David Downie
Encyclopedia
David D. Downie is a multilingual Paris
-based American nonfiction author, crime novelist and journalist who writes most often about culture, food and travel.
A graduate of the University of California
, Berkeley
, Downie took a master’s degree in Italian
from Brown University
in Providence, Rhode Island
, where he was a Kenyon Scholar and University Fellow. After working in the early 1980s as a translator, interpreter and press officer in Milan
, he moved to Paris. His writing reflects an abiding interest in French and Italian culture, politics
, food
and language
.
His articles have appeared in about 50 publications, print and online, including The Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle
, Bon Appétit
, Gourmet
, Gastronomica
, The Art of Eating, Australian Financial Review, Salon.com
, Epicurious.com
and Concierge.com. He has acted as Paris correspondent, contributing editor or European editor for a number of publications, including Appellation, Art & Antiques and Departures. His writing has also appeared in anthologies, among them The Collected Traveler volumes on Paris, Southwest France and Central Italy. Downie is currently a European correspondent for Gadling.com, the literary travel website.
In 1997 Downie’s crime novel La tour de l’immonde, about violence and murder in central Paris and its banlieue
, was published in Paris.
His first nonfiction book in English, Enchanted Liguria
also appeared in 1997; it was translated the following year in Italy under the title La Liguria incantata. His illustrated book on the contemporary cooking of Rome
, Cooking the Roman Way, was listed among the top ten cookbooks of 2002 by The Chicago Tribune, Boston Globe and San Francisco Chronicle. Cooking the Roman Way is full of anecdotes about the names, hidden meanings and origins of Italian foods; useful notes explain the difference between farro
and spelt
and the existence and uses of the quinto quarto
"fifth quarter" of butchered animals.
Downie’s book Paris, Paris (first edition 2005) explores the sites of Paris, from the Ile Saint-Louis
to Les Halles
and the parks of Montsouris
and Buttes Chaumont. Paris, Paris also features insights on Georges Pompidou
, François Mitterrand
and Coco Chanel
. The book will be reissued in April 2011 as part of the Armchair Traveler series at Broadway Books.
European pilgrimage
routes are another field of interest for Downie. In 2006, together with his wife, photographer Alison Harris, he walked 1,100 kilometers across France following sections of the Way of Saint James; a website documenting this journey is under construction, and Downie is now writing a book about it. The updated edition of Paris, Paris includes a new chapter on the Way of Saint James in Paris.
Downie's latest books include three volumes in the Terroir Guides series, published by The Little Bookroom, and dedicated to the food and wine of the Italian Riviera (and Genoa), Rome, and Burgundy. In 2011 a new book by Downie about Rome will be published: Quiet Corners of Rome; Paris, Paris will also be reissued in 2011.
Downie's second crime novel Paris City of Night, a Hitchcock-style thriller involving a putative terrorist plot to destroy parts of Paris, was released in 2009.
1997: La tour de l’immonde
2002: Cooking the Roman Way: Authentic recipes from the home cooks and trattorias of Rome (HarperCollins). Photography by Alison Harris
2005: Paris, Paris: Journey into the City of Light
(Transatlantic Press)
2008: "Food Wine The Italian Riviera & Genoa" (The Little Bookroom)
2009: "Food Wine Rome" (The Little Bookroom)
2009: "Paris City of Night" (MEP, Inc)
2010: "Food Wine Burgundy"(The Little Bookroom
2011: Quiet Corners of Rome (The Little Bookroom)
2011: Paris, Paris: Journey into the City of Light (Broadway Books)
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
-based American nonfiction author, crime novelist and journalist who writes most often about culture, food and travel.
A graduate of the University of California
University of California
The University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
, Downie took a master’s degree in Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
from Brown University
Brown University
Brown University is a private, Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1764 prior to American independence from the British Empire as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations early in the reign of King George III ,...
in Providence, Rhode Island
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
, where he was a Kenyon Scholar and University Fellow. After working in the early 1980s as a translator, interpreter and press officer in Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, he moved to Paris. His writing reflects an abiding interest in French and Italian culture, politics
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
, food
Food
Food is any substance consumed to provide nutritional support for the body. It is usually of plant or animal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals...
and language
Language
Language may refer either to the specifically human capacity for acquiring and using complex systems of communication, or to a specific instance of such a system of complex communication...
.
His articles have appeared in about 50 publications, print and online, including The Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
, Bon Appétit
Bon Appétit
Bon Appétit describes itself as "a food and entertaining magazine" and is published monthly. Named after the French phrase for "Enjoy your meal", it was started by M. Frank Jones in Kansas City in 1956...
, Gourmet
Gourmet (magazine)
Gourmet magazine was a monthly publication of Condé Nast and the first U.S. magazine devoted to food and wine. Founded by Earle R. MacAusland and first published in 1941, Gourmet also covered "good living" on a wider scale....
, Gastronomica
Gastronomica
Gastronomica is a quarterly academic journal published by the University of California Press. It was established in 2001 and is currently edited by Darra Goldstein. Gastronomica covers the history, literature, representation, and cultural impact of food....
, The Art of Eating, Australian Financial Review, Salon.com
Salon.com
Salon.com, part of Salon Media Group , often just called Salon, is an online liberal magazine, with content updated each weekday. Salon was founded by David Talbot and launched on November 20, 1995. It was the internet's first online-only commercial publication. The magazine focuses on U.S...
, Epicurious.com
Epicurious
Epicurious is a website dedicated to recipes, cooking, drinking, entertaining and restaurants, and its existence hearkens back to one of the World Wide Web's earliest presences. It is owned by Condé Nast. The site also includes recipes from Bon Appétit magazine and now defunct Gourmet magazine. The...
and Concierge.com. He has acted as Paris correspondent, contributing editor or European editor for a number of publications, including Appellation, Art & Antiques and Departures. His writing has also appeared in anthologies, among them The Collected Traveler volumes on Paris, Southwest France and Central Italy. Downie is currently a European correspondent for Gadling.com, the literary travel website.
In 1997 Downie’s crime novel La tour de l’immonde, about violence and murder in central Paris and its banlieue
Banlieue
In francophone areas, banlieues are the "outskirts" of a city: the zone around a city that is under the city's rule.Banlieues are translated as "suburbs", as these are also residential areas on the outer edge of a city, but the connotations of the term "banlieue" in France can be different from...
, was published in Paris.
His first nonfiction book in English, Enchanted Liguria
Liguria
Liguria is a coastal region of north-western Italy, the third smallest of the Italian regions. Its capital is Genoa. It is a popular region with tourists for its beautiful beaches, picturesque little towns, and good food.-Geography:...
also appeared in 1997; it was translated the following year in Italy under the title La Liguria incantata. His illustrated book on the contemporary cooking of Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, Cooking the Roman Way, was listed among the top ten cookbooks of 2002 by The Chicago Tribune, Boston Globe and San Francisco Chronicle. Cooking the Roman Way is full of anecdotes about the names, hidden meanings and origins of Italian foods; useful notes explain the difference between farro
Farro
Farro is a food product consisting of the grains of certain wheat species in whole form. The exact definition is debated. It is sold dried and is prepared by cooking in water until soft, but still crunchy . It may be eaten plain, though it is often used as an ingredient in dishes such as salads and...
and spelt
Spelt
Spelt is a hexaploid species of wheat. Spelt was an important staple in parts of Europe from the Bronze Age to medieval times; it now survives as a relict crop in Central Europe and northern Spain and has found a new market as a health food. Spelt is sometimes considered a subspecies of the...
and the existence and uses of the quinto quarto
Quinto quarto
In the cuisine of modern Rome quinto quarto is the offal of butchered animals. The name makes sense on more than one level: because offal amounts to about a fourth of the weight of the carcass; because the importance of offal in Roman cooking is at least as great as any of the outer quarters, fore...
"fifth quarter" of butchered animals.
Downie’s book Paris, Paris (first edition 2005) explores the sites of Paris, from the Ile Saint-Louis
Île Saint-Louis
The Île Saint-Louis is one of two natural islands in the Seine river, in Paris, France . The island is named after King Louis IX of France ....
to Les Halles
Les Halles
Les Halles is an area of Paris, France, located in the 1er arrondissement, just south of the fashionable rue Montorgueil. It is named for the large central wholesale marketplace, which was demolished in 1971, to be replaced with an underground modern shopping precinct, the Forum des Halles...
and the parks of Montsouris
Montsouris
Parc Montsouris is a public park in the 14th arrondissement of Paris, on the rive gauche The park is fifteen hectares in area, and it is styled as an English garden, a genre popular since the early 19th century...
and Buttes Chaumont. Paris, Paris also features insights on Georges Pompidou
Georges Pompidou
Georges Jean Raymond Pompidou was a French politician. He was Prime Minister of France from 1962 to 1968, holding the longest tenure in this position, and later President of the French Republic from 1969 until his death in 1974.-Biography:...
, François Mitterrand
François Mitterrand
François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand was the 21st President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra, serving from 1981 until 1995. He is the longest-serving President of France and, as leader of the Socialist Party, the only figure from the left so far elected President...
and Coco Chanel
Coco Chanel
Gabrielle Bonheur "Coco" Chanel was a pioneering French fashion designer whose modernist thought, menswear-inspired fashions, and pursuit of expensive simplicity made her an important figure in 20th-century fashion. She was the founder of one of the most famous fashion brands, Chanel...
. The book will be reissued in April 2011 as part of the Armchair Traveler series at Broadway Books.
European pilgrimage
Pilgrimage
A pilgrimage is a journey or search of great moral or spiritual significance. Typically, it is a journey to a shrine or other location of importance to a person's beliefs and faith...
routes are another field of interest for Downie. In 2006, together with his wife, photographer Alison Harris, he walked 1,100 kilometers across France following sections of the Way of Saint James; a website documenting this journey is under construction, and Downie is now writing a book about it. The updated edition of Paris, Paris includes a new chapter on the Way of Saint James in Paris.
Downie's latest books include three volumes in the Terroir Guides series, published by The Little Bookroom, and dedicated to the food and wine of the Italian Riviera (and Genoa), Rome, and Burgundy. In 2011 a new book by Downie about Rome will be published: Quiet Corners of Rome; Paris, Paris will also be reissued in 2011.
Downie's second crime novel Paris City of Night, a Hitchcock-style thriller involving a putative terrorist plot to destroy parts of Paris, was released in 2009.
Works
- 1995: Un’altra Parigi, nove passeggiate insolite nella Ville Lumière (with Ulderico Munzi)
- 1995: The Irreverent Guide to Amsterdam
- 1997: Enchanted Liguria: A Celebration of the Culture, Lifestyle and Food of the Italian Riviera (Rizzoli International)
- Italian translation, 1998:
Paris, Paris: Journey into the City of Light
Paris, Paris: Journey into the City of Light, published in 2005, is a collection of thirty essays about Paris by author and resident David Downie. Diane Johnson wrote the foreword of the book...
(Transatlantic Press)