Books like In the kitchen by Monica Ali

A quietly intense romance follows Connell and Marianne from high school to university as they navigate love, class, and identity in Dublin, their bond growing and fraying with each bold step.

In the orderly suburb of Shaker Heights, a new family’s arrival and a custody dispute ignite tension, revealing secrets, art, and the complex pull of motherhood in a tightly knit community.

Balram Halwai rises from servant to entrepreneur, revealing the brutal path of ambition and survival in modern India.

A Fine Balance is Rohinton Mistry's critically acclaimed second novel, set in India in the mid-1970s and focusing on four unlikely individuals who come together in a city apartment during a state of emergency.

180 p. ; 21 cm.1010L Lexile

A young man's family falls apart after a violent attack on his mother, forcing them into a world of turmoil and uncertainty.

Mary Nazneen travels from a restrictive life in Bangladesh to London, where she navigates an arranged marriage, cultural clashes, and her own desires for independence.

A young South‑Asian Londoner named Karim dreams of leaving suburbia, only to find his life—and his world—transformed when his visionary father, dubbed the "Buddha of Suburbia," entangles him in a mystic quest for identity.

Ludo, a six‑year‑old prodigy raised by his single mother Sibylla, uses his sharp mind to learn ancient languages and master complex puzzles while craving a father’s approval. Together they chase a legendary quest for honor, wisdom, and an unexpected bond.

A contemporary novel set in London about the relationship between two strangers who dine at the same restaurant and how their lives intersect over the course of a single dinner party.

A darkly humorous yet profoundly poignant tale of friendship between a Nigerian refugee and a London widow, exploring identity, displacement, and the fragile bonds that form across cultures.

A tale of moral ambiguity and marital upheaval.

A love story between a middle-aged man and a young woman from a partisans' family in London, set against the backdrop of the 1970s, exploring the seductive power of storytelling.

In the bustling streets of London, William and Neaera find the city’s hectic pace isolating; a quirky, heartwarming tale explores their lives through a turtle’s eyes and the quiet resilience of everyday workers.

A sharp commentary on race relations and the dark side of haute cuisine in New Orleans.

Food can embody our personal history as well as wider cultural histories. But what are the stories we tell ourselves about the kitchen, and how do we first come to it? How do the cookbooks we read shape us? Can cooking be a tool for connection in the kitchen and outside of it? In these essays thirteen writers consider the subjects of cooking and eating and how they shape our lives, and the possibilities and limitations the kitchen poses. Rachel Roddy traces an alternative personal history through the cookers in her life; Rebecca May Johnson considers the radical potential of finger food; Ruby Tandoh discovers other definitions of sweetness through the work of writer Doreen Fernandez; Yemisí Aríbisálà remembers a love affair in which food failed as a language; and Julia Turshen considers food’s ties to community. A collection to savour and inspire, In the Kitchen brings together thirteen contemporary writers whose work brilliantly explores food, capturing their reflections on their experiences in the kitchen and beyond.

A fresh university graduate turns to kitchen work in London’s Camden Town after falling behind on rent, and finds himself in a chaotic restaurant crew that secretly plots against their ruthless head chef.