BEST AUTHOR BEST : STANLEY TUCCI

 

The actor and foodie is a fan of the Nobel Prize winner Jon Fosse. His own new book, '' What I Ate In One Year. [ and Related Thoughts ],'' is '' about love, loss and the passage of time encapsulated by many meals.''

.-  What books are on your night-stand?

'' Septology,'' by Jon Fosse; ''The War in the West,'' by James Holland; '' Secret Ingredients : The New Yorker Book of Food and Drink.''

.-  What books would people be surprised to find on your shelves?

Books of military weapons and books on the public buildings constructed by the W.P.A. during F.D.R's administration.

.-  Which genres do you especially enjoy reading? Which do you avoid?

I avoid sci-fi. Don't know why I am drawn to biographies and historical fiction.

.-  What's the last great book you read?

'' Alisse at the Fire,'' by Jon Fosse. The structure of it is unlike any other book I've read. The stream of consciousness that doubles back on itself again and again and yet keeps moving forward; the brilliant repetition that never becomes redundant, creating a rhythm all its own; the melding of characters, time and place are poetic.

.-  What book are you embarrassed not to have read yet?

Too many to mention, but the usual suspects, '' War and Peace,'' '' Moby Dick,'' and so on.

.-  Where did the idea for this book come from?

Simon & Schuster in the U.S. and Penguin in the U.K., who had published '' Taste '' wanted me to write another book. I didn't want to do another cook - book.

My wife said, '' Why don't you just write about what you eat in one year?'' And there it was, the idea and the title all in one. She is too smart.

Simply put, it's about love, loss and the passage of time encapsulated by many meals eaten at many different tables. I miss writing it.

.-  How do you deal with stains?

Stains? I am very cautious when I eat. If I stain something, I will do what anyone does, I '' Shout,'' it out.

.-  '' I think of death very often,'' you write. Does thinking about food help?

Yes, because food is life affirming. Reading about food helps too.

.-  Which character from literature would you most like to play?

Fagin in '' Oliver Twist.''

The World Students Society thanks The New York Times.