terrifying, Lucy Grealy recalls in her poignant memoir, Autobiography of a Face (Harper Perennial, 2003). It meant days off from school, and extra attention from her parents and friends. Only when the removal of one-third of her jaw turned her into an object of cruel teasing from classmates did she begin to truly suffer. It was the disfigurement, not her illness, that tormented her. In her efforts to find acceptance she turns to horses, and later, in college, to a series of sexual relationships, hoping to convince herself that despite her face, she is worthy of love.

WHY READ? This is not a book about cancer or heroic suffering. It is a story about confronting isolation, and the craven desire for acceptance. Grealy tells herself that she'll start living only when her face is fixed and she no longer stands out from others because of her appearance. "When I tried to imagine being beautiful," she writes, "I could only imagine living without the perpetual fear of being alone, without the great burden of isolation, which is what feeling ugly felt like." Grealy never indulges in self-pity, and certainly rejects the role of noble cancer survivor. In fact, her good friend, novelist Ann Patchett, admits in her afterword to the 2003 edition that Grealy, who died in 2002, could be a difficult person to like. But Grealy understood, Patchett adds, "how none of us ever feel we are pretty enough," and her book "touches on our fears that love and approval are things we will always have to struggle to keep."

MAKE IT: Though Grealy shuns the maudlin and the morose, and makes no pretense about being courageous in the face of suffering, a little comfort food seems to be in order for a discussion of the book, and what could be more comforting than rich, silken dark chocolate topped with whipped cream and chocolate shavings?

TAKE IT: If you don't have the time to make pudding from scratch, you can always turn to Kozy Shack, a line of puddings (rice, banana, chocolate and tapioca) readily available in local grocery stores. An even better alternative might be one of the rich chocolate ice creams now available — Amazon Valley Chocolate from Haagen-Dazs, for example, or Chocolate Macadamia from Ben & Jerry's. Serve with a thin cookie (one that doesn't obscure the flavor of the chocolate too much) and everyone will feel even better.

Tom Valeo, special to the Times

Read & Feed is a monthly column in Taste that matches popular book club selections with food to serve at meetings. If you have suggestions or would like to share what your book club is cooking up, send e-mail to features@sptimes.com. Put BOOK FOOD in the subject line.