Bourdain: The Definitive Oral Biography

New York Times bestseller

An unprecedented behind-the-scenes view into the life of Anthony Bourdain from the people who knew him best

When Anthony Bourdain died in June 2018, fans around the globe came together to celebrate the life of an inimitable man who had dedicated his life to traveling nearly everywhere (and eating nearly everything), shedding light on the lives and stories of others. His impact was outsized and his legacy has only grown since his death.

Now, for the first time, we have been granted a look into Bourdain's life through the stories and recollections of his closest friends and colleagues. Laurie Woolever, Bourdain's longtime assistant and confidante, interviewed nearly a hundred of the people who shared Tony's orbit-from members of his kitchen crews to his writing, publishing, and television partners, to his daughter and his closest friends-in order to piece together a remarkably full, vivid, and nuanced vision of Tony's life and work.

From his childhood and teenage days, to his early years in New York, through the genesis of his game-changing memoir Kitchen Confidential to his emergence as a writing and television personality, and in the words of friends and colleagues including Eric Ripert, José Andrés, Nigella Lawson, and W. Kamau Bell, as well as family members including his brother and his late mother, we see the many sides of Tony-his motivations, his ambivalence, his vulnerability, his blind spots, and his brilliance.

Unparalleled in scope and deeply intimate in its execution, with a treasure trove of photos from Tony's life, Bourdain: The Definitive Oral Biography is a testament to the life of a remarkable man in the words of the people who shared his world.

Editorial Reviews

"[Woolever's] book is the first to begin to reveal [Anthony Bourdain]: It's the most splintered, fractal, and complex portrait of the star that has yet emerged, an enormous compendium of individual observations gathered from 91 people who knew him, including his mother, his brother, his ex-wives and his daughter, friends from school and college, ex-girlfriends, fellow chefs, writers, editors, and television colleagues." - Maria Bustillos, Eater.com

"Woolever herself stays at arms length, to powerful effect, giving her cast of characters room to air their Bourdain grievances, both petty and life-altering, and unroots some rather profound conclusions-almost Parts-Unknown-narration-level profound-about the man." - Esquire.com

"Laurie Woolever, a writer and editor who was Anthony Bourdain's longtime assistant, uses quotes to bring readers deeper into his world. . . . Through details shared by his friends and family, we learn more about Bourdain's kind heart, how much he wanted to be a writer, his habit of fidgeting when he was uncomfortable, and the dark world he inhabited, especially when traveling." - Food & Wine

"Bourdain: The Definitive Oral Biography is a tribute to how [Anthony Bourdain] and his legacy live on." - The Week

"A fascinating account…Bourdain's fans will find it impossible to put down." - Booklist

"An unfiltered study of Bourdain's life, as seen by the people closest to him. . . . Woolever compiles the perspectives of Bourdain's friends and family about the way [his] professional experiences impacted him, including during his tumultuous final year. . . . Any Anthony Bourdain fan, of which there are many, will enjoy this thoughtful tribute to an impactful cultural figure." - Library Journal

Readers Top Reviews

CLesterM. CabreraJSG

An interesting collection of stories and opinions regarding Tony Bourdain. He was clearly a complex person who gained an enormous following for his unapologetic, honest perspective on various areas of the world and the food consumed in those places. He will be missed by many.

Shawn Hamilton

Not sure if I like the format of the book, but the content was great. I learned alot about him.

GJeanie

I was eager to read this oral biography because I wanted to understand why he killed himself. The people closest to him don't give any easy answers, but there are clues. A critical, impossible to please mother; an extreme, impulsive personality; unresolved addiction issues. Bourdain's inability to cut back on the grueling travel, the gorging of food and alcohol for the shows, made him exhausted. His marriage ended. He was lonely. Then, famously, he became absolutely consumed by an affair with Asia Argento, who doesn't come off so great in this book. Still, you can't blame her for his actions - he was a grown man and God knows he could have reached out for help at any point, but something would not let him do that. Ego? A self-destructive desire for oblivion? Interesting read, but it's disturbing to me how even the most gifted and successful people can still be unable to escape the dangers of human frailty.

Just-Bob

Done through a series of interviews with friends and associates that worked well to help explain the man, his life, and what happened. It didn't gloss over the bad, but it didn't beat it to death. It truly sounds like the stories you would hear from family, friends, and business associates in the time following a funeral as people try to come to grips with the loss of someone important to them.

Robin F.

And what a loss, far too soon. The book gives interesting perspectives from those who knew him best.