The Arab nations invest much of their culture in food, eating becomes a memory of their history. Traditionally the secrets of Arab cooking have been passed from mother to daughter, Salah Jamal is one of the few men to enter the kitchen. He has spent a lifetime collecting recipes – from all over the Arab world – and prepares a feast of dishes; the unbiquitous falafel, hommos and salads, to delicious stuffed vegetables and stews, couscous, fish and oven-cooked meats, soups and brochettes to spicy, stuffed whole lamb, chicken and pigeon, as well as sweets, pastries and traditional drinks. Among these dishes Salah Jamal relives his childhood in Nablus and his year of travel around the Arab world, witty and evocative memories of picaresque travel in the Maghreb and comic tales of Lybyan fanatics, eccentric sheiks, dervishes, the dextrous Lebanese and devious Bedouin women.