Study Your Food: Gastronomic Authors at Events Nearby

If you like cooking or just knowing more about food, consider seeing these authors of cookbooks or books about food who are speaking today or soon in our area:

Wednesday, Oct. 23

STAMFORD -- A panel discussion on public policy and food: "Join us for the morning to learn about the dysfunctional politics of food and such topics as industrial agriculture, genetically modified organisms in food, food delivery systems, and the public policy that undergirds them all." Some of the panelists are Dr. Abby Kinchy, Professor in the Science and Technology Studies Department at Rensselaer Polytechnic University and author of Seeds, Science and Struggle; Dr. Robert Paarlberg of Wellesley College and author of Food Politics: What Everyone Needs to Know; and Dr. Bruce Sherman, Director of the Bureau of Inspection and Regulation in the Connecticut Department of Agriculture. Cost: $40, at the Italian Center, 1620 Newfield Ave. -- from an event listing on Stamford Patch

DARIEN -- Patricia Wells, author of The French Kitchen Cookbook: Recipes and Lessons from Paris and Provence, will speak at 7 p.m., Oct. 23 at Darien Library. "Focusing on the fresh, inspiring recipes and lessons from the much-coveted classes held in her beautiful homes in Paris and Provence, Patricia takes you into her life in France, telling the story of how her school began and the many memorable experiences she shared with family, friends, and students." -- from an announcement on the Darien Library website (Wells was also scheduled to speak the next day at 8:30 p.m. in Wilton Library. If you're seeing her in Wilton, Register beforehand.)

WESTPORT -- "Travel + Leisure magazine editor Luke Barr explores a singular historic time and place in food culture as he discusses his book Provence 1970: M.F.K. Fisher, Julia Child, James Beard, and the Reinvention of American Taste. The great-nephew of M.F.K. Fisher, Barr captures the personalities and the history of this seminal moment in time when they found themselves together in the South of France and how it influences the way we eat now." Noon to 1 p.m., in the McManus Room -- from an announcement on the Westport Public Library website

Thursday, Oct. 24

WILTON -- "With The French Kitchen Cookbook, culinary legend Patricia Wells invites home cooks into her life in France, making the fresh and delicious recipes from her popular classes available to fans who dream of experiencing their own gastronomic adventure in the world’s culinary capital." 8:30 p.m. Register beforehand. -- from an announcement on the Wilton Library website (Patricia Wells was also scheduled to speak the day before at Darien Library)

Nov. 6 (Wednesday)

STAMFORD -- "Join us for an evening of wine, food and conversation as The Friends of The Ferguson Library hosts a panel of cookbook authors. The authors include Debra Ponzek, the chef and co-owner of specialty food store Aux Delices; Michele Stuart, owner and pastry chef of Michele's Pies in Norwalk and Westport; and Marina Marchese, the founder of Red Bee Artisanal Honey. Tickets are $15 and proceeds benefit the Library. Reserve online or call 203 351-8275. Doors open at 6 p.m. for a wine reception and appetizers generously donated by Boca and California Pizza Kitchen." The event takes place from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday in the Main Library Third Floor Auditorium." -- an announcement on the Ferguson Library website

Nov. 21 (Thursday)

RIDGEFIELD -- (OK, we're not too sure how much of this is about food.) "Josh Ruxin, who grew up in Ridgefield, discusses his just released book A Thousand Hills to Heaven: Love, Hope, and a Restaurant in Rwanda [Little, Brown and Company; November 5, 2013] . When newlyweds Josh and Alissa Ruxin first moved to Rwanda from Manhattan in 2006, they arrived full of ideas about what should be done. Just twelve years after the genocide, poverty was deeply entrenched, but they were hopeful they could make a difference. [...]" 7 to 8 p.m. in the Library Program Room, Ridgefield Library. -- from an announcement on the library website

For more information on books, authors, literature and literary events in and around Darien, see the new "Books and Authors" category on Darien Patch. You can also bookmark it and subscribe to the category to make it easier to get to the bookish news in the area.